Francois Grimaldi in Monaco

myminifactory

Francesco Grimaldi, also known as il Malizia ("the Cunning"), was a Genoese leader of the Guelphs who captured Monaco's Rock on January 8, 1297. He was born to Guglielmo Grimaldi and his wife Giacobina or Giacoba, a noble from Genoa. Dressed as a Franciscan monk, Francesco was welcomed at Monaco's castle gates before seizing the fortress with his cousin Rainier I, Lord of Cagnes, and their group of men behind them. The event is commemorated on the Monegasque coat of arms, featuring two monks armed with swords as supporters. He held the citadel for four years before being driven out by the Genoese, who then took over control of "the rock." Francesco failed to establish Grimaldi rule in Monaco but was the first to attempt it. Married to Aurelia del Carretto in 1295, they had no children, making modern-day Grimaldis not descendants of Francesco. After his death in 1309, Rainier I, Lord of Cagnes, succeeded him as his cousin and stepson. His descendants, the Grimaldi family, still rule Monaco today. Over a hundred years after the coup, the Grimaldis purchased Monaco from the Crown of Aragon in 1419, becoming official rulers of "the Rock of Monaco."