Monaco's Prince Rainier has hit back at rumours Princess Stephanie was asked to leave the palace in Monaco. A French magazine reported that he threw his 38-year-old daughter out of the 253-room palace after she had an affair with a member of staff.
The prince's office has issued a strongly-worded denial, however. "The Royal Palace refutes, with all its strength, these allegations, which are without foundation and which are an attack on His Royal Highness, the prince, and his family," said the statement.
According to the magazine Paris Match, Stephanie was seen checking into Monaco's Columbus hotel, along with her children Louis, Pauline and Camille. The publication claimed her father had told her to leave after discovering she had embarked on a relationship with the palace's head gardener.
The reports came as further evidence of the media's long-running fascination with Princess Stephanie's romantic life. Her marriage to bodyguard Daniel Ducruet in 1995 caused a furore and she was subsequently linked to butler Richard Lucas, circus owner Franco Knie, actor Rob Lowe and Manchester United goalkeeper Fabien Barthez. The media's obsession with her was further fuelled when she refused to name the father of her third child Camille. The Monegasque household insists the latest rumours are nothing more than gossip.
Photo: © Alphapress.com
Photo: © Alphapress.com
