<figure id="attachment_458439" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-458439" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="2b2cd9a4"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2026/02/647cf95913c8df99bd6035faf63cf180.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-458439" class="wp-caption-text">In March 1960, Michiko rolled down her car window to be photographed by the press. In her arms is Princess Shingu.</figcaption></figure>
 On February 23, 66 years ago, Prince Hiromiya (now Emperor Akihito) gave birth to a powerful baby. It was the birth of the &#8220;Heir to the Throne,&#8221; who would eventually become the 126th Emperor of Japan. Michiko became pregnant shortly after her marriage, and after a smooth pregnancy, she finally went into labor. However, as is usual in childbirth, things did not go so smoothly. The following is an episode of Michiko and the lovely Prince Hiromiya, who played a major role in the birth of the Crown Prince.
 What&#8217;s going on? They just announced yesterday that the birth had not yet taken place!
 When in the world is she going to be born, today or tomorrow?&#8221;
 On that day, the press crowded around the desk of Mr. Hashimoto, the head of the General Affairs Division of the Imperial Household Agency, and asked him a lot of questions, which caused an uncontrollable commotion.
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 It was no wonder. With her due date approaching, Michiko was getting ready to give birth. At a press conference on February 22, the day before the due date, the Crown Princess Michiko&#8217;s doctor, Dr. Takashi Kobayashi, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Tokyo, said, &#8220;We are expecting the birth of the baby within two or three days,
 Dr. Takashi Kobayashi, Professor of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the University of Tokyo, announced, &#8220;I don&#8217;t think that the birth will take place within the next two or three days.&#8221;
 The press corps from newspapers, television, and other media reported the news. Reporters from newspapers and TV stations were relieved, and they had just left for home to prepare for the hard work ahead.
<h2> The Heartbeat of a Child Caught by the Crown Prince</h2>
<figure id="attachment_458442" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-458442" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="d1752cd3"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2026/02/53bbb60e8520c8808ac9452b5d0b4dfd.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-458442" class="wp-caption-text"> His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince (at the time) and Princess Michiko comforting Princess Shingu</figcaption></figure>
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 That evening, however, Michiko began having labor pains. At 11:00 p.m., her doctor, Professor Kobayashi, was summoned by telephone to see Michiko, and the decision was made to admit her to the Imperial Household Agency Hospital.
 Michiko went downstairs from her bedroom in the temporary palace, exchanged greetings with His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince (now His Majesty the Emperor), who saw her off at the entrance, and then got into a car to leave the temporary palace. At that time, it was 1:35 am. There was no sign of the press, which had been relieved, and only one photographer flashed his flash. The car in which Michiko was riding glided through the sleeping city and arrived at the Imperial Household Hospital without a hitch. This was the first time in the Imperial Family&#8217;s history that a baby was delivered at a hospital.
 The press was caught by surprise, and the air was filled with steam as they wondered when the baby would be delivered.
 However, the time leading up to the delivery was unexpectedly prolonged. Fifteen hours after she was admitted to the hospital, Michiko was still having occasional contractions, but there were no signs of delivery. In the delivery room, the entire delivery team for Michiko, consisting of the Imperial Household Agency&#8217;s Imperial Household Agency, the Imperial Household Agency Hospital, the University of Tokyo&#8217;s Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology and Department of Pediatrics, and midwives, was at the height of their tension.
 Hisashi Sato, Chief Medical Officer of the Crown Prince&#8217;s Department of Surgery, who was present with Princess Michiko, describes the situation in his book, &#8220;Prince Hirosamiya, Raising Princess Michiko,
 The cute little microphone that was snugly attached to Her Highness&#8217; body and would not move away from her, seemed like a living thing that was working hard to fulfill its important duties,&#8221; he humorously wrote.
 He humorously writes, &#8220;The child who was caught by the microphone was a little boy. The child&#8217;s heartbeat, caught by the microphone, was sent to another room, where his entourage listened with bated breath.
<div data-friday-nextpage-lead=" Screams from the press"></div>
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Outside the Imperial Household Agency Hospital, the press, who had missed the timing of the hospitalization, were waiting impatiently.
 &#8220;Is he born yet?&#8221;
 &#8220;Oh, we&#8217;ll never make it to the evening edition!
 &#8220;Is the baby born yet? Finally, Shingu felt ready to go out into the world, and Michiko&#8217;s labor pains turned into intense pain, and at 4:15 p.m., a powerful birth cry filled the delivery room. Some members of the press had thought of titling the birth &#8220;Birth at sunrise&#8221; in case the delivery was prolonged, but they were no match for the power of nature.
 When the baby was born, the delivery room was filled with cheers of congratulations and relief. Shingu was a healthy baby, weighing 2,500 grams and measuring 47 cm in height.
<h2> The white color of the milk contained in the bottle.</h2>
<figure id="attachment_458446" aria-describedby="caption-attachment-458446" style="width: 1024px" class="wp-caption alignnone"><a href="#" data-ident_hash="e1e02fb7"><img src="https://res.cloudinary.com/fridaydigital/image/private/t_article_image/wpmedia/2026/02/cf505faac4d6a3f1bb90f152b28411cf.jpg" alt=""></a><figcaption id="caption-attachment-458446" class="wp-caption-text"> Michiko happily holds up the one-year-old Prince Hirohito in her arms.</figcaption></figure>
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 Upon receiving the news of the safe delivery, His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince immediately rushed to the Imperial Household Agency Hospital. He held an armful of Michiko&#8217;s favorite flowers, including erika, silverleaf akashiya, and kodemari, and praised her by offering her a cute bear toy, saying, &#8220;Here is your reward.
 On the fifth day after her birth, Michiko breastfed directly. Her milk was plentiful, and Shingu was able to drink as much as she wanted. Her growth was smooth. She was the first member of the imperial family to breastfeed the baby herself, eliminating the need for a nanny.
 As a new father, His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince made sure to visit Michiko at the Imperial Household Hospital every day until she was discharged from the hospital. He was happily busy watching her breastfeed, picking her up in his arms, and taking care to record her by rolling an 8mm video camera.
 Shortly after Shingu was born, Michiko composed a poem about the excitement of breastfeeding.
 The Birth of Prince Hirohito
 The baby&#8217;s red lips are alive with the overflowing white bitterness of the milk that contains it
 March 12, the day of her discharge from the hospital, was mild and warm. Michiko was seen off by all concerned, and with a smile on her face, she took Shingu in her arms and returned to the temporary palace. From now on, the three of them would live and raise their child together. This was the first time in the Imperial Family that a parent was fostering a child.
 Sweat glistened on the foreheads of the photographers crowded in front of the Imperial Household Agency Hospital. For the people who wanted to see Shingu and for the photographers who had worked so hard over the past few days, Michiko opened the window of her car for a while to make it easier for them to take pictures.
 The photographer, who had worked hard for several days, opened the window of the car for a while to make it easier for the photographer to take pictures of the people.
 *References: &#8220;Empress&#8217;s Poetry Anthology: Seine&#8221; (Daito Shuppansha), &#8220;Her Imperial Highness Princess Michiko&#8217;s Child Rearing&#8221; (Hisashi Sato, Bancho Shobo), &#8220;Her Imperial Highness Princess Hirohito: Record of Ten Years of Raising Her Strong and Tough&#8221; (Minoru Hamao, PHP Research Institute).

 Kaori Takagi

 Kyodo News

 On February 23, His Majesty the Emperor celebrated his 66th birthday. The author, an expert on the Imperial Family, brings back to life the tense situation before and after His Majesty's burial from a vast amount of documents. This is a real-life document of the Imperial Family, with the press, Ministry of the Imperial Household Ministry officials, and doctors scrambling to get to the bottom of the situation.

When will he be born?&#8221; &#8220;I can&#8217;t make it to the evening paper!&#8221; &#8230;Documentary: The Emperor&#8217;s Birth &#8220;Tense February 23&#8221;.

When will he be born?” “I can’t make it to the evening paper!” …Documentary: The Emperor’s Birth “Tense February 23”.

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