[ad_1]
Princess Ayako’s older sister, Princess Noriko, also left the royal family in 2014 to marry commoner Kunimaro Senge.
Even though Prince William and Harry both married commoners Kate Middleton and Meghan Markle and remained in the British Royal Family, Princess Ayako will have to leave the Japanese royal family as soon as she ties the knot.
Under Japanese imperial law, a princess is required to leave the Royal Family when she exchanges vows with a commoner, a law which doesn’t apply to male members of the Japanese Royal Family.
However, Princess Ayako will receive a bonus payment expected to be around a million pounds.
Princess Ayako, the youngest daughter of Emperor Akihito’s late cousin Prince Takamado, met her husband-to-be, who works for shipping firm NYK Line, through her mother, Princess Takamodo, in December last year.
Princess Takamodo knew Mr Moriya’s parents from her work at a local NGO and had hoped by introducing her daughter to him, she would be inspired by global welfare activities.
However the pair discovered they had a lot more in common and he proposed to her in a restaurant, where Princess Ayako didn’t give him an answer straight away.
She said: “He proposed to me this year having a dinner at a restaurant. It was very sudden, so I asked to hold for my answer.
“As we have deepened the relationship including our family, friends and related people, I came to the decision and accepted this proposal.”
The pair will officially make their engagement on August 12 and will marry at Tokyo’s Meiji Jingu shrine on October 29.
The princess told how she fell in love with her husband-to-be’s “kind, smart and decisive” personality.
She said: “I don’t know what my mother’s intentions were in introducing him to me, but as the two of us went to various places together and shared our time and memories, we became naturally drawn to each other.
“I think we were able to come this far thanks to the wonderful ties started by our mothers.”
When Princess Ayako and Mr Moriya get married, the Japanese Royal Family will only consist of 17 members.
Princess Ayako declined to comment.
[ad_2]
