Monaco Princess Gives Birth to Fraternal Twins
Cannons roared and church bells tolled in Monaco at the announcement that Prince Charlene has given birth on Wednesday to twin babies - a boy and a girl.
The tiny Mediterranean principality celebrated the birth of the next head of the 700-year-old House of Grimaldi and his sister, the Business Recorder reported.
The genders of the twins have remained a secret even to their father, Prince Albert II, son of the late Hollywood actress, Grace Kelly, who wanted to be kept surprised. Albert said earlier that if the twins were a boy and a girl, it would be the boy who would succeed him.
The boy named Jacques Honore Rainier will be first in-line to the throne even though he arrived two minutes after his sister, Gabriella Therese Marie.
The palace said in a statement that the newborns and their glamorous South African mother were "doing well," writes Sky News.
The twins were born at the hospital named after their grandmother Princess Grace. Monegasques celebrated the birth of their future absolute rulers with 42 cannon shots, 21 for each child, fired from an old fort overlooking the sea. Church bells also rang out for 15 minutes, followed by boat horns.
According to tradition, the palace entrance will display an official birth announcement signed by Albert. The public will be invited to sign a book of congratulations.
The Sky News writes that Monegasques have also been encouraged to fly the principality's red-and-white flag from their homes until the day the twins are formally presented to the nation by the royal couple from the palace balcony.
