Monaco is the jewel in the crown of the F1 World Championship but the race was initially conceived as a means enhance the status of the local automobile club.
The Monaco Grand Prix was born out of a desire to have the Automobile Club de Monaco (ACM) recognised as a national body. Although the Monte Carlo Rally had been run since 1911 hardly any of it took place within the confines of the principality. The Association Internacionale des Automobiles Clubs Reconnus (AIACR) insisted that a major race had to be held within Monte Carlo, otherwise the ACM would remain a regional body.
At the forefront of the initiative was Anthony Nogues, whose father had founded the ACM. With support from Prince Louis II and advice from the famous Monegasque driver Louis Chiron a circuit was laid out using the streets of the principality. Over the years, although the start line has been moved several times, the circuit itself has changed little.
The inaugural race was held on May, 1929, as a round of the European Championship. It was won by William Grover-Williams, known as ‘Williams’, driving a Bugatti Type 35B. He was followed home by the Mercedes of Rudolf Carraciola. The following year saw victory go to Frenchman René Dreyfus, again in a Bugatti.
Chiron had missed the first Monaco Grand Prix due to competing in the Indianapolis 500 but, in 1931, he crossed the line first and became the only Monegasque to win their home race. The 1932 saw Bugatti’s stranglehold broken as the great Tazio Nuvolari won in an Alfa-Romeo.
In 1933 the race finally achieved Grande Epreuve status and it was made all the more memorable by a spirited battle between Tazio Nuvolari and Achille Varzi. The latter finally emerged victorious after Nuvolari encountered problems on the final lap.
The 1934 race saw a victory for one of motor racing’s great lost talents. The Algerian driver Guy Moll won for Alfa-Romeo. He would die later the same year in a crash at Pescara aged just 24.
Before the outbreak of war the race was dominated by Mercedes. They won with Luigi Fagioli in 1935, Carraciola in 1936 and Manfred von Brauchitsch in 1937. There was no race in 1938 and, although it was planned to be held in 1939, it was cancelled in February of that year.
In 1936 and 1937 another race was staged around the Monaco circuit, with drivers competing for the Coupe Rainier. The 1936 event was won by Prince Bira while the following year victory went to Laury Schell. The latter was the father of future Formula 1 driver Harry Schell.
