Hino Muneko (日野宗子)
Muneko HINO (year of birth unknown - June 21, 1447) was the legal wife (Midaidokoro (shogun's wife)) of Yoshinori ASHIKAGA, who was the sixth seii taishogun (literally, "the great general who subdues the barbarians") of the Muromachi bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun). Her father was Shigemitsu HINO, who had the title of Dainagon (chief councilor of state). She was separated from her husband due to his death, and entered nunhood and called herself Kanchi-in.
After the fourth shogun Yoshimochi ASHIKAGA passed away, his younger brother Gien returned to secular life, inherited the shogun position, and gained the name 'Yoshinori.'
However, Yoshinori, who was a priest, lacked a wife and immediately required a legal wife. From this, Eishi HINO, who was the legal wife of Yoshimochi, consulted her family member Yoshisuke HINO (the legal son of Shigemitsu) and made the younger sister of Yoshisuke, Muneko, marry him as his legal wife. Within a month of returning to secular life for Yoshinori, she was legally declared Midaidokoro on March 30, 1428 and the wedding took place on August 11, 1428. She gave birth to a girl on April 24, 1429 and was conferred the Sanbon (the third rank of the Imperial Princess) on March 2 of the following year. However, the marriage itself was decided by the caretaker of Yoshinori, Eishi HINO, and the relationship between the couple was not well. Yoshinori gradually began to give his affection toward his concubine, Inshi SANJO.
Yoshinori suddenly declared on July 23, 1431 that he would give Inshi the position of Midaidokoro. Since then, Muneko was referred to as 'Hondaidokoro' (real shogun's wife) and Inshi as 'Shindaidokoro' (new shogun's wife) and this became a situation where two legal wives were present. In addition, the daughter, the only child between the two, passed away on September 11, and Eishi HINO also died of illness on the following day, September 12. Yoshinori took this opportunity to divorce Muneko in the same year and took in her younger sister Shigeko HINO (later became the birth mother of Yoshikatsu ASHIKAGA and Yoshimasa ASHIKAGA) as his concubine to compensate the Hino family.
It is not clear what happened afterwards, but Muneko, who entered nunhood and declared herself Kanchi-in, passed away on June 21, 1447 according to the entry of that day in "Yasutomi-Ki" (Diaries of NAKAHARA Yasutomi).