And Pierre Werner, a former prime minister of the Grand Duchy, wrote the first report proposing European monetary union.

ECONOMIST: Charlemagne

Who cares that Norway was once part of Sweden, or that Finland used to be a Grand Duchy of tsarist Russia?

ECONOMIST: Europe.view

Another figure often mentioned is Jean-Claude Juncker, Luxembourg's prime minister, but he repeatedly says he plans to continue running the Grand Duchy.

ECONOMIST: The summit of all fears | The

Mr Milosz liked to describe himself as the last citizen of the Grand Duchy of Lithuania, a medieval superpower that stretched from the Baltic to the Black Sea, noted for its religious and cultural tolerance.

ECONOMIST: Obituary

The Grand Duchy of Lithuania flourished.

ECONOMIST: Vilnius