Japan's Crown Prince Fumihito to Attend King Charles III's Coronation

It has been reported that Crown Prince Fumihito, 57, who is also known as Prince Akishino, will represent his older brother, Emperor Naruhito, at King Charles III's Coronation on May 6, 2023. Crown Prince Fumihito will be accompanied by his wife, Crown Princess Kiko.

Crown Prince Fumihito is the heir-presumptive of Emperor Naruhito because Japan's Imperial Court still does not permit a daughter to inherit the throne. Emperor Naruhito has an only child, Princess Aiko, 21, who is not in line to succeed to the Chrysanthemum throne.

According to sources, Japan's Imperial Household Agency is already making arrangements for Crown Prince Fumihito and his wife, Crown Princess Kiko, to attend the coronation of King Charles III of the United Kingdom in May.

Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako attended the state funeral of Queen Elizabeth II at Westminster Abbey in September last year.

This news of sending Crown Prince Fumihito to King Charles's Coronation came days after Japan's Prime Minister Fumio Kishida expressed his intention to reopen the discussion about changing the succession law of the Chrysanthemum throne. 

He said that the Diet (Japan's Parliamentary) would discuss a stable succession to the throne, as this issue can no longer be postponed

Akishino family photo before the marriage of Princess Mako in 2021. 

In the current law of succession to the Japanese throne, heirs are limited only to males, thus, the emperor's only child, Princess Aiko, is not in line to succeed. 

However, the dwindling number of successors of Emperor Naruhito prompted the Japanese government to tackle the issue. 

Emperor Naruhito has only three living heirs. His younger brother, Crown Prince Fumihito, his 15-year-old nephew, Prince Hisahito (only son of the Crown Prince), and his paternal uncle, Prince Hitachi, who is already 86 years old.

Crown Prince Fumihito's eldest child, Mako, left the Japanese imperial family in 2021 when she married his university sweetheart, Kei Kumoro. They are now living in New York City.

In November 2022, Crown Prince Fumihito said he isn’t currently discussing anything with his second daughter, Princess Kako, regarding her marriage. 

He added that he encourages his son, Prince Hisahito, 15, to visit various places across Japan and experience their cultures firsthand, or to learn Japanese history through books or other mediums.

He refrained from commenting on his eldest daughter, Mako, to respect her wishes that she doesn’t want him to speak about her publicly.