Monte Carlo, the tiny district in the small Principality of Monaco, came to be designed on a few carefully choreographed factors and the ideas of a few enterprising gambling individuals.

Prince Charles III

In the 1860s, Prince Charles III had a concept of what he dreamed Monte Carlo to be. His plans included a combination of tasteful European gambling intermingled with as much couture arts and culture as he could manage to attract. The design, he wagered, would be sufficient to provide for the aristocratic, often bored, Europeans wanting both recreation and the attendant culture to which they were regularly accustomed.

He also believed that the climate would convince many, too. Monte Carlo is a small spit of land clinging to the edge of the Mediterranean Sea. Monaco, itself is only a mile or two square, at the most. The small Principality sits along the shore and steep hills and then alpine mountains rise beyond. The mountains protect the coastal town from the harsh mistral winds and are the geographic key to its year round temperate climate.

Louis and Francois Blanc

While Prince Charles was dreaming his big Monte Carlo dreams, brothers Louis and Francois Blanc were peddling their invention, the single zero Roulette wheel, in Germany’s casinos of the period. On their heels was the German authorities following suit with their European neighbors who had already prohibited gambling. Prince Charles, aware of the gambling environment and having heard of the Blancs, invited them to Monte Carlo.

Charles’s plan for the small enclave combined with the impressive beauty of this area of the French Riviera sold the Blancs on the idea. Charles gave them permission to build the first casino, the Casino de Monte Carlo, which opened in 1863. The casino was designed by Charles Garnier, the architect who designed the famed Paris Opera House. And it was built to resemble a palace fit for kings. During this same period, Charles saw to it that the equally opulent Monte Carlo Opera House was built nearby.

A Railroad

Monte Carlo was remote. Aristocratic Europeans would have a difficult time getting conveniently to Monte Carlo. Charles and the Blancs made sure that when a railway was proposed to connect Genoa with Nice they made the right political connections necessary to assure the railway passed through Monte Carlo. This sealed Monte Carlo’s fate as being one of the most prestigious and luxurious gambling destinations in the world.