Monaco is only 1.95 square kilometers, making it the second smallest country in the world after Vatican City. And 20% of that land is man made land produced in the 1960’s. Monaco has a population of 32,000, but only 7,800 are actually Monegasque citizens (by birth or marriage). Monaco is surrounded on three sides by France, and the fourth side is water. It is on the French Riviera, close to the Italian border and to the Alps. Monaco has a natural harbor that is well sheltered, and on the west side of the bay is an enormous rock that made an excellent natural fortress from which to defend the harbor. Combined with overall good weather, this was always an attractive location to control.

There is scientific evidence that Paleolithic man (the precursor to Homosapiens) lived in Monaco as far back as 300,000 BC. The first permanent human settlers were the Ligures people, who migrated from the nearby Italian city of Genoa. It is believed that the old road that ran from Italy to Spain through Monaco in antiquity was called “The Road of Hercules” and that there was a temple devoted to the worship of Hercules in Monaco. At the time, the bay was called “Port Hercules” (and is still sometimes called that today) and the town was called “Monoikos”, which means “Hercules alone” in Greek (as in they worshipped only Hercules). No remains of a temple to Hercules have ever been found, and as Monaco is now completely built up, they won’t be doing any more excavations to try to find it.

During the Roman Empire era, Monaco was part of the Province of the “Maritime Alps”. Julius Caesar embarked from its harbor on his way to lead his campaign in Greece. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire in the fifth century AD, the whole region was ravaged by the Saracens and various Barbarian tribes; this period of invasions lasted until the end of the tenth century. It wasn’t until 975 that the last of the invading groups were expelled and natives returned to live on that stretch of coast.

In 1191, the Holy Roman Emperor Henry VI granted control over the area to the city of Genoa, the native home of the Ligurian people group. In 1215, one of the Genoese family groups, the Ghibellines, began the construction of a fortress atop the Rock of Monaco. In order to have enough residents in the settlement to support the fortress, they lured residents from Genoa and the surrounding cities by offering land grants and tax exemption to new settlers.

Civil war broke out between the prominent families in Genoa over political control in 1270. In 1296, the Guelph and Grimaldi families were expelled from Genoa and took refuge in the area around Monaco. In 1297, a group of armed soldiers led by Francois Grimaldi, dressed as Franciscan monks, went to the fortress on the rock saying they were in search of shelter. Once inside, the costumed soldiers took control of the fortress. Most all the abbreviated histories of Monaco say that the Grimaldi family has ruled ever since, but that is actually only partially true.

Intermittent battles over the rock went on for another 300 years. The only time the Grimaldi family lost control was in 1301, but were restored to power in 1331. Meanwhile, the Grimaldis bought lordship rights of some surrounding territory. The Grimaldi lords also served in the French military and court of the French King, making a strong alliance with France. France agreed to protect Monaco. France also granted some land and titles within France to the Grimaldis. This pattern of Grimaldi service to France and alliance with France lasted until 1523, when the reigning lord of Monaco, Lucien, was murdered. The reigning French King, Francois I, refused to give Lucien’s successor, Augustin, the same support. France basically handed Monaco over to Charles V of Spain, which also considered Monaco a “protectorate” that the Grimaldi’s still technically, but not really, controlled. It was during this time, in 1612, that the title of the ruler was changed from “Lord” to “Prince” to suit the Spanish court system. Monaco is a principality, which means no kings, just princes.

In 1630, the newly crowned heir to the throne, Honore II, reestablished relations with France, and received favorable support and protection. With the help of a French garrison, the Monegasque were able to expel the Spanish. The French bestowed lordships over other lands within France on the new prince Honore, as a replacement for the lands and titles that the French had taken back when they gave Monaco to Spain.

In Europe’s feudal days, marriages were often solely for political alliance. Reigning families would marry their children off to someone from another kingdom who had power, money and/or titles that complimented their own throne in some way. By the time the feudal system fell apart, it seemed that everyone in every European royal family was somehow related. Anyway, for the next 160 years, the heirs to the Monaco throne were all carefully aligned in marriages that brought Monaco more land, wealth and prestige, including quite a few marriages within the French King’s courts. Monaco has few natural resources, but the Monegasque were living pretty high on the hog thanks to revenue brought in by their other territories. All the while, the Monegasque princes and nobles continued to serve the French King and military, maintaining a close alliance.

Then the French Revolution broke out. On August 4, 1789, the French Constituent Assembly stripped away all feudal rights on lands within France. So, except for the land the Grimaldis had paid for when they first came to power, which was considered part of the principality of Monaco, in the blink of an eye most all the Monagasque land was suddenly gone. The Monegasque were broke. An opposing political party wanting to give the power of government over to the people also came into being. In 1793, the French decided that Monaco was to be incorporated into France. French soldiers took Monaco. They sold off everything of value in the palace, then turned the palace into military housing. Later it was converted to a hospital, then to a home for the poor. The Monegasque royalty was imprisoned for a while.

In 1799, Napoleon Bonaparte managed to seize control of France and named himself French consul for life. In 1814, Napoleon was captured and exiled, and control of France was given back to the kings and lords who ruled it before the French Revolution. A year later Monaco was taken from France and given to the Kingdom of Sardinia, along with neighboring French territories. Like before, the Grimaldis were still technically in control of Monaco. The Kingdom of Sardinia had a constitution that did not apply to those in Monaco’s domain. The people in Monaco’s outlying territories began to demand their independence. In 1848, the outlying areas declared themselves independent townships. Their independence was not recognized by Monaco or Sardinia, and the people of these areas continued to cause problems. In 1860, Sardinia gave back the general area to France. In 1861, the reigning prince of Monaco, Charles III, struck a deal with France. He sold France the towns that wanted to be independent for 4 million Francs and the formal proclamation that Monaco was to be recognized as an independent nation, not a “protectorate”.

This clever deal made Monaco free from French rule, but they had let go of their most profitable regions and were now in dire straights financially. Charles made several attempts to increase commercial activity in Monaco, and in 1863 Charles and his mother came up with a great idea: a casino! They also built a beautiful hotel and theater next to the casino on what was at the time a vacant hill on the other side of the bay from town. Charles renamed the hill Monte Carlo (which means Mount Charles) after himself. The casino was successful beyond any of their most optimistic forecasts. In 1868, they built a railway that connected Monaco with the rest of Southern France and Southern Italy and the numbers of visitors increased remarkably. More hotels, high end buildings, and businesses continued to be built around the casino on Monte Carlo. The casino is now world renowned, so famous that many people mistakenly believe the name of the country is Monte Carlo, and Monte Carlo and Monaco have almost become interchangeable words. Charles III also made sure all of Europe recognized Monaco as an independent nation and signed all kinds of deals and treaties to ensure this recognition.

In 1889, Albert I succeeded Charles III. Albert I was an accomplished scientist in the fields of Oceanography and Paleontology and had a seat in the Academy of Sciences. He used his position to further scientific research and understanding in Monaco and France, and created several museums in both places. He also created a world renowned opera in Monaco. And most importantly, in 1911, Albert gave his people a constitution.

During WWII, Monaco tried to stay neutral, despite its obvious ties with France. Monaco was invaded by Italy. After Mussolini’s fall, the Germans swooped in and occupied Monaco. The country was liberated when the German troops retreated.

Prince Albert’s great grandson was Prince Rainier III. Rainier had volunteered for the French army in WWII, and was a decorated war hero. In 1949, Rainier took the throne. In April 1955, Grace Kelly, a famous Hollywood actress, was heading up the US delegation at the Cannes film festival. Since she was in the area, Prince Rainier invited her to do a photo shoot with him. This began a secret relationship between the two. In December, Rainier went to America on “official business” and spent three days with Kelly and her family before proposing to her. They were married in April 1956 in a ceremony watched by 30 million people on TV. Their union is almost always referred to as a “fairytale marriage”.

Kelly’s presence as the new princess of Monaco added even more glamour and posh to the already exclusive small country. Kelly and Rainier put a lot of effort into furthering many social and humanitarian causes. Rainier set about turning Monaco from a simple holiday destination to a thriving international financial, business, cultural and sports center, as well as a premier luxury tourist destination. He brought in light manufacturing, hi-tech and banking industries, which have all added to the country’s prosperity. In 1993, Monaco joined the UN and in 2004 joined the Council of Europe (but are not part of the EU).

In 1982, Princess Grace suffered a stroke while driving, ran her car off the mountain road and eventually died. 100 million people worldwide watched her funeral on TV. Prince Rainier never remarried, and died in 2005 at 81 years old. He was succeeded by their eldest son, Albert II. Because Monaco offers low taxes to residents, many super wealthy choose to reside there. Also, Monaco’s banking laws emphasize privacy, which has helped Monaco become a world banking center in recent years, despite much criticism that they offer too much privacy.