In the Casiraghi saga, one of the richest in Italy, princes and princesses are mixed with multimillionaire entrepreneurs and scientists. One part of the line, the Monegasque royal branch, lives facing the spotlight, while the other lives in the media shadow, cultivating family businesses. Carolina de Mónaco's three eldest children, Andrea, Carlota and Pierre, the fruit of her marriage to the late Stefano Casiraghi, are the most popular members of the clan. Her Italian relatives, who live in Milan, tend to live with their backs to the gallery and are generally dedicated to the economy.
The marriage of Stefano Casiraghi, heir to a wealthy family of coal entrepreneurs from northern Italy, with Princess Carolina of Monaco in 1983, the second for her, linked this lineage of the transalpine country with European royalty. The union removed from anonymity a surname until then only known in financial circles. Stefano was at the beginning the visible face and reference of the family in the glamorous parties of the Principality and all kinds of international events. He also stood out as a seasoned businessman who founded several successful businesses and as a motor boat pilot.
His death in 1990 in an accident when the boat he was flying capsized while competing in the Offshore World Championship, in the waters of the Principality, left his widow Carolina devastated, who was left alone with 33 years and three small children.
Andrea, the oldest of the Casiraghi brothers who is now 36 years old, was the one who suffered the most from the loss of his father and as his grandmother has said on occasion, he wore his clothes to remember him. He was the heir until his uncle, Prince Albert, had children and currently lives away from the spotlight and palace protocol, with few exceptions. Being your highness and living in Monaco is not your thing. With the billionaire Tatiana Santo Domingo, he forms one of the most glamorous couples on the international jet set . Married for seven years and with three children, they live between London, Paris, Switzerland, Monte Carlo and New York. Her main task is to look after their economic interests and she is also dedicated to philanthropy.
Carlota, 34, is the more mediatic of the siblings and is used to making headlines for whatever she does, practically since she was born. She has not been comfortable in that role for a long time, on more than one occasion she has denounced the press for harassment and has requested restraining orders. She is trying to protect her life with her husband Dimitri Rassam, whom she married last year practically in secret and with whom she has a son. She also has another offspring of the Franco-Moroccan actor Gad Elmaleh.
Pierre, 32, runs family businesses and lives between the Principality and Milan. In 2015 he married Italian journalist and aristocrat Beatrice Borromeo and he has two children. He is passionate about the sea, like his father, and about ecology and on numerous occasions he has embarked on solidarity projects to promote scientific research or raise awareness about ocean pollution.
Although 30 years have passed since Stefano's death, Carolina de Mónaco continues to maintain close contact with the Casiraghi and remains very close to her former mother-in-law, her brothers-in-law and her nephews. It is common to see them together with the Grimaldi at large events in the Principality, and Carolina's visits to Italy to her in-laws are also frequent to participate in family reunions and other celebrations.
The matriarch of the saga, Fernanda Biffi Casiraghi, 95, comes from a Milanese family with a long business tradition. With her husband, Giancarlo Casiraghi, she turned the family coal company into a giant in the energy sector and built a financial and real estate empire. She is a historical benchmark for businessmen and in addition to being the honorary chair of the family company, she also leads the Association of Italian Entrepreneurs of the Principality of Monaco. She lives in the splendid villa Cicogna, the clan's headquarters, in Fino Mornasco, near Como. Like the rest of her relatives, Fernanda is discreet and not prone to appearing in the spotlight. In his few interviews with the press, he has related that Princess Carolina continues to call her mamma.
Another Fernanda Casiraghi, daughter of the late Daniele Casiraghi and Carolina's niece, is also a regular in the Principality and its glamorous evenings. She maintains very close contact with her cousins and on occasion she has been seen in Mallorca with Pierre, such as when he participated in the Copa del Rey sailing in 2017. With Carlota she shares a passion for fashion and the young woman has also inherited the nose for the business of their relatives. A few years ago, she launched her own clothing brand, which is called Zilea. She usually wears her own designs at the Baile de la Rosa, "exclusive dresses that combine elegance and sophisticated carefreeness."
His uncle, Marco, Stefano's favorite brother and Andrea's godfather, is another of the architects of the Casiraghi's financial success. He lives on horseback between the Principality and Milan. He is an engineer, is devoted to scientific dissemination and runs the family construction company, which is a leader in the luxury real estate sector in Monaco. With him, his nephew Pierre, who has been the main shareholder since 2009, shares the management duties. Together they have signed great successes of the company such as the new Monaco Yacht Club, designed by Norman Foster.
