How did Hirohito become the Emperor Shōwa?

That December, Hirohito survived an assassination attempt, and the following month he married Princess Nagako, with whom he would have seven children. At around the same time, he ended the practice of imperial concubinage. Hirohito officially became emperor when his father died in December 1926. read more

The Emperor was deeply interested in and well-informed about marine biology, and the Imperial Palace contained a laboratory from which the Emperor published several papers in the field under his personal name "Hirohito". read more

Hirohito, original name Michinomiya Hirohito, posthumous name Shōwa, (born April 29, 1901, Tokyo, Japan—died January 7, 1989, Tokyo), emperor of Japan from 1926 until his death in 1989. He was the longest-reigning monarch in Japan’s history. read more

Hirohito’s son Akihito, the current emperor of Japan, broke with 1,500 years of tradition by marrying a commoner in 1959. read more