"If there is anything so romantic as that castle-palace-fortress of Monaco I have not seen it." -- M. E. W. Sherwood, an American author and socialite.
=========================================================================(in Monaco, the sovereign principality located along the Mediterranean Sea in the midst of the resort area of the Côte d’Azur [French Riviera]). The small city-state overlooking the Mediterranean, is famed for its glamour and wealth. The Palais Princier (shown here), the former home of Princess Grace and current home of her son, Prince Albert II, is at the top of the cliff-bound medieval Monaco-Ville. Also well known is Monte Carlo, home to the Formula One Monaco Grand Prix, the European Poker Tour, and the Monte Carlo Rally.
+ Squeezed into just 200 hectares, what it lacks in size it makes up for in attitude. It is also home to the annual Formula One Grand Prix. The city of Nice, France, lies 9 miles (15 km) to the west; the Italian border 5 miles (8 km) to the east. Monaco’s territory occupies a set of clustered hills and a headland that looks southward over the Mediterranean. Many features, however, have made Monaco among the most luxurious tourist resorts in the world, and have given it a fame far exceeding its size.
+ Many visitors to Monaco alternate their hours between its beaches and boating facilities, its international sports-car races, and its world-famous Place du Casino,
+ The Rock of Monaco overlooks both the port and the Mediterranean. The Prince's Palace (depicted here) is on the Rock in the foreground. Monaco's history predates the Roman occupation of 22CE. Its large natural harbor ensured a steady stream of visitors from Byblos, Tyre, and Sidon. It was the Phoenicians who introduced to this area of the Mediterranean their god Melkart, later known by the Romans as Hercules Monoikos. It was after this god that the Romans renamed the area Portus Hercules Moneici, which has evolved to the present name of Monaco. The seat of the Prince of Monaco was established on the Rocher de Monaco as a fortress in 1191 when the harbor was acquired by the Republic of Genoa.The harbor and its immediate area were given to the Genoese by the Emperor Henry IV. In 1215 work began on a new fortress, comprising four towers connected by ramparts protected by a curtain wall. This forms the core of the present palace.
+ Monaco’s chief industry is tourism, and its facilities make it one of Europe’s most luxurious resorts. Once a winter attraction, it now draws summer visitors as well, to its beaches and expanded mooring facilities. The Place du Casino. was built in 1861, and in 1967 its operations were taken over by the principality. The four sections, or quartiers, of Monaco are the town of Monaco, or “the Rock,” the headland jutting into the sea on which the Old Town is located; La Condamine, the business district on the west of the bay, with its natural harbor; Monte-Carlo, including the gambling casino; and the newer zone of Fontvieille, in which various light industries have developed.
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