Prince Asaka

Japanese: 安積親王 - あさかしんのう

Year of death: 16th year of Tenpyo, leap year 1, 13th (March 1, 744)
Year of birth: Jinki 5 (728)
Prince of the Nara period. Son of Emperor Shomu and his wife, Inukai Hirotoji. In the intercalary month of the 16th year of Tenpyo (744), he accompanied Emperor Shomu on his visit to Naniwa, but returned from Sakurai Tonmiya (near Rokumanji-cho, Higashi-Osaka City) to Kuni-kyo due to beriberi and died two days later. The Man'yoshu includes an elegy for Otomo no Yakamochi. It is said that the reason why the Fujiwara clan caused the Nagaya no O Incident in 729 and forced Fuhito's daughter, Kōmyōshi, to become empress was because in 728, the newborn crown prince of Kōmyōshi died the year before and Prince Asaka was born. In 729, Abe no Himemiko (Empress Kōken) was made crown prince, but Prince Asaka was the only prince and the most likely heir to the throne, so there is a theory that he was assassinated by Fujiwara no Nakamaro. <References> Toshio Kishi, "Fujiwara no Nakamaro," Kenichi Yokota, "The Death of Prince Asaka and the Periods Before and After" (Nanto Bukkyo, No. 6)

(Takao Imaizumi)

Source: Asahi Japanese Historical Biography: Asahi Shimbun Publications Inc. About Asahi Japanese Historical Biography

Japanese:

没年：天平16.閏1.13(744.3.1)
生年：神亀5(728)
奈良時代の親王。聖武天皇と夫人県犬養広刀自の皇子。天平16(744)年閏1月,聖武天皇の難波行幸に従ったが,脚気のために桜井頓宮(東大阪市六万寺町付近)から恭仁京に引き返し2日後に死去。『万葉集』に大伴家持の挽歌を収める。天平1(729)年藤原氏が長屋王の変を起こして不比等の娘である光明子を皇后に立てることを強行したのは,神亀5(728)年に,その前年光明子から生まれたばかりの皇太子が亡くなる一方,安積親王が生まれたためといわれる。天平10年阿倍内親王(孝謙天皇)が立太子していたが,安積親王はたったひとりの皇子であり,最も有力な皇位継承者だったので,藤原仲麻呂により暗殺されたとする説がある。<参考文献>岸俊男『藤原仲麻呂』,横田健一「安積親王の死とその前後」(『南都仏教』6号)

(今泉隆雄)

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