Prince Albert of Monaco has shown Hoda Kobt of NBC’s TODAY Show around his mother, Grace Kelly’s childhood Philadelphia home which has recently been renovated after he purchased the property in 2016 for $755,000.
The home was built by Grace’s father, John Kelly in 1928; Grace and her siblings grew up in the six-bedroom, 2.5 floor Colonial brick home in the East Falls neighbourhood on the corner of Henry Avenue and West Coulter. The renovation done by His Serene Highness has transformed the home back to its former glory and the way it looked as his mother grew up.
Old photos and videos of the home were used to help return the house to its original state after being built by the Prince’s grandfather. Personal artefacts from the Kelly family are also kept throughout the home. This includes a linen closet door where the heights of the Kelly children were marked. Luckily, previous owners after the Kelly family did not paint over the markings.
“Maybe they thought we were going to take it back one day,” Albert explained his thoughts on why it hadn’t been painted over.
While showing off the house, the Prince of Monaco told Kobt, “I think after talking to some of my cousins about this, we didn’t want to see it disappear or see it transformed in any way by future owners. It’s a big part of our family’s history.”
The executive director of the Princess Grace Foundation-USA, Toby Boshak, told TODAY, “There’s an old rug that used to be in the living room that was brought back. hey polished and restored all the finishes, keeping the originals when possible and matching older items that resembled the period of the house.”
You can take a look at the home in 3D through this link.
Prince Albert took time to also give advice for Prince Harry who will wed American actress Meghan Markle on Saturday, 19 May, “I know Prince Harry, and he’s a wonderful young man. If they ask me I would give them that advice, to make sure they have their intimate moments and to preserve those as much as possible because that’s so important for the balance of your life but also for your children you’re going to have.”
