Great funeral - Taisou

The funerals of Emperor Taiko (the title of the former emperor before he was given a posthumous name), the Grand Empress Dowager, the Empress Dowager, and the Empress. The funerals are held from the one-year anniversary ceremony until the transfer of the altar to the Imperial Mausoleum, but the funerals on the day of the funeral are called the Grand Funeral. The Imperial Household Mourning Order (1909) stipulated that the Imperial Family and the general public should mourn during this period, and that a one-year mourning period called Ryoan should be held. The Emperor was the chief mourner for the Grand Funeral of Emperor Taiko, the Grand Empress Dowager, and the Empress Dowager, and the Crown Prince or the Crown Prince's grandson was the chief mourner for the Grand Funeral of the Empress. The affairs related to the Grand Funeral were managed by the Grand Mourner's Office, which was established in the Imperial Palace under the supervision of the Prime Minister. After the Second World War, the Imperial Household Mourning Order was abolished, and the Imperial Household Law was revised in 1949 (Showa 24) to stipulate that a Grand Funeral should be held when the Emperor dies. However, the term "state funeral" is not limited to the Emperor alone, and the funeral of Empress Teimei in 1976 was called a state funeral, and although there was no public mourning, the various ceremonies were held as state funerals equivalent to a state funeral, and the Emperor was in mourning for one year. The state funeral of Emperor Showa was held at Shinjuku Gyoen on February 24, 1989 (Heisei 1).

[Shigeyoshi Murakami]

Source: Shogakukan Encyclopedia Nipponica About Encyclopedia Nipponica Information | Legend

大行(たいこう)天皇（死後まだ諡(おくりな)の贈られない間の先代の天皇の称）、太皇太后、皇太后、皇后の喪葬を行うこと。一周年祭を終えて御霊代(みたましろ)を皇霊殿に奉遷するまでの諸儀をいうが、とくに葬儀当日の諸儀を大喪儀とよぶ。皇室服喪令（1909）では、その期間中、皇族および一般は喪に服し、また諒闇(りょうあん)とよぶ1年間の喪が定められていた。大行天皇、太皇太后、皇太后の大喪では、天皇が喪主となり、皇后の大喪では、皇太子または皇太孫が喪主となった。大喪に関する事務は、宮中に内閣総理大臣管下の大喪使が設置され管掌した。第二次世界大戦後、皇室服喪令は廃止され、皇室典範では、1949年（昭和24）の改正で、天皇が崩じたときに大喪の礼を行うことが定められた。しかし、大喪の語は天皇のみに限定されておらず、51年の貞明(ていめい)皇后の葬儀は大喪と称され、国民の服喪はなかったが、諸儀は国葬に準ずる大喪儀として行われて、天皇は1年間の喪に服した。なお、89年（平成1）2月24日、昭和天皇の大喪の礼が新宿御苑で行われた。

［村上重良］

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