Born a daughter of the Imaizumi Shimazu, a branch of Satsuma's ruling house.
She was adopted by lord Shimazu Nariakira and set out for Edo.
After adoption by the noble Konoe family, she married the 13th shogun, Tokugawa Iesada.
Her husband Iesada died; she took the tonsure and the name Tenshōin.
She welcomed the imperial princess Kazunomiya as wife of the 14th shogun Iemochi; though they first clashed, they reportedly came to understand each other.
As government forces closed on Edo, she stayed with the Tokugawa despite her Satsuma birth and appealed for the house's survival. Edo Castle was handed over without battle.
Around this time in Tokyo she raised the young Tokugawa Iesato, the new head of the house, and supported him.
She died in Tokyo.
Shimazu NariakiraPrincess Kazu
Hashimoto SanaiHijikata ToshizōKomatsu Tatewaki (Kiyokado)Sakamoto RyōmaMatsudaira KatamoriYamaoka TesshūTokugawa YoshinobuNakaoka Shintarō
People of the Edo period ・ People by period
Based on facts found in textbooks and biographies. Uncertain points are marked as such.