was naturalized as a Japanese citizen and took the name of Mereru Hitotsuyanagi as required by the Japanese law, pledged his allegiance to the nation of Japan and to the Emperor Hirohito. In September 1945, the former Prime Minister Fumimaro Konoe asked Vories to convey a message to SCAP on the Emperor's behalf. Vories also shared the idea of the Emperor renouncing claims of divinity and declaring his humanity. He would later go on to meet the Emperor four times. Death In 1957, Vories suffered a stroke while he was in his summer home in Karuizawa, Nagano Prefecture and was transported back to Ōmihachiman for medical treatment. He remained bedridden for seven years and died on the second floor of his house on May 7, 1964, at the age of 83. In 1958, Vories was awarded as the first Honorary Citizen of Omihachiman. He was posthumously honored the Order of the Sacred Treasure, 3rd class, by the Japanese government. His house in Ōmihachiman was currently the "Vories Commemorative Museum". Notes References Books "ヴォーリズの建築―ミッション・ユートピアと都市の華" 山形 政昭 1989 "ヴォーリズの西洋館―日本近代住宅の先駆" 山形 政昭 2002 "ウィリアム・メレル・ヴォーリズ―写真集 日本人を越えたニホン人" 山田プランニング 1998 "ヴォーリズ建築の100年―恵みの居場所をつくる" 2008 "ヴォーリズ評伝―日本で隣人愛を実践したアメリカ人" 奥村直彦 2005 "青い目の近江商人メレル・ヴォーリズ―創業者精神「信仰と商売の両立の実践」を受け継いで" 岩原 侑 1997 "青い目の近江商人ヴォーリズ外伝―「信仰と事業の両立」を果たした師ゆかりの地を歩いて" 岩原 侑 2002 External links "W.M.Vories & Company Architects Ichiryusha"s official site Vories Commemorative Museum home page William Merrell Vories, Omihachiman Tourism Association 1880 births 1964 deaths 20th-century American architects American expatriates in Japan Protestant missionaries in Japan Teachers of English as a second or foreign language Architecture in Japan Naturalized citizens of Japan People from Leavenworth, Kansas American Protestant missionaries Japanese Protestants Japanese people of American descent