Charlotte Casiraghi

Charlotte Marie Pomeline Casiraghi (born 3 August 1986) is the elder daughter of Caroline, Princess of Hanover and the late Stefano Casiraghi. She is eleventh in line to the throne of Monaco. Her maternal grandparents were Rainier III, Prince of Monaco and American actress Grace Kelly. She is known for being a "brand ambassador" in the fashion world as well as the equestrian sporting world. Her bylines include a literary review for the French magazine Libération and an ebook on philosophy. She is one of the four founders of Les Rencontres Philosophiques de Monaco ("Philo Monaco") which literally translates to "The Philosophical Encounters of Monaco."

Charlotte Casiraghi in 2010

Quotes

L'Observateur de Monaco interview, June 2017

Interview for L'Observateur de Monaco, 15 June 2017 with quotes translated from French to English by Hello! Canada, 22 June 2017

• Anxiety and existential anguish are part of everyone's life. My personal experience has been of sad events, such as my father's early death, but these are things that happen to everyone, no matter where he comes from.
• Loneliness, I felt it early enough, adolescent, and this is what prompted me to introspection, especially since I had a temperament that inclined me to analysis. Later, the company of philosophers gave me the impression that I was not alone. I think this is more a matter of my personal sensitivity than of the fact that I come from a family indeed a little particular.
• I do not get up in the morning thinking of Nietzsche, looking at the sky, and telling myself that I am in contact with the eternal return. I do not understand philosophy in this way. Philosophy animates me and inhabits me and when one is upset by a text or a thought, one cannot compartmentalize. I live with the desire to understand. It is part of the being that I am.
• I was fortunate, thanks to my mother, to have early access to culture and literature, which allowed me to forge a taste for critical thinking.
• It's not that I do not like feminism, but what interests me is the dialogue between the feminine and the masculine. We are not going to wage a war of the sexes! The singularity of each must be made possible. Obviously, it is sometimes more complex for women to build a singular destiny.

Billionaire interview, October 2018

Interview for Billionaire Magazine, 22 October 2018

• Robert Maggiori was my philosophy teacher in high school and it changed the way I looked at life and dealt with my own intensity. Further, philosophy quietened my anxieties and gave me guidance. I continued studying philosophy while at the Sciences Po Doctoral School. As time went on it played an even bigger, brighter, role in my life. It became evident that gathering talented people sharing a common passion for the discipline was the next step forward. Yet, I had bigger ambitions than creating a simple prize. My vision was to anchor year-round philosophy in Monaco’s cultural life and export it, as soon as I could, to Paris.
• Philosophy is fundamental: it raises urgent matters and puts ethics in the foreground. Philosophy is a powerful tool to cast light on problems and find adequate solutions. Where is AI leading us? What is human today? Philosophy keeps fundamental questions alive; it is the only discipline that thrives through transmission. The more it is shared, the more powerful it becomes. Philosophy is a common language.
• It is key that we address the question of hospitality today: it means reassessing the notions of borders (especially those of a democratic Europe); the acceptance of strangers and refugees; and the question of knowledge, to name just a few. But without a ‘house for philosophy’ that opens its doors to all ways of thinking, we couldn’t achieve as much. A house is both a meeting point and an anchor; solid ground to start building on.

Vogue Mexico interview, June 2019

Interview for Vogue Mexico, as quoted in Hola! USA, 28 June 2019

• Love is the most difficult test we each will face. It's the highest testimony of ourselves; everything else in our lives is all preparation for this supreme challenge.
• Both philosophy and literature have helped me to put things into perspective. They gave me the strength to be myself. I found colleagues, I felt understood through hardships in life. When I was able to express myself and be in touch with great thinkers, I would always feel safe.
• When I was younger, I remember being very angry with someone who hurt me, but I told myself that, even if I were in jail or alone, as long as I had a pen and a piece of paper, as long as I could express myself, I would be fine.