| Prince Masahito | |
|---|---|
| Yōkōin daijō-tennō | |
 Prince Masahito, also known as Yōkōin daijō-tennō | |
| Born | 16 May 1552 |
| Died | 7 September 1586 (aged 34) |
| Spouse |
|
| Issue | |
| Father | Emperor Ōgimachi |
| Mother | Madenokōji (Fujiwara) Fusako |
Prince Masahito (誠仁親王, Masahito-shinnō, 16 May 1552 – 7 September 1586), also known as Prince Sanehito and posthumously named Yōkōin daijō-tennō, was the eldest son of Emperor Ōgimachi. He predeceased his father.
Masahito's eldest son was Imperial Prince Kazuhito (和仁親王, Kazuhito-shinnō, 1572–1617), who acceded to the Chrysanthemum Throne on the abdication of Emperor Ōgimachi. Kazuhito would become known as Emperor Go-Yōzei.[1]
Later, Go-Yōzei elevated the rank of his father, even though his father's untimely death made this impossible in life. In this manner, Go-Yōzei himself could enjoy the polite fiction of being the son of an emperor.
- 21–25 August 1598 (Keichō 3, 20-24th day of the 7th month): Buddhist rituals were performed in the Seriyoden of the Imperial Palace to celebrate the 13th anniversary of the death of the emperor's father.[2]
The actual site of Prince Masahito's grave is known. This posthumously elevated emperor is traditionally venerated at a memorial Shinto shrine (misasagi) at Kyoto.
The Imperial Household Agency designates this location as Yōkōin's mausoleum. It is formally named Tsuki no wa no misasagi at Sennyū-ji.[1]
- ^ a b Ponsonby-Fane, Richard. (1959). Imperial House, p. 424.
- ^ de Visser, Willem Marinus. (1935). Ancient Buddhism in Japan, p. 691, p. 691, at Google Books