Paris - Henri d'Orleans, new pretender to the French throne, stands to inherit little from his father, who died at the weekend, except for titles, a distinguished bearing and a dwindling band of followers.
The family finances are widely thought to be so depleted that the new 66-year-old head of the House of France long ago swallowed his pride and commercialised his name to make a living. The pretender, who is adding the title Duke of France to his father's title Count of Paris, which he now assumes, "sponsored" several lines of perfume with names like "Royalissime" and "Lys Bleu". Officially, Henri created them. But his major role was to look regal at their launching ceremonies.
Money has long been a major irritant for the former French royals, with seven of the late Count of Paris's nine living children taking him to court in 1993 to prevent him from selling the family silver.