reading all 200 pages was worth it
especially since more details of the Matsudaira family was
revealed...and yes the heirloom sword by Kunitoshi Rai in a brocade
bag was mentioned on page 94 of the book...wakizashi courtesy of the
Fujita family.
I tried my best to record ALL the details about the reaction from
Aizu's natives...when the book says "tears of joy" it was literal
the two people which stood out to me the most in the book are:
Matsudaira Tsuneo (Matsudaira Katamori's son)
his personality, and direct parenting basically does not fit the
textbook definition of the Japanese family structure of an "aloof"
father. So the biography illustrates how dangerous it is to make
cultural generalizations. I did my best to arrange his bio in my
"SILVERDRUM" notes in the FILES section but be warned I may have left
out some of his jobs (he held many posts). His life demonstrated that
the ideals of the "revolutionaries" were shared by the pro-shogunate
people as well.
"Taka" (the nanny from Aizu)
well, lots of fanfic, and even in our private Aim chats we try to
"recreate" or formulate the personality of Aizu women. We draw upon
the legacy of the Joshitai, the writings of Shiba Goro and even the
later model provided by Yamakawa/Oyama Sutematsu. Taka, is very very
strong willed and if you check out my notes she was a major figure in
the family and played a critical role during the wedding. I love her.
Oh, before I forget---Taka was connected to Yamakawa Sutematsu (who
was also Princess Chichibu's heroine). Taka's diary was important in
this biography.
it's easy to remember dates now
Fujita Goro died on Sept 18 1915
wedding ceremony, officially restored the honor of Aizu, and in which
a former possession Fujita Goro became an important gift occurred on
Sept 18 1928
The book is an "official" memoir and the Princess was restricted when
it came to writing about the royalty during WW2. In fact the second
half of the book right after her husband succumbed to TB and she
assumed his role/duties...the book turned into a "list" of activities.
I will try to scan pics tomorrow.
I received a WONDERFUL entry for the contest
http://1happyturtle.com/makoto/contest.htm
but HOTMAIL has prevented me from logging on for the whole day...I
will post this new entry ASAP