TOKYO • Princess Mako, the eldest granddaughter of Japanese Emperor Akihito, will wed a former classmate, a commoner, the Imperial Household said yesterday..
TOKYO • Princess Mako, the eldest granddaughter of Japanese Emperor Akihito, will wed a former classmate, a commoner, the Imperial Household said yesterday.
The news confirms a marriage that will further deplete the royal family since she must become a commoner. The announcement was aired by public broadcaster NHK.
Princess Mako is one of only four royal grandchildren. The other three are her younger sister Kako and brother Hisahito, and Crown Prince Naruhito’s daughter Aiko.
Prince Hisahito, 10, is one of four heirs to the throne behind Emperor Akihito’s two middle-aged sons, whose wives are in their early 50s, and Emperor Akihito’s octogenarian brother Masahito.
The engagement to Mr Kei Komuro, who works in a Tokyo law firm, comes after Japanese lawmakers in June approved a Bill to allow Emperor Akihito to step down, the first abdication by a Japanese monarch since 1817.
