Hello Monaco #12 Summer–Autumn 2021 | Page 108

DYNASTY

PRINCE HONORÉ III :

ONE OF THE LONGEST REIGNS IN EUROPEAN HISTORY

By Julia Belyakova
Everybody knows that the reign of French King Louis XIV , ‘ Le Roi Soleil ’, was the longest in European history . Two British Queens — Elizabeth II who will celebrate 70 years on the throne in 2022 and her great-great-grandmother Victoria ( who reigned for 63 years ) also had lengthy reigns . But few know that the fifth prince of Monaco is also on the list of the longest-reigning European monarchs : after coming to the Monegasque throne in 1733 he reigned for nearly 60 years and so passed his ancestor Honoré , Lord of Monaco , who ruled for 58 years in the XVI century .
ASCENSION TO THE THRONE AT THE AGE OF 13 https :// fr . wikipedia . org /

Honoré Camille Léonor Grimaldi was born on November 10 , 1720 . He was the son of Louise-Hyppolite , and the grandson of Prince Antoine I , who both died in 1731 . Honoré came to the throne just after turning 13 when his father , Prince Jacques I , abdicated . Prince Honoré III spent much of his time away on campaign with the Royal French Army fighting the English in the War of the Austrian Succession . Honoré III was wounded fighting in the French victory at Rocoux . Later , he earned the Cross of St Louis for his conduct and after the Peace of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748 he was given the rank of Marshal of France .

What is interesting is that despite the heroic service of Honoré III in the wars , the Principality of Monaco was neutral in the conflict and , administered by the Chevalier de Grimaldi , assisted both French and English ships in need of help . The Austrians and Sardinians did blockade the Monegasque coast for a time and much of the countryside was pillaged by Croat soldiers of the Austrian army but French forces later cleared the region of all invaders in 1748 .
THE ROYAL MARRIAGE
Portrait of Honoré III , Prince of Monaco by Jean Baptiste van Loo ( painted before 1745 )

In 1757 Honoré III married Maria Caterina di Brignole-Sale who was descended from the Doges of Genoa and called ‘ the most beautiful woman in France ’. They were a very proud family and the arrival of the bride-to-be in Monaco turned into a disaster as many of the bridal attendants were seasick and the future motherin-law insisted that Honoré III come onboard to greet his fiancé and escort her ashore . However , as a monarch in his own right , Honoré III refused as it was considered a breach of protocol for a prince to go to meet someone rather than them being brought to meet him . A stand-off ensued and eventually the Genoese fleet sailed away and stopped farther up the coast before a compromise was negotiated by which the couple would meet in the middle of

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