Marriage
Masako first met the prince when she was a student at the University of Tokyo in November 1986, although some say they had actually met previously when her father served as an escort to members of the Imperial Family. Masako and the prince were pursued relentlessly by the press throughout 1987.
Masako's name disappeared from the list of possible royal brides due to controversy about her maternal grandfather, Yutaka Egashira, Chairman of Chisso, a corporation infamous for the Minamata disease, a major pollution scandal. Behind the scenes, however, her relationship with the prince continued unabated. The Prince proposed several times before Masako finally honored his request on 9 December 1992. The Imperial Household Council formally announced the engagement on 19 January 1993 and the engagement ceremony was held on 12 April 1993. Although many were surprised at the news (as it was believed that the prince and Masako had gone their separate ways), the engagement was met with a surge of renewed media attention directed towards the imperial family and their new princess.
Masako was joined in marriage with His Imperial Highness Crown Prince Naruhito in a traditional wedding ceremony on 9 June 1993. By virtue of the marriage, Masako Owada assumed the formal predicate Her Imperial Highness The Crown Princess of Japan. In addition, she was placed in the Japanese Imperial Order of Precedence (used for the most formal occasions) behind her mother-in-law, Empress Michiko, and her grandmother-in-law, Empress Dowager Nagako.
Read more about this topic: Crown Princess Masako
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