Just eight square miles of rocky land wedged between France and Italy on the Mediterranean Sea, Monaco's main attraction was the Monte Carlo Casino, where many a new or old fortune had been squandered since its opening in 1865. The ornate building was the showpiece of the resort and had given it international notoriety, though Monaco itself dated back to ancient times as a port. It had been in possession of Grimaldis since 1297, when Francois Grimaldi seized control of it from the Genoese. This Grimaldi forebear was of a successful sea-trading family in Genoa, a clan sometimes referred to in less euphemistic terms as "pirates." By the late nineteenth century, with the popularity of the casino among Europe's elite, Monaco was known as a hideout for jewel thieves and the more debauched members of European society.
Rainier grew up in the Palace de Princier primarily under the care of his English nanny. Tensions within the family were exacerbated by his parents' divorce in 1929. De Polignac was then banned from Monaco for life by Louis II, while Princess Charlotte grew increasingly eccentric over the years.
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