A daylong celebration to officially proclaim Prince Albert II of Monaco the ruler of this tiny Riviera principality opened yesterday with a solemn Mass at the vast cathedral where his father, Rainier III, was buried three months ago.
Wearing a dark suit and sky blue tie, Albert, followed by his two sisters, Princess Caroline and Princess Stephanie, and the rest of the Grimaldi family, walked to the front of the cathedral on the heights of the rocky enclave behind the archbishop of Monaco, Monsignor Bernard Barsi.
Organ music set the solemn tone for ceremonies that were to end with fireworks and a festive ball under the stars.
The 47-year-old bachelor prince is the only son of Prince Rainier and actress Grace Kelly, who gave up Hollywood for the life of a princess.
Rainier, who ruled Monaco for more than 50 years, died on April 6. Albert automatically was conferred royal powers, but his accession to the throne, a two-step event, formally places him on the throne. A November ceremony expected to draw heads of state also was planned.
Hundreds of Monegasques, decked out in fineries and fancy hats, packed the stone cathedral near the royal palace.
"I remember Albert's birth. We've seen him grow up," Christine Rousguisto, 79, said ahead of the Mass.
Albert, often portrayed as shy and retiring, has been groomed all his life for this moment.
"Of course, he's ready for this. He has everything to be a wonderful prince," Rousguisto said.
While the princes of Monaco do not wear crowns, there is a royal throne, and Albert was to take his seat on it during the Roman Catholic Mass.
The red and white flag of Monaco was flying early yesterday from many buildings and lampposts here, as Monegasques prepared for a long day of ceremonies and festivities. In the evening, the mayor of Monaco will symbolically hand over the keys of the town to Albert, after which the prince will make a formal speech. A palace concert by the Monte Carlo philharmonic orchestra, an open-air ball in the port, and a fireworks display were also planned.
The festivities in the tiny territory, which lies cramped between the foothills of the French Alps and the sea, cap a turbulent period for the 700-year-old Grimaldi dynasty.
The official mourning period for Prince Rainier was not yet over before Monaco was back at the center of media attention when a French-Togolese former air hostess claimed that Albert had fathered her now 22-month-old son.
Albert, who is estimated to have a fortune worth some US$2.4 billion, confirmed this last Wednesday, the last day of official mourning for Rainier.
His son, Alexandre Coste, cannot become ruler of the principality under current succession laws that exclude illegitimate children but will "want for nothing" in his life, the prince told French television on Monday.
Albert also refused during an interview with TF1 channel to confirm or deny that he had fathered other children.
"I know there are other people who present more or less the same case," he said.
But when asked if such paternity claims were false, Albert replied: "We will answer that when the time comes."
During his 55 years in power, Prince Rainier was credited with turning the rocky statelet from a Riviera backwater into a thriving banking and business center, noted for its fabled casino and its Monte Carlo car rally.
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