Textbook Comprehension I (model answers)

1. Why was Monaco called a 'toy kingdom'? Monaco was so tiny - about seven thousand people and not even an acre of land for each - that it seemed like a toy. Yet it had all the trappings of a real kingdom: a kinglet, palace, courtiers, ministers, a bishop, generals and an army of sixty men.

2. Name the commodities taxed in Monaco. Tobacco and wine and spirits. There was also a poll-tax on individuals.

3. What was the source of the King's special revenue? Who were its beneficiaries? The special revenue came from a gaming house where people played roulette. The keeper of the gaming house took a percentage of the turnover, and the Prince received a large sum from his profits. (By the end, the pensioned criminal also benefits indirectly.)

4. Why did the Germans stop gaming houses in their country and how did it benefit Monaco? The Germans stopped them because they did great harm: people lost everything, even money that was not theirs, and then drowned or shot themselves. With the German houses closed, Monaco's became the only gaming house left in Europe, so all gamblers went there and the Prince enjoyed a monopoly.

5. What was the punishment given to the murderer? He was sentenced to have his head cut off (death). Later this was changed to imprisonment for life.

6. The death sentence was converted into life imprisonment because: a. Monaco had abolished death penalty. b. Carrying out death sentence was expensive. c. Monaco wanted to show mercy on the criminal. Answer: b. The "mercy" was only an excuse; the real reason was the cost.

7. How much did the king spend annually on the criminal? More than 600 francs a year, for the guard and the man's food.

8. On what condition did the criminal agree to go away from the prison? How was his demand fulfilled? He agreed to go only if the pension of 600 francs was paid regularly. The Council agreed; he was given one-third of his annuity in advance, and he returns at the proper time every year to draw his pension.

Textbook Comprehension II and III (model answers)

Q. Though gambling is a dirty business, why does the king of Monaco resort to it? (II-1) Monaco has too few people for taxes on tobacco, drink and the poll-tax to support the Prince, his court and officials. The gaming house is his only large source of income. He excuses himself by saying that taxing drink and tobacco is not nice either, and that "you can't earn stone palaces by honest labour."

Q. Why did the king of Monaco keep changing his mind in dealing with the criminal? (II-2) Every decision was ruled by cost. The execution was too expensive (16,000 francs from France, 12,000 from Italy), so he changed it to life imprisonment. The guard and food cost over 600 francs a year, so he dismissed the guard. When the man would not leave, he offered a pension. Each change was an attempt to spend less.

Q. Why was the criminal reluctant to go out of the prison? (II-3) He had nowhere to go. The sentence had ruined his character, so people would turn their backs on him. He had got out of the habit of working. He also felt he had been treated unfairly and would not agree to being thrown out.

Q. How did the criminal lead his life after his release? (II-4) He settled just across the frontier, bought a bit of land and started market-gardening. He draws his pension on time, gambles two or three francs at the gaming tables, and lives peaceably and comfortably.

Q. 'You can't earn stone palaces by honest labour.' Justify with reference to the story. (III-1) The Prince of Monaco lives in a palace and holds court like a real king, but his wealth comes from a gaming house that ruins people. Honest taxes are too small to support him. The German rulers had to give up the same trade because of the harm it caused. The Prince knows it is a dirty business, but he continues because it pays. His grandeur is built on others' losses, which proves the proverb.

Q. Though the trial and imprisonment are depicted in a comic mode, the story gives rise to serious questions. What are they? (III-2)

  • Should justice depend on money? The sentence changes each time only to cut costs.
  • Is capital punishment justified, and should a state pass a sentence it cannot or will not carry out?
  • Does imprisonment reform a criminal, or does it leave him with a ruined character and no way to earn?
  • What happens to released prisoners whom society rejects?
  • Is it right for a ruler to live on a harmful gambling business?

Q. Were there other ways of dealing with the criminal? Discuss. (III-3) Yes. Instead of a costly guard and free food, the prisoner could have been made to work in prison to earn his keep, which might also have reformed him. He could have been given productive work in the kingdom, or handed over, with his consent, to a neighbouring country's prison system. A fair, fixed sentence decided on grounds of justice rather than price would have avoided the whole comedy. (Students may give their own reasoned suggestions.)

Exam-Pattern Questions and Answers

Two-mark questions

Q1. Who, according to the Council, was a 'brother monarch'? The King of Italy. The Council hoped that, as a fellow king, he would supply the machine and expert more cheaply than republican France.

Q2. Why did the soldiers refuse to cut off the criminal's head? They said they did not know how to do it. It was not a thing they had been taught.

Q3. What did the prisoner do when the guard was dismissed? At dinner-time he went to the Prince's kitchen and fetched his own food. Then he returned to the prison and shut the door on himself.

Three-mark questions (about 60 words)

Q4. Why did the Prince find the prisoner's keep too costly? After a year the Prince noticed a new item in his accounts: the cost of the guard and the prisoner's food, more than 600 francs a year. The prisoner was young and healthy and might live another fifty years. Added up, the cost would be huge, so the Prince asked his ministers to find a cheaper way.

Q5. What arguments did the prisoner give for not leaving the prison? He said he had nowhere to go, and the sentence had ruined his character, so people would turn their backs on him. He had also got out of the way of working. He complained that the state had not executed him, then took away his guard, and now wanted to throw him out, which was unfair.

Four-mark question (about 100 words)

Q6. Why could not the king of Monaco execute the criminal for committing a murder? (asked in the 2025 board paper) Monaco had neither a guillotine nor an executioner. The ministers asked the French Government, which quoted 16,000 francs for a machine and an expert. The Prince felt the wretch was not worth it; it would be more than two francs a head on the population and might cause a riot. The King of Italy, a brother monarch, asked 12,000 francs, which was still too much. The General asked the soldiers, but none would do it, saying they had not been taught how. So, to save money and appear merciful, the death sentence was changed to life imprisonment.

[Exam Tip] — The 2025 paper also used this story for the passive-voice question: "A murder was committed… The criminal was sentenced to death… The criminal was asked to run away." See the Passive Voice chapter.