Empress Suiko

Empress Suiko (554-7 March 628) was the first reigning empress of the Yamato kingdom. She had Prince Shoutoku act as regent and encouraged the spread of Buddhism in Japan. She resisted the pressures of the powerful families, including Soga no Umako, who made demands of her, and maintained her independence. Part of her reasoning in country-wide adoption of Buddhism was that it would turn Yamato in a peaceful country. To help achieve that, she issued the Flourishing Three Treasures Edict in 594, and due to her support, important temples were erected, such as Shitennō-ji (present day Osaka, oldest officially administered temple in Japan), Asukadera (Nara), and Hōryū-ji (Nara, the pagoda of the temple is one of the oldest wooden buildings in the world.