Historic Rock

Place d’Armes

At the foot of the Rock, the Place d’Armes takes its name from the soldiers who once drilled here in the shelter of the ramparts. It is where the old town meets the Condamine district, and the historic start of the Rampe Major. Every year in late January, the square hosts a festival dear to Monegasques: Saint Devota, patron saint of the principality.

230 m to the next stop

Rampe Major and lookout

This long cobbled climb, lined with battlemented walls, is called the Rampe Major. For centuries it was the main way into the fortress for anyone coming up from La Condamine. You pass through several gates, some dating from the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries: each one was an extra lock against attackers.

160 m to the next stop

Prince’s Palace

Here stands the Prince’s Palace, the beating heart of the Rock. The story begins in 1191, when Genoa acquired this headland and built a fortress to watch over the coast. On the night of 8 January 1297, so the tradition goes, François Grimaldi, nicknamed Malizia, the cunning one, knocked at the gate disguised as a Franciscan monk.

200 m to the next stop

Monaco Cathedral

This dazzling white facade belongs to the Cathedral of Our Lady Immaculate. It looks old, yet it is fairly young: built between 1875 and 1903 in a Romanesque Byzantine style, with white stone quarried at La Turbie, up in the hills. It replaced a thirteenth century parish church dedicated to Saint Nicholas, and some of its treasures were kept.

150 m to the next stop

Chapel of Mercy

Tucked away on the Town Hall square, the Chapel of Mercy dates from 1639. It was built for the Brotherhood of the Black Penitents, lay people devoted to charity: they visited the sick, comforted the condemned and buried the poor. Its striped facade of pale stone and pink brick is typical of Ligurian Baroque, a reminder of the close ties between Monaco and Genoa.

210 m to the next stop

Saint-Martin Gardens

Leave the crowds behind and step into the Saint-Martin Gardens, hanging on the southern cliff of the Rock. Laid out in the early nineteenth century, they are considered the principality’s first public garden. Shady paths wind between Aleppo pines, olive trees, agaves and prickly pears, with the turquoise sea below.

200 m to the next stop

Oceanographic Museum

Clinging to the cliff, eighty five metres above the waves, this stone palace is devoted to the sea. It was the dream of Prince Albert I, known as the scientist prince. Passionate about oceanography, he led dozens of expeditions aboard his yachts, hauling unknown creatures up from the deep.

340 m to the next stop

Fort Antoine

At the eastern tip of the Rock stands Fort Antoine, a small fortress with thick walls. It was built at the very start of the eighteenth century under Prince Antoine I, when Europe was torn apart by the War of the Spanish Succession. Its task was simple: guard the harbour entrance and keep enemy ships at bay.