Remembering September 11

Before this month gets away from me I wanted to take a look back at Monaco's response to the 9-11 disaster in the United States. Obviously, this was an extremely emotional time for the half-American Princely Family. Due to the influence of HSH Princess Grace the United States and Monaco have enjoyed a very close relationship over the years, mostly through the Princely Family. The Grimaldis were stunned and horrified by the terrorist attacks on New York and Washington and the following month, October 2001, Prince Albert made the trip to New York to meet with people and witness the tragic aftermath. Prince Albert spent a great deal of time over the years with his American relatives on the east coast, he went to college in New England and after graduation lived and worked in New York City so the loss was very personal to him. Wearing his American flag tie and lapel pin and a New York Yankees ball cap to show his support the Prince met with Mayor Rudy Giuliani to express his sorrow at their loss, express Monegasque solidarity with the people of New York and the United States and to present him with a donation on behalf of the people of Monaco to deal with the disaster. After this meeting, as seen above, the Prince paid a very emotional visit to Ground Zero where the World Trade Center towers once stood. The support and friendship of the Principality of Monaco toward the United States is not forgotten and is still much appreciated and that friendship, bound up in the shared background of the Princely Family, will always endure.