Charles, The Prince of Wales will be jetting off on a whirlwind two-day trip to Japan to attend the ceremony of enthronement of Emperor Naruhito in October.
The announcement made by Clarence House explains the future King will visit Japan on behalf of The Queen from October 22nd to the 23rd which will include a day of engagements in the capital of Tokyo to celebrate the British-Japanese connection.
Prince Charles has been to Japan four times before, he last visited in 2008 with the Duchess of Cornwall, however this time he will travel solo for the ceremony.
In November 1990 he attended the ceremony of enthronement of Emperor Akihito, Emperor Naruhito’s father, with Princess Diana at the Imperial Palace followed by a garden party the following day.
Prince Charles and Princess Diana are welcomed by (now former) Emperor Akihito and Empress Michiko in 1990. (Image: Getty)
Emperor Naruhito, 59, ascended the Chrysanthemum Throne following his father’s abdication in May due to health reasons – Japan’s first abdication in 200 years.
According to People, the enthronement ceremony, which will see Naruhito sit briefly on a tatami throne inside the 20-foot high Takamikura pavilion, will be attended by 2,500 guests from Japan and abroad, including foreign delegates and royalty.
Emperor Naruhito is married to Empress Masako and together they have one daughter, Princess Aiko. Because Japan currently does not allow women to ascend the throne, the second-in-line for the Japanese throne is Emperor Naruhito’s younger brother, Prince Fumihito.
Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako with their dog, Yuri. (Image: Getty)
Last month it was announced Charles and Duchess Camilla would pay a visit to our shores this November, marking exactly four years since the royal couple last visited New Zealand in 2015.
However Charles and Camilla aren’t the only senior royals undertaking overseas engagements in the coming months, with both the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge and the Duke and Duchess of Sussex also due to undertake international royal tours in the British autumn.
In late June it was announced Harry and Meghan would be undertaking a royal tour of southern Africa, which will include visiting the countries of South Africa, Malawi, Angola and Botswana.
In the announcement post made to Instagram, it was explained that “this would be their first official tour as a family,” making it abundantly clear that little Archie would be coming along for the trip too!
Just a week later Kensington Palace also announced some equally exciting news that William and Kate would also be undertaking their own international tour to the south Asian country of Pakistan, at the request of the Foreign Commonwealth Office.
The tour will mark the couple’s first visit to the country, having visited its neighbouring country India, in 2016.
The royals sure have a few exciting and busy months ahead!
