Why Japan's reclusive Imperial family finally launched an Instagram account after years of secrecy

In April this year, the notoriously reclusive Japanese Imperial family made its debut on Instagram, opening the oldest monarchy up to a world it had previously shunned.

The Imperial Household Agency, a government body in charge of the family's affairs, wanted the public to have a better understanding of the royal family's official duties.

Instagram was chosen because of its popularity among young people.

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The Japanese imperial family's social media debut came 15 years after Britain's royal family joined social media, in 2009.

The move came after months of discussions behind closed doors – palace officials had been considering using social media to get more people interested in the family and their activities.

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In 2023, the agency set up a team of experts to study the effects of using social media on the imperial family.

On April 1, 2024, their verified account Kunaicho_jp was launched.

The first post was a photo of Emperor Naruhito, 64, and Empress Masako, 61, sitting with their then-22-year-old daughter Princess Aiko, on New Year's Day.

Other posts soon followed: the launch saw 60 photos and five videos posted showing Emperor Naruhito and Empress Masako's public appearances over the three months to April.

As of mid-December, the account now has 1.8 million followers and has shared just over 170 posts.

In comparison, the British royal family's official account has 13.3 million followers and the account for the Prince and Princess of Wales has 16.7 million followers.

In Europe, there are 1.1 million people following the Danish royal family on Instagram, Sweden's has 682k followers, the Dutch royal family has 968k followers and Monaco's has 100k.

Some royals have their own, personal accounts which are hugely popular: Jordan's Queen Rania has 10.3 million followers on Instagram, Britain's Princess Eugenie has 1.8 million and Princess Madeleine of Sweden has 341k followers.

Japan's Imperial family weren't the only royals to launch Instagram accounts this year.

In late June, the Spanish royal family debuted on the social media platform after previously using Twitter, now called X, their official website and emailed press releases to share news about the monarchy.

There are now 798k followers of the Spanish royal family's Instagram account, casareal.es

Since its launch in April, the Japanese royal family's page has been criticised for offering largely formal photos from official events instead of the often-candid posts shared by other royal families.

Strictly factual captions – in Japanese only – explain what the emperor did on what day, from meeting foreign dignitaries, admiring bonsai trees and taking part in Japanese traditions , with comments turned off.

The launch of the Instagram account was welcomed by many in Japan with the royal family maintaining a much lower public profile than other royal families.

Koki Yoneura, a 21-year-old student told Associated Press in April: "It's nice we get to see a bit of their activities because we hardly know what they are doing. It's good that they seem to be a bit closer to us."

Another student, Yukino Yoshiura, said she was excited to see more posts about Princess Aiko.

"Aiko-sama is close to our age and just graduated from university, so I'm very happy to be able to see her images."

Japan's Imperial family are much less colourful than other royals, particularly in Europe with their official residence in Tokyo dominated by a palette of browns and greys.

The new account offers a unique insight inside the Imperial family's palace which has largely remained in secrecy.

Rare glimpses have been seen over the years during high-profile events, including the enthronement ceremony of Emperor Naruhito in 2019 which was attended by royalty from around the world including King Charles and Queen Mary.

Going inside the palace is strictly off-limits to the public and there are no tours of its rooms or banquet halls.

Instead, members of the public can take a pre-booked, guided walking tour of the inner palace grounds which is hugely popular with locals and foreign tourists.

Spaces are incredibly limited and only a small number of spots are available on the day for those who don't have a booking.

Tours of the Imperial Palace inner grounds are so sought after because the palace itself isn't visible from the public areas of the large park which is surrounded by moats and imposing stone walls.

Visitors can only enter the inner palace grounds (without being on a guided tour) on January 2 when the Imperial family appears on the balcony to mark the New Year.

The inner grounds are again opened on February 23 for the Emperor's official birthday.

The palace, in Tokyo, is located on the former site of Edo Castle which used to be the seat of the Tokugawa shogun who ruled Japan from 1603 until 1867.

The current palace dates from 1888 but it was destroyed during World War Two and later rebuilt.

The Chrysanthemum throne

Japan's Imperial family has mythological origins dating back more than two millennia.

The family is largely respected in Japan though they remain most popular amongst older generations.

Any public criticism of the emperor remains taboo in Japan.

Emperor Naruhito ascended the Chrysanthemum throne on May 1, 2019, following the abdication of his father.

Emperor Akihito became the first Japanese emperor in more than 200 years to abdicate, bringing the Heisei imperial era to an end.

Under the Imperial Household Law of 1947, only men can ascend to the throne.

Their only child, Princess Aiko, is not in the line of succession.

Instead, her uncle Crown Prince Fumihito – younger brother of Naruhito – is heir. Next in line is Fumihito's son Prince Hisahito, who is 18 and in April will start at the University of Tsukuba.

Princess Aiko, who turned 23 on December 1, graduated from university earlier this year and has been taking on more official duties.

Princess Aiko began working at the Japanese Red Cross Society in April.

However, if she chooses to marry outside the Imperial family Japanese law requires her to renounce her royal status. Male members who marry commoners can keep their royal status.

In October 2021, Princess Mako married her college sweetheart Kei Komuro and lost her royal status. She also turned down a payment offered to royal females upon their departure from the family. They now live in New York.

There have been calls for the law to be changed to allow Princess Aiko to remain a royal and succeed her father as emperor, with the majority of Japan's public supporting the move.

But conservatives in the governing party insist on keeping male-only succession.

There are just 16 official members of the Imperial family, including four men.

Japan's government is said to be exploring a way to ensure the succession remains stable for future generations, without relying on women such as allowing the family to adopt new male members from former noble families that lost their status after World War II.

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