Uematsu Takamasa (植松賞雅)
Takamasa UEMATSU (September 11, 1705 - November 27, 1785) was a Kugyo (top court official) and a flower arrangement expert during the mid Edo period. As a Kugyo, he served the Imperial Court for five generations of Emperors, which included Emperor Nakamikado (114th), Emperor Sakuramachi (115th), Emperor Momozono (116th), Emperor Gosakuramachi (117th), and Emperor Gomomozono (118th), and his official court rank advanced to Junii (Junior Second Rank) Gon Chunagon (a provisional vice-councilor of state). As an expert at flower arrangement, he is known for the successor of the old school of Shogetsudo.
Brief personal history
He was born as the third son of Noritomo IWAKURA (Shonii [Senior Second Rank], Gon Dainagon [provisional chief councilor of state]) at the Iwakura residence in Kyoto. His name in the Iwakura family was Tomokane. He was conferred peerage in 1713. In 1720, he became an adopted child of Masataka UEMATSU (Shosanmi [Senior Third Rank], Kunaikyo [Minister of the Sovereign's Household]), who didn't have a child at that time. That was because the Uematsu family was a branch of the Chigusa family, which was further a branch family of the Iwakura family. He celebrated his coming-of-age ceremony in 1721, and changed his name to 'Takamasa' (賞雅), using the letter 'masa' (雅), which was a Toshiji (or toriji, character-in-common, one of two Chinese characters adopted by members of the same family) of the Uematsu family. After that, he became as U gon no shosho (Provisional Minor Captain of the Right) and U gon no chujo (Provisional Middle Captain of the Right), and was conferred Jusanmi (Junior Third Rank) in 1736, and was counted as one of the Kugyo. In 1747, he advanced to Shosanmi (Senior Third Rank). In 1754, he was appointed Sangi (councilor). In 1757, he was conferred Junii (Junior Second Rank), and appointed as Gon Chunagon in 1768. In addition, his adoptive father Masataka had a biological child, Yoshimasa UEMATSU, born after he adopted Takamasa as a child. Because of that, even though Takamasa had biological children, he adopted Yoshimasa as a child and had him inherit the family. The two biological children of Takamasa were adopted into their main family, the Iwakura family (Naotomo IWAKURA and Hiromasa IWAKURA).
He also left achievements as an expert in flower arrangement. He studied under Ichiro, and received kago (title as an expert in flower arrangement) Godaibo.
He is known as the best disciple of Ichiro,
After Takamasa succeeded 'Shogetsudo koryu' (the old school of Shogetsudo), which was established by Ichiro, the Uematsu family succeeded the school for generations, spreading the teaching throughout the temples and shrines in Kyoto and surrounding provinces. In his later years, he gave his kago to Bokuyu.