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Principauté de Monaco
Principatu de Munegu
Motto: Deo Juvante
(Latin: With God's Help)
Anthem: Hymne Monégasque
Location of Monaco
Capital
and largest city
Monaco1
Official languagesFrench
GovernmentConstitutional monarchy
Independence
• Water (%)
0.0%
Population
• 2005 estimate
32,409 (188th)
• 2000 census
31,842
GDP (PPP)2000 estimate
• Total
$870 million (177th)
• Per capita
$27,000 (24th)
CurrencyEuro (EUR)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)
UTC+2 (CEST)
Calling code377
ISO 3166 codeMC
Internet TLD.mc
1Monaco is a city-state.

Monaco, more formally, the Principality of Monaco (in French: Principauté de Monaco; in Monegasque: Principatu de Munegu) is a city state and one of the European microstates. It is located between the Mediterranean Sea and France along the French Riviera, near the French border with Italy.

Monaco is the most densely populated independent country in the world1 and the world's second-smallest independent country.

History

Main article: History of Monaco

Monaco derives its name from the nearby Greek colony, Monoikos, founded in the 6th century BC by the Phoceans. According to an ancient myth, Hercules passed through the Monaco area. A temple was constructed there by Phoceans, the temple of Hercules Monoikos (Μόνοικος means single house or single temple).

File:Monaco-FrancoisGrimaldi.jpg
Memorial of François Grimaldi guised as a monk with a sword under his frock

Monaco was re-founded in 1215 as a colony of Genoa. Monaco has been ruled by the House of Grimaldi since 1297, when François Grimaldi (aka: Malizia) seized the fortress protecting the famous rock while dressed up as a Franciscan monk (monaco in Italian); the only exception to this was from 1793 to 1814, when Monaco was under French control. Designated as a protectorate of Sardinia from 1815 until 1860 by the Congress of Vienna, Monaco's sovereignty was recognised by the Franco-Monegasque Treaty of 1861.

Until the 1911 constitution, the Princes of Monaco ruled absolutely. In July 1918, a treaty was signed providing for limited French protection over Monaco. The treaty, part of the Treaty of Versailles, established that Monegasque policy would be aligned with French political, military, and economic interests.

Rainier III, Prince of Monaco acceded to the throne following the death of his grandfather, Prince Louis II, in 1949. A new constitution, proclaimed in 1962, abolished capital punishment, provided for female suffrage, and established a Supreme Court to guarantee fundamental liberties. In 1993, Monaco became a member of the United Nations, with full voting rights.

In 2002, a new treaty between France and Monaco clarifies that if there are no heirs to carry on the dynasty, the Principality will remain an independent nation rather than revert to the French. Monaco's military defence, however, is still the responsibility of France.

Prince Albert, Marquis of Baux took over the royal duties on 31 March 2005 because his father Prince Rainier III was too ill to exercise his royal functions. On 6 April 2005, Prince Rainier died and his son succeeded him as Albert II of Monaco. Prince Albert II of Monaco formally became the ruler of Monaco on July 12, 2005 in a celebration that began with a solemn Mass at the cathedral where his father was buried three months before, after a reign of 56 years. His accession to the throne was a two-step event with another ceremony drawing heads of state for an elaborate ceremony held on November 19, 2005.

Politics

Main article: Politics of Monaco

Monaco has been governed as a constitutional monarchy since 1911, with the Sovereign Prince of Monaco as head of state. The executive branch consists of a Minister of State (the head of government), who presides over a four-member Council of Government (the cabinet). The Minister of State is a French citizen appointed by the Prince from among candidates proposed by the French Government. Under the 1962 constitution, the Prince shares his power with the unicameral National Council (parliament). The 24 members of this legislative body are elected from lists by universal suffrage for five-year terms.

The principality's local affairs are directed by the Communal Council, which consists of 15 elected members and is presided over by the Mayor.

Geography

Map of Monaco

Main article: Geography of Monaco

The Principality of Monaco is the second-smallest independent state in the world, after Vatican City. It is located on the Mediterranean coast, 18 kilometres east of Nice and near the Italian border, and is surrounded on three sides by France. It consists of a narrow strip along the coast at the bottom of the foothills of the Alps and its highest point is "Le Rocher" at 140 m.

Monaco is divided into seven sections or quarters (quartiers): Monaco-Ville, the capital, the old city on a rocky promontory extending into the Mediterranean; La Condamine, the section along the port; Monte Carlo, the principal residential and resort area with the casino; Fontvieille, a newly constructed area reclaimed from the sea; Moneghetti, on the western border with Cap d`Ail; Larvotto - Tenao includes the beach area to the east of the principality. Saint Roman is the easternmost tip, bordering the Tenao.

The principality is noted for its beautiful natural scenery and mild, sunny climate. The average minimum temperature in January and February is 8 °C (47 °F); in July and August the average maximum temperature is 26 °C (78 °F).

Economy

Monaco city and harbour view.
File:MonacoCasino.jpg
The casino in Monaco.

Main article: Economy of Monaco

One of Monaco's main sources of income is tourism; each year many are attracted to its casino and pleasant climate. In 2001, a major new construction project extended the pier used by cruise ships in the main harbour. The Principality has successfully sought to diversify into services and small, high-value-added, non-polluting industries.

The state has no income tax for individuals. The state retains monopolies in numerous sectors, including tobacco and the postal service. The telephone network used to be owned by the state. Now Monaco Telecom is 49% owned by Cable and Wireless, 45% by the state and 6% by Compagnie Monégasque de Banque, but is still a monopoly. Living standards are high, roughly comparable to those in prosperous French metropolitan areas.

The lack of personal income tax has led to a considerable number of wealthy "tax refugee" residents from European countries, who earn the majority of their income from activity outside Monaco; celebrities like Formula One drivers attract most of the attention but the majority of them are business people.

In 2000 a report by French parliamentarians Arnaud Montebourg and Vincent Peillon alleged that Monaco has lax policies with respect to money laundering, including within its famed casino, and that the government of Monaco puts political pressure on the judiciary so that alleged crimes are not properly investigated. In response, the Government of Monaco ordered reports to OECD and the Financial Action Task Force on Money Laundering. These reports revealed most of these allegations to be untrue.

Monaco is not a member of the European Union, but is very closely linked to it via a customs union with France and as such its currency is the same as France's: the euro. Monaco has acquired the right to mint euro coins with Monegasque designs on their national side.

Demographics

View on Monacoville

Main article: Demographics of Monaco

Monaco is the most densely-populated country in the world 1. It has the largest police force and police presence in the world, both per capita and per area.

Monaco's population is unusual in that the native Monegasques are a minority in their own country. The largest proportion of residents are French nationals (47%), while Monegasque and Italian nationals represent 16% each, and the remaining 21% belong to one of the other 125 nationalities that make up Monaco's international population.

French is the only official language, but English, Italian, and the local Monegasque language (a descendant of Genoese) are also spoken. The literacy rate is 99%.

Roman Catholicism is the official religion, with freedom of other religions guaranteed by the constitution.

Self-identity

On the occasion of his investiture in 2005, Prince Albert II gave a speech which "evoke[d] who we are":

  • We are a community with its own values, which are similar to those of our neighbors but which have a special combination which sets us apart.
  • We come from Liguria and Genoa. We are the children of Greece, Rome and Christendom: our Catholic, apostolic and Roman State religion is there to remind us.
  • We adhere to the principles of Human Rights, fruit of the philosophical reflections of the age of Enlightenment of our French neighbors and friends and the countless reforms and improvements made by the European leaders to the functioning of the constitutional states and supranational institutions.
  • We believe in both material progress but also in spiritual progress.
  • We are supporters of free enterprise in the economic sector, a system which creates wealth.
  • We also believe in the virtues of solidarity towards those who do not have the necessary learning, know how or personal ability needed to take the risks, to gain the autonomy and assume the responsibility which modern life implies.
  • Our role is also to promote social justice which is absolutely essential.
  • Monaco subscribes, as does the European Union, to the concept of a social market economy.
  • We believe in the team made up of the innovator and the entrepreneur which enables progress in all its forms.
  • If we do not respect these fundamental values, we cannot envisage progress.


See also

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