Imperial Princess Tameko (為子内親王)

Imperial Princess Tameko (year and date of birth unknown - May 1, 899) was a member of the Imperial Family during the early Heian period. She was the daughter of Emperor Koko, and was the wife of Emperor Daigo. Her mother was Princess Hanshi, and elder brother-uterine was Emperor Uda.

On May 15, 884, she was demoted from nobility to subject with her elder brother, Prince Sadami (later Emperor Uda), and was given the Minamoto clan name of Asomi. Because of her younger sister-uterine of Emperor Uda, she received the title of Imperial Princess by Imperial Order, and regained her position in the Imperial Family in 891. At the same time when Emperor Daigo ascended the throne in 897, she entered into the court, and became a princess following the empress (the position of empress was not established at this time). The Retired Emperor Uda who learned from the Ako Incident did not desire the birth of a prince whose maternal grandfather was from the main branch of the Northern House of the Fujiwara clan, and intended to install a son of Tameko as a Crown Prince. However, she died two years later while giving birth to Imperial Princess Kanshi. Therefore, Emperor Daigo and FUJIWARA no Tokihira who intended to have FUJIWARA no Onshi, younger sister of FUJIWARA no Tokihira, enter into the court as the next empress of Tameko, this conflicted with Retired Emperor Uda who objected against it ("Kyureki" (diary of FUJIWARA no Morosue)), and it is said that this conflict developed to a later problem when Retired Emperor Uda designated Imperial Prince Tokiyo as the heir to the Imperial Throne, and to an incident of demotion of SUGAWARA no Michizane, Dazai gon no sochi (Provisional Governor-General of the Dazai-fu offices) (so-called the Shotai Incident).

[Original Japanese]