Info on Princess Charlotte, Rainiers mother
Her Serene Highness
Princess Charlotte, Duchess of Valentinois (Charlotte Louise Juliette
Grimaldi, née Louvet) (
30 September 1898 -
15 November 1977), styled
HSH The Duchess of Valentinois, was the daughter of
Louis II, Prince of
Monaco, and the mother of Prince
Rainier III. From 1919 until 1944, she was the Hereditary Princess of Monaco, heiress to the throne
Birth and adoption
Born in
Constantine, Algeria, she was the illegitimate daughter of
Marie Juliette Louvet, a cabaret singer, and Prince
Louis II. On the death of Prince Louis II, theretofore without a legitimate heir, the throne of Monaco was due to pass to the German
Duke of Urach, Louis II's cousin, son of Princess Florestine of Monaco; to forstall this event, on
15 November 1911 a law was passed recognizing Charlotte as Louis's daughter, and making her part of the sovereign family. Though it was later held to be invalid under the 1882 statutes, another law was passed in
1918 modifying the statutes to guarantee succession rights to an adopted heir. Louis adopted Charlotte in
1919, bestowing on her the surname Grimaldi and the titles of Hereditary Princess of Monaco and
Duchess of Valentinois; she was thus his
heir apparent from 1919 until
30 May 1944.
Marriage
Charlotte (center) with her children
Rainier (left) and Antoinette
In
1920, Louis arranged Charlotte's marriage to Count
Pierre de Polignac of
Guidel,
Morbihan,
Brittany,
France who, by the Prince's ordinance, took the surname Grimaldi and became a Prince of Monaco. The couple had two children:
Their marriage was not, however, a happy one; they separated in
1930 and were divorced in
1933.
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Late life
On
30 May 1944, the day before her son's 21st birthday and in full agreement with her father, Charlotte ceded her rights to the throne to her son Rainier, subject to the stipulation that he did not predecease her. From this date she was no longer Hereditary Princess of Monaco, though she retained the titles of Princess of Monaco and
Duchess of Valentinois.
Late in life she went to college, obtaining a degree in
social work. After her son assumed the throne, Princess Charlotte moved to live at
Marchais, the Grimaldi estate outside of
Paris. Despite the objections of her children who feared for her safety, she turned the estate into a rehabilitation centre for ex-convicts. She lived at the estate with her lover, a noted French jewel thief.
In
1977, Princess Charlotte died in Paris, France.