Prince Higashifushimi Yorihito

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Prince Higashifushimi Yorihito (1867–1922) was the second and last head of the Higashifushimi-no-miya, a cadet branch of the Japanese Imperial Family that could have provided an heir if the main line died out.

He was born in Kyoto on September 19, 1867, the seventeenth son of Prince Fushimi Kuniie. As a child he was adopted into several royal houses—Yamashina-no-miya in 1869, then Komatsu-no-miya in 1885—and in 1886 Emperor Meiji adopted him as a possible heir to the throne. He became head of the Higashifushimi-no-miya in 1903 after the death of Prince Komatsu Akihito.

Yorihito studied abroad, attending naval schools in Britain and France, and graduated from the French École Navale. He returned to Japan in 1891 and joined the Imperial Japanese Navy. He fought in the First Sino-Japanese War and later commanded ships in the Russo-Japanese War, earning the Order of the Golden Kite (3rd Class).

After the wars, he held several high-ranking positions, including captain of Kasuga, the Naval General Staff, and commander roles. He was promoted to rear admiral in 1909, vice admiral in 1913, and admiral in 1918. He led the Yokosuka Naval District in 1916 and the IJN 2nd Fleet in 1917. He also visited the United Kingdom, where he presented King George V with the Gensui honor and received the Royal Victorian Chain.

Yorihito died on June 27, 1922, in Hayama, Kanagawa. He was given the posthumous title Marshal-Admiral and the Collar of the Supreme Order of the Chrysanthemum. He married Kaneko Iwakura in 1898, but they had no children, so the Higashifushimi line ended with him. In 1931, Emperor Hirohito arranged for Prince Kuni Kunihide to become Count Higashifushimi Kunihide to keep the name from dying out. Kaneko became a commoner in 1947 and died in 1955.