Monaco's first lady is under scrutiny like never before. The problem with Princess Chàrlene is no longer that she is sad. It's just that she seems frozen. She doesn't even react to Alberto's affectionate gestures.
Observers of the Grimaldi admit to being stupefied: no one expected this turn in the situation of Charlène de Monaco in her sentimental and institutional marriage with Prince Albert. We are not talking about a bad day or some bad afternoons. Examples accumulate of a princess who, by all accounts, has stopped trying. Lately, neither she nor she reacts to gestures of affection.
The memory of the first and young Charlène Wittstock, an exultant swimmer who promised to resurrect the glamor of a Grace Kelly and, for years, succeeded, has not been erased from the memory of citizens. The Princess of Monaco has served unforgettable looks with a contemporary elegance that, at the time, was appreciated. At last, we saw a truly modern princess.
Charlène from Monaco has thrown in the towel
Undoubtedly, the very long illness that led her to take refuge in her South African home marked a before and after. Despite her apparent physical recovery, nothing has ever been the same. In fact, since she resumed her official agenda, we haven't seen a single look from Charlène that would do her justice. We thought she had lost her way. Now we suspect that she has simply thrown in the towel.
Beware: Charlène, focused on her recovery, may have stopped investing time and energy in a subject as demanding and dedicated as fashion. Perhaps today she cares more about her health and less about appearing on the list of the most beautiful, elegant, and best dressed. Somehow, she has stopped competing with the European queens and princesses.
However, other symptoms detected in Charlène's latest appearances in Monaco could indicate deeper issues, which can hardly be explained without knowing more details about the current emotional state of the Princess of Monaco. Some experts in non-verbal language have sounded the alarm: the first lady seems not to react. She seems absent. She doesn't answer.
The scene that captured the attention of these informed Grimaldi watchers occurred during the royal family's appearance at the Monaco Grand Prix, held last weekend in Monte Carlo. This is a long-awaited event, as it is possible to see a large part of the family interacting in public, beyond the rigorously studied poses.
Charlène, Alberto, and her two children, Gabriella and Jacques, were the stars of a day in which we could see them in action. Asked by the British newspaper Express, the expert in non-verbal language Judi James detected an atmosphere of tension between the princes of Monaco that, let us remember, appears intermittently in the chronicles since 2017.
Charlène and Alberto have been married for almost 12 years and, as we said, this tension has been reported on other occasions. However, the expert assures that this absent attitude of the Princess of Monaco is new. She watched her both at the Monte Carlos circuit where the Grand Prix was held and at the gala dinner the night before.
Charlène is so rigid that she looks like a doll
"Even during the national anthem, when Charlène should have been connected and attentive, we saw her rigid, isolated and, with a doll-like frozen expression," analyzed the expert in the non-verbal language. "Her posture of hers suggests tension and she does not react to Prince Albert's movements and gestures to try to integrate her."
Throughout the time that the princes of Monaco were in front of the Monegasques, Prince Albert was most attentive to her wife, putting her arm around her in a protective gesture every time he saw her disconnected or isolated. Princess Charlène, however, was absent. "Her look on her was sad and her attitude was reflective," James describes.
Some observers of the scene went a step further and confessed that they thought they saw in Prince Albert some concern in case Charlène stumbled or lost her balance. Be that as it may, this instability was only detected in this event, although it is true that the princess's attitude has lost her presence, both in her dress and in her gaze, which she once had. No wonder the Monegasques are concerned.
