Sukehito Shinno was a Japanese imperial prince and the second head of the Kan'in-no-miya house. Born in 1733, he became the biological father of Emperor Kōkaku, whose attempt to grant him the status of retired emperor led to the late-Edo-period Songo Incident. Sukehito died in 1794 and was later posthumously honored as Emperor Kyōkō.
Background
Sukehito Shinno was born in Japan in 1733 as a son of Naohito, Prince Kan'in, founder of the Kan'in-no-miya branch of the Japanese imperial family. His childhood name was Hisanomiya. In 1742, he became a yūshi, or adopted imperial heir, of Emperor Sakuramachi, and he received imperial-prince status in 1743.
The Kan'in house was one of the imperial collateral houses established to preserve the succession and provide male-line branches of the imperial family. Sukehito succeeded his father as its second head after Naohito's death in 1753. His son Morohito later became Emperor Kōkaku, linking the Kan'in house directly with the imperial succession.
Career
Sukehito became the second head of the Kan'in-no-miya house in 1753, a position that placed him among the leading members of the imperial family during the late Edo period. The house was one of the collateral imperial lines maintained within the court hierarchy, and its head held formal rank and court offices rather than participating in elected political institutions.
He held the court designation Dazai no Sotsu, traditionally translated as Military Governor of Kyushu, and was granted the rank of Ippon, or First Grade Imperial Prince. Sukehito was also the father of Prince Morohito, who was adopted by Emperor Go-Momozono and became Emperor Kōkaku in 1780.
During Kōkaku's reign, the court sought to honor Sukehito with the title of retired emperor. The proposal became the Songo Incident, a constitutional and ceremonial dispute between the imperial court and the Tokugawa shogunate over the authority to confer imperial honors. The shogunate rejected the proposed title, although Sukehito was later posthumously honored in 1884 with the name Emperor Kyōkō.
Achievements
Sukehito became the second head of the Kan'in-no-miya imperial house after the death of his father, Naohito, in 1753.
As the biological father of Emperor Kōkaku, Sukehito became central to the late-Edo-period Songo Incident, during which the imperial court sought to confer on him the status of retired emperor.
Sukehito was posthumously honored in 1884 with the name Emperor Kyōkō, recognizing his position as the father of Emperor Kōkaku.
Connections
Sukehito was the son of Naohito, Prince Kan'in, and succeeded him as the second head of the Kan'in-no-miya house. He was the biological father of Emperor Kōkaku, who became emperor in 1780 after being adopted into the imperial line. Sukehito was also the father of Prince Kan'in Yos?
Father:
Prince Naohito
Founder and first head of the Kan'in-no-miya imperial house; Sukehito succeeded him as its second head in 1753.
Son:
Emperor Kōkaku
Sukehito's biological son, who became the 119th emperor of Japan in 1780 after being adopted into the imperial line.
Kōtobank: Sukehito, Prince Kan'in
A Japanese reference entry documenting Sukehito's imperial status, the dispute over his posthumous honors, and his burial at Rozan-ji in Kyoto.
