I was thousands of miles from home, but the moment I stepped through the door, I was instantly at home. Shelf after shelf brimming with books – and better still, they were all about Ireland. No aspect is left unexplored with literature, history, politics, economics, folklore, and more all at your fingertips. Accompanying the thousands of books are striking paintings, intriguing memorabilia, and a remarkable collection of Irish American sheet music of songs that could have otherwise been forgotten. The Princess Grace Irish Library, as RTÉ once aptly described it, is an “oasis of Irish culture,” nestled at 9 rue Princesse Marie-de-Lorraine a five-minute stroll from the Prince’s Palace of Monaco.
Established in 1984 under the aegis of the Fondation Princesse Grace, the library, which hosts performances, lectures, and writers-in-residence, was in the midst of celebrating its 40th anniversary. This milestone has been observed in a variety of ways ranging from special events to a freshly-issued Monaco stamp, and one of the most compelling is A Tribute to Princess Grace of Monaco, a coffee table book spearheaded by Director, Paula Farquharson. To view it, go to the Princess Grace Irish Library’s website (https://www.pgil.mc/), click on “discover the book” and then “read the book.”
As an Irish American, I can’t remember a time when I wasn’t aware of Princess Grace, but as I perused the pages of this captivating book, I realized how limited my familiarity was. Yes, most know that Grace Patricia Kelly was a Philadelphia-born, Academy Award-winning actress who married Prince Rainier III of Monaco and proceeded to set new standards in sophistication and philanthropy. And of course, we’re proud that a granddaughter of Irish immigrants accomplished all this and has left such a lasting legacy. Though only with us for 52 years and absent for 42, she remains admired around the globe.
But I had barely begun reading before I gained a new appreciation for how much she meant to Ireland from a quote from a Dublin newspaper at the time of her tragic passing: “The death of Princess Grace comes home to us as an Irish death. There is a sudden gap in our public life.”
In fact, a prominent theme underscored at the outset by His Serene Highness Prince Albert II of Monaco is the “cultural ties between Monaco, Ireland and the United States of America,” the three countries dearest to his mother. This triangular relationship is further illustrated by an elegant work of art by Princess Grace’s niece, Susan Kelly vonMedicus.
This was also the first I learned of her precedent-setting visit to Ireland in 1961. The excitement generated as Prince Rainier III, Princess Grace, and their children, Princess Caroline and Prince Albert II (then aged four and three), traversed the country with a crowded itinerary that included President de Valera, Crumlin’s Children’s hospital, the Irish National Stud, the Red Cross, The Royal Academy of Music, Sacred Heart Convent, and her family’s homestead in Drimurla, County Mayo, established a blueprint for John F. Kennedy’s much-heralded 1963 trip and could be considered the opening chapter of so-called shamrock diplomacy.
At the same time, the book conveys how personal this was for Princess Grace and her family. I found myself charmed by a photo of a fishing excursion showing Princess Grace and Prince
Albert II in fisherman’s sweaters, an image that would be replicated by countless Irish American families in years to come. And then there are the letters from Princess Grace and barely-turned-five Princess Caroline thanking President de Valera for the gift of ‘Babbling Brook,’ an Irish pony. Similarly, I was delighted to discover that Princess Grace took the opportunity to purchase her grandfather’s first home and the land around it near Leg of Mutton Lake.
Further enlightening were cameo appearances by people ranging from Loretta Brennan Glucksman to Karl Lagerfeld, and vignettes that revealed Princess Grace’s role in the arts, including how critical her support was in bringing both Star Wars and Shakespeare’s Globe, the well-known reconstruction of the Globe Theatre in London, into existence.
The design of this book is an achievement in itself with QR codes linking to recordings of traditional Irish American music scores from the Princess Grace Song-Sheet Collection, an acquisition she had the foresight to make in the 1970s. Students from L’Académie Rainier III Musique et Théâtre in Monaco and musicians from the Technological University Dublin Conservatoire perform the pieces and are individually cited. Young musicians of today are bringing the music of our immigrant ancestors to life, rendering the book into a time-traveling, multi-media experience, one which is very much in keeping with Princess Grace’s legacy.
Additional codes will lead you to a film about the 1984 inauguration of the library and to Michael Flatley’s “Princess Grace Set,” which he composed for the flute inspired by her collection. A couple of RTÉ interviews also feature such as one with Princess Grace in Ireland in 1979 and another from just last year with HSH Prince Albert II speaking about his family’s Irish heritage.
This leads me to what may well be the most heartening element of this book and that is her son’s dedication to maintaining her legacy. Though Prince Albert II has returned to Ireland repeatedly over the years, his formal state visit in 2011 – the 50th anniversary of his family’s memorable 1961 journey – seems to have elevated his commitment to the Monaco- Ireland-USA trinity to an even higher level.
Since then he has returned to the County Mayo cottage from which his great-grandfather emigrated in 1867, inaugurated The Princess Grace Rose Garden in Drogheda (County Louth), toured the National Museum of Ireland and the Collins Barracks, met with the President of Ireland, Michael D. Higgins, and numerous other dignitaries, unveiled a statue of Princess Grace in Newport (County Mayo), and spoken at Trinity College Dublin where he and Princess Charlene are recognized as benefactors. Their generosity toward the Old Library Redevelopment Project is all the more meaningful as Princess Charlene’s forebears were instrumental in the founding of Trinity. The library also holds a treatise on oceanography by Prince Albert I of Monaco, an interest inherited by his great-grandson.
All of this does not mean that he has neglected the American branch of this relationship as he acquired and restored the Kelly homestead in Philadelphia, where he also celebrated the “HSH Prince Albert II of Monaco Foundation & Monaco Week” which included the announcement of the recipients of his foundation’s annual Planetary Health Awards.
In short, this special tri-country tradition continues, and perhaps, even intensifies.
The next time you’re fortunate enough to be in the vicinity of Monaco, I strongly suggest you schedule time for the Princess Grace Irish Library, a world class bibliothèque hiding in plain sight. Check the events calendar in advance to find a stimulating talk or performance to attend and arrive early enough to browse the books, paying particular attention to those in the main room as it houses her private collection. Study the rare first edition of Ulysses by James Joyce, peek at the framed photos scattered about, and gaze at the stunning portrait of Princess Grace by American artist Mohamed Drisi. As an extra treat, you might wish to round out your visit with a short stroll to the Chocolaterie de Monaco where you can enjoy a decadent cup of hot cocoa and purchase a Grace Kelly limited edition box of chocolates. All in the interest of research, of course.
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