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Born on March 14, 1958, Prince Albert Grimaldi has been the Sovereign of the Principality of Monaco since November 2005.
Prince Albert acceded to the position following the passing of his father, Prince Rainier III, in April 2005.
As the only son of Prince Rainier and Princess Grace, a celebrity Hollywood actress in her own right before their marriage, Prince Albert was able to observe at first hand from his parents the qualities needed for leadership, and how to handle the media – attributes he has shown in abundance since becoming Sovereign.
Prince Albert of Monaco completed his higher education in the United States at Amherst College, Massachusetts, in 1977. His main main focuses there were political science, economics and English literature. He graduated with a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science. An early indication perhaps not just for understanding the ways of the world when he would eventually succeed to the throne, but also of the understanding he has to make the environment an issue he not only cares deeply about, but to push it up the agenda when he meets fellow world leaders.
Before Amherst, Prince Albert enjoyed an American lifestyle, perhaps inherited from his mother, and spent plenty of summers in wilderness camps. He acted as a camp counselor for six summers at Camp Tecumseh on Lake Winnipesaukee, in New Hampshire.
Prince Albert is a keen sportsman and regularly participates in rowing, skiing, sailing and fencing, and sometimes attends home football games when Monaco are playing.
Prince Albert formed a bobsleigh team for Monaco and competed in five Olympic Games, from 1988 through to 2002. He has also been a member of the International Olympic Committee since 1985, and takes a leading role in the Olympics.
While Prince Albert is not married he does have children, none of whom are in line to inherit the throne.
Prince Albert And The Environment
Why a separate heading for the environment?
To know anything about what drives Prince Albert and his politics, is to understand that the environment and social issues play a major part in his life.
Prince Albert has been a leading light in the campaign to raise awareness of global warming, and for protecting the environment.
One of his first acts as Sovereign was to sign the Kyoto Protocol, taking Monaco out of the small group of countries, including Australia and the US, that hadn’t at the time signed the treaty.
Monaco has established an embassy in Washington, which we at YourMonaco.com have dubbed ‘The Green House’ – and we believe the primary purpose will be for exerting influence on Capitol Hill on green and social issues.
Monaco is now publishing GDP statistics for the first time, which will allow Monaco to play a full role in the Third World by donating 0.7 per cent of GDP to appropriate UN agencies.
Prince Albert has also been involved in the UN’s ‘plant a billion trees’ campaign, has visited the Arctic to publicise the melting glaciers, and takes a lead role in showing the world that a wealthy country - albeit the second smallest in the world - with a modern successful economy can also be environmentally friendly.
Latest Prince Albert News
February 11 2008:
UN Award - Prince Albert has won an award from the UN for his environmental work. A report can be seen at http://ukpress.google.com/article/ALeqM5iB3oQC4VTR_xlY0ajzGndrxakppw.
October 4 2007:
Prince Albert At The UN - Prince Albert has been in New York, working with his foundation and the United Nations on climate change. Read a report here: http://www.undispatch.com/archives/2007/09/unf_and_foundat.php.
01 September 2007:
MOSCOW (AFP) - Prince Albert II of Monaco will be bringing back two babies from Russia - a couple of rare freshwater nerpa seals gifted to him by a government official, Russian agency ITAR-TASS reported Thursday. A Siberian regional official gave the prince the seals, which he promised to take good care of, according to an aide to the Irkutsk regional governor. The seals, whose usual habitat is Baikal Lake in Siberia, will go to a new home at the Oceanography Museum in Monaco. Albert met President Vladimir Putin in a former imperial palace near St. Petersburg before going on a fishing trip with him in Siberia last Monday. He was going hunting and fishing Thursday, ITAR-TASS said.
07 August 2007:
Prince Albert Visits Texas
The Dallas News reports:
As long as Prince Rainier was alive and reigning in Monaco, his son and heir was free to pop in and out of Dallas quietly and unobserved. But now Rainier is gone and his son is Albert II, Sovereign Prince of Monaco. But things are pretty much the same.
The ruler of Monaco arrived quietly in Dallas last Thursday, and later made his way to a ranch outside San Antonio.
28 June 2007:
Prince Albert is in New Zealand for the America's cup, and took time to chat to locals.
Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones, who last weekend were in Menorca, joined Prince Albert on the Louis Vuitton yacht.
May 27:
A welcome return to Charlene Wittstock, who watched the Monaco Grand Prix with Prince Albert, and later accompanied him to the gala dinner.
Charlene, 29, who represented South Africa at the 2000 Olympic Games in Sydney, has been romantically linked with Prince Albert by the tabloids since the 2006 Winter Olympic Games, although they first met in 2001.
Rumours that their friendship had ended were quashed when Charlene was seen out and about in Monaco earlier this month.
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