Princess Caroline Turns 60: A Look At Her Glamorous Life Dotted With Tragedy

As Princess Grace and Prince Rainier III's eldest child celebrates her 60th birthday, a look back at her amazing life

01 of 08
Keystone-FranceGamma-Rapho via Getty
Keystone-FranceGamma-Rapho via Getty

Born Caroline Louise Marguerite Grimaldi on January 23, 1957, Caroline is the first child of Hollywood star Grace Kelly and Monaco's Prince Rainier III. A subject of immense media fascination during her early childhood, the half-American princess was considered the world's most photographed baby. Here, she's pictured in her father's arms in 1958 at the palace.

02 of 08
Ron Galella/WireImage
Ron Galella/WireImage

As a mother, Princess Grace was keen to give her children as normal a childhood as possible, as well as eager to share her American roots. As such, Caroline and her siblings Albert and Stéphanie were frequent visitors to Philadelphia, Grace's hometown. During her first three decades, Caroline often spent summers at the Kelly family compound in Ocean City, New Jersey, where she's pictured here with her mother in 1978. Neighbors recall the athletic young princess first learning to surf off Atlantic beaches.

03 of 08
Images Press/IMAGES/Getty
Images Press/IMAGES/Getty

Caroline was educated in England and at the Sorbonne in Paris and holds degrees in philosophy and psychology. A style icon, she was courted by artists and designers including Andy Warhol and Karl Lagerfeld, the latter with whom she remains close. Here she is at one of Lagerfeld's fashion shows in 1980.

04 of 08
Francis Apesteguy/Getty
Francis Apesteguy/Getty

As one of the world's most eligible and sought-after women, Caroline's romances were subject to magazine covers and constant speculation. She's been married three times, and her first wedding in June 1978 to Philippe Junot counted Ava Gardner, Frank Sinatra and Cary Grant among guests. They divorced after two years and in 1983, she married second husband Stefano Casiraghi. She and Casiraghi had three children: Andrea, Charlotte and Pierre (whom she is holding in this picture).

05 of 08
Mark Reinstein/Getty
Mark Reinstein/Getty

Following her mother's sudden death in a 1982 car crash, Caroline assumed the responsibility of Grace's various charities, including the children's organization AMADE. Here, she's pictured attending a Princess Grace Foundation dinner in 1984. She continues much of this philanthropic work today.

06 of 08
Pool APESTEGUY/REY/Gamma-Rapho via Getty
Pool APESTEGUY/REY/Gamma-Rapho via Getty

In 1990, Casiraghi was tragically killed in a speedboat accident. In the aftermath of his death, Caroline left Monaco, withdrawing to St. Remy in France to raise her three children out of the spotlight.

07 of 08
Pool BENAINOUS/DUCLOS/SCORCELLETTI/Gamma-Rapho via Getty
Pool BENAINOUS/DUCLOS/SCORCELLETTI/Gamma-Rapho via Getty

She remarried again in January 1999 to Prince Ernst August of Hanover. With her new marriage, she became H.R.H. Princess Caroline of Hanover. Later that year, she gave birth to her fourth child, daughter Alexandra (the only one of her children to bear a royal title).

08 of 08
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty
Pascal Le Segretain/Getty

The princess gained membership in the World's Most Glamorous Grandmothers club in 2013, when her first grandson, Sacha, the son of her eldest, Andrea, was born. She has had two others since — Andrea's daughter India and daughter Charlotte's son, Raphael. A fourth grandchild, her son Pierre's first, is due in early 2017. Caroline, says a friend, is "decidedly a hands-on" grandmother.

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