In pictures: inside Monaco Princely Family’s historic day with Pope Leo XIV
Prince Albert II, Princess Charlene, Hereditary Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella alongside Pope Leo XIV © Michaël Alesi / Frédéric Nebinger / Sarah Steck / Gaëtan Luci / Prince’s Palace
From the Prince’s Palace to the Stade Louis II, several generations of the Princely Family gathered around the Supreme Pontiff on this historic day for the Principality.
Prince Albert II and Princess Charlene chose to welcome Pope Leo XIV as a family. From the moment the welcoming ceremony began in the main courtyard, Hereditary Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella, aged 11, stood alongside their parents at the foot of the white marble staircase to greet the Supreme Pontiff. On the balcony, in front of a crowd of several thousand people, the sight of the Princely Family flanking the Holy Father provided one of the most memorable moments of the morning.
Generations of Grimaldis have come together
In addition to the Prince and Princess and their children, many other members of the family were in attendance. On a platform set up in the main courtyard, Princesses Caroline and Stephanie took their places in the front row, dressed in black and wearing mantillas, in accordance with protocol.
Joining them were Charlotte Casiraghi, Pierre Casiraghi and his wife Beatrice Borromeo, as well as Louis Ducruet and his wife Marie. Melanie-Antoinette de Massy, cousin of Prince Albert II, and Gareth Wittstock, brother of Princess Charlene, completed the family picture. At Monaco Cathedral, the whole family once again gathered around the Pope for the Sixth Hour service.
A close-knit family at the Stade Louis II
In the middle of the afternoon, the Grimaldis gathered at the Stade Louis II for the pontifical mass. The Prince and Princess, the twins, and Princesses Caroline and Stephanie took their seats in the Red and White section. Members of royal families residing in the Principality were also present, including, according to the media outlet Histoires Royales, Prince Charles and Princess Camilla of Bourbon-Two Sicilies. In the late afternoon, the Prince and Princess, as united as they had been at the start of the day, accompanied Leo XIV to the heliport for his return to Rome.
Photos: © Michaël Alesi / Frédéric Nebinger / Sarah Steck / Gaëtan Luci / Prince’s Palace