Overview

• At a September 6 ceremony in Tokyo’s Imperial Palace, the prince received the black silk and lacquer kanmuri crown and vowed to fulfill his duties as an adult royal.
• He remains second in line after his father, Crown Prince Akishino, with only 89-year-old Prince Hitachi also eligible under current law, leaving no younger male successors.
• Japan’s 1947 Imperial House Law restricts the throne to male descendants even as opinion polls show broad support for allowing a woman to reign.
• Policy efforts diverge: a 2005 government panel endorsed inheritance by the eldest child regardless of sex, while a 2022 conservative panel urged retaining the male line, letting princesses keep status after marriage, and considering adoption from former branches.
• Hisahito is a Tsukuba University biology student with published research on dragonflies, with further rites and meetings scheduled next week, including shrine visits and a lunch with Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba.