Prince Albert II - history in detail. Prince Albert II of Monaco: my Charlene is a woman who is worth the whole country Albert of Monaco

Marrying a prince is a dream that seems impossible to many. Seven years ago, former South African swimmer Charlene Wittstock managed to achieve it. But has the life of the Prince of Monaco’s wife turned into a reality fairy tale?

At the beginning of July, Princess Charlene and Prince Albert celebrated their seventh anniversary family life

A wedding is considered one of the most happy events in life. Well, if the groom is a prince, then the bride is automatically registered as the lucky one who managed to hit the jackpot - no less. However, Charlene Wittstock, who has proudly worn the title of Princess of Monaco for the past seven years, is ready to refute all these claims. The former professional swimmer would like to forget the day of her wedding with Prince Albert II of Monaco (and the events preceding it) as horrible dream.

At her own wedding, the bride, as if having forgotten about hundreds of high-ranking guests and cameramen and photographers recording every moment, burst into bitter tears and, it seems, never smiled. A couple of years after the celebration, the princess with a forced smile will tell reporters that she cried... from happiness. Like, in fact, she was moved by the emotional performance of the artists at the wedding.

Not everyone believed the words of Charlene, who after her marriage to Albert was almost always unusually sad. What is the ex-athlete so sad about, who made the dream of many come true and married the ruler of one of the richest states in the world? the site reconstructed the chain of events and tried to understand the reasons for Princess Charlene’s misfortune.

"Playboy" of the Monegasque court

Most representatives of the royal families of Europe try to avoid gossip and scandals so as not to spoil their reputation. However, Prince Albert III of Monaco in his youth was not very worried about his image in the press. He changed women almost every month. At one time, Kylie Minogue, Brooke Shields, Naomi Campbell, Claudia Schiffer and other world-famous beauties “claimed” the laurels of the future Princess of Monaco.

At the beginning of the 2000s, Russian figure skater Marina Anisina also dreamed of a title and luxurious jewelry. “Albert looked after me very beautifully. But why should I marry just for money? I rejected him and chose to connect my life with Nikita Dzhigurda,” said former athlete Lera Kudryavtseva in her show “Secret to a Million.”

In the 2000s, Prince Albert showed signs of attention to figure skater Marina Anisina, but she preferred his compatriot to him

Anisina, like many others, has repeatedly said that Albert is a wonderful, attentive lover. True, among those who spoke out on this subject were not only women, but also men... In the 1990s only son Grace Kelly and Prince Rainier III accused of unconventional sexual orientation. At first, the prince ignored these rumors, but his patience finally ran out.

“At first I found it funny. When everyone around me started discussing this topic, I became very angry. I’m tired of repeating that I’m not a homosexual,” Albert explained to Madame Figaro magazine.

Other facts also speak in favor of the prince. Suddenly, two women showed up and spoke in detail about the “fruits” of their meetings with Albert. Back in 1992, US real estate agent Tamara Rotolo announced that she gave birth to a daughter, Jasmine Grace, with him. Paternity was established only in 2006, when the Prince of Monaco finally agreed to undergo a DNA test. The caring father even invited his daughter to move in with him and promised to pay for her university education.

From time to time, the Prince of Monaco is discovered to have illegitimate children.

Before Albert recognized his illegitimate daughter, he had to recognize his son. A boy named Alexander was born in the summer of 2003. The child's mother, flight attendant Nicole Coste, endured it for a year and a half, and then sold the titled father of her child. It turns out that for several months she lived in the prince’s personal apartments in Paris and posed as the girlfriend of one of his friends. The prince was furious and immediately sued several reputable publications for digging through dirty laundry and unearthing something.

The scandal was so big that Albert had no choice but to declare himself the father of the boy.

After this, other women began to appear who claimed that the prince had “made them happy.” True, they failed to achieve anything from the representative of the Grimaldi dynasty, taught by bitter experience. By that time, he had acquired a pool of the best lawyers in Europe and suddenly turned into a monogamous man.

Love at first swim?

Fans ruling family Monaco was sure that Prince Albert would forever remain a bachelor. He had many women, but none of them managed to stay for long. His sister Caroline was incredibly happy about this, and back in the 2000s she mentally placed her eldest son, Andrea Casiraghi, on the throne.

No one around the prince took his passion for South African swimmer Charlene Wittstock seriously. The prince and the athlete met in Monaco in 2000 during a swimming competition. He immediately liked the pretty girl with a sporty figure, and they began to communicate.

We assume that the prince tried to conquer the swimmer with gallant courtship, but it did not work out: Miss Wittstock preferred to return home and focused on preparing for the next sporting event.

The girl dreamed of winning Olympic gold, but instead of the coveted medal, she got something more valuable - the heart of a prince.

Albert still managed to win Charlene’s favor, and at the beginning of 2006 they declared themselves a couple. The lovers arrived together at the opening of the Winter Olympic Games in Italy. Then journalists learned that Wittstock decided to move to Europe to spend more time with her boyfriend. She received a rather cold reception: the residents of Monaco found fault with the fact that she did not speak French (and was not eager to learn the language) and was generally too simple for the ruler of their state.

Meanwhile, the prince himself proudly showed off his beloved: he came with her to high-profile charity events, receptions and royal weddings. And in June 2010, Albert, who was then 52 years old, shocked the public with the news that he had finally decided to give up his bachelor life. In the official portraits on the occasion of the engagement, the prince and his bride looked happy - no one had any doubt that it was for love. In addition, the size precious stones Charlene's ring clearly signaled the giver's very serious intentions. The wedding was scheduled for July 2011.

Another of the Grimaldi family

A couple of months before the celebration, conflicting rumors began to appear in the foreign press that the bride had already changed her mind and was looking for an opportunity to return to her homeland without too much fuss. What could have changed so dramatically in just a few weeks? Was Charlene unable to come to terms with the rules of court protocol? Or did loving Albert cheat on her with someone else?

Prince Albert announced his engagement to Charlene Wittstock in the summer of 2010

Everything turned out to be much more complicated: another woman announced that she had given birth to the prince. The former swimmer was well aware that her fiancé had children out of wedlock. However, the appearance of another illegitimate offspring unsettled her, because it turned out that the prince was cheating on her. Everything was aggravated by the fact that even without illegitimate children, Miss Wittstock was not at all sweet. Princess Caroline immediately disliked her, and the people of Monaco constantly compared her to Grace Kelly (in favor of the late princess, of course). It seemed that the meek and patient Charlene would endure this, and would swallow and forget all the insults. However, Prince Albert’s bride turned out to be a rebel, even if all the “rebellions” were subsequently suppressed.

runaway Bride

At the end of June 2011, just a few days before royal wedding, it became known that the bride was ready to run away from the wedding. Charlene was detained at Nice airport while trying to fly out of the country. According to rumors, the girl only had a passport and a one-way ticket with her. She was heading to South Africa, but didn’t even have time to board the plane - the police had sounded the alarm earlier and confiscated documents from the would-be fugitive. The passport, of course, was handed over to Prince Albert, who was very dissatisfied with Charlene’s action.

A couple of days before the wedding, Charlene planned to run away from Albert. The third and final attempt was unsuccessful

The ruler had to persuade the former swimmer to marry him. He didn't want to cancel the wedding at the last minute because high-profile guests had already started arriving in Monaco. In addition, such a story would ultimately destroy the already not crystal clear reputation of the heir to Prince Rainier III.

Albert's representatives immediately stated that the whole story was made up by unscrupulous journalists.

“Do you even realize how stupid this gossip is? Believe me, there is not a grain of truth here. Such news is invented by envious individuals. Charlene never tried to fly anywhere and did not even think about canceling the wedding. She and Albert are very upset and cannot understand why someone would want to discredit their names,” said the head of the press service royal family Monaco Christina Stahl.

It soon became clear that this was not the first attempt to escape. Charlene began testing the waters two months before the wedding. She went to Paris, to the South African embassy, ​​and told those around her that she had flown to the French capital to try on the dress again and choose shoes to go with it. Alas, something didn’t work out, and the girl had to return to her groom. Two weeks later she tried to escape again, and again failed.

Representatives of the Prince of Monaco denied information that his bride tried to leave him on the eve of the wedding

Her father also spoke out in defense of Miss Wittstock. To at least slightly smooth out the unpleasant incident, he told about how it all happened on the air of one of the South African radio stations: “Charlene actually flew to Paris shortly before the wedding. She kept company with her mother, who could not find a hat for the celebration. This is the only time in the last few weeks that Charlene has flown anywhere.” Michael Wittstock also admitted that he adores his son-in-law and believes that his daughter pulled out a winning lottery ticket. Charlene herself clearly had a different opinion...

Married is not an abyss

“My life was filled with new meaning with the advent of Jacques and Gabriella. I will do everything in my power to make sure they grow up happy,” the new mother told the authoritative publication Paris Match.

Is loneliness boring?

After the birth of her son and daughter, the residents of Monaco, who had long refused to accept her, began to treat Charlene more favorably. Stories of escapes left an indelible imprint. “What did she want? She immediately made it clear that she would prefer to be anywhere in the world, just not here,” reasoned one of the residents of the state, talking with a journalist The Daily Beast.

Charlene herself has repeatedly said that she is very lonely. She hardly communicates with anyone and cannot find friends.

Behind long years Living in Monaco, Charlene was never able to make friends

“I met a lot of wonderful people in Monaco, but they remained just acquaintances for me. I only have a couple of reliable friends,” the princess confessed in an interview with Tatler.

Charlene, it seems, is no longer very sad about life in a gilded cage: over the past seven years, she seems to have gotten used to her situation. I wonder if the princess will decide to divorce her unloved husband when their children grow up?

Albert II(French Albert II), full name- Albert Alexandre Louis Pierre Grimaldi - ruling prince Monaco and Duke of Valentinois since 2005, from the House of Grimaldi, son of Rainier III and Grace Kelly. Has the title of His Lordship (Serenite). Albert II has the title "14th Prince of Monaco, Duke of Valentinois, Marquis de Beau, Count of Carlade, Baron de Buis, Lord of Saint-Rémy and Matignon, Count of Thorins, Baron of Saint-Lo and La Lutumier, Duke of D' Etauteville, de Mazarin, de Mailerand and de Mayenne, Prince de Château-Borsa, Comte de Ferretti, de Bellefort, du Tanne and de Rougemont, Baron von Altkirche, Lord of Tenheim, Marquis de Scilly, Comte de Longjumeau, Baron de Matty, Marquis de Giscard."

Place of Birth. Education. Albert II was born on March 14, 1958 at the Grimaldi Palace in Monaco. Son of Prince Rainier III and his wife, American actress Grace Kelly.

In 1976, Albert graduated with honors from the Albert I Lyceum in Monaco. In 1977-1981 he studied in the USA at Amherst College in Massachusetts and received the title of licentiate in political science. The list of disciplines that Albert studied also included economics, psychology, philosophy, art history, anthropology and sociology. In addition, the future ruler of Monaco sang in the university choir and even toured with it in Europe and the Middle East.

Albert has been fluent in French since childhood and English languages, and subsequently also studied Italian, German and Spanish.

In 1981-1982 he was on active duty military service, which he served as a lieutenant on board the French helicopter carrier Jeanne d'Arc.

Accession to the throne. IN last years reign due to poor health, Prince Rainier III transferred to his son some of the functions related to the current management of the principality and his international affairs. Albert was entrusted, in particular, with the duties of Monaco's representative to the UN, and in 2004 he represented the principality at the official ceremony of Monaco's accession to the Council of Europe, held in Strasbourg.

As Crown Prince, Albert paid great attention to social and humanitarian issues, as well as charity, heading, in particular, the Red Cross organization in Monaco.

During his father's dying illness, from March 31, 2005 until Rainier's death (April 6), Albert served as regent.

Sport. Albert is also known as a big sports fan. He played football and handball almost professionally, and was fond of swimming, athletics, and judo. In addition, he participated in the Paris-Dakar Rally and competed four times Olympic Games like a bobsledder. Since 1994, he has headed the Monaco Olympic Committee, in addition, he heads a number of other sports associations and is a member of the IOC.

Personal life. Albert remained a bachelor for many years and was considered one of the most eligible bachelors in Europe. Numerous novels were attributed to him. Albert recognized the paternity of two children - a girl (1992) and a boy (2003) - from two different women. They have no right to the throne. In 2002, in order to ensure succession to the throne and ensure that the Grimaldi dynasty, which has a history of over 700 years, retains the crown, changes were made to the Monaco constitution. New law provides that the right of succession may be exercised by the brothers and sisters of the deceased monarch, as well as his nephews and nieces. Thus, Albert's heirs could be his sisters - the eldest and youngest Caroline Stefania, or one of their seven children.

On June 23, 2010, Albert II announced his engagement to Olympic swimming champion from South Africa, 32-year-old Charlene Wittstock. Prince Albert II of Monaco and Charlene Wittstock were married on July 1, 2011. After the wedding, Charlene Wittstock received the title of Princess Charlene.

On December 10, 2014, Princess Charlene gave birth to twins, a boy and a girl. The children were named Jacques-Honoré-Renier and Gabriella Teresa-Marie. Son received titles crown prince Monaco and the Marquise de Beau, and a daughter - the Princess of Monaco and the Countess de Carladez.

Prince Albert II of Monaco and his lover, former athlete Charlene Wittstock, got married just two weeks ago, and clouds have already begun to gather around their marriage. In any case, one newspaper after another is vying with each other about the fact that the family life of the newly-made spouses is somehow not going well. The newlyweds themselves are still silent.

The first assumptions are that 53-year-old Albert II and 33-year-old Charlene Wittstock are not expected to happy life, began to appear in the press even before the couple’s marriage. According to the foreign press, Wheatstock did not want to marry the Prince of Monaco at all and even allegedly tried to escape from him three times - first in Paris, where she intended to take refuge in the embassy of her native South Africa, then in Monte Carlo, trying to sneak away from her groom unnoticed, and within a week before the wedding - in Nice, from where she planned to fly home.

But, as we now know, all attempts to escape failed, and the wedding planned for July 1 still took place. But even there there was reason for gossip. When holiday photographs were published after the celebration, many saw them as confirmation of guesses about Charlene’s not very warm attitude towards her now husband.

The main arguments in favor of the theory of family collapse were several photographs from the celebration, in one of which Charlene was captured crying (many journalists refused to recognize these “precipitations” as tears of happiness), and in the other, reluctantly responding to her husband’s kiss (then, during honeymoon, the limp kiss grew into his absence).

When wedding celebrations ended, the newlyweds went to see off Honeymoon to South Africa, where the bride’s seemingly spoiled mood could return to normal. However, as follows from local press reports, Charlene and Albert did not become closer to each other. Quite the opposite - the young family settled in different hotels, separated by 16 kilometers.

Shortly before their honeymoon, the couple booked a presidential suite at the Oyster Box Hotel in suburban Durban, but never used it. Although Charlene settled in the Oyster Box Hotel, she chose a cheaper room for herself, and her husband decided to stay at the Hilton Hotel in the city center. It is not known exactly what forced the newlyweds to spend their honeymoon separately.

However, the father-in-law of the Prince of Monaco, Charlene's father, Mike Wittstock, gave his explanation of what happened. According to the father of the “undescaped” bride, his daughter and her husband decided to live separately from each other due to not very successful circumstances. The fact is that Albert II went to South Africa not only to relax with his wife, but also to attend a meeting of the International Olympic Committee, because he heads the department of the sports department in Monaco.

The IOC meetings were held at the Hilton Hotel and, according to Mike Wittstock, Albert II decided not to bother traveling from a country hotel, settling in a place where there was no need to go to a meeting with sports officials - just go down from his room to the conference room .

Best of the day

Having finished with his sports affairs, the prince got ready with his young wife to go home to Monaco. And in order to go home as soon as possible, the representative royal family and the newly-made princess had to interrupt her honeymoon. The reason for the forced end of the honeymoon was the fact that Albert needed to undergo tests for a DNA test - it recently turned out that the unofficial offspring of the Monegasque prince could be replenished with another child.

The fact is that Albert II already has two illegitimate children who he recognized as his own - six-year-old Alexander and 19-year-old Jasmine.

The prince's daughter was born to American Tamara Rotolo, who met Albert while vacationing on the Cote d'Azur in 1991. After carrying out the necessary tests, the prince recognized the girl my own daughter and even agreed to give her his last name - Grimaldi. Now Jasmine lives with her mother in the USA and practically does not communicate with her father, although she has everything Required documents to move to Monaco.

The mother of Albert II's son is Togolese ex-stewardess Nicole Coste, with whom the prince had a rather stormy affair. By the way, she recently came to Monte Carlo, and after her visit, speculation appeared in the press about her new pregnancy from the prince. For now, however, this information remains at the level of rumors.

However, the fact that Albert II will again have to go through the procedure of establishing paternity, as well as the presence in his biography large quantity fleeting affairs, called main reason unsuccessful start to the family life of the prince and his chosen one.

The gossip column is replete with reports that Charlene Wittstock prepared for separation from the prince even before her marriage. Thus, according to VSD magazine, before the wedding, the prince and his beloved entered into an agreement stating that Charlene would be able to leave her husband immediately after she gave birth to his son, the legal heir to the throne.

The father of the young princess hastened to refute these reports, calling them lies. At the same time, Mike Wittstock expressed outrage that more and more new rumors are appearing around his daughter’s marriage, each more terrible than the other. “I am deeply disappointed that people believe in all this nonsense,” said Albert II’s angry father-in-law.

However, the stern remarks of Charlene Wittstock's father are unlikely to be able to divert the attention of journalists from the behavior of the newlyweds - if the prince is trying his best to look happy husband, then his wife seems to be doing everything to stir up media interest in such a strange beginning of their family life.

But Charlene is unlikely to be able to achieve sympathy - after all, she knew who she was marrying (the prince and the athlete have been together since 2006), and was aware of some, perhaps not the most pleasant for the bride, details of the biography of her chosen one. And so now the behavior of the young wife of Prince Albert II of Monaco seems somewhat illogical.

It turns out that the twins are prince Jacques(8 months) and princess Gabriella(8 months) – not the only children prince Monaco Albert II(57). Before marrying Charlene Wittstock(37) He had a very busy personal life, which resulted in two more illegitimate children. One of them is called Grimaldi(23), which will be discussed.

Jasmine Grace Grimaldi- older illegitimate daughter prince Monaco Albert II and former waitress Tamara Rotolo.

She was born in Palm Springs (California, USA), and grew up in Palm Desert And Orange County (California, USA).

Jasmine's mother Tamara met Prince Albert II in 1991 while on vacation Cote d'Azur . A holiday romance royalty and waitress from California ended as quickly as it began. After the girl informed the head of state about her pregnancy, he hastened to break off all contacts with her. Therefore, Tamara had to return to USA and raise my daughter alone.

Jasmine met her father only when she was 11 years old. About the fact that she is the daughter of a prince Monaco, was officially announced on June 1, 2006, when the girl turned 14. “I dreamed of meeting my father, getting to know him better, telling him about myself. I missed my dad. I'm glad we met, even if it was so late. In any case, we now have a wonderful relationship,” the girl shared.

Granddaughter of the legendary Grace Kelly(1929-1982) knows his famous grandmother only from films, and in Monaco she visited for the first time at the age of 11. “When I was little, my mother showed photographs of my grandmother, but I did not understand at all that she was an icon. Most of all I love the photos in which she smiles. Among them there is one shot where a grandmother is standing in a swimsuit, holding an orange on a stick with such an enthusiastic look! She looks so natural and carefree,” Jasmine shares her memories. – The first time I felt that there was a connection between us was when I saw the film "High Society" with her participation. I was fascinated by her talent."

The girl graduated from an elite Catholic school in Palm Springs, where her famous father arranged for her.

IN adolescence Jasmine, just like her grandmother Grace Kelly, played basketball, sang in the church choir and acted in theater productions.

Now the daughter of a prince Monaco lives in New York. She is studying at the theater department Fordham University and takes the first steps in the career of a singer and actress. ABOUT modeling business Grimaldi, 23, by her own admission, doesn't think twice about it.

Jasmine trained in vocals professionally. In college, I even sang in a friend’s band, and last February I started performing solo. According to Jasmine herself, her grandmother indirectly influenced her choice of professional path.

5-time participant in the Winter Olympic Games, public figure, partygoer and ladies' man, he, despite everything fantasy stories about his love affairs, he married late, and the secrets about his numerous novels are covered in such darkness that to this day it is not known for certain where the truth is and where the lies are. On the prince's birthday, we remembered the most amazing love stories of his life.

This mystical story from the “Was there a boy” series is still one of the most obscure in the history of the twentieth century. Dutch supermodel, one of the main beauties of the 90s, Victoria's Secret angel Karen Mulder was considered a real star: Helmut Newton himself named it the most beautiful woman era. Like many other supermodels of the 90s, she was often seen in the company of Prince Albert. As usual, both spoke of a tender friendship and denied the affair. The scandal happened many years later: on French TV in 2001, Karen unexpectedly admitted that she and other top models were used as sex slaves by the most influential people in the world - politicians and monarchs, including Prince Albert of Monaco. erupted huge scandal: The host of the show, who did not expect such a statement, was forced to interrupt the program, and a non-disclosure agreement was taken from the audience in the studio. Karen Mulder was later declared mentally unstable, left her profession, divorced her husband, and was treated for drug addiction. However, as in the famous joke, the aftertaste from her speech remained.

Bright love story in the prince’s biography is associated with the name of the Ukrainian figure skater, two-time Olympic champion Oksana Grischuk, whom he met at the 1998 Olympic Games in Nagano. Albert competed at the Olympics in bobsleigh competitions and, like a mere mortal, settled in the Olympic Village. He ate in the common dining room and talked with the athletes. Oksana was the main star that year figure skating, and their romance began literally during preparations in the Olympic Village. They celebrated the athlete’s triumph together. Their relationship developed rapidly: they appeared together at royal receptions in Monaco, on Bill Gates' yacht, and on the red carpet. Albert even introduced Oksana to his father, King Rainier of Monaco. Neither Oksana’s scandalous reputation nor the stories about her mental instability frightened the prince. What happened next - history is silent. There are rumors that current wife Prince Charlene, a famous South African swimmer, threatened Grischuk, harassed her and participated in the launch of an entire PR campaign aimed at ruining her rival’s image. Whether this is true or not is not known for certain. And we all know how the story ended: Charlene gave birth to Albert’s heirs.

Photos of naked Claudia Schiffer on the prince’s yacht spread across the pages of all the world’s newspapers: the shy, smart, beautiful and highest-paid supermodel of the 90s was at that time officially the girlfriend of magician David Copperfield. Now we know that the relationship with the illusionist was fake, but then the world believed in the sincerity of their intentions. Schiffer tried to make excuses: they say, we are close friends, sunbathed, relaxed, with whom does not happen. The paparazzi began hunting for this couple. And not without success: Claudia and Albert were almost inseparable. They said that the German beauty was forced to hide because of her contract with Copperfield, and the prospect of becoming the new Grace Kelly seemed very attractive to her. However, the prince’s temperament cooled the blonde’s ardor: his affairs with Schiffer’s inner circle, including Karen Mulder, hurt her pride.

The affair with the “black panther” was one of the most positive and problem-free for the prince: both did not get seriously attached, loved parties, and even after breaking up, they sometimes met at friendly or not-so-friendly rendezvous. Albert maintained a warm relationship with Naomi for many years: Campbell was even invited to his wedding.

Famous German figure skater Katharina Witt lured the prince, a big fan of famous athletes, into the network by asking Albert to take a photo with her at one of the social events. They say that she was one of the few girls in his life who took the initiative in relationships. This is what eventually tired the monarch. Katarina had a hard time with the breakup: after the prince left her, the girl suffered from prolonged depression.

Marina Anisina

Another athlete in the Don Juan’s track record is Nikita Dzhigurda’s current wife, 2002 Olympic champion in ice dancing Marina Anisina. Albert was present at the triumph of Marina, who competed for France (the Russian woman, whom Ilya Averbukh left for Irina Lobacheva, was forced to look for a partner in another country). The figure skater, about whom the whole world was talking, made such an impression on the prince that he almost fell in love. However, it all ended quite quickly: the imperious and principled Marina demanded too much, and Albert was not ready for serious obligations.

Prince Albert fell in love with yet another athlete, as usual, from the VIP stand. They had known each other for many years, but a serious affair happened when the prince had already had his fill and was under pressure: the world was waiting for an heir. When blond Charlene received the medal, the prince already knew that a romance awaited them: this was his favorite type - a blonde who looked like his mother. Despite the regulated relationship, their romance was full of passion. Just look at the scandal with Charlene’s disappearance on the eve of the wedding: the whole world was discussing the gossip that the girl tried to escape from the wedding, but the secret services brought her back under pressure. However, later both persistently refuted this version. The world is still wondering whether Charlene ran away from the wedding, whether the special services caught her, and if so, what happened to the girl for whom fate had prepared such a chance? As a result, she gave birth to heirs to the prince, fulfilling her duty.