Ancestral History and a Pilgrimage

Recently, HSH Prince Albert II was in France visiting one of the former estates of the Grimaldi; the former Duchy of Valentinois (Duke of Valentinois still being one of the titles of the prince). In Chabeuil the Sovereign Prince visited the old Hotel des Princes and opened the Place "Marie-Pelline Grimaldi of Monaco, maid of Chabeuil". Marie-Pelline was the daughter of Prince Antoine I of Monaco and gained lasting fame thanks to the harpsichord piece written for her by Francois Couperin. Prince Albert II visited some other historic villages and landmarks in the area, met with local officials and even took the "Promenade des Princes de Monaco" in Buis-les-Baronnies as well as attending the medieval festival in Crest (bet that was fun). The Duchy of Valentinois was ceded to the House of Grimaldi a year after the Treaty of Peronne in 1641 between King Louis XIII of France and Prince Honore II of Monaco which ended the Spanish protectorate over Monaco and by which the Kingdom of France recognized and guaranteed the independence of the Principality. Although the title is still retained, the actual Duchy of Valentinois was lost to the Prince of Monaco during the French Revolution and the abolition of the Bourbon monarchy.

On Tuesday TSH Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene visited the French island of Corsica on a pilgrimage to Bastia honoring St Devote, the patron saint of Monaco and the House of Grimaldi. St Devote is also patron saint of Corsica and Monegasque survival of a French-Corsican attack on the tiny country is attributed to the miraculous intervention of St Devote who is said to have appeared over the Monegasque battlements to reprimand the attackers, particularly the Corsicans who so revere her.