Japan's Prince Mikasa, who fought war in China under a fake name, dies at 100

Mikasa’s death coincides with renewed attention to the future of the ageing and shrinking imperial family and whether women should be allowed to inherit the throne, breaking a males-only succession tradition that conservatives say is central to an imperial tradition stretching back 2,600 years.

Mikasa was the youngest brother of the current emperor’s father, Hirohito, in whose name Japan fought the second world war.

He was the only living member with military experience in the imperial family and he often spoke of the importance of peace after the war.

After graduating from the Military Academy in 1936, the prince served in the cavalry regiment. He graduated from the Military Staff College in 1941 and was posted to Nanjing, China, as an Imperial Japanese Army officer under a pseudonym in 1943.