Konoe Tadafusa (近衛忠房)
Tadafusa KONOE (September 24, 1838-July 16, 1873) was Kugyo (the top court officials) in the end of the Edo period. He was the fourth son of Tadahiro KONOE. His mother is regarded as Okiko (興子), an adopted daughter of Narioki SHIMAZU, but she was also guessed as a child born out of wedlock. His lawful wife was Sada-hime (Princess Sada), an adopted daughter of Nariakira SHIMAZU. His children were Atsumaro KONOE (the eldest son), Fusamaro TSUGARU (the second son, an adopted son of the Tsugaru clan) and Hiroko TOKUGAWA (the eldest daughter, a wife of Iesato TOKUGAWA). His go (byname) was Kozan (光山). His official court rank was Juichii-sadaijin (minister of the left at the Junior First Rank).
Biography
As his wife was an adopted daughter of Nariakira SHIMAZU and his father's wife was also an adopted daughter of Nariaoki SHIMAZU, he had a deep relationship with the Satsuma domain. He was assigned to Gon Dainagon (a provisional chief councilor of state) in 1851 and Kokuji goyogakari (a general official of the Imperial Household in charge of the State affair) in 1862. However, he was against radical Sonno Joi Movement (the Movement advocating reverence for the Emperor and the expulsion of foreigners). In the Coup of August 18 in 1863, he cooporated with the Satsuma domain to drive out the group of the Choshu domain from Kyoto together with his father. At the time of the Second conquest of Choshu in 1866, he mediated between bakufu (Japanese feudal government headed by a shogun) which forced through the conquest of Choshu domain and the Satsuma domain which supported the Choshu domain.
After the Meiji Restoration, he became a Shinto priest. In 1873 he died young at the age of 36 before his father's death.