Society The former royals considered for return to Japan’s imperial family

There has been a significant debate in Japan this year over proposed changes to the Imperial Household Law that would allow certain former members of collateral imperial branches to return to the imperial family. The discussion is part of broader efforts to address the shrinking size of the imperial household and concerns over long-term succession.

Who are the former royals who might return to the imperial fold?

The government proposed an adoption system that would allow men descended from former imperial branches of the male line to regain royal status. Their male children could also potentially become eligible for the throne in the future. In 1947, after Japan's defeat in the Second World War, 51 members from 11 collateral branches of the imperial family lost their royal status. The move was carried out during the Allied occupation as part of efforts to reduce the size and influence of the imperial household.

Only Emperor Hirohito's immediate family and the households of his brothers, the Chichibu, Takamatsu and Mikasa branches, remained part of the imperial family. Former royals from the other branches and their descendants have lived as ordinary citizens ever since. At present, roughly 10 unmarried men descended through the male line are considered potential candidates for reinstatement under the proposal now under discussion by the government and lawmakers.

The Kaya (賀陽), Takeda (竹田), Kuni (久邇) and Higashikuni (東久邇) branches are considered among the main candidates for possible reinstatement. All are descended from the Fushiminomiya (伏見宮) branch, one of the oldest and most important collateral lines of the imperial family, which existed from the 15th century until the postwar reforms of 1947. These former branches are said to include at least 10 unmarried male descendants. A 2019 imperial family tree compiled by the Japan Innovation Party, which included former royal households, showed that many of the men now work in ordinary professions, including at trading companies, electronics manufacturers and advertising firms. Among the former branches, the Takedas (竹田) are probably the best known publicly. Tsunekazu Takeda, 78, previously served as chairman of the Japanese Olympic Committee. He later resigned after becoming the subject of a French investigation into alleged bribery linked to Tokyo's bid to host the Olympic Games. One of his sons, Tsuneyasu Takeda, is a television commentator and author who has publicly opposed another proposal aimed at maintaining the size of the imperial family — allowing female royals to retain imperial status after marriage. Tsuneyasu Takeda has argued that such a system could eventually open the way for female emperors. He has instead supported the adoption proposal for years, saying reinstating former male-line branches would preserve the traditional succession system.

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Tsuneyasu Takeda may be the only potential candidate from the former imperial branches to have publicly discussed a return to royal status. He has repeatedly said he has no desire to become a member of the imperial family again, describing the idea as "ridiculous." Speaking on his YouTube channel in April, Takeda said that among the descendants of the former imperial houses, he was probably the only person whose name and face were widely recognised by the public. Because of that, he joked that people would naturally turn their attention toward him.

At the same time, he suggested that anyone seriously hoping to return to the imperial family would avoid speaking publicly about the issue. He said that if he truly wanted reinstatement, he would have quietly shut down his businesses and waited without comment for officials to approach him. Takeda added that publicly discussing the matter would only reduce such chances.

I'd rather see a true and accepted Empress (or two, if I live that long).

You'd hope that a female prime minister wouldn't be so implacably opposed to a female emperor, but I've seen this depressing behaviour so many times from successful politicians from marginalised backgrounds (female, non-white) in the UK - the kicking away of the ladder that they climbed up.