Rainier III, Prince of Monaco Our Lady Immaculate, the resting place of previous sovereign princes of Monaco and several of their wives, and the place where Prince Rainier and Princess Grace had been married in 1956. Because his death occurred shortly after that of Pope John Paul II, Rainier's death was overshadowed in the media. "See also: List of titles of the Monegasque Crown" Rainier III, Prince of Monaco Rainier III (Rainier Louis Henri Maxence Bertrand Grimaldi; 31 May 1923 – 6 April 2005) ruled the Principality of Monaco for almost 56 years, making him one of the longest ruling monarchs in European history. Though
Monaco succession crisis of 1918 government for US$401 million alleging that France used a "sleight of hand" to deprive Duke Wilhelm II, his ancestor, of the Monacan throne when it passed the 1911 law permitting Charlotte to be considered a Grimaldi. Joseph Valynseele "Rainier III: est-il le souverain legitime de Monaco?" Recueil de l'Office Genealogique et Heraldique de Belgique, XIII (1964), pp. 191–223. Monaco succession crisis of 1918 The Monaco succession crisis of 1918 arose because France objected to the prospect of a German national inheriting the throne of the Principality of Monaco. Prince Albert I had only one legitimate child, the Hereditary Prince Louis,