Titles of Grimaldi of Monaco

the Official Directory of the Principality of Monaco indicates that the Head of State Monegasque carries the following titles of nobility:

Its Sérénissime Highness the sovereign prince of Monaco , Marquis of the Beams, duke of Valentinois, count de Carladès, baron de Calvinet, baron of the Boxwood, Saint-Remy cheese lord, lord de Matignon, count de Torigni, baron de Saint-Lô, baron of Luthumière, baron de Hambye, duke of Mazarin, duke of Mayenne, prince of Castle-Porcien, baron de Massy, count de Ferrette, of Belfort, of Thann and Rosemont, baron d' Altkirch, lord of Issenheim, marquis de Chilly, count de Longjumeau and marquis de Guiscard

All these titles were received manners different and certain of between-them are disputed today by the specialists in the French nobility.

To include/understand the reason of it, they should first of all be differentiated:

Italian titles

The lords of Monaco had Fief S in Italy from which they were private at the time of the reversal of alliance of 1642. Most famous was the marquisat of Campagna (or Campaigns) in the Royaume of Naples. These titles are not mentioned any more today, but for what follows, they could live again like titles of right Monegasque.

Titles granted by Louis XIII

The prince Louis Ier of Monaco was first prince de Monaco with being recognized sovereign prince by Louis XIII in 1642, which ensured the row of foreign prince to him at the Court of France. In addition to its princely title, it received the right to carry the predicate of Highness Sérénissime as well as the titles of duke of Valentinois, count of Carladès, baron of Calvinet, baron of the Boxwood, lord of Saint-Remy cheese and marquis of the Beams. The princes foreign having a row lower than the Dukes and even of France , Valentinois was set up in Duchy-peerage and became the title-fetish of princes de Monaco.

When the throne of Monaco was without male heir, it is the princess Louise-Hippolyte of Monaco which became the sovereign one and her husband, the count of Goyon-Matignon received the authorization by Louis XIV to carry the title of duke of Valentinois and to transmit the principality of Monaco to its descent.

These titles having been able to be transmitted by the women, one can consider today, in the absence of competent authority in France, that the princes of Monaco can transmit them according to the same rules as the succession of the throne Monegasque, i.e. by legitimate transmission male, female, or by adoption.

Some have even marked that since the adoption of Charlotte of Monaco had been carried out in the presence of the president of the French Republic, this adoption would have involved of this fact the carryforward of the French titles… It should not indeed be forgotten that France recognizes the titles of nobility. However, it would have to be known if the Chancellery would agree to register the titles in question with the Large Seal of France.

Titles of Jacques de Goyon

By marrying the heiress, Jacques de Goyon of Matignon had to conform to the rules governing the succession to the throne. It adopted, for him and its descendants the name and the weapons of the Grimaldi. On the other hand, it was authorized to preserve some of its French titles, which were: lord of Matignon, count of Torigni, baron of Saint-Lo, baron of Luthumière, baron of Hambye. On the other hand, its title of duke of Estouteville, inherited its ancestors Orleans-Longueville, could not be transmitted to its descent.

These titles, created for a French by the kings of France were inevitably subjected to the Salic law, i.e., being able to be transmitted only by " male primogeniture legitimates absolue".

These titles thus were regularly transmitted until 1949, with died of Louis II of Monaco. Indeed, its heir was the prince Rainier III, wire of Charlotte Louvet, his illegitimate daughter. Of this fact its titles died out with Louis II and must be today regarded as Titer of courtesy.

Titles of the Cardinal

The Cardinal Mazarin had the titles of duke of Mazarin, duke of Mayenne, prince of Castle-Porcien, count of Ferrette, Belfort, Thann and Rosemont; baron of Altkirch, lord of Issenheim, and marquis of Guiscard.

the heritage of Ruzé d' Effiat: titles of Chilly, Longjumeau and Massy:

The heir to the Cardinal, Armand-Charles of the Door, duke of Mazarin and Meilleraye, which had married his/her niece Hortense Mancini, inherited the titles of marquis of Chilly, count of Longjumeau and baron of Massy with died of his cousin the marquis Antoine III of Effiat, in 1719. Chilly and Longjumeau had arrived in the family of Coiffier d' Effiat thanks to made substitution at the profit of Antoine II of Effiat, future Marshal of France, in 1609, by its great-uncle Martin Ruzé de Beaulieu, Secretary of State under Henri III, Henri IV and Louis XIII, and owner of the two seigniories. The act of substitution comprised the obligation for Effiat to carry from now on the name and the weapons of Ruzé. The grounds of Chilly and Longjumeau had remained perpetually transmissible by the elder males then, if need be, by the male juniors, or other male branches of Ruzé. Logically, the grounds of Chilly and Longjumeau should have returned, during the extinction of the branch Ruzé d' Effiat, with their Ruzé cousins. It was without counting on the powerful influence of the duke of Mazarin which did not take account of the terms of the substitution of 1609. As for the baronnie of Massy, it was acquired in 1627 per Antoine II of Effiat of the dukes of Ventadour and Luxembourg and was transmitted to her son, then with his grandson, before falling into the escarcelle one from the duke from Mazarin.

These titles could be transmitted then by the women in the event of male absence of heir. That occurred several times and it is Louise d' Aumont, remote small-niece of the Cardinal who inherited it and to Grimaldi by marrying Prince Honore IV transmitted them.

When Rainier III, wire of the illegitimate girl of Louis II of Monaco reached the capacity in 1949, it them also taken again. However, it was in any irregularity because these titles, nontransmissible by illegitimacy, were transmitted legally by the women. So current the duke of Urach, going down from the princess Florestine of Monaco (by his/her son Mindaugas II of Lithuania) would be the current legitimate holder. But Urach having finally given up their rights on Monaco (but did give up the other titles?), it is downward of the princess Honorine of Monaco (by Aynard Guigues de Moreton de Chabrillan), the count Xavier de Caumont the Force (which wrote a book besides on this subject) which can today assert them “legitimately”… in “forgetting” that it does not go down from Louise d' Aumont and of Honore IV but holds his rights of Honore III.

It is thus rather Urach which could try to recover these French titles near the Service of the Seal of the Ministère of justice of the French Republic, competent service as regards transmission of Titer of nobility.

The Polignac marriage

The father of Rainier III was the count Pierre de Polignac. He carried the Titer of courtesy of " comte" in the capacity as junior by a ducal family. This principle is recognized and used today by the whole of the French aristocracy. However, Pierre of Polignac, in accordance with the dynastic rules, had to give up his name for that of Grimaldi. The title of " count de Polignac" is thus not usable by the current princes of Monaco. In the diplomatic directory of Monaco, this title is not mentioned.

Particular creations

The princes of Monaco sometimes created titles for family members. For example, the prince Florestan, junior by family, therefore not intended for the throne, carried the title of count Grimaldi of Monaco because of his nonequal marriage considered by his parents. When his/her older brother died without heir, it was pointed out to reign and created the principality of Lametz (in so far as the creation of this title is assured) for his wife who came from the middle-class. This title is not evoked any more in the Official Directory of Monaco.

More recently, the prince Rainier III gave the baronnie Massy, for his sister Antoinette, and his illegitimate descent (in so far as this quality can be easily given) which carries today of Massy as a patronym.

In this case, the titles are purely honorary Monegasques creations which we pourions to describe as titles of courtesy but who would become authentic owing to the fact that they were create by a sovereign.

Statute of the titles today

The simplest solution and most careful is to consider that the whole of the titles of French right, without reference to origin, carried by Louis II of Monaco became titles of right Monegasque after 1949 (and even front for the titles granted by the prince its close relations without taking account of the French rules). These titles Monegasques are thus not the continuation of the old French titles.

Member of the United Nations since 1993, the Principality can create titles and distinctions without referring about it to anybody and the Constitution of Monaco of 1962 stipulates in its article 16: “ the Prince confers the orders, titles and other distinctions. ”

See too

List of the sovereigns of Monaco

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