Monaco's Prince Rainier III dies aged 81
April 6, 2005 - 10:10PM
Monaco plunged into mourning, its famed casino closing its doors upon news of the death Wednesday of Prince Rainier III, the long-ruling monarch hailed for modernising the tiny principality once renowned as a "sunny place for shady people."
Rainier, whose marriage to American film star Grace Kelly brought elegance, glamour and world renown to what once was a Riviera backwater, died at 6:35 a.m. (1435 AEST) at the hospital treating him for heart, kidney and breathing problems. He was 81.
Prince Albert, his son and heir, was at his side, after doctors called him just before 6 a.m. (1400 AEST) to tell him the end was near, the royal palace said. Albert, 47 and groomed from birth to succeed his father, had already taken over the royal powers - but not the throne - last week because Rainier was too sick to rule.
Rainier's body was transferred from the hospital back to his hilltop palace shortly after his death and will lie in state in the palace's Palatine Chapel so Monegasques can pay their respects, said an official close to the palace.
The Mediterranean enclave's famed Monte Carlo closed its doors Wednesday in a sign of respect.
"Each of us feels like an orphan because the principality has been marked by his imprint over the 56 years" of his reign, said Patrick Leclercq, head of government in the principality of 32,000 people.
"Let us render, in dignity and respect, the immense homage that is his due for a body of work that resounded throughout the world and from which we reap the benefits."
There was no immediate official word on funeral arrangements. Rainier was expected to be buried alongside Princess Grace at the 19th-century Monaco Cathedral, where they wed on April 18, 1956. Beside her tomb is an empty slab of marble waiting to be engraved with the prince's name.
Tributes flooded in from European leaders and politicians who praised Rainier - who had been Europe's longest-serving monarch - as a reformist prince.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/Breaking-News/Monacos-Prince-Rainier-III-dies-aged-81/2005/04/06/1112489561946.html
April 6, 2005 - 10:10PM
Monaco plunged into mourning, its famed casino closing its doors upon news of the death Wednesday of Prince Rainier III, the long-ruling monarch hailed for modernising the tiny principality once renowned as a "sunny place for shady people."
Rainier, whose marriage to American film star Grace Kelly brought elegance, glamour and world renown to what once was a Riviera backwater, died at 6:35 a.m. (1435 AEST) at the hospital treating him for heart, kidney and breathing problems. He was 81.
Prince Albert, his son and heir, was at his side, after doctors called him just before 6 a.m. (1400 AEST) to tell him the end was near, the royal palace said. Albert, 47 and groomed from birth to succeed his father, had already taken over the royal powers - but not the throne - last week because Rainier was too sick to rule.
Rainier's body was transferred from the hospital back to his hilltop palace shortly after his death and will lie in state in the palace's Palatine Chapel so Monegasques can pay their respects, said an official close to the palace.
The Mediterranean enclave's famed Monte Carlo closed its doors Wednesday in a sign of respect.
"Each of us feels like an orphan because the principality has been marked by his imprint over the 56 years" of his reign, said Patrick Leclercq, head of government in the principality of 32,000 people.
"Let us render, in dignity and respect, the immense homage that is his due for a body of work that resounded throughout the world and from which we reap the benefits."
There was no immediate official word on funeral arrangements. Rainier was expected to be buried alongside Princess Grace at the 19th-century Monaco Cathedral, where they wed on April 18, 1956. Beside her tomb is an empty slab of marble waiting to be engraved with the prince's name.
Tributes flooded in from European leaders and politicians who praised Rainier - who had been Europe's longest-serving monarch - as a reformist prince.
http://www.theage.com.au/news/Breaking-News/Monacos-Prince-Rainier-III-dies-aged-81/2005/04/06/1112489561946.html
posted by Kangaroo Brisbane Australia at 2:06 PM
0 Comments:
Post a Comment
<< Home