An afternoon on the Rock of Monaco

The Rock, a popular name for the hill in the principality of Monaco, on which the Place du palais is situated.
Next to the Prince's Palace of Monaco
(Palais Princier), Cathedral of Our Lady Immaculate (Cathédrale de Monaco), Musée océanographique de Monaco, several beautiful gardens, on this stone hill above the port and the city, there are also several terraces from which a fantastic panoramic view of Monaco is offered(Vue panoramique sur Monaco).

Every time I visit a city with a long history, I always look for the highest point of the old part of the city, from which I can best see the borders of that old part of the city, the urban ideas of the founders of the city, as well as its architecture.

With every step and every meter we climb, the view is more and more beautiful 🙂.

The only thing is that during my tour of Monaco, near the harbor, the grandstands and tracks were set up for a Formula 1 race, so the view was a little less beautiful, but certainly interesting.

I can imagine how busy these positions are on race day, when you can see a good part of the race track from here 🙂

By climbing the "Rock" of Monaco, I not only found myself at the highest point of the old town, but I was in the heart of that old town.

The history of this old town is a real movie story.
The Rock (La Rocher), with a height of 62m, was throughout history naturally destined for a fortified city.

It had a perfect view of the sea and was impregnable from the sea.
The Rock was inhabited by the Phoenicians and the ancient Greeks, and ancient history mentions Hercules staying on it, so even today the port in Monaco is called Port Hercule.

Until January 8, 1297, Rock was under the administration of Genova, but the cunning and crafty Francesco Grimaldi, known by the nickname Malizia, fraudulently conquered the city.

Namely, disguised as a monk, he deliberately knocked on the city gates as a traveler and when the guards opened them for him, he pulled out his sword from under his monk's robes, disabled the guards who did not expect a fight and enabled his men to occupy the city.
The monument at the entrance to the old town is dedicated to this man.

How important this event is for the principality of Monaco (without which it would not have been created), can be concluded when you look at the coat of arms of the principality's flag - two monks with drawn swords.

Although the Grimaldi family occupied Rock, in the following century, they repeatedly lost it and brought it back under their control, and finally in 1419 they established their rule, until today.

Monaco officially gained its independence in 1512 (French king Louis XII), and from then on, Monaco balanced between the great powers - France, Spain and Italy.

In 1848, the cities of Menton and Roquebrune seceded and joined France, thus Monaco lost 95% of its territory and its main source of income.
To save Monaco, Prince Charles III turned the country over to tourism and opened a Casino in the Monte Carlo district in 1863.
In the next 6 years, Casino revenues are so great that Prince Charles III makes a decision to abolish taxation of citizens.
What happened after that is well known 🙂

It is clear how this Rock (and whole Monaco) has turned into a gathering place for the richest people in the world.
Without property taxes and the money they have, those ultra-rich, have found their paradise here (the one, tax...).

I will write about the luxury of Monaco in a future post, here I will admire the architecture of the buildings on the Rock, narrow streets, stone facades and the view from the terraces.

On a terrace overlooking the Port Hercule and the city, there are these interesting, short cannons of large caliber.

I tried to inquire what their purpose was, but in addition to the defense of the city, in recent history, I learned that they were used to announce the changing of the guard.
However, there is also an anecdote. According to one, a cannon shot exactly at noon, informed one of the princes of Monaco that it was time for lunch, and according to another, that one of the prince's wives was informed that it was time to return home from a morning tour of the principality.
Mention the wives of princes, and here I will also mention the famous American actress Grace Kelly, who was married to Ranier III.

All over the city you can find posters with her image and a description of her activities.
It is concluded that she was very popular among the inhabitants of Monaco.
If you haven't seen the film about her life in Monaco, you have on the platforms.
Nicole Kidman performed the role brilliantly.

Late afternoon, although great for taking photos and visiting the steep hills, when the temperature is not so high, is still not good for visiting, due to the delay in visiting certain attractions.
I have already mentioned the Cathedral of Our Lady Immaculate.

A beautiful cathedral, which today is more famous for the people in it
Prince Rainier III and Grace Kelly were married on April 19, 1956.
In the same place in the tomb of the Garibaldi family, they are both buried, side by side.
She after a traffic accident in September 1982 (when her daughter, Princess Stefani, was in the car with her), and he in 2005.

We didn't manage to visit either the Jardins Saint-Martin garden or the Musée océanographique de Monaco, but we had the opportunity to enjoy the view of the fantastic architecture, some interesting installations in the area. And certainly in view of the port, the sea and the city.

While I was taking photos at dusk from the other side of the Rock, towards the port of Port de Fontvieille, a seagull kept me company and strutted like a model in every picture.

We managed to visit only the Chapel of Mercy (Chapelle de la Miséricorde) from the 17th century, as well as several souvenir shops.

The narrow stone streets, which have no opening hours, were at our disposal until the evening, and we enjoyed walking and sightseeing in this old town on Rock.