, posthumously honored as , was the 109th monarch of Japan, according to the traditional order of succession. Her reign lasted from 1629 to 1643. Her reign officially began when she was five years old and continued for fifteen years. It is believed that Meishà Â's father actually ruled in her name until she abdicated in favor of her younger half-brother.
In the history of Japan, Meishà  was the seventh of eight women to become empress regnant. The six who reigned before her were Suiko, Kà Âgyoku/Saimei, Jità Â, Genmei, Genshà Â, and Kà Âken/Shà Âtoku. Her sole female successor was Go-Sakuramachi.
Before Meishà Â's accession to the Chrysanthemum Throne, her personal name (her imina) was ; and her pre-accession title was . She was the second daughter of Emperor Go-Mizunoo. Her mother was Tokugawa Masako, daughter of the second Tokugawa shà Âgun, Tokugawa Hidetada and his wife Oeyo. Hidetada was the son of Tokugawa Ieyasu and his consort, Oai.
Meishà  lived within the Inner Apartments of the Heian Palace, as opposed to the section reserved for the women of the Imperial Court. She had no children of her own, and was succeeded by her younger paternal half-brother, Go-Kà Âmyà Â. Her name was derived by combining the names of two previous empresses, Empress Genmei (707âÂÂ715) and her daughter Empress Genshà  (715âÂÂ724).
Okiko-naishinnà  became empress following the abdication of her father. The succession (senso) was considered to have been received by the new monarch; and shortly thereafter, Empress Meishà  is said to have acceded (sokui). The events during her lifetime shed some light on her reign. The years of Meishà Â's reign correspond with the development and growth of the Tokugawa shogunate under the leadership of Tokugawa Iemitsu.
Empress Meishà  reigned for fifteen years. Although there were seven other reigning empresses, their successors were most often selected from amongst the males of the paternal Imperial bloodline, which is why some conservative scholars argue that the women's reigns were temporary and that male-only succession tradition must be maintained in the 21st century. Empress Gemmei, who was followed on the throne by her daughter, Empress Gensho, remains the sole exception to this conventional argument.
The kami of this empress is venerated in the imperial mausoleum at Tsuki no wa no misasagi, which is located at Sennyà «-ji in Higashiyama-ku, Kyoto. Also enshrined is her father, Emperor Go-Mizunoo and her immediate Imperial successors â Go-Kà Âmyà Â, Go-Sai, Reigen, Higashiyama, Nakamikado, Sakuramachi, Momozono, Go-Sakuramachi and Go-Momozono.
is a collective term for the very few most powerful men attached to the court of the Emperor of Japan in pre-Meiji eras. Even during those years in which the court's actual influence outside the palace walls was minimal, the hierarchic organization persisted.
In general, this elite group included only three to four men at a time. These were hereditary courtiers whose experience and background would have brought them to the pinnacle of a life's career. During Meishà Â's reign, this apex of the Daijà Â-kan included:
The years of Meishà Â's reign are encompassed within one era name or nengà Â.