Prince Albert II and Princess Caroline continue historic Ardennes visit

Accompanied by his sister, the Sovereign inaugurated Arnicourt’s entry into the network of Historic Grimaldi Sites on Saturday, December 13, before traveling to Château-Porcien.

This day in the Ardennes held particular significance for the Prince and the Princess. Last April, Pope Francis’s funeral had forced Prince Albert II to cut short his visit to the Ardennes department. The Sovereign and the Princess of Hanover were finally able to honour their commitment to both communes.

In Arnicourt, a village of 150 inhabitants, the Prince unveiled the sign marking the commune’s membership in the Historic Grimaldi Sites network. “In our eyes, there is no small commune within this network of territories united by a shared history with our family and our country,” he declared during the ceremony at the town hall.

“Every state has its music to be heard”

The Sovereign employed multiple metaphors to illustrate each territory’s importance. “All states, large or small, double basses or piccolos, have their role to play and their music to be heard in the concert of nations,” he proclaimed, before drawing a comparison between Arnicourt and Monaco: “A small land that knows how to resist centralising forces while playing as part of the team.”

Quoting his father Rainier III, he also recalled that “it is not necessary to be a large country to have great dreams, nor to be numerous to achieve them.”

Prince Albert II and Princess Caroline honour Grimaldi heritage in the Ardennes

Château-Porcien, the “second principality”

“My visit to Chaumont-Porcien on April 3, 2018, was an opportunity for initial contact with your Porcien territory. I am delighted to complete my discovery today and to discover, in the year marking the 20th anniversary of my accession in Monaco, my ‘second’ principality – if you will permit the expression – that of Château-Porcien,” he explained, underscoring his attachment to these territories whose title remains inscribed in the historic titles of Monaco’s sovereigns.

The Sovereign announced that “a convivial and festive weekend” will soon bring together the Ardennes communes in Palace Square in Monaco to celebrate this shared heritage and history.