What is the lifestyle of female royalty after they marry and become civilians? An in-depth look at everything from marriage partner requirements to the current number of female members of the royal family!

Japanese female members of the Imperial Family leave the Imperial Family and become “civilians ” after marriage. In terms of the current female members of the Imperial Family, Kiyoko Kuroda, the eldest daughter of the Emperor Kamihito, and Mako Komuro, the eldest daughter of His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino, have left the Imperial Family through marriage.

Does becoming a civilian drastically change the way you live your life afterwards?

Here we will discuss how life changes after marriage for female members of the Imperial Family. We will explain the requirements for marriage partners and the current number of female members of the Imperial Family.

What happens to female members of the Imperial Family when they marry and leave the Imperial Family?

What happens when female members of the Imperial Family marry and become civilians = ordinary citizens? Here we will explain two points: “Relative Relationships” and “Work after Marriage “.

About socializing with relatives

Regarding post-marital relations of female members of the royal family, there is some information that after the marriage of the current Queen Empress Michiko,socializing with Michiko’s parents was discouraged.

However, Kiyoko Kuroda, the eldest daughter of the Emperor and Empress, obtained a regular driver’s license before her marriage, and drove alone to the palace in the Fukiage area to talk to the Emperor and Michiko.

Because of this, the current female members of the royal family are free to go to their parents’ home after marriage. Thereby, they also participate in New Year’s greetings andbirthday celebrations with their husbands as former members of the royal family.

These points may have changed over time.

Work after marriage

Regarding the work of female members of the Imperial Family, you may hear the terms “president” and “honorary president ” in the media today.

Currently, Her Imperial Highness Prince Akishino’s second daughter, Kako, has also been appointed as “President of the Japan Crafts Council, a public interest incorporated association. This appointment was made after careful consideration by the Imperial Household Agency and the female member of the Imperial Family herself, who endorses and wishes to cooperate with the activities of the organization.

It seems that the female members of the Imperial Family basically resign their positions as president or honorary president upon marriage, which they used to do when they were unmarried, that is, when they were members of the Imperial Family.

However, certain actions by female members of the Imperial Family in the past have led to a change in the tradition. It began in 2008, when Ayako Moriya, the third daughter of Prince Takamado, became the honorary president of theJapan-Canada (Canada-Japan) Society and theJapan Marine Youth League, a position she had held until then.

According to the customary practice of the Imperial Family, Ayako would have resigned her position as Honorary President after her marriage, but due to Ayako’s earnest desire to continue her honorary position, she has decided to continue it even after her marriage.

This was a groundbreaking event for the Imperial Family at that time. Since then, a new wind has undoubtedly blown in the Imperial Household, and it is quite possible that it will continue to exist when Kako, the second daughter of Prince Akishino’s family, is married, perhaps after her marriage, if the Imperial Household Agency makes a careful decision and if Kako herself requests it.

Changes in life after leaving the Imperial Family

When a female member of the Imperial Family leaves the Imperial Family, what are the subsequent changes in her life?

Recall the common sight on TV news when the current female members of the royal family go on official duties.

• Security will be unavailable.
• No more pick-ups and drop-offs.

Let’s discuss these two points in detail.

Security will be unavailable.

Whenever a female member of the royal family got married, she was always accompanied by a security guard, called an SP, when she went out on official business or other occasions.

However, according to Imperial Family custom, once a person marries and becomes a citizen, he or she is no longer a member of the Imperial Family, and the police security that has been provided up to this point will basically cease to exist. The same applies to the “transportation” described below.

In the case of Kiyoko Kuroda, security was provided for some time after her marriage, as she had not long left the imperial family after her marriage.

Currently, no security is provided as Kiyoko-san is now driving alone. Mako Komuro moved to the U.S. after her marriage, but there were reports that security is still provided.

Whether or not this is true is currently not known for sure, but people who often pass by the building where the two live say that they have never seen security in sight.

Currently, security may be gone.

No more pick-ups and drop-offs.

Basically, when a female member of the royal family marries, she becomes a civilian and no longer receives the transportation that she had previously received.

This was the case with Kiyoko Kuroda. There would have been no pick-up and drop-off from the beginning.

In the case of Mako Komuro, it took three years from engagement to marriage, and she did not receive any transportation for some time after her marriage, as it was quite controversial.

A “lump sum” paid when a female member of the royal family marries.

Female members of the Imperial Family receive a lump-sum payment from the government upon marriage. This is stipulated in the “Imperial Household Economy Law,” and its purpose is to “preserve the dignity of former members of the Imperial Family.

So how is this lump sum decided? And are there any women who have refused the lump sum? This section will explain about the following.

How do you determine the amount?

The maximum amount of that lump sum is limited to 150 million yen. It is the Prime Minister and the Ministry of Finance who officially determine the amount to be paid at the meeting of the Imperial Economic Council.

As for the much-discussed Mako Komuro, it is probably still fresh in your mind that she will not receive a lump-sum payment, which is an unusual situation for the Imperial Family so far.

The fact that there was no “nasai-no-gi” or other ceremonies was quite unusual in the imperial family.

Have any of the women turned down the lump sum?

It has been customary for female members of the royal family to receive a lump-sum payment from the government when they get married, but have any of them refused to accept it?

In fact, Mako Komuro is the first person to have refused or declined to receive a lump-sum payment. Until then, there had been no precedent of her declining it, even at the Imperial Household Economic Council.

Mako Komuro was the first member of the Imperial Family to not even perform the “nosai-no-ki” ceremony, which is held when a couple gets married.

Are there any requirements for female royal marriage partners?

Are there any requirements for female members of the Imperial Family to marry? The following is written in the “Imperial Household Code,” the law concerning the Imperial Family.

Article 12: “Women of the Imperial Family shall leave the status of the Imperial Family if they marry a person other than the Emperor and members of the Imperial Family.

No further ordinances are required.

However, if it was a high-profile marriage, they will inevitably be interested in the marriage partner’s occupation, income, and education.

From here, we will look at the occupations and annual incomes of the female members of the Imperial Family who have left the Imperial Family so far. We will now look at the occupations, income, and educational backgrounds of the female members of the Imperial Family who have left the Imperial Family.

Occupation and income of marriage partner

Since there is no rule other than that they must marry and cease to be members of the royal family, this means that it is a good thing to be an ordinary man.

However, it seems to me that if he marries a woman from the royal family, he would have to be a man in his own right, even if he is a civilian.

In this case, the opposite is true, since the Empress Masako and the Princess Akishino and Noriko married into the Imperial Family from the private sector. Then, Kiyoko Kuroda, who became a civilian from the Imperial Family, is this.

In fact, after the enactment of the “Imperial Household Law, ” Kiyoko Kuroda married the first man who was not a member of the Imperial Family. Let’s take a look at the occupation and annual income of Kiyoko Kuroda’s husband, Yoshiki Kuroda, when they were first married.

• Occupation: Worked for “Bureau of Urban Development, Tokyo Metropolitan Government” at the time of marriage in 2005
• Annual income: estimated at less than 5 million yen

The marriage prospect report states that the monthly salary is estimated at 350,000 yen to 390,000 yen. Even at 350,000 yen on that basis, the annual income would be 4.2 million yen; at 390,000 yen, the annual income would be 4.68 million yen.

In any case, this means an annual income of less than 5 million yen. Next, let’s look at educational background.

Educational background of marriage partner

Mr. Yoshiki Kuroda’s educational background began in 1972 when he entered Gakushuin Elementary School. At that time, he was a schoolmate of Kiyoko’s elder brother, His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino (Prince Fumihito), since their elementary school days.

Later, when he advanced to higher education, he was a member of the photography and geography clubs with His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino, and he was also a member of the nature and culture study group at the university.

For this reason, His Imperial Highness Prince Akishino is well aware of Mr. Kuroda’s character from a businessman’s family, which is probably why he and Ms. Kiyoko got married.

Is Japan the only country in the world where marriage makes one not a member of the royal family?

Is Japan the only country in the world where a female member of the Imperial Family becomes a civilian rather than a member of the Imperial Family when she marries someone who is not a member of the Imperial Family?

The term “imperial family” has been used again and again, but in the United States and other Western countries, there is no “royal or imperial family” to begin with.

In the U.S., because of the concept of “all people are equal,” there is no way to call or conceptually separate the royal family from civilians, as is the case in Japan.

That is why it may seem strange in the U.S. to say, “A woman of the imperial family married and became a civilian.

Therefore, it can be said that “one ceases to be a member of the royal family upon marriage” is a rule and a way of thinking that is unique to Japan.

How many female members of the Imperial Family are currently in the Imperial Family?

Including Mako Komuro when she was unmarried, the total number of unmarried female members of the Imperial Family was 6. After Mako Komuro’s marriage, the number of unmarried female members of the Imperial Family was 5. The overall number of members of the Imperial Family is now 17.

Let us look at the number of women born into the Imperial Family and the number of women who became members of the Imperial Family through marriage.

Number of women born into the royal family

The number of women born into the Imperial Family will include Kiyoko Kuroda and Mako Komuro, who have already left the Imperial Family.

Counting from Emperor Showa’s generation, there were seven. The breakdown is as follows.

• Her Imperial Highness Princess Akiko, eldest daughter of Prince Tomohito of Mikasa
• Her Imperial Highness Queen Yoriko, second daughter of Prince Tomohito of Mikasa
• Her Imperial Highness Princess Shoko, eldest daughter of Prince Norihito Takamado
• Kiyoko Kuroda, eldest daughter of His Majesty the Emperor (Akihito)
• His Imperial Highness Princess Aiko, the eldest daughter of His Majesty the Emperor (Tokuhito)
• Mako Komuro, eldest daughter of Prince Fumihito Akishino
• Her Imperial Highness Princess Kako, second daughter of Prince Fumihito Akishino

This brings the total to seven. Kiyoko Kuroda and Mako Komuro have been removed from the list, so there are now five members.

Number of women who became members of the royal family by marriage

Now let us look at the number of women who became members of the Imperial Family by marriage. Let us take a look at the number of women who have joined the royal family since the Showa period.

• Emperor Showa and Empress Kajun
• Princess Sezuko, Princess Chichibu
• Princess Kikuko, Princess Takamatsu
• Her Imperial Highness Princess Mikasa and Princess Yuriko Mikasa
• Her Imperial Highness Princess Nobuko, Prince Tomohito of Mikasa
• Her Imperial Highness Princess Norihito Takamado and Her Imperial Highness Hisako
• His Majesty the Emperor, Empress and Empress Michiko
• His Majesty the Emperor (Tokuhito) and Empress Masako
• Her Imperial Highness Princess Fumihito Akishino and Her Imperial Highness Princess Noriko

That is nine people.

What is the major role played by female members of the Imperial Family?

The role of the female members of the Imperial Family is to support the Emperor in his official duties and various other activities.

At the age of 20, when they reach the age of maturity, they will be invited to the traditional Imperial family event of Utakai-ki, and to entertain guests invited from various countries.

In that case, they will participate by wearing very graceful dresses andtiaras, which alone will enhance the occasion.

You may have seen the TV news and other media coverage of the dinner parties and other events with invited guests, and I saw them dressed up beautifully and looking truly beautiful.

If you want to know more about the royal families of the world

Originally, there is supposed to be no distinction between “royal family,” “imperial family,” “royal family,” and “civilians” in the world or in Japan.

However, television and other media may use such words to explain things in an easy-to-understand manner and convey a variety of information.

It is a prestigious, very strict and demanding world, but if you look at it from the perspective of “all people are equal,” as in the U.S., it may seem a bit reserved.

However, more and more people hope to be able to connect the world together with the members of the Imperial Family and have a happy married life themselves.