Tadamaro Miyagawa

Tadamaro Miyagawa (August 27, 1902 – May 20, 1961) was a Japanese baron and a member of the House of Peers. His maiden name was Konoe. He was from Nara Prefecture. His father was Duke Konoe Atsumaro, and he was the brother of Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe, conductor Hidemaro Konoe, and horn player Naomaro Konoe. Tadamaro Miyagawa became the adopted son of Tadayuki Miyagawa and succeeded to the family headship.

His career included studying Western painting under Ikuma Narushima while attending Gakushuin Middle School, aspiring to be a painter. During his time at Gakushuin High School, he lost his foster mother, Yōko, in 1921. In 1923 (Taisho 12), shortly after enrolling at the Faculty of Literature, Kyoto Imperial University, he lost his foster father, Tadayuki, and inherited the baron title. During his university years, he participated in the Kyoto Imperial University Orchestra, playing the oboe, and was involved in establishing the Kyoto Music Association.

He worked on reviving his family’s traditional flower arranging school, the "Mikado-ryu," and was awarded in the Nika Exhibition. Additionally, he held public positions such as secretary to the Minister of Home Affairs and secretary to the Minister of Finance, and once served as a secretary to Kōmoto Konparu following Akihiro Harada.

He was elected as a baron member of the House of Peers in a by-election on January 22, 1938, affiliated with the Seiyokai, and served until the abolition of the House of Peers in 1947. After the war, he served as the chief priest of Kasuga Taisha and Tanzan Shrine, was the head of the Mikado-ryu flower arrangement school, enjoyed tea ceremony, and personally crafted tea bowls and tea scoops.

Regarding his family, he adopted Shuhide, the second son of Hide-maro Konoe. However, on February 25, 1939, Shuhide left the Miyagawa family register, became the adopted son of the Baron Tokiwa Ieyasu, and eventually returned to the Konoe family. Shuhide’s descendants include his eldest son, Kōei (a bassoon player), his eldest daughter, Fumiko (an NHK employee), and his second son, Daitaka (a lawyer).

Furthermore, on October 19, 1939, he adopted Toshihiro Konoe, the third son of Hide-maro Konoe (later Tadayoshi Miyagawa). Toshihiro’s daughters include violinist Yōko Miyagawa and cellist Yūko Miyagawa. In the past, there was a period when he also adopted his older brother Fumimaro’s daughter, Hiko, by his geisha daughter from Shinbashi, Yamamoto Nui.

In terms of lineage and genealogy, the Miyagawa family was a noble family from Nara Prefecture, descended from the Fujiwara line, and was one of the five regent families (Gosekke). In relation to the Imperial family, they were considered patrilineal descendants of Emperor Go-Yōzei.

As honors, he was awarded the Junior Fourth Rank on March 2, 1936.

References include the “Kizokuin Yōran (Heisei 2nd edition)” and “The 100-Year History of the Parliamentary System – Biographical Dictionary of House of Peers and House of Representatives Members.”