There were even more major royal celebrations going on last week! In the principality of Monaco, the Grimaldis gathered to mark the centenary of the birth of one of their most important family members, the late Prince Rainier III.
Rainier Louis Henri Maxence Bertrand Grimaldi was born in Monaco’s Palais Princier on May 31, 1923. He was the first Grimaldi prince to be born in Monaco in almost two centuries. His mother was Princess Charlotte, the only daughter of Prince Louis II of Monaco, and his father was her soon-to-be-estranged (and, eventually, to be divorced) husband, Count Pierre de Polignac. He had one older sister, Princess Antoinette, but male-preference primogeniture meant that he skipped ahead of her in the line of succession to the Monegasque throne.
Educated in England, Switzerland, and France, young Rainier was destined from birth to reign one day as Monaco’s Sovereign Prince. His mother sped up that timeline on May 30, 1944, the day before Rainier’s 21st birthday, when she renounced her right to the throne in favor of her son. After serving with the Free French Army in World War II, Rainier became the Prince of Monaco five years later on the death of his grandfather on May 9, 1949.
The war years had not been kind to Monaco, and Rainier III inherited a principality that was in dire financial straits. He worked hard to restore the economic status of the small nation, heavily promoting it as a glamorous haven for the ultra-rich. He upped the glamor even more in 1956, when he married the American actress Grace Kelly. The eyes of the world watched as Kelly, who had won the 1955 Best Actress Oscar, married her prince in a lavish ceremony at Monaco’s cathedral.
Rainier and Grace’s family grew to include a trio of children: Princess Caroline, born in 1957; Prince Albert, born in 1958, and Princess Stephanie, born in 1965.
The family was half Monegasque, half American, half European tradition, half Hollywood glitter. Monaco thrived as the press keenly covered the public engagements and personal lives of the Prince and Princess and their children. Rainier continued to reign over the principality, but a series of reforms during his tenure as sovereign prince handed over more power to Monaco’s elected National Council.
On September 13, 1982, Princess Grace suffered a cerebral hemorrhage while driving her car, and she passed away the following day from the injuries she sustained in the subsequent crash. Prince Rainier would mourn for his late wife for the rest of his life, opting not to remarry. After her death, he established the Princess Grace Foundation to honor her legacy and support the arts both in Monaco and in the United States.
Prince Rainier III reigned for more than half a century, until his death in Monaco on April 6, 2005. He was succeeded by his son, Prince Albert II, who has now been on the throne for nearly two decades.
On May 31, Rainier’s children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren gathered in Monaco to celebrate his legacy. Prince Albert II was present with his wife, Princess Charlene, and their children, Hereditary Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella. Princess Caroline was joined by her four children, Andrea, Charlotte, Pierre, and Alexandra, with their spouses/partners and children. And Princess Stephanie’s three children, Louis, Pauline, and Camille, were also there, along with Louis’s wife, Marie (who just gave birth to Stephanie’s first grandchild, Victoire Ducruet).
A series of events were held to celebrate Rainier’s life. Here, the family takes place in a painting workshop. They also unveiled a new sculpture walk.
Here, Prince Albert poses with a group of schoolboys on the steps of Monaco’s cathedral during the festivities.
The Grimaldis also took part in a special parade of vintage cars. Prince Rainier was an avid, enthusiastic car collector, and his impressive personal collection is able to be visited by members of the public.
Prince Albert drove a car with Princess Charlene and the twins as passengers. (I’m pretty sure that’s Charlene’s little nephew, Raigen Wittstock, in the backseat with his cousins.)
Princess Caroline drove with her granddaughter, India Casiraghi, in the passenger seat.
Here, Andrea Casiraghi drives a car with his wife, Tatiana, and their younger son, Maximilian, in the front seat.
Princess Stephanie and Pauline Ducruet rode in the back of Andrea’s car during the parade.
And here, Pierre Casiraghi drives with his wife, Beatrice, and their sons, Stefano and Francesco, plus Princess Alexandra and her partner, Ben-Sylvester Strautmann.
Later on, there was cake…
…and, of course, a grand fireworks display over the water.
The jewels worn for the celebration were small but meaningful. Let’s have a closer look at the jewelry pieces worn by the three senior princesses, shall we? Here’s Princess Charlene wearing a khaki-colored trouser suit with sequin details for the daytime events of the celebration.
She chose a classic pair of diamond studs, one of her signature jewelry pieces, to go with the suit.
She also added a special pin celebrating Prince Rainier’s centenary.
In the evening, Charlene changed into a black dress with eyelet detailing at the neckline.
She wore the same diamond stud earrings with the dress.
Princess Caroline wore an ensemble with a red and white color theme, echoing the national colors of Monaco.
She wore button-style earrings (made of mother-of-pearl and rubies, I think?) and a necklace with a Monegasque flag pendant, as well as a Van Cleef & Arpels bracelet. The pin at the neckline of her gown is made of a coin from the earliest years of Prince Rainier’s reign.
Princess Stephanie wore a white trouser suit for the celebrations, paired with simple stud earrings.
For the daytime festivities on Tuesday, she wore a white top under her jacket…
…but in the evening, she wore a commemorative T-shirt from the celebrations, which has a design inspired by vintage travel posters.
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