150 Years of the Founding of Monte Carlo

Portrait of Charles III with a view of part of Monte Carlo in the background. The issuing state "MONACO", flanked by the mintmark and the master of the mint's mark, runs along the upper edge. The legend "1866 CHARLES III FONDE MONTE CARLO 2016" arcs along the lower rim.

Charles III of Monaco was one of the most formative rulers of the principality in the 19th century. When he took over the government in 1856, Monaco faced an existential crisis: two years later, the principality lost most of its territory when the towns of Menton and Roquebrune passed under French rule. Economic revenues collapsed drastically. Charles III responded with a fateful decision - he had a casino built on a rocky plateau above the harbour and, in 1866, founded a new town around this complex: Monte Carlo, named after himself. The casino, later world-famous under the name Casino de Monte-Carlo, transformed the heavily indebted micro-principality within a few decades into one of the wealthiest territories in Europe.

In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Monte Carlo developed into one of the most glamorous places of the Belle Époque. Its appeal to European aristocracy, wealthy tourists and artists shaped an urban image that still defines Monaco today. Alongside the casino, the district is today home to the opera house, numerous luxury hotels and the Formula 1 street circuit, considered the most technically demanding track on the motorsport calendar because of its narrow streets and tunnels. In 2016, Monaco marked the 150th anniversary of the founding of Monte Carlo with a commemorative issue, honouring at the same time the political and economic legacy of Charles III, without whom the principality would hardly be conceivable in its present form.