Caroline Louisa Marguerite Grimaldi 1 2
- Born: 23 Jan 1957, Monaco
- Marriage: Ernst August Hanover on 23 Jan 1999
General Notes:
Her Serene Highness The Princess Caroline of Monaco, a.k.a. HRH the Princess of Hanover, is the eldest daughter of Prince Rainier III of Monaco and his wife, Grace Patricia Kelly, a former American movie star. She is second in line to the Monegasque throne, after her brother, Prince Albert of Monaco, Marquis des Baux.
Her first husband was Philippe Junot, a playboy banker. They were married on June 29, 1978 and divorced in 1980. In 1992, the Roman Catholic Church annulled the marriage.
Her second husband was Stefano Casiraghi, an Italian industrialist who died in a boating accident. They were married on December 29, 1983, and had three children: Andrea Albert Pierre, Charlotte Marie Pomeline Casiraghi, and Pierre Rainier Stefano Casiraghi. The two younger children are named for their maternal great-grandparents, Princess Charlotte of Monaco and Prince Pierre of Monaco.
Her third and present husband is Ernst August of Hanover, head of the House of Hanover and German aristocrat. He is the senior male descendant of King George III of the United Kingdom. They married in 1999 and have one child, Princess Alexandra Charlotte Ulrike Maryam Virginia of Hanover, who was born six months later. Subsequent to this marriage, Caroline adopted the style "Her Royal Highness, The Princess of Hanover, Duchess of Brunswick and Lüneburg, Royal Princess of Great Britain and Ireland, and by birth Princess of Monaco."
Princess Caroline had a liaison from 1990 until 1995 with French actor Vincent Lindon.
On June 24, 2004, Princess Caroline obtained a judgment from the European Court of Human Rights condemning Germany for non-respect of her right to a private life. The seven judges who examined her request ruled that German jurisdictions have misunderstood this right by refusing to forbid publication of photographs depicting Caroline in scenes of her daily life.
The succession of Monaco has become a matter of concern recently given that Caroline's brother, Prince Albert has no children. On April 2, 2002, Monaco passed Princely Law 1.249 which provides that if Prince Albert assumes the throne and then dies without a legitimate direct heir, the throne would pass to his siblings and their descendants under the rule of male-preference primogeniture. Before this change, the crown of Monaco could only pass to a direct descendant of the reigning prince meaning Caroline would have become ineligible to inherit the throne upon Albert's ascension.
Noted events in her life were:
• She was a Princess of Monaco.
Caroline married Ernst August Hanover, son of Ernst August IV Hanover and Unknown, on 23 Jan 1999. (Ernst August Hanover was born on 26 Feb 1954 in Hannover, Niedersachsen, Germany.)
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