Forty years after her death, Prince Albert is still in awe over his mother Princess Grace of Monaco and her ability to enchant the world.
Forty years after her death, Prince Albert is still in awe over his mother Princess Grace of Monaco and her ability to enchant the world.
The actress turned royal died in 1982 at age 52 in a car crash after suffering a stroke. Not only did the Oscar winner capture the world’s attention on screen with her acting talent and legendary beauty, but she also became the real-life embodiment of many little girls’ fantasies when she married Prince Rainier of Monaco in a wedding worthy of any Disney princess in 1956. They would go on to have three children together, Princess Caroline, Prince Albert, and Princess Stéphanie.
Looking back over the four decades since he lost his mother, Albert told People, “It doesn’t seem like 40 years. Many times during a day, a week, not only do I find myself thinking of her, but numbers of people still recall her to me. They remember her and that’s a great tribute to her and who she was—to what an exceptional human being she was.” The royal continued, “Forty years on, she still captures people’s imagination. She managed to capture the imagination and attention of several younger generations and not many have done that. It’s an incredible gift that she had. She had charm and incredible allure about her. And It’s not only her beauty or the fashion icon that she was that attracts people. It was her warmth, her heart, the humanity people saw in her that they remember.” He concluded, “If I could speak to her, I would say that I wish she were here to see her grandchildren and how great they are. They’re great kids.”
Prince Albert is the father of two 7-year-old twins, Princess Gabriella and Prince Jaques, with his wife Princess Charlene. The princess has been privately dealing with a number of health setbacks over the past couple of years, however, she was able to attend Monaco’s Red Cross Ball in July with her husband at her side supporting her the whole night. In May, Charlene spoke out against tabloids making assumptions about the state of her marriage due to her need to scale back her royal duties as she continues to focus on healing. The royal told Monaco-Matin at the time, ”I still find it regrettable that certain media peddle such rumors about my life, my relationship. Like everyone else, we are human beings and like all human beings we have emotions, weaknesses, only our family is exposed to the media and the slightest weakness is relayed.” She added that after spending much of last year in South Africa due to an ENT infection and then continuing her recovery with four months in Switzerland, “When I returned to the principality, I focused all my energy on my children, my husband and my health because they are my priority. My state of health is still fragile and I don’t want to go too fast. The road has been long, difficult, and so painful.”
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