Princely Couple visits Alsace
Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene were first welcomed by Sylvie Renger, Mayor of Feldbach. © Manu Vitali / Communications Department
On Sunday, Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene attended the festivities to commemorate the 700th anniversary of the marriage of Jeanne de Ferrette and Albert II of Habsburg.
On the first leg of the day, the Prince and Princess were welcomed by Sylvie Renger, Mayor of Feldbach, to officially unveil the plaque marking the town’s membership of the “Grimaldi of Monaco Historic Sites,” and to discover the village’s 12th-century Romanesque church of Saint-Jacques, where the Counts of Ferrette are buried.
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“It was founded in 1144 by the first Count of Ferrette. Through inheritance and marriage, the county of Ferrette and the church of Feldbach became the property of the Grimaldis,” she told Monaco Info, referring to the marriage in 1777 of Louise d’Aumont, Duchess of Mazarin, to the future Prince Honoré IV of Monaco. The county was granted to Cardinal Mazarin by King Louis XIV in 1659.
Prince Albert and Princess Charlene then travelled to Dannemarie to inaugurate the “Passage des Comtes de Ferrette”, located behind the choir of Saint-Léonard church, in the presence of the town’s mayor, Alexandre Berbett, and local and Monegasque dignitaries. The day in Alsace ended in Thann with the official 7th centenary ceremonies, to which the Archduke and Archduchess Rudolf of Habsburg-Lorraine, descendants of Jeanne de Ferrette and Albert II of Habsburg, were invited.
It was also an opportunity to show the Princely Couple the organ in the collegiate church of Saint-Thiébaut, restored with a contribution from the Sovereign, followed by lunch at the town’s cultural centre. The last stop was the Albert I park, to see chalets run by the towns in the former county of Ferrette and enjoy a walkabout.