But what about the youngest generation?
Princess Caroline and Prince Albert had a closer bond with their nanny than with their mother, Grace Kelly. But what about the youngest generation of Grimaldis?
Grace Kelly & the Nannies
“We never ate dinner with our parents until we were fourteen,” Princess Caroline recalls in the book Albert II of Monaco, The Man and The Prince. It was not surprising in royal circles at the time that parents were not so involved in the upbringing of their offspring, and Monaco was no different. As a result, Princess Caroline and Prince Albert had a much better relationship with their beloved nanny, Maureen Wood, than with their parents Princess Grace and Prince Rainier.
“For my brother and me, Maureen was a key figure in our lives,” she says. “When we were little, we probably had a better relationship with our nanny than with our parents. When she left the rock, Albert and I would shout, “Don’t leave, don’t leave!” We were sad for days. Most of the time our mother had to call her and ask her to come back earlier than planned.”
Jacques & Gabriella’s nannies
Prince Albert and Princess Charlene would do their best to raise twins Jacques and Gabriella as much as possible themselves. Charlene in particular was a hands-on mother for years, Prince Albert told PEOPLE. “She wants to be with her children as often as possible. She gets up at 6 am with the children and spends the morning with them. Every day again […] She has shown herself to be a very organized, fantastic mother.”
Yet there are also royal nannies in the game. They already came to see the baptism of Prince Jacques and Princess Gabriella, and when the Grimaldis go out for a day it is rarely without a nanny or two.
Caroline & Stéphanie
At this point, it is still the family who mainly care for 9-year-old Jacques and Gabriella, as Prince Albert has emphasized several times. Aunts Caroline and Stéphanie in particular were said to be involved in the upbringing of the youngest Grimaldis.
Albert himself now takes the father role a lot more seriously. “My family is my priority. If one of the parents is absent due to medical circumstances, the other parent must be there,” he previously told Monaco Matin. “I’ve heard too many friends and acquaintances say that they wanted to be there for their children, but that they were too preoccupied with their work or professional lives. I don’t want to have those regrets later.” Let’s wait and see how Jacques and Gabriella themselves will look back on their youth later!
Source: Daily Mail, Hello! Magazine, People, Popsugar | Image: NL Image
