Alexandre Coste
Encyclopedia
Alexandre Éric Stéphane Coste (born 24 August 2003 in Paris
) is the son of Albert II, Prince of Monaco
and Nicole Coste
, a native of Togo
in west Africa
. His paternal grandparents were the late Rainier III, Prince of Monaco
and Princess Grace
. One of Albert's
other out of wedlock issue is Jazmin Grace Grimaldi.
following the death of his father.
on 12 July, Albert officially confirmed his paternity
of the child, via a statement released by his lawyer Thierry Lacoste. He is not in the line of succession to the Monegasque throne
according to Article 10 of the Constitution of Monaco, as amended 2 April 2002 by law n°1.249, which specifies that only "direct and legitimate" descendants of Monaco's monarch
(or of the monarch's sibling
s) may inherit the throne. A child born out of wedlock may be legitimated
in Monaco : article 226-9 of the Monegasque Civil Code specifies that "the legitimization can benefit to all children born out of wedlock provided that, by voluntary acknowledgement or by court judgement, their parentage has been lawfully established with regard to their two parents". Alexandre who was born in France, was acknowledged by his parents under the French law as a legitimate child ipso facto
: article 310 of the French Civil Code specifies that "all children whose parentage is lawfully established have the same rights and the same duties in their relations with their father and mother. They enter into the family of each of them". Article 227 of the Mongegasque Civil Code provides that when the parents of a (non-adulterine
) child marry, the child is legitimized ipso facto
(as happened in 1995 when Princess Stéphanie of Monaco
married the father of two of her children. Even though the couple later divorced, the children are deemed to have succession rights).
On 26 October 2006, Albert II gave an interview to USA television personality Larry King
. Albert said his children would not be in line for the Monegasque throne but that they would be taken care of financially. They are also an heir to Prince Albert's personal fortune, estimated at more than one billion dollars. Due to the accession of Monaco to the Council of Europe
on 5 October 2004, the European Convention on Human Rights
regulates inheritance rights, in addition to the laws of Monaco, which also guarantees familial inheritance for children born out of wedlock.
In June 2006, his father Albert II
confirmed a half-sister, Jazmin Grace Grimaldi.
Alexandre lives in France with his mother. They share an estate provided and secured by his father near Monaco (Villefranche-sur-Mer
).
, an illegitimate child who was adopted by her own father, and who then ceded her succession rights to her son Rainier, May 30, 1944. Prince Rainier III made obtaining succession rights in this manner impossible for the illegitimate children of his son Albert by adopting a new constitution in 2002, which limited the succession to direct, legitimate issue.
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
) is the son of Albert II, Prince of Monaco
Albert II, Prince of Monaco
Albert II, Sovereign Prince of Monaco is the head of the House of Grimaldi and the ruler of the Principality of Monaco. He is the son of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and the American actress Grace Kelly...
and Nicole Coste
Nicole Coste
Nicole Valérie Coste is a former Air France flight attendant from Togo. From 1997 until late 2002 or early 2003, she had a relationship with Albert II, Prince of Monaco, which produced a child, Alexandre Coste, who was born in August 2003. She also has two sons from a previous marriage...
, a native of Togo
Togo
Togo, officially the Togolese Republic , is a country in West Africa bordered by Ghana to the west, Benin to the east and Burkina Faso to the north. It extends south to the Gulf of Guinea, on which the capital Lomé is located. Togo covers an area of approximately with a population of approximately...
in west Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
. His paternal grandparents were the late Rainier III, Prince of Monaco
Rainier III, Prince of Monaco
Rainier III, Prince of Monaco , styled His Serene Highness The Sovereign Prince of Monaco, ruled the Principality of Monaco for almost 56 years, making him one of the longest ruling monarchs of the 20th century.Though he was best known outside of Europe for having married American...
and Princess Grace
Grace Kelly
Grace Patricia Kelly was an American actress who, in April 1956, married Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, to become Princess consort of Monaco, styled as Her Serene Highness The Princess of Monaco, and commonly referred to as Princess Grace.After embarking on an acting career in 1950, at the age of...
. One of Albert's
Albert II, Prince of Monaco
Albert II, Sovereign Prince of Monaco is the head of the House of Grimaldi and the ruler of the Principality of Monaco. He is the son of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and the American actress Grace Kelly...
other out of wedlock issue is Jazmin Grace Grimaldi.
Name
Born out of wedlock, he was initially named Alexandre Éric Stéphane Tossoukpé. His mother Nicole changed her surname and his to Coste on 10 November 2004. Albert made no public comment on the lawsuit at that time, being in official mourningMourning
Mourning is, in the simplest sense, synonymous with grief over the death of someone. The word is also used to describe a cultural complex of behaviours in which the bereaved participate or are expected to participate...
following the death of his father.
Status
On 6 July 2005, six days before he was enthronedEnthronement
An enthronement is a ceremony of inauguration, involving a person—usually a monarch or religious leader—being formally seated for the first time upon their throne. This ritual is generally distinguished from a coronation because there is no crown or other regalia that is physically...
on 12 July, Albert officially confirmed his paternity
Paternity (law)
In law, paternity is the legal acknowledgment of the parental relationship between a man and a child usually based on several factors.At common law, a child born to the wife during a marriage is the husband's child under the "presumption of legitimacy", and the husband is assigned complete rights,...
of the child, via a statement released by his lawyer Thierry Lacoste. He is not in the line of succession to the Monegasque throne
Line of succession to the Monegasque Throne
The line of succession to the Monegasque throne passes to the descendants of the reigning Prince of Monaco in accordance with male-preference primogeniture...
according to Article 10 of the Constitution of Monaco, as amended 2 April 2002 by law n°1.249, which specifies that only "direct and legitimate" descendants of Monaco's monarch
Monarch
A monarch is the person who heads a monarchy. This is a form of government in which a state or polity is ruled or controlled by an individual who typically inherits the throne by birth and occasionally rules for life or until abdication...
(or of the monarch's sibling
Sibling
Siblings are people who share at least one parent. A male sibling is called a brother; and a female sibling is called a sister. In most societies throughout the world, siblings usually grow up together and spend a good deal of their childhood socializing with one another...
s) may inherit the throne. A child born out of wedlock may be legitimated
Legitimation
Legitimation or legitimization is the act of providing legitimacy. Legitimation in the social sciences refers to the process whereby an act, process, or ideology becomes legitimate by its attachment to norms and values within in given society...
in Monaco : article 226-9 of the Monegasque Civil Code specifies that "the legitimization can benefit to all children born out of wedlock provided that, by voluntary acknowledgement or by court judgement, their parentage has been lawfully established with regard to their two parents". Alexandre who was born in France, was acknowledged by his parents under the French law as a legitimate child ipso facto
Ipso facto
Ipso facto is a Latin phrase, directly translated as "by the fact itself," which means that a certain phenomenon is a direct consequence, a resultant effect, of the action in question, instead of being brought about by a subsequent action such as the verdict of a tribunal. It is a term of art used...
: article 310 of the French Civil Code specifies that "all children whose parentage is lawfully established have the same rights and the same duties in their relations with their father and mother. They enter into the family of each of them". Article 227 of the Mongegasque Civil Code provides that when the parents of a (non-adulterine
Adultery
Adultery is sexual infidelity to one's spouse, and is a form of extramarital sex. It originally referred only to sex between a woman who was married and a person other than her spouse. Even in cases of separation from one's spouse, an extramarital affair is still considered adultery.Adultery is...
) child marry, the child is legitimized ipso facto
Ipso facto
Ipso facto is a Latin phrase, directly translated as "by the fact itself," which means that a certain phenomenon is a direct consequence, a resultant effect, of the action in question, instead of being brought about by a subsequent action such as the verdict of a tribunal. It is a term of art used...
(as happened in 1995 when Princess Stéphanie of Monaco
Princess Stéphanie of Monaco
Princess Stéphanie of Monaco, Countess of Polignac is a member of the princely family of Monaco. She is the youngest child of Grace, Princess of Monaco and Rainier III of Monaco, and the sister of Albert II of Monaco and Princess Caroline...
married the father of two of her children. Even though the couple later divorced, the children are deemed to have succession rights).
On 26 October 2006, Albert II gave an interview to USA television personality Larry King
Larry King
Lawrence Harvey "Larry" King is an American television and radio host whose work has been recognized with awards including two Peabodys and ten Cable ACE Awards....
. Albert said his children would not be in line for the Monegasque throne but that they would be taken care of financially. They are also an heir to Prince Albert's personal fortune, estimated at more than one billion dollars. Due to the accession of Monaco to the Council of Europe
Council of Europe
The Council of Europe is an international organisation promoting co-operation between all countries of Europe in the areas of legal standards, human rights, democratic development, the rule of law and cultural co-operation...
on 5 October 2004, the European Convention on Human Rights
European Convention on Human Rights
The Convention for the Protection of Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms is an international treaty to protect human rights and fundamental freedoms in Europe. Drafted in 1950 by the then newly formed Council of Europe, the convention entered into force on 3 September 1953...
regulates inheritance rights, in addition to the laws of Monaco, which also guarantees familial inheritance for children born out of wedlock.
Family
Alexandre has two older half-brothers who live with their father, Nicole's ex-husband, in South America.In June 2006, his father Albert II
Albert II, Prince of Monaco
Albert II, Sovereign Prince of Monaco is the head of the House of Grimaldi and the ruler of the Principality of Monaco. He is the son of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and the American actress Grace Kelly...
confirmed a half-sister, Jazmin Grace Grimaldi.
Alexandre lives in France with his mother. They share an estate provided and secured by his father near Monaco (Villefranche-sur-Mer
Villefranche-sur-Mer
Villefranche-sur-Mer is a commune in the Alpes-Maritimes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region on the French Riviera.-Geography:...
).
History
Illegitimate children are nothing new in the Royal family of Monaco — in every generation for the last 100 years a Grimaldi has had an acknowledged illegitimate child. Some of these have obtained succession rights through legitimation or adoption, including Princess CharlottePrincess Charlotte, Duchess of Valentinois
Princess Charlotte, Duchess of Valentinois , was the daughter of Louis II, Prince of Monaco, and the mother of Prince Rainier III...
, an illegitimate child who was adopted by her own father, and who then ceded her succession rights to her son Rainier, May 30, 1944. Prince Rainier III made obtaining succession rights in this manner impossible for the illegitimate children of his son Albert by adopting a new constitution in 2002, which limited the succession to direct, legitimate issue.