August 6, 2024 • 24 mins
In 2021, Princess Mako of Japan made headlines for giving up her royal title in order to marry a commoner. On the surface, it sounds like a picture-perfect love story. But the truth of their courtship, and the rules around the imperial family in Japan, are anything but simple.
Support Noble Blood:
— Bonus episodes, stickers, and scripts on Patreon
— Order Dana's book, 'Anatomy: A Love Story' and its sequel 'Immortality: A Love Story'
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of iHeartRadio and Grim
and Mild from Aaron Manky listener discretion advised. It's an
age old trope, a royal and a commoner falling in love.
It all started, of course, at least if you were
(00:21):
a disney kid like me, with Cinderella, a tale whose
actually oldest known version dates back to the late first
century BC, when the Greek historian Strabo recorded the tale
of Rhodopis, an enslaved girl who married the king of Egypt.
Then there are the countless versions of Cinderella across cultures,
(00:45):
and plenty of stories with different takes on the commoner
royal formula, the Princess Bride, Roman holiday, the one where
Julia Stiles goes to college with the Prince of Denmark.
It's a trope that has sold count less romance novels
and earns the Hallmark Channel a significant chunk of their
(01:05):
Christmas season prophet. Because of the nature of the trope,
many of these stories share a central conflict, do you
choose love or do you choose duty? For Princess Mako
of Akashino, now known simply as Macho Kumuro, the choice
was clear quote for me, Kai is irreplaceable, Macho told
(01:29):
the press of her now husband. Marriage was a necessary
choice to be able to protect our hearts in a
cherishing way. We the two of us, will start our
new life. If Macho and Kay's story is ringing any bells,
you might have seen pictures of them out and about
in their new home of New York City, usually paired
(01:53):
with actual tabloid headlines like quote Japan's Princess Mako's shops
for towels at bed, Bath and Beyond and then gets
lost on her way home to Hell's Kitchen on week
after arriving in New York City to start a new
life with her commoner husband, or quote former Japanese Princess
Mako Kumuru looks loved up as she strolls hand in
(02:16):
hand with commoner husband in New York City after he
failed bar exam for second time. Or maybe even quote
Princess Mako goes shopping at Amish Market in New York
as she's pictured for first time since her commoner husband
finally passed the bar exam on his third attempt. Mako
(02:37):
chose Kai, Yes, even with all those failed bar attempts,
But the reality of life in the Japanese royal family
meant that choosing a commoner wasn't really much of a
choice at all. There was no path for Mako to
become empress, with or without marriage. Women cannot inherit Japan's
(02:59):
chrysanthemum throne, and the country hasn't had an empress since
seventeen seventy one. On top of that, because Japan no
longer has nobility, all royals technically marry commoners, but where
a son's wife would be elevated to his royal status,
(03:19):
a daughter will be demoted to her husband's commoner status.
Mako's marriage would go on to ignite a debate about
feminism in Japan, about imperial succession, and about royal customs.
At the same time, she would face such intense backlash
and scrutiny that she would later announce a diagnosis with
(03:43):
c PTSD. But ultimately, this episode is a love story.
I love Maco. Ka told the press, we only get
one life, and I want us to spend it with
the one we love. I'm Dana Schwartz, and this is
noble blood. Mako Kimura was born Princess Mako of Akashino
(04:06):
on October twenty third, nineteen ninety one. Her father is Fumihito,
Prince Akashino, the younger brother and heir presumptive of the
Emperor of Japan, and Mako's mother is Kiko, Princess Akashino,
a former academic with no imperial ties. Before we get
(04:27):
further into Mako's life, we have to understand how succession
works in Japan. The line of succession is currently governed
by the Imperial Household Law of nineteen forty seven, enacted
under post World War II American occupation during the reign
of Emperor Hirohito, Mako's great grandfather. The new law had
(04:53):
dramatic effects, cutting ties with eleven out of twelve branches
of the imperial family and reducing the royal family to
the Emperor's immediate family and the families of his brothers.
This separation was intended to block the potential of using
another branch of the family to revive the militarism that
(05:17):
led to World War II. These quote parallel lineages, functioning
as the nobility and aristocracy historically existed to offer male
successors to the throne in the case the main line
could not produce an air while also serving as a
marriage pool for imperial princesses. The nineteen forty seven law
(05:41):
also stated that only a male child descended from a
male emperor could ascend the throne, and imperial princesses must
leave the royal family upon their marriage to a commoner.
The first princess to actually see the consequences of that
law was actually Hirohito's own daughter, Kazuko, who became the
(06:05):
first member of the imperial family to marry a commoner
in nineteen fifty. But again, she didn't have a choice
three short years earlier, her husband had been considered a
prince and a nobleman before Maco. The most recent princess
to have left the royal family was her aunt Siako.
(06:26):
In two thousand and five, she married a town planner,
and she now holds a position as a high priestess.
The BBC reported that upon leaving the royal family with
her new husband, she had to learn how to drive,
shop in a supermarket and buy furniture. Mako was only
fourteen years old at that time, and while she knew
(06:49):
that she would one day have to give up her
title if she chose to marry, those worries could wait
she grew up with her younger sister, Princess Kako, and
later her younger brother, Prince Hishato. Born when she was fifteen,
she attended Gakushin School, originally designed solely to educate the
imperial children and children of aristocracy, for her primary through
(07:14):
high school years. The Japanese public knew and saw very
little of the princess during that time, with images of
her being released only through official palace channels. That changed
in two thousand and four, when she was thirteen, images
of Mako in her sailor fuko, the iconic Japanese girls'
(07:38):
school uniform best known to Western audiences through anime like
Sailor Moon, appeared on television. A video featuring fan art
of the princess in her uniform was uploaded on the
Tokyo based video sharing website Nico Nicoduga and attracted over
a quarter of a million views and eighty six thousand comments.
(08:01):
When asked for their comment, the somewhat befuddled Imperial Household
Agency said they were unsure how to respond as the
video quote did not seem to be derogatory towards either
the princess or the imperial family. A very modern princess story.
(08:21):
In twenty eleven, Macho came of age when she turned
twenty and began attending official events as an adult member
of the royal family. She had already privately been working
as a volunteer in areas affected by the devastating twenty
eleven earthquake and tsunami, going so far as to use
a nickname to hide her true identity, although some people
(08:45):
still recognized her. During this time, she also began studying
liberal arts at Tokyo's International Christian University, and she studied
abroad for a semester in Dublin. When the Palace announced
her intentions, a spokesman was apparently asked if she would
be allowed to go out with Irish boys. Quote that's
(09:08):
not the sort of irresponsible question I can answer, he
replied curtly. Her time in Ireland was clearly inspiring. She
went on to study abroad for another semester at the
University of Edinburgh, and after graduating from the International Christian
University in twenty fourteen with her degree in Art and
(09:30):
Cultural Heritage, she went on to receive her Masters in Art,
Museum and Gallery Studies from the University of Leicester. She
put her degree to use when she took a position
as a project researcher at the University of Tokyo's University
Museum in twenty sixteen. It was during her time at
(09:51):
university that she met her future husband, K Komoro. They
were both students at the Christian University, but they met
attending a study a broad event at a Tokyo restaurant.
K was, by all means a normal student with no
royal ties, unless you count his title as quote Prince
of the Sea, a role he once played in a
(10:13):
tourism campaign for the city of Fujisawa. The couple has
kept the details of their courtship private, but we know
the Sea Prince proposed over dinner in twenty thirteen, and
then the couple maintained the relationship long distance while Mako
was in the UK. The engagement wouldn't be formally announced
(10:36):
until Nako returned and settled back into life in Japan
in twenty seventeen. Quote. I've been aware since my childhood
that I would lose royal status once I married, Macho
said at a press conference. While I've worked to help
the emperor and fulfill duties as a royal family member
as much as I can. I've been cherishing my own
(10:58):
life twenty five. This meant Macho was only a quote
official working member of the royal family for five years.
With the Emperor's approval, the princess introduced the country to
her future husband, a twenty five year old law firm
employee with no historic royal ties. She told the world
(11:21):
that she first fell for his quote smile like the sun,
he told them. She watched over him quietly, quote like
the moon. They planned to be married the next year.
The public response was initially positive, supportive of the princess
and her love story, but as we all know, that
(11:43):
can change on a dime. The engagement of Macho and
k was doomed to be plagued by concerns and scandals
that didn't actually involve the couple as individuals. The announcement
that Macho'd be leaving the royal fam family reignited the
now decades old debate as to whether or not royal
(12:06):
women should be allowed to retain their royal status upon
marriage and even potentially gain positions in the line of succession.
At the time of Mako's announcement, a poll from Kyoto
News showed that eighty six percent of those surveyed said
they were in favor of allowing a female to reign,
(12:27):
and about two thirds said that sons or daughters born
of royal women should also be allowed to ascend to
the throne. Still, for those in disagreement, the royal family
is one of the last remaining embodiments of tradition in Japan,
and any change within it is highly feared. The debate
(12:50):
was especially heated because at the same time Emperor Akihido
had given Macho and k his blessing, the Japanese government
was considering his request to abdicate. There was no legal
precedent for him to do so, and so he publicly
asked Parliament to amend the laws so he could pass
(13:13):
the title on to his eldest son. That law was passed,
and in twenty nineteen, Mako's uncle Naruhito, ascended to the throne.
There's a practical argument for letting women remain in the
royal family and or reign themselves. The line of succession
(13:34):
is incredibly short. The current line of succession is Mako's uncle,
then Mako's father, and then Prince Hisahito, Her seventeen year
old younger brother. That's it three people. It's clear that
the monarchy is not sustainable with the current laws of succession,
(13:54):
but the debate as to how the problem will be
solved rages on. The other public scandal was centered around
Kay's mother. As one would expect, the Japanese press dug
into his background, particularly his family. Less than a year
(14:15):
after the engagement was announced, tabloids reported that his mother,
a widow who raised him by herself, had borrowed four
million yen about thirty six thousand dollars from an ex
boyfriend and never paid it back. Part of the money
was reported to have paid for her son's schooling. Though
(14:37):
Kay himself had nothing to do with this, that didn't
matter in the eyes of the public. In a culture
that puts a lot of weight on family, he was
no longer considered princely. He was a gold digger looking
to use Mako in the royal family for their wealth,
never mind the fact that by marrying him she would
(14:58):
be leaving the royal family, who are not independently wealthy.
It was such an uproar that the wedding was delayed.
Mako told the press quote, I wish to think about
marriage more deeply and concretely. Shortly after that, in the
summer of twenty eighteen, Fordham Law announced that Kay would
(15:18):
be attending their school in the fall on a full
ride merit scholarship. Some speculated that he was being sent
away or that he had somehow manipulated his way into
the scholarship. In a news conference that same year, Miko's father,
Crown Prince Akashino, said he quote respected the desire of
(15:40):
the couple to wed, but that an official ceremony would
not take place unless the public approved. In twenty twenty,
at Akashino's urging, Kay released a twenty eight page document
explaining his mother's loan, and his lawyer later vowed that
mister Komor would pay it back. That didn't do much
(16:03):
to change public opinion of him. Things actually worsened when
photos of him appeared in New York with God Forbid
a ponytail. He was torn to shreds on social media,
with many believing the look was unkempt and unbecoming of
a princess's future husband. The engagement would remain in limbo
(16:28):
for years. The Emperor and Empress shared that the public
would quote wait for Princess Mako to make her own decisions.
It wasn't until twenty twenty one that the public finally
learned what that decision was. Mako and Kay were still
very much together and they would finally be married. The
(16:50):
lead of the New York Times article announcing they were
finally to be wed read quote, anyone who dreams of
being a princess should probably have a chat with Princess
Mako of Japan. Normally, a princess leaving the royal family
is entitled to official ceremonies marking her departure and a
(17:12):
dowry of about one point four million yen to start
her new life. Mico turned it all down. It made
her the first female member of the royal family to
refuse a dowry post World War II. In announcing why
there wouldn't be a royal wedding, the Imperial Household Agency
(17:33):
explained it was quote because their marriage is not celebrated
by many people. At the same time, it was also
announced that the princess had been diagnosed with complex post
traumatic stress disorder due to the public scrutiny quote, she
felt like her dignity as a human being had been trampled.
(17:54):
On Her psychiatrist said in a news conference, she thinks
of herself as so without value. Mako's CPTSD is part
of a sad history of women in the Japanese royal
family developing mental health struggles. In the nineteen sixties, Empress
Michiko lost the ability to speak for seven months and
(18:17):
continued to suffer from nervous breakdowns, mouth ulcers, nosebleeds, and
more physical complications due to the pressure of her position.
Her daughter in law, the current Empress Masako, retreated from
public events for a period of time beginning in two
thousand and four, after facing intense scrutiny for failing to
(18:40):
produce a male air. She had previously suffered a miscarriage.
Doctor Kristin Roebuck, an assistant professor at Cornell and historian
of modern Japan, explained this unique crisis to the cut quote,
whether you're marrying into the royal family like the current
Empress did, or you're marrying out of the royal family
(19:04):
like the former Princess Meko did, It's always understood in
Japan that the women are a temporary part of the
royal family, and so they just don't get the same
respect end quote. It's a complex task to discuss Japanese
gender politics, and it's not something we can give enough
(19:24):
time to today. But Western listeners might see parallels between
Mago's story and Megan Markles. Intense, often singularly vicious scrutiny
of women entering or leaving the royal family is not
unique to any one culture. The idea of a royal
family and everything it stands for, has always been threatened
(19:48):
by a woman who refuses to conform to and comply
with the pressures of both the family and the public,
and every tradition and standard that the royal family stands for.
On October twenty sixth, twenty twenty one, Maco and Kay
simply registered their marriage in Tokyo and held a press
(20:10):
conference afterward. Then, Mako began the process of obtaining her
first passport so the couple could move to New York.
The couple now live in a one bedroom apartment in
the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. Kay eventually passed the bar exam
on his third try and is now an associate at
a New York firm. As of April twenty twenty two,
(20:33):
Mako was working as a volunteer at the Metropolitan Museum
of Art assisting curators in the Asian Art department. If
being an unpaid intern isn't the New York City experience,
I don't know what is. The most recent photos of
the couple are paparazzi shots from twenty twenty three of
(20:55):
the pair riding the bus together, his arm around her shoulder.
That's the story of the Princess of Japan marrying a commoner.
But keep listening after a brief sponsor break to hear
a slightly more dramatic story that happened to another female
(21:18):
member of the Japanese royal family. Meko was not the
first former Japanese princess to move to the United States
after marriage. Takako Shimazu, the youngest daughter of Emperor Hirohito,
(21:40):
was once known as Princess Suga, but her marriage to
a banker led to her spending two years in an
apartment in Washington, d c. When she returned to Japan,
she faced criticism for taking a position as a consultant
at an exclusive store in Tokyo, making her the first
(22:00):
member of the imperial family to hold a commercial job.
Those who criticized her life for being too ordinary may
have been forgetting one extraordinary incident, before Tacaco left for Washington,
she narrowly escaped a kidnapping attempt by six men posing
(22:22):
as bill collectors. They attempted to gain entry to her home,
which they knew the location of thanks to extensive media coverage,
and unlike Mako, they knew Tacaco had not turned down
the dowry princesses are entitled to upon leaving the royal family.
The plan was not foiled by a sting operation or
(22:45):
a vigilante swooping in, but rather one of the potential
kidnappers himself, who tipped off the press that there was
a plan to kidnap the princess. A judge ultimately ruled
that the plan didn't get far enough to constitute an
attempted kidnapping, but the men were arrested for trespassing and
(23:06):
illegal possession of weapons and sentenced to prison for terms
ranging from eight months to three years. No one said
being a princess, or even a former princess, was easy.
(23:32):
Noble Blood is a production of iHeartRadio and Grimm and
Mild from Aaron Mankey. Noble Blood is hosted by me
Danish Forts with additional writing and researching by Hannah Johnston,
Hannah Zewick, Courtney Sender, Julia Milani, and Armand Cassam. The
show is edited and produced by Noemi Griffin and rima
(23:55):
Ill Kali, with supervising producer Josh Thain and executive producers
Aaron Manke, Alex Williams, and Matt Frederick. For more podcasts
from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever
you listen to your favorite shows.
Welcome to Noble Blood, a production of iHeartRadio and Grim
and Mild from Aaron Manky listener discretion advised. It's an
age old trope, a royal and a commoner falling in love.
It all started, of course, at least if you were
(00:21):
a disney kid like me, with Cinderella, a tale whose
actually oldest known version dates back to the late first
century BC, when the Greek historian Strabo recorded the tale
of Rhodopis, an enslaved girl who married the king of Egypt.
Then there are the countless versions of Cinderella across cultures,
(00:45):
and plenty of stories with different takes on the commoner
royal formula, the Princess Bride, Roman holiday, the one where
Julia Stiles goes to college with the Prince of Denmark.
It's a trope that has sold count less romance novels
and earns the Hallmark Channel a significant chunk of their
(01:05):
Christmas season prophet. Because of the nature of the trope,
many of these stories share a central conflict, do you
choose love or do you choose duty? For Princess Mako
of Akashino, now known simply as Macho Kumuro, the choice
was clear quote for me, Kai is irreplaceable, Macho told
(01:29):
the press of her now husband. Marriage was a necessary
choice to be able to protect our hearts in a
cherishing way. We the two of us, will start our
new life. If Macho and Kay's story is ringing any bells,
you might have seen pictures of them out and about
in their new home of New York City, usually paired
(01:53):
with actual tabloid headlines like quote Japan's Princess Mako's shops
for towels at bed, Bath and Beyond and then gets
lost on her way home to Hell's Kitchen on week
after arriving in New York City to start a new
life with her commoner husband, or quote former Japanese Princess
Mako Kumuru looks loved up as she strolls hand in
(02:16):
hand with commoner husband in New York City after he
failed bar exam for second time. Or maybe even quote
Princess Mako goes shopping at Amish Market in New York
as she's pictured for first time since her commoner husband
finally passed the bar exam on his third attempt. Mako
(02:37):
chose Kai, Yes, even with all those failed bar attempts,
But the reality of life in the Japanese royal family
meant that choosing a commoner wasn't really much of a
choice at all. There was no path for Mako to
become empress, with or without marriage. Women cannot inherit Japan's
(02:59):
chrysanthemum throne, and the country hasn't had an empress since
seventeen seventy one. On top of that, because Japan no
longer has nobility, all royals technically marry commoners, but where
a son's wife would be elevated to his royal status,
(03:19):
a daughter will be demoted to her husband's commoner status.
Mako's marriage would go on to ignite a debate about
feminism in Japan, about imperial succession, and about royal customs.
At the same time, she would face such intense backlash
and scrutiny that she would later announce a diagnosis with
(03:43):
c PTSD. But ultimately, this episode is a love story.
I love Maco. Ka told the press, we only get
one life, and I want us to spend it with
the one we love. I'm Dana Schwartz, and this is
noble blood. Mako Kimura was born Princess Mako of Akashino
(04:06):
on October twenty third, nineteen ninety one. Her father is Fumihito,
Prince Akashino, the younger brother and heir presumptive of the
Emperor of Japan, and Mako's mother is Kiko, Princess Akashino,
a former academic with no imperial ties. Before we get
(04:27):
further into Mako's life, we have to understand how succession
works in Japan. The line of succession is currently governed
by the Imperial Household Law of nineteen forty seven, enacted
under post World War II American occupation during the reign
of Emperor Hirohito, Mako's great grandfather. The new law had
(04:53):
dramatic effects, cutting ties with eleven out of twelve branches
of the imperial family and reducing the royal family to
the Emperor's immediate family and the families of his brothers.
This separation was intended to block the potential of using
another branch of the family to revive the militarism that
(05:17):
led to World War II. These quote parallel lineages, functioning
as the nobility and aristocracy historically existed to offer male
successors to the throne in the case the main line
could not produce an air while also serving as a
marriage pool for imperial princesses. The nineteen forty seven law
(05:41):
also stated that only a male child descended from a
male emperor could ascend the throne, and imperial princesses must
leave the royal family upon their marriage to a commoner.
The first princess to actually see the consequences of that
law was actually Hirohito's own daughter, Kazuko, who became the
(06:05):
first member of the imperial family to marry a commoner
in nineteen fifty. But again, she didn't have a choice
three short years earlier, her husband had been considered a
prince and a nobleman before Maco. The most recent princess
to have left the royal family was her aunt Siako.
(06:26):
In two thousand and five, she married a town planner,
and she now holds a position as a high priestess.
The BBC reported that upon leaving the royal family with
her new husband, she had to learn how to drive,
shop in a supermarket and buy furniture. Mako was only
fourteen years old at that time, and while she knew
(06:49):
that she would one day have to give up her
title if she chose to marry, those worries could wait
she grew up with her younger sister, Princess Kako, and
later her younger brother, Prince Hishato. Born when she was fifteen,
she attended Gakushin School, originally designed solely to educate the
imperial children and children of aristocracy, for her primary through
(07:14):
high school years. The Japanese public knew and saw very
little of the princess during that time, with images of
her being released only through official palace channels. That changed
in two thousand and four, when she was thirteen, images
of Mako in her sailor fuko, the iconic Japanese girls'
(07:38):
school uniform best known to Western audiences through anime like
Sailor Moon, appeared on television. A video featuring fan art
of the princess in her uniform was uploaded on the
Tokyo based video sharing website Nico Nicoduga and attracted over
a quarter of a million views and eighty six thousand comments.
(08:01):
When asked for their comment, the somewhat befuddled Imperial Household
Agency said they were unsure how to respond as the
video quote did not seem to be derogatory towards either
the princess or the imperial family. A very modern princess story.
(08:21):
In twenty eleven, Macho came of age when she turned
twenty and began attending official events as an adult member
of the royal family. She had already privately been working
as a volunteer in areas affected by the devastating twenty
eleven earthquake and tsunami, going so far as to use
a nickname to hide her true identity, although some people
(08:45):
still recognized her. During this time, she also began studying
liberal arts at Tokyo's International Christian University, and she studied
abroad for a semester in Dublin. When the Palace announced
her intentions, a spokesman was apparently asked if she would
be allowed to go out with Irish boys. Quote that's
(09:08):
not the sort of irresponsible question I can answer, he
replied curtly. Her time in Ireland was clearly inspiring. She
went on to study abroad for another semester at the
University of Edinburgh, and after graduating from the International Christian
University in twenty fourteen with her degree in Art and
(09:30):
Cultural Heritage, she went on to receive her Masters in Art,
Museum and Gallery Studies from the University of Leicester. She
put her degree to use when she took a position
as a project researcher at the University of Tokyo's University
Museum in twenty sixteen. It was during her time at
(09:51):
university that she met her future husband, K Komoro. They
were both students at the Christian University, but they met
attending a study a broad event at a Tokyo restaurant.
K was, by all means a normal student with no
royal ties, unless you count his title as quote Prince
of the Sea, a role he once played in a
(10:13):
tourism campaign for the city of Fujisawa. The couple has
kept the details of their courtship private, but we know
the Sea Prince proposed over dinner in twenty thirteen, and
then the couple maintained the relationship long distance while Mako
was in the UK. The engagement wouldn't be formally announced
(10:36):
until Nako returned and settled back into life in Japan
in twenty seventeen. Quote. I've been aware since my childhood
that I would lose royal status once I married, Macho
said at a press conference. While I've worked to help
the emperor and fulfill duties as a royal family member
as much as I can. I've been cherishing my own
(10:58):
life twenty five. This meant Macho was only a quote
official working member of the royal family for five years.
With the Emperor's approval, the princess introduced the country to
her future husband, a twenty five year old law firm
employee with no historic royal ties. She told the world
(11:21):
that she first fell for his quote smile like the sun,
he told them. She watched over him quietly, quote like
the moon. They planned to be married the next year.
The public response was initially positive, supportive of the princess
and her love story, but as we all know, that
(11:43):
can change on a dime. The engagement of Macho and
k was doomed to be plagued by concerns and scandals
that didn't actually involve the couple as individuals. The announcement
that Macho'd be leaving the royal fam family reignited the
now decades old debate as to whether or not royal
(12:06):
women should be allowed to retain their royal status upon
marriage and even potentially gain positions in the line of succession.
At the time of Mako's announcement, a poll from Kyoto
News showed that eighty six percent of those surveyed said
they were in favor of allowing a female to reign,
(12:27):
and about two thirds said that sons or daughters born
of royal women should also be allowed to ascend to
the throne. Still, for those in disagreement, the royal family
is one of the last remaining embodiments of tradition in Japan,
and any change within it is highly feared. The debate
(12:50):
was especially heated because at the same time Emperor Akihido
had given Macho and k his blessing, the Japanese government
was considering his request to abdicate. There was no legal
precedent for him to do so, and so he publicly
asked Parliament to amend the laws so he could pass
(13:13):
the title on to his eldest son. That law was passed,
and in twenty nineteen, Mako's uncle Naruhito, ascended to the throne.
There's a practical argument for letting women remain in the
royal family and or reign themselves. The line of succession
(13:34):
is incredibly short. The current line of succession is Mako's uncle,
then Mako's father, and then Prince Hisahito, Her seventeen year
old younger brother. That's it three people. It's clear that
the monarchy is not sustainable with the current laws of succession,
(13:54):
but the debate as to how the problem will be
solved rages on. The other public scandal was centered around
Kay's mother. As one would expect, the Japanese press dug
into his background, particularly his family. Less than a year
(14:15):
after the engagement was announced, tabloids reported that his mother,
a widow who raised him by herself, had borrowed four
million yen about thirty six thousand dollars from an ex
boyfriend and never paid it back. Part of the money
was reported to have paid for her son's schooling. Though
(14:37):
Kay himself had nothing to do with this, that didn't
matter in the eyes of the public. In a culture
that puts a lot of weight on family, he was
no longer considered princely. He was a gold digger looking
to use Mako in the royal family for their wealth,
never mind the fact that by marrying him she would
(14:58):
be leaving the royal family, who are not independently wealthy.
It was such an uproar that the wedding was delayed.
Mako told the press quote, I wish to think about
marriage more deeply and concretely. Shortly after that, in the
summer of twenty eighteen, Fordham Law announced that Kay would
(15:18):
be attending their school in the fall on a full
ride merit scholarship. Some speculated that he was being sent
away or that he had somehow manipulated his way into
the scholarship. In a news conference that same year, Miko's father,
Crown Prince Akashino, said he quote respected the desire of
(15:40):
the couple to wed, but that an official ceremony would
not take place unless the public approved. In twenty twenty,
at Akashino's urging, Kay released a twenty eight page document
explaining his mother's loan, and his lawyer later vowed that
mister Komor would pay it back. That didn't do much
(16:03):
to change public opinion of him. Things actually worsened when
photos of him appeared in New York with God Forbid
a ponytail. He was torn to shreds on social media,
with many believing the look was unkempt and unbecoming of
a princess's future husband. The engagement would remain in limbo
(16:28):
for years. The Emperor and Empress shared that the public
would quote wait for Princess Mako to make her own decisions.
It wasn't until twenty twenty one that the public finally
learned what that decision was. Mako and Kay were still
very much together and they would finally be married. The
(16:50):
lead of the New York Times article announcing they were
finally to be wed read quote, anyone who dreams of
being a princess should probably have a chat with Princess
Mako of Japan. Normally, a princess leaving the royal family
is entitled to official ceremonies marking her departure and a
(17:12):
dowry of about one point four million yen to start
her new life. Mico turned it all down. It made
her the first female member of the royal family to
refuse a dowry post World War II. In announcing why
there wouldn't be a royal wedding, the Imperial Household Agency
(17:33):
explained it was quote because their marriage is not celebrated
by many people. At the same time, it was also
announced that the princess had been diagnosed with complex post
traumatic stress disorder due to the public scrutiny quote, she
felt like her dignity as a human being had been trampled.
(17:54):
On Her psychiatrist said in a news conference, she thinks
of herself as so without value. Mako's CPTSD is part
of a sad history of women in the Japanese royal
family developing mental health struggles. In the nineteen sixties, Empress
Michiko lost the ability to speak for seven months and
(18:17):
continued to suffer from nervous breakdowns, mouth ulcers, nosebleeds, and
more physical complications due to the pressure of her position.
Her daughter in law, the current Empress Masako, retreated from
public events for a period of time beginning in two
thousand and four, after facing intense scrutiny for failing to
(18:40):
produce a male air. She had previously suffered a miscarriage.
Doctor Kristin Roebuck, an assistant professor at Cornell and historian
of modern Japan, explained this unique crisis to the cut quote,
whether you're marrying into the royal family like the current
Empress did, or you're marrying out of the royal family
(19:04):
like the former Princess Meko did, It's always understood in
Japan that the women are a temporary part of the
royal family, and so they just don't get the same
respect end quote. It's a complex task to discuss Japanese
gender politics, and it's not something we can give enough
(19:24):
time to today. But Western listeners might see parallels between
Mago's story and Megan Markles. Intense, often singularly vicious scrutiny
of women entering or leaving the royal family is not
unique to any one culture. The idea of a royal
family and everything it stands for, has always been threatened
(19:48):
by a woman who refuses to conform to and comply
with the pressures of both the family and the public,
and every tradition and standard that the royal family stands for.
On October twenty sixth, twenty twenty one, Maco and Kay
simply registered their marriage in Tokyo and held a press
(20:10):
conference afterward. Then, Mako began the process of obtaining her
first passport so the couple could move to New York.
The couple now live in a one bedroom apartment in
the Hell's Kitchen neighborhood. Kay eventually passed the bar exam
on his third try and is now an associate at
a New York firm. As of April twenty twenty two,
(20:33):
Mako was working as a volunteer at the Metropolitan Museum
of Art assisting curators in the Asian Art department. If
being an unpaid intern isn't the New York City experience,
I don't know what is. The most recent photos of
the couple are paparazzi shots from twenty twenty three of
(20:55):
the pair riding the bus together, his arm around her shoulder.
That's the story of the Princess of Japan marrying a commoner.
But keep listening after a brief sponsor break to hear
a slightly more dramatic story that happened to another female
(21:18):
member of the Japanese royal family. Meko was not the
first former Japanese princess to move to the United States
after marriage. Takako Shimazu, the youngest daughter of Emperor Hirohito,
(21:40):
was once known as Princess Suga, but her marriage to
a banker led to her spending two years in an
apartment in Washington, d c. When she returned to Japan,
she faced criticism for taking a position as a consultant
at an exclusive store in Tokyo, making her the first
(22:00):
member of the imperial family to hold a commercial job.
Those who criticized her life for being too ordinary may
have been forgetting one extraordinary incident, before Tacaco left for Washington,
she narrowly escaped a kidnapping attempt by six men posing
(22:22):
as bill collectors. They attempted to gain entry to her home,
which they knew the location of thanks to extensive media coverage,
and unlike Mako, they knew Tacaco had not turned down
the dowry princesses are entitled to upon leaving the royal family.
The plan was not foiled by a sting operation or
(22:45):
a vigilante swooping in, but rather one of the potential
kidnappers himself, who tipped off the press that there was
a plan to kidnap the princess. A judge ultimately ruled
that the plan didn't get far enough to constitute an
attempted kidnapping, but the men were arrested for trespassing and
(23:06):
illegal possession of weapons and sentenced to prison for terms
ranging from eight months to three years. No one said
being a princess, or even a former princess, was easy.
(23:32):
Noble Blood is a production of iHeartRadio and Grimm and
Mild from Aaron Mankey. Noble Blood is hosted by me
Danish Forts with additional writing and researching by Hannah Johnston,
Hannah Zewick, Courtney Sender, Julia Milani, and Armand Cassam. The
show is edited and produced by Noemi Griffin and rima
(23:55):
Ill Kali, with supervising producer Josh Thain and executive producers
Aaron Manke, Alex Williams, and Matt Frederick. For more podcasts
from iHeartRadio, visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever
you listen to your favorite shows.
Host
Dana Schwartz
Popular Podcasts
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
Intentionally Disturbing
Join me on this podcast as I navigate the murky waters of human behavior, current events, and personal anecdotes through in-depth interviews with incredible people—all served with a generous helping of sarcasm and satire. After years as a forensic and clinical psychologist, I offer a unique interview style and a low tolerance for bullshit, quickly steering conversations toward depth and darkness. I honor the seriousness while also appreciating wit. I’m your guide through the twisted labyrinth of the human psyche, armed with dark humor and biting wit.