Emperor Ninmyō

Ninmyō
Emperor of Japan
Crown Prince (親王 Shinnō?)
Reign 823–833
Coronation January 6, 823
Emperor (天皇 Tennō?)
Reign 833–850
Enthronement March 22, 833
Predecessor Junna
Successor Montoku
Empress Fujiwara no Junshi, daughter of Fujiwara no Fuyutsugu
Full name
Masara (正良)
Era name and dates
Tenchō, Jōwa, Kashō: 824–834, 834–848, 848–851
Posthumous name
Ninmyō (仁明?)
Father Saga
Mother Tachibana no Kachiko
Born 810
Died May 6, 850
Heian Kyō (Kyōto)
Burial Fukakusa no misasagi (Kyoto)

Emperor Ninmyō (仁明天皇 Ninmyō-tennō?, 810 – May 6, 850)[1] was the 54th emperor of Japan,[2] according to the traditional order of succession.[3] Ninmyō's reign lasted from 833 to 850.[4]

Contents

Traditional narrative

Ninmyō was the second son of Emperor Saga and the Empress Tachibana no Kachiko. His personal name (imina) was Masara (正良?).[5] After his death, he was given the title Ninmyō (仁明?).

Ninmyō had nine Empresses, Imperial consorts, and concubines (kōi); and the emperor had 24 Imperial sons and daughters.[6]

Emperor Ninmyō is traditionally venerated at his tomb; the Imperial Household Agency designates Fukakusa no Misasagi (深草陵?, Fukakusa Imperial Mausoleum), in Fushimi-ku, Kyoto, as the location of Ninmyō's mausoleum.[2]

Events of Ninmyō's life

Ninmyō ascended to the throne following the abdication of his uncle, Emperor Junna.

Shortly after Ninmyo was enthroned, he designated an heir. He named as Prince Tsunesada, a son of former Emperor Junna, as the crown prince.[11]

In his lifetime, Ninmyō could not have anticipated that his third son, Prince Tokiyasu, would eventually ascend the throne in 884 as Emperor Kōkō.[15]

Eras of Ninmyō's reign

The years of Ninmyō's reign are more specifically identified by more than one era name (nengō).[20]

Kugyō

Kugyō (公卿?) is a collective term for the very few most powerful men attached to the court of the Emperor of Japan in pre-Meiji eras.[21]

In general, this elite group included only three to four men at a time. These were hereditary courtiers whose experience and background would have brought them to the pinnacle of a life's career. During Ninmyō's reign, this apex of the Daijō-kan included:

Consorts and children

Nyōgo (Tai-Kōtaigō): Fujiwara no Junshi (藤原順子) (809–871), daughter of Fujiwara no Fuyutsugu (藤原冬嗣)

Nyōgo: Fujiwara no Takushi (藤原沢子) (?–839), daughter of Fujiwara no Fusatsugu (藤原総継)

Nyōgo: Fujiwara no Teishi/Sadako (藤原貞子) (?–864), daughter of Fujiwara no Mimori (藤原三守)

Nyōgo: Tachibana no Kageko (橘影子) (?–864), daughter of Tachibana no Ujikimi (橘氏公)

Koui: Ki no Taneko (紀種子) (?–869), daughter of Ki no Natora (紀名虎)

Koui(deposed in 845): A daughter of Mikuni clan, Mikuni-machi (三国町)

Court lady: Shigeno no Tsunako (滋野縄子), daughter of Shigeno no Sadanushi (滋野貞主)

Court lady: Fujiwara no Katoko (藤原賀登子), daughter of Fujiwara no Fukutomaro (藤原福当麻呂)

Court lady: Fujiwara no Warawako (藤原小童子), daughter of Fujiwara no Michitō (藤原道遠)

Court lady: Princess Takamune (高宗女王), daughter of Prince Okaya (岡屋王)

Court lady (Nyoju): Kudara no Yōkyō (百済永慶), daughter of Kudara no Kyōfuku (百済教復)

Court lady: A daughter of Yamaguchi clan (山口氏の娘)

(from unknown women)

See also

Notes

  1. ^ Spelling note: A modified Hepburn romanization system for Japanese words is used throughout Western publications in a range of languages including English. Unlike the standard system, the "n" is maintained even when followed by "homorganic consonants" (e.g., shinbun, not shimbun). In the same way that Wikipedia has not yet adopted a consensus policy to address spelling variations in English (e.g., humour, not humor), variant spellings based on place of articulation are unresolved, perhaps unresolvable -- as in Emperor Ninmyō vs. Emperor Nimmyō, which are each construed as technically correct.
  2. ^ a b Emperor Ninmyō, Fukakusa Imperial Mausoleum, Imperial Household Agency
  3. ^ Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). The Imperial House of Japan, pp. 64-65.
  4. ^ Brown and Ishida, pp.283-284; Varley, H. Paul. (1980). Jinnō Shōtōki, p. 164-165; Titsingh, Isaac. (1834). Annales des empereurs du Japon, pp. 106-112. at Google Books
  5. ^ Brown and Ishida, p. 282; Varley, p. 164.
  6. ^ a b c d e f Brown and Ishida, p. 283.
  7. ^ Julian dates derived from NengoCalc
  8. ^ 弘仁十四年四月十九日?
  9. ^ 天長十年二月二十八日?
  10. ^ Titsingh, p. 106; Brown and Ishida, pp. 283; Varley, p. 44; a distinct act of senso is unrecognized prior to Emperor Tenji; and all sovereigns except Jitō, Yōzei, Go-Toba, and Fushimi have senso and sokui in the same year until the reign of Emperor Go-Murakami.
  11. ^ a b c Brown and Ishida, pp. 284.
  12. ^ 承和二年?
  13. ^ a b Mason and Caiger, p. 69
  14. ^ Mason and Caiger, p. 71
  15. ^ Titsingh, p. 124; Brown and Ishida, p. 289; Varley, pp. 171-175.
  16. ^ 嘉祥三年三月二十一日?
  17. ^ Brown and Ishida, p. 284
  18. ^ Adolphson, Mikael et al. (2007). Heian Japan, centers and peripheries, p. 23.
  19. ^ Brown and Ishida, p. 284; Varley, p. 165.
  20. ^ Titsingh, p. 106.
  21. ^ Heian period Imperial courts: -- kugyō of Ninmyō-tennō (in French)
  22. ^ a b Nussbaum, Louis-Frédéric. (2005). "Fujiwara no Otsugu" in Japan Encyclopedia, p. 208 at Google Books.
  23. ^ Titsingh, p. 104. at Google Books
  24. ^ Saikū Historical Museum, Meiwa, Mie: wall-display information table.

References

External links

Regnal titles
Preceded by
Emperor Junna
Emperor of Japan:
Ninmyō

833–850
Succeeded by
Emperor Montoku