OFFICIAL NAME: Principality of Monaco
CAPITAL: Monaco-Ville
SYSTEM OF GOVERNMENT: Constitutional Monarchy
AREA: 1.94 Sq Km (1 Sq Mi)
ESTIMATED 2000 POPULATION: 32,500
  LOCATION & GEOGRAPHY: Monaco is located on the Mediterranean
Riviera, close to the Italian border with France and is
surrounded by the French department of Alpes-Maritimes.
Monaco is the second smallest country in the world and the
principality has four distinct divisions. (1.) La Condamine,
the business district. (2.) The Casino or Monte Carlo. (3.)
Monaco-Ville which is on a rocky promontory and (4.) Fontvieille.
CLIMATE: Monaco has a Mediterranean climate which is characterized
by warm summers and mild winters. Rainfall is light with an average annual
precipitation of about 730 mm (29 inches) while sunshine usually lasts
300 days a year without rainfall. Average temperature ranges are from 8
to 12 degrees Celsius (46 to 54 degrees Fahrenheit) in January to 22 to
26 degrees Celsius (72 to 79 degrees Fahrenheit) in August.
PEOPLE: Around 18% of the population are Monegasque of Rhaetian
descent. The remainder are foreigners which include the French who account
for 58% of the population while 17% are Italian.
RELIGIONS: Mostly Christians with 95% of the population Roman
Catholic while 5% are Protestant.
LANGUAGES: The official language is French, although Monegasque,
a mixture of French and Italian is also spoken. English is also widely
spoken.
MODERN HISTORY - WWII TO 1993: In 1949 Prince Rainier III succeeded
his grandfather Prince Louis. In Apr. 1956 he married Grace Kelly, a famous
American movie star, who took the title of Princess Grace and they had
two daughters as well as a son, Prince Albert the heir apparent. In 1959
Prince Rainier dissolved the National Council and in 1962 under pressure
from France, the Prince restored the National Council. In the same year,
Prince Rainier III granted Monaco a new constitution that gave women the
right to vote and abolished the death penalty. In 1963 again under pressure
form France, Monaco signed a convention which placed certain Monaco based
companies under French fiscal law. Since the early 1980's Monaco has reclaimed
land from the sea for the development of new beaches. In Sept. 1982 Princess
Grace died in an automobile accident and in Oct. 1990 Stefano Casiraghi,
the husband of Princess Caroline's second marriage was killed in a speedboat
accident. On March 19, 1991 the Conseil Communal elected Anne-Marie Campora
mayor of Monaco-Ville to replace Jean-Louis Medecin who had held that position
since 1971. In Oct. 1991 Monaco was elected to the committee of the Mediterranean
Action Plan which consists of 18 nations working together for the protection
of the Mediterranean and its coastal regions. In April 1992 the government
announced plans to construct a floating pontoon suburb that would cater
for some 2,000 people with offices and apartments as well as its plan to
move the France-Italy railway underground. In July 1992 the Vatican annulled
the Princess Caroline's first marriage to Philippe Junot of France and
on April 5, 1993 the Vatican declared Princess Caroline's three children
legitimate allowing them the opportunity to accede to the throne in the
future. On May 28, 1993 Monaco was admitted to the UN as a full member
updating its observer status which it had held since 1955.
CURRENCY: The official currency is the Euro divided into 100
cents.
MAIN TRADING PARTNERS: Its main trading partners are France and
Italy.
MAIN PRIMARY PRODUCTS: Nil.
MAJOR INDUSTRIES: Banking, Ceramics, Chemicals, Construction, Electronics,
Gambling, Metal Works, Perfumes, Plastics, Printing, Precision Instruments,
Textiles, Tourism.
MAIN EXPORTS: Ceramics, Metal Works, Textiles, Instruments, Plastics.
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