The Visit of His Royal Highness Prince Jean IV of the Former French Royal House

On September 28, a Japan-France Friendship Tea Gathering was held at the Official Residence of the Japanese Ambassador to the OECD in Paris, hosted by the Friends of the Centre Pompidou, whose president is Gōrō Obayashi, former Grand Steward of the Urasenke tradition and Chairman of Obayashi Corporation. The Franco-Japanese Association for the Way of Tea, which I represent, provided logistical and organizational support for the event.

As a distinguished guest from the Mori family, we were deeply honored by the presence of His Royal Highness Prince Jean IV of the House of Orléans, the former French royal house. His Royal Highness was welcomed by Ambassador Ōe and his wife, as well as by President Obayashi, before taking his place in the tea gathering.

President Obayashi served as the host of the tea gathering, I served as the tea master, and Hisaaki Kamei assisted as hantō.

His Royal Highness is a great-great-grandson of King Louis-Philippe I, the last King of the French, and is an heir to the royal lineage.

From the Japanese Chamber of Commerce and Industry in France, former Chairman Kobayashi and his wife, as well as Mr. and Mrs. Eiffel and Mr. and Mrs. Ishizaka, also came to join us.

Following the tea gathering, His Royal Highness kindly addressed us with warm and gracious words, and also presented us with a proposal that was both deeply humbling and greatly encouraging.

I sincerely hope that this precious encounter will lead to something meaningful for the future.

My heartfelt gratitude goes to all my fellow tea practitioners who supported us behind the scenes in the mizuya. Without their help, this gathering could not have been realized.