Monaco celebrates Prince Albert's ascent to the throne

Bells pealed across Monaco as the tiny Riviera principality feted Prince Albert II’s rise to the throne today and bid a final symbolic farewell to his late father, Rainier III.

Princes from Europe, Africa and the Middle East were among the royal representatives who flew in for a day of festivities that marked the final phase of Albert’s ascension to the throne of Monaco’s 700-year-old dynasty.