}} was the
33rd tenno of
Japanis an island country in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, People's Republic of China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
, according to the traditional order of succession, and the first of eight women to ascend the
Chrysanthemum ThroneThe Chrysanthemum Throne is the English term used to identify the throne of the Emperor of Japan. The term can refer to very specific seating, as in the raised thrones constructed in the Shishin-den for Emperor Shōwa and Empress Kōjun on November 10, 1928...
. Her reign spanned the years from 593 until her death in 628.
Genealogy
Before her ascension to the Chrysanthemum Throne, her personal name (her
imina) was Mikekashiya-hime-no-mikoto., also called Toyomike Kashikiya hime no Mikoto.
Empress Suiko had several names including Princess Nukatabe and (possibly posthumous) Toyomike Kashikiya. She was the third daughter of
Emperor KimmeiEmperor Kimmei was the 29th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign is said to have spanned the years from 539 through 571...
. Her mother was
Soga no Iname's. Soga no Iname was a leader of the Soga clan and a statesman during the reign of Emperor Kimmei in the Asuka period. He was the first person to hold the position of Ōomi that can be verified with reasonable accuracy, in 536 AD...
daughter,
Soga no KitashihimeSoga no Kitashihime was a daughter of Soga no Iname, a high-ranking official and consort to Emperor Kimmei of Japan. She gave birth to seven boys and six girls, including Emperor Yōmei, Empress Suiko and Princess Ōtomo....
. Suiko was the younger sister of Emperor Yōmei. They had the same mother.
Events of Suiko's life
Empress Suiko was a consort to her half-brother,
Emperor BidatsuEmperor Bidatsu was the 30th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession...
, but after Bidatsu's first wife died she became his official consort and was given the title Ōkisaki (official consort of the emperor). She bore two sons and three daughters.
After Bidatsu's death, Suiko's brother,
Emperor YōmeiEmperor Yōmei was the 31st emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. He ruled from 585 until his death in 587....
, came to power for a brief period of about two years before dying of illness. Upon Yōmei's death, another power struggle arose between the
Soga clanThe was one of the most powerful clans in Yamato Japan and played a major role in the spread of Buddhism. The Soga Clan is a descendant of Takenouchi no Sukune...
and the
Mononobe clanThe was a Japanese clan of the Kofun period, known for its military opposition to the Soga clan. The Mononobe were opposed to the spread of Buddhism, not on religious grounds, but more so as the result of feelings of conservatism and a degree of xenophobia...
, with the Sogas supporting
Prince Hatsusebewas the 32nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 587 through 592.-Genealogy:...
and the Mononobes supporting Prince Anahobe. The Sogas prevailed once again and Prince Hatsusebe acceded to the throne as
Emperor Sushunwas the 32nd emperor of Japan according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 587 through 592.-Genealogy:...
in 587. However, Sushun began to resent the power of
Soga no UmakoSoga no Umako , the son of Soga no Iname and the strongest member of the Soga clan of Japan, conducted political reforms with Prince Shotoku during the rules of Emperor Bidatsu and Empress Suiko and established the Soga clan's stronghold in the government by having his daughter married with members...
, the head of the Soga clan, and Umako, perhaps out of fear that Sushun might strike first, had him assassinated by in 592. When asked to accede to the throne to fill the power vacuum that subsequently developed, Suiko became the first of what would be several examples in Japanese history where a woman was chosen to accede to the throne to avert a power struggle.
- 593 : In the 2nd year of Sushun-tennōs reign (崇峻天皇2年), he died; and contemporary scholars then construed that the succession (‘‘senso’’) was received by the consort of former Emperor Bidatsu. Shortly thereafter, Empress Suiko is said to have acceded to the throne (‘‘sokui’’).
Prince Shōtoku, also known as , was a regent and a politician of the Asuka period in Japan. Recent historical studies cast doubt of some of achievement attributed to him.-Cultural and political role:Prince Shōtoku looked to China for political and religious inspiration....
was appointed regent the following year. Although political power during Suiko's reign is widely viewed as having been wielded by Prince Shōtoku and Soga no Umako, Suiko was far from powerless. The mere fact that she survived and her reign endured is proof of not insignificant of political skills.
In this period, there were difficulties other than political ones. For example, in 599, an earthquake destroyed buildings throughout
Yamato provincewas a province of Japan, located in Kinai, corresponding to present-day Nara Prefecture in Honshū. It was also called . At first, the name was written with one different character , and for about ten years after 737, this was revised to use more desirable characters . The final revision was made in...
in what is now
Nara Prefectureis a prefecture in the Kansai region on Honshū Island, Japan. The capital is the city of Nara.- History :The present-day Nara Prefecture was created in 1887, making it independent of Osaka Prefecture....
.
Suiko's refusal to grant Soga no Umako's request that he be granted the imperial territory known as Kazuraki no Agata in 624 is cited as evidence of her independence from his influence. Some of the many achievements under Empress Suiko's reign include the official recognition of Buddhism by the issuance of the Flourishing Three Treasures Edict in 594, the opening of relations with the
SuiThe Sui Dynasty followed by the Tang Dynasty and preceded by the Southern and Northern Dynasties in China. It ended nearly four centuries of division between rival regimes....
court in 600, the adoption of the
Twelve Level Cap and Rank System, established in 603, was the first of what would be several similar cap and rank systems established during the Asuka period of Japanese history. It was adopted from similar systems that were already in place in Sui dynasty China, Paekche and Koguryŏ. The officials wore silk caps that were...
in 603 and the adoption of the
Seventeen-article constitutionThe is, according to Nihon Shoki published in 720, a document authored by Prince Shōtoku in 604. It was adopted in the reign of Empress Suiko. The emphasis of the document is not so much on the basic laws by which the state was to be governed, such as one may expect from a modern constitution, but...
in 604. Suiko was also one of the first
BuddhistBuddhism, as traditionally conceived, is a path of salvation attained through insight into the ultimate nature of reality. It encompasses a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha...
monarchs in Japan and had taken the vows of a
nunA Nun, or also known as a Sister in some cases, is a woman who has taken special vows committing her to a religious life. She may be an ascetic who voluntarily chooses to leave mainstream society and live her life in prayer and contemplation in a monastery or convent...
shortly before becoming empress.
At a time when imperial succession was generally determined by clan leaders, rather than the emperor, Suiko left only vague indications of succession to two candidates while on her deathbed. One,
Prince Tamurawas the 34th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 629 through 641.-Genealogy:...
, was a grandson of Emperor Bidatsu and was supported by the main line of Sogas, including
Soga no Emishiwas a statesman of the Yamato Imperial Court. His alternative names include Emishi and Toyora no Ooomi . After the death of his father Umako, Emishi took over Ooomi, the Minister of state, from his father....
. The other,
Prince YamashiroPrince Yamashiro was the eldest son of one of the most famous figures in Japanese history, Prince Shōtoku. Yamashiro claimed the right to Imperial succession in 628, following the death of Empress Suiko...
, was a son of Prince Shōtoku and had the support of some lesser members of the Soga clan. After a brief struggle within the Soga clan in which one of Prince Yamashiro's main supporters was killed, Prince Tamura was chosen and he acceded to the throne as
Emperor Jomeiwas the 34th emperor of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. His reign spanned the years from 629 through 641.-Genealogy:...
in 629.
Empress Suiko ruled for 35 years. Although there were seven other reigning empresses, their successors were most often selected from amongst the males of the paternal Imperial bloodline, which is why some conservative scholars argue that the women's reigns were temporary and that male-only succession tradition must be maintained in the 21st century.
Empress Gemmeiwas the 43rd imperial ruler of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. This sovereign is sometimes identified as Empress Genmyō. She was the fifth woman to ascend to the Chrysanthemum Throne...
, who was followed on the throne by her daughter,
Empress GenshōEmpress Genshō was the 44th imperial ruler of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. She was the sixth woman to ascend the Chrysanthemum Throne...
, remains the sole exception to this conventional argument.
See also
- Japanese empresses
In Japan, empress may refer to either or .- Empresses regnant :There were eight female imperial reigns in Japan's early history between 593 and 770, and two more in the early modern period...
- Emperor of Japan
The of Japan is the symbol of the state and of the unity of the Japanese people. He is the head of the Japanese Imperial Family. He is also the highest authority of the Shinto religion...
- List of Emperors of Japan
- Imperial cult
An Imperial cult is a form of state religion in which an emperor, or a dynasty of emperors , are worshiped as messiahs, demigods or deities. "Cult" here is used to mean "worship," not in the modern pejorative sense...