Princess Aiko of Japan took a poignant step in her royal coming-of-age this week, as the much-loved only child of Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako made a two-day tour of the earthquake-ravaged Ishikawa Prefecture. Aiko, 23, represented the imperial household on the solo engagement, meeting with Governor Hiroshi Hase to discuss reconstruction efforts following the Noto earthquake, which struck the peninsula in January 2024, claiming the lives of 592 people and causing widespread devastation.
The first day of the engagement saw Princess Aiko travel to Nanao City, where she met with residents living in a temporary accommodation assembly hall following the quake. Dressed in an elegant grey blazer and trousers, the young royal was able to balance high spirits and poignant empathy in equal measure, an impressive feat considering this was her debut visit to a disaster-struck area. Talking to a group of elderly residents, Aiko implored them: ‘please take care of yourself.’
The Princess then visited a museum dedicated to local festivals in the hot spring town of Wakura Onsen, where she was shown a float for a festival that was cancelled in the wake of the 2024 earthquake, but returned to the area this year. Speaking with locals, Aiko remarked: ‘Festivals offer opportunities for people to come together, don’t they?’
For day two of the engagement, the Princess made a visit to the Shika Town Hall, as well as a temporary shopping centre and a community support centre in Ishikawa Prefecture. Dressed in another smart grey suit, Aiko once again combined her signature refined style with her keenly attuned awareness of the subtlety required by royal engagements. Having spent two days in the affected areas, including a trip to the city of Kanazawa, Princess Aiko turned to JR Station and took a train back home to Tokyo.
The 23-year-old is a royal of near-unmatched popularity, both in Japan (where manga calling for her accession to the Chrysanthemum throne have been surreptitiously circulated around the national legislature) but also in the eyes of the world’s royal watchers, who have long appreciated her grace and elegance. This debut visit to the site of a natural disaster, one of the more emotionally challenging engagements for working royal, is the latest outing in an increasingly busy schedule for Aiko.
On 27 April, as she attended a concert held by the Imperial Household’s Music Department at Tokyo’s Imperial Palace. Dressed in a matching silk blazer and skirt in pale pink, Aiko exuded a quiet confidence as she listened to kangen and bugaku performances (orchestral music and music accompanied by dance). Earlier the week, she joined a host of her royal relatives (and 1,800 guests) for the traditional Spring Imperial Garden party, which Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako hosted at the Akasaka Imperial Garden in Tokyo. Donning a floral kimono for the annual event, which is said to date back to 1880, Princess Aiko was accompanied by Fumihito, Crown Prince of Japan, his wife, Crown Princess Kiko, and their daughter, Princess Kako. Princess Akiko, daughter of Prince and Princess Tomohito of Mikasa, was also in attendance, alongside Princess Hisako, Princess Kako, Princess Tsuguko, Princess Hanako, Princess Nobuko, and Princess Yoko.
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In March, Princess Aiko made a major royal debut as she attended her first state banquet, welcoming Brazilian President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva and First Lady Rosângela ‘Janja’ Lula da Silva to the Imperial Palace in Tokyo. Aiko, whose title is Princess Toshi, was among the 110 guests at the Palace, a list that included the Emperor and Empress, as well as their niece, Princess Kako of Akinshino, and Princess Nobuko. It was a deliberately low-key affair when the Japanese royals welcomed President Lula to the Imperial Palace. No tiaras or evening gowns were worn, reportedly at the behest of the Brazilian President, who preferred a relaxed atmosphere for the banquet.
Monumentally adored by the Japanese people and the only child of the Emperor, there are many who would like to see Aiko inherit her father’s position and rule Japan. The nation’s law, however, forbids women from acceding to the Chrysanthemum Throne – a regulation that has come under increasing pressure as the Imperial Family is currently facing a lack of male heirs.
Indeed, when Princess Aiko was born on 1 December 2001, the inheritance situation was so precarious that it sparked a national debate as to whether Japan should allow a woman to serve as Empress Regnant. In 2006, then Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi addressed the controversy in his annual keynote speech, pledging to change the law and permit women to inherit the throne.
These proposals stagnated when Fumihito, Prince Akishino and his wife, Kiko, Princess Akishino, welcomed a son, Prince Hisahito, on 6 September 2006. The nephew of the Emperor, Prince Hisahito, is now second in line to the throne after his father. He was the first male heir to be born to the family in 41 years. The year following the Prince’s birth, new Prime Minister Shinzō Abe announced that he had axed the bill to alter inheritance law.
There is still great public demand for an Empress Regnant. According to polls, 80 per cent of Japanese citizens have shown support for female succession, and in 2023,1,000 people applied to attend a four-hour public forum titled ‘Making Aiko the Imperial Heir’ that was held in Tokyo. Per Nippon.com, a manga by Kobayashi Yoshinori titled Princess Aiko as Emperor has been circulating among members of the country’s national legislature.
It may be that those calling for the accession of Prince Aiko never get their wish, but as the ever-elegant royal continues to thrive in a series of challenging engagements, it is clear that she will bring joy to her people for years to come.
