The Rolling Stones' longtime former manager has died at the age of 80.

Prince Rupert Loewenstein died early on Tuesday (20May14) after a long illness.

The Bavarian aristocrat, who was born Prince Rupert Ludwig Ferdinand zu Loewenstein-Wertheim-Freudenberg, served as the rock legends' business manager and financial advisor from 1968 to 2007.

He is widely credited with helping the Stones turn their fortunes around from a band on the brink of bankruptcy in 1968 to the multi-million dollar money-making machine it is today, but he angered frontman Mick Jagger last year (13) when he released his memoir, titled A Prince Among Stones.

The book detailed how the rockers became tax exiles in France in a bid to protect their fortune and spilled the beans on their income and spending habits.