明治初期、伏見宮第１９代貞敬親王の王子守脩（もりおさ）親王が創立した宮家。守脩親王は文政２年（１８１９） に誕生。天保４年に親王室下ののち円満寺に入寺得度、党諄と称した。６年に梶井門室を相続し、明治元年還俗、３ 年に従来梶井富と称していた宮号を改め梨本宮を創立する。明治１４年に６３才で亡くなった。
第２代菊麿王は、初代守筒親王に継嗣となるべき王子がいなかったため、山階宮家から養子として入った。その後、守脩親王が亡くなって、明治１４年梨本宮家を継いだが、１８年に山階宮の継嗣に定められ山階宮に復帰した。
第３代守正王は久遜宮朝彦親王の王子で、菊麿王のあとを受けて梨本宮を相続した。明治７年（１８７４）に誕生。陸軍に籍を置き陸軍士官学校卒業。明治３６年にフランスへ留学、日露戦争のためいったん帰国。日露戦争では参謀本部付、第３軍司令部付として従軍。戦後再度留学しフランス陸軍大学で学んだ後、帰国。この間３７年には大勲位(菊花大綬章)に叙せられる。その後連隊長、旅団長、師団長をつとめ陸軍大将となり、昭和7年には元帥府に列せられ、元帥の称号を賜わった。また軍事参謀議官、日仏協会、在郷軍人会の各総裁となり、昭和１８年からは伊勢神宮祭主ともなる。終戦のとき皇族としてはただ１人A級戦犯で逮捕され、巣鴨プリズンに拘置されたが、半年後に釈放。昭和２２年皇籍離脱し、梨本姓を名のった。立派な口髭をたくわえ軍人然とした守正王は昭和２６年、７８歳で亡くなった。
守正王は明治３３年に侯爵鍋島直大（なおひろ）の女子伊都子と結婚、方子（まさこ）女王と規子（のりこ）女王をもうけている。当時の皇族がほとんどそうであったように、この結婚も宮内省がすべて、お膳立てし、２人が結婚まで会ったのはわずか２回に過ぎなかったという。
伊都子は守正王亡きあとも“最後の賞婦人"としてその品位を守り、『三代の天皇と私』を出版、昭和５１年に亡くなった。方子女王は明治４４年の日韓併合で皇族と同じような扱いをうけた朝鮮の李王家の当主・根公と１６歳で結婚、のちに皇籍離脱して平民となり平成元年４月３０日逝去された。
梨本宮邸は渋谷に約２万坪の屋敷があったが、いまは渋谷小学校や都立の児童会館、一般の住宅となって跡形もない。
The family was founded in the early Meiji period by Prince Moriosa, the royal son of the 19th Prince Sadataka of the Fushimi Palace. Prince Morinobu was born in 1819. He succeeded to the Kajii Monmuro in 1868, was canonised in the first year of the Meiji era (1868), and in 1868 changed his name from Kajii Tomi to Nashimoto-no-Miya (Prince Nashimoto). He died in 1881 at the age of 63.
The second Kikumaro was adopted from the Yamashina family, as Prince Moritsunobu I had no heir to succeed him. He later succeeded to the Nashimoto family in 1881 after the death of Prince Moritsunobu, but was designated successor to the Yamashina family in 1885 and returned to the Yamashina family.
The third Morimasaô was a prince of Prince Asahiko of Kuhômiya, and succeeded to the Nashimoto Palace after King Kikumaro. He was born in 1874 (Meiji 7). He was registered in the army and graduated from the Military Academy. Studied in France in 1903 and returned to Japan for the Russo-Japanese War. Served in the Russo-Japanese War as an attaché to the General Staff and the 3rd Army Headquarters. After the war, he went back to France to study at the French Military Academy and then returned to Japan. During this period, he was awarded the Grand Cordon of the Supreme Order of Merit (Grand Cordon of the Chrysanthemum) in 1937. He subsequently served as a regimental commander, brigade commander and division commander, and became a general in the army, and in 1932 he was appointed to the office of the General Staff and given the title of General. He also became a member of the Military Staff Council, president of the Japan-France Society and the Zainichi Sengenkai, and since 1943 has been the chief priest of Ise Jingu Shrine. At the end of the war, he was the only member of the Imperial Family to be arrested for a Class A war crime and detained at Sugamo Prison, but was released six months later. In 1947 he renounced the Imperial Family and took the surname Nashimoto. King Morimasa, a military man with a fine moustache, died in 1951 at the age of 78.
In 1899, Morimasa married Itsuko, the daughter of Marquis Naohiro, and they had two children, Queen Masako and Queen Noriko. As was the case with most members of the Imperial Family at the time, this marriage was arranged entirely by the Ministry of the Imperial Household, and the two met only twice before their marriage.
Itsuko maintained her dignity as the ‘Last Prize-winning Lady’ after the death of King Morimasa, and published The Three Emperors and I before her death in 1976. Queen Itsuko married at the age of 16 to Prince Negong, the head of the Yi royal family of Korea, who was treated like a member of the imperial family during the annexation of Japan and Korea in 1911.
The residence of Prince Nashimoto used to cover an area of about 20,000 tsubo in Shibuya, but now there is no trace of it, having been converted into Shibuya Elementary School, a metropolitan children's hall and ordinary residences.
Translated with DeepL.com (free version)