From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Rock and old town district in Monaco
The
Rock of Monaco
(
French
:
Rocher de Monaco
;
Monegasque
:
Roca de Munegu
) is a 62-metre (203 ft)
[1]
tall
monolith
on the
Mediterranean
coast of the
Principality of Monaco
. It overlooks the
Mediterranean Sea
and the
Port Hercules
.
[2]
History
[
edit
]
The Rock has been a coveted possession from the beginning of the ancient
Massilian
colony of Monoikos (
Greek
: Μ?νοικο?), named for the
Ligurian
tribes who occupied the area and vied for control of it; even earlier, it was a shelter for primitive populations. The Rock of
Monaco
was also the first conquest of the
Grimaldi
dynasty, the rulers of the country for more than 700 years, founded when the
Guelf
Francesco Grimaldi
disguised himself as a Franciscan friar in order to gain entry to the city and open the gates for his soldiers.
Today
[
edit
]
Today, the Rock is in the oldest of Monaco's four quarters,
Monaco-Ville
, which is also the location of Old Town, the oldest part of the city, not far from the
Prince's Palace
(
French
:
Le Palais Princier
), home of the current
monarch
Albert II
and the
princely family
, the
Cathedral
and the
Oceanographic Museum of Monaco
. The Rock of Monaco is a popular attraction where tourists view the palace and the
changing of the guards
.
Image gallery
[
edit
]
-
The Rock in 1890
-
Monaco-Ville and harbour of
Fontvieille
today
References
[
edit
]
43°43′52″N
7°25′26″E
/
43.731°N 7.424°E
/
43.731; 7.424