Do you wonder how New Monegasques are welcomed in the great Monegasque universe? It’s a rare blessing and therefore there is a celebratory event crowning the achievement for which the Mairie takes the lead.
And this typically happens every year, when the Mayor and the members of the Municipal Council welcome people who have acquired Monegasque nationality during the past year to the City Hall.
The pageantry includes the president of the Council of the Crown, Michel Boeri representing members of the Crown Council.
The new Monegasques are received in the charming Marriage Hall, perfect for a small congregation, the number being 52 new Monegasques who in 2022 acquired nationality by law or by sovereign order, published in the Journal de Monaco. If we look back for comparable numbers 50ish does not stand out as being unusual and we see there were 84 people who acquired nationality in 2019.
It’s a solemn and warm reception, and this year it took place on Valentine’s Day to add to the warmth of the occasion.
Mayor, Georges Marsan, surrounded by Municipal Councilors, wished them welcome to the great Monegasque family.
Acquiring nationality and in this case Monegasque nationality is not a simple administrative formality, it isn’t just a passport and rights to benefits. To become Monegasque is to adhere to the Principality’s culture, its traditions and numerous unique customs. It is to adhere to a community united around the Sovereign and His Family, to which all citizens are attached.
Georges Marsan then introduced the Town Hall to the group. The Town Hall (Mairie) is the oldest Monegasque Institution, also warmly called “the House of Monegasques”, which accompanies and supports citizens, compatriots and residents at every stage of life. The Mayor gave a flavour of its history, its functioning and its important business.
The reception concluded with the Monégasque Anthem, sung by the Children’s Choir of the Rainier III Academy and taken up by all the guests, before they were given very symbolic gifts including a reproduction of the original of the Monégasque Hymn, a handwritten document of the Monégasque poet Louis Notari, and a lithograph.
So new Monegasques during this ceremony are reminded of the great new possibilities and new responsibilities thankful for the words spoken by the Mayor, and in the knowledge that Monaco welcomes them with open arms. And they welcome that embrace with great joy.
