Oinomikado Yorikuni (大炊御門頼国)

Yorikuni OINOMIKADO (1577 - June of 1613) was a kugyo (court noble) who lived from the Azuchi-Momoyama period to the early Edo period. He mainly served the Imperial Court in the era of Emperor Goyozei (the 107th) and advanced to a post at Konoefu (the headquarters of the inner palace guards) at the rank of Shosanmi (Senior Third Rank). However, later he was involved in an incident of promiscuity with the court ladies in the Imperial palace. His father was Tsuneyori OINOMIKADO, Dainagon (a chief councilor of state). Tsunetaka OINOMIKADO, Sadaijin (minister of the left), was his younger brother.

He was conferred to a peerage in 1578. Then he was appointed to a post at Konoefu (the headquarters of the inner palace guards) at the rank of Jusanmi (Junior Third Rank) in 1587, becoming a kugyo, after assuming jiju (chamberlain) and a post at Konoefu. He was awarded Shosanmi (Senior Third Rank), but after that, remained at the same government post and rank for a long period of time.

In 1608 during such a period of time, he, together with Noritoshi INOKUMA, Mitsuhiro KARASUMARU, Tadanaga KAZANIN, Masakata ASUKAI, Munekatsu NANBA, Munenobu MATSUMOTO, and Sanehisa TOKUDAIJI, met court ladies secretly and this led to some sexual promiscuity. Censured by Emperor Goyozei, he was exiled to Io-jima Island (in Kagoshima Prefecture) in 1609. Several years later, he died there. Died at the age of 37.

[Original Japanese]