Prince Aimone, 4th Duke of Aosta (''Aimone Roberto Margherita Maria Giuseppe Torino''; 9 March 1900 – 29 January 1948), was a prince of Italy's reigning

House of Savoy The House of Savoy (, ) is a royal house (formally a dynasty) of Franco-Italian origin that was established in 1003 in the historical region of Savoy, which was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy and now lies mostly within southeastern F ...

and an officer of the Royal Italian Navy. The second son of Prince Emanuele Filiberto, Duke of Aosta, he was granted the title

Duke of Spoleto The Duke of Spoleto was the ruler of Spoleto and most of central Italy outside the Papal States during the Early and High Middle Ages (c. 500 – 1300). The first dukes were appointed by the Lombard king, but they were independent in practice. Th ...

on 22 September 1904. He inherited the title

Duke of Aosta Duke of Aosta (; ) was a title in the Italian nobility. It was established in the 13th century when Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, made the County of Aosta a duchy. The region was part of the Savoyard state and the title was granted to variou ...

on 3 March 1942 following the death of his brother Prince Amedeo in a British prisoner of war camp in

Nairobi Nairobi is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Kenya. The city lies in the south-central part of Kenya, at an elevation of . The name is derived from the Maasai language, Maasai phrase , which translates to 'place of cool waters', a ...

. From 18 May 1941 to 31 July 1943, Aimone was designated king of the

Independent State of Croatia The Independent State of Croatia (, NDH) was a World War II–era puppet state of Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy (1922–1943), Fascist Italy. It was established in parts of Axis occupation of Yugoslavia, occupied Yugoslavia on 10 April 1941, ...

(, NDH), even though he never ruled there. He formally accepted the position and took the name Tomislav II, after the first Croatian king.dr. Marijan Rogić, Pod Zvonimirovom krunom (Under the crown of Zvonimir) Munchen 2008.Hrvoje Matković, Designirani hrvatski kralj Tomislav II. vojvoda od Spoleta. Povijest hrvatskotalijanskih odnosa u prvoj polovici XX.st. (Designated Croatian king Tomislav II, Duke of Spoleto. History of Croatian-Italian relationships in first half of the 20th century), Zagreb 2007. Later, however, he refused to assume the kingship in protest of the Italian annexation of the

Dalmatia Dalmatia (; ; ) is a historical region located in modern-day Croatia and Montenegro, on the eastern shore of the Adriatic Sea. Through time it formed part of several historical states, most notably the Roman Empire, the Kingdom of Croatia (925 ...

region, and is therefore referred to in some sources as king designate. Regardless, many sources refer to him as King Tomislav II and the nominal head of the NDH during its first two years (1941–1943). After the dismissal of

Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 until his overthrow in 194 ...

on 25 July 1943, Aimone abdicated on 31 July as king on the orders of

Victor Emmanuel III Victor Emmanuel III (; 11 November 1869 – 28 December 1947) was King of Italy from 29 July 1900 until his abdication on 9 May 1946. A member of the House of Savoy, he also reigned as Emperor of Ethiopia from 1936 to 1941 and King of the Albani ...

Early life

Prince Aimone Roberto Margherita Maria Giuseppe Torino of Savoy-Aosta was born in

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

the second son of Prince Emanuele Filiberto, Duke of Aosta (eldest son of Prince Amedeo, 1st Duke of Aosta (and sometime "King Amadeo I of Spain") by his wife, ''

née The birth name is the name of the person given upon their birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name or to the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a births registe ...

'' Vittoria dal Pozzo, Principessa della Cisterna) and Princess Hélène of Orléans (daughter of

Philippe, comte de Paris Prince Philippe of Orléans, Count of Paris (Louis Philippe Albert; 24 August 1838 – 8 September 1894), was disputedly List of French monarchs, King of the French from 24 to 26 February 1848 as Louis Philippe II, although he was never offici ...

, and Princess Marie Isabelle of Orléans). As his patrilinal great-grandfather was King

Victor Emmanuel II of Italy Victor Emmanuel II (; full name: ''Vittorio Emanuele Maria Alberto Eugenio Ferdinando Tommaso di House of Savoy, Savoia''; 14 March 1820 – 9 January 1878) was King of Sardinia (also informally known as Piedmont–Sardinia) from 23 March 1849 u ...

, he was a member of the

. With his brother Amedeo, he was educated at St David's College, Reigate, Surrey, England, and Aimone later went to study at the naval academy in Livorno. On 1 April 1921, Prince Aimone became a member of the

Italian Senate The Senate of the Republic (), or simply the Senate ( ), is the upper house of the bicameral Italian Parliament, the lower house being the Chamber of Deputies. The two houses together form a perfect bicameral system, meaning they perform iden ...

. Princes of the House of Savoy became members of the Senate at age 21, obtaining the right to vote at age 25. In 1929, twenty years after his uncle Prince Luigi Amedeo, Duke of the Abruzzi had attempted to climb K2 in

Karakoram The Karakoram () is a mountain range in the Kashmir region spanning the border of Pakistan, China, and India, with the northwestern extremity of the range extending to Afghanistan and Tajikistan. Most of the Karakoram mountain range is withi ...

, Prince Aimone led an expedition to Karakorum. A member of the expedition was Ardito Desio. Due to the failure to climb K2 twenty years earlier, Prince Aimone's expedition concentrated solely on scientific work. He was afterwards awarded the 1932

Royal Geographical Society The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers), often shortened to RGS, is a learned society and professional body for geography based in the United Kingdom. Founded in 1830 for the advancement of geographical scien ...

Patron's Medal The Royal Geographical Society's Gold Medal consists of two separate awards: the Founder's Medal 1830 and the Patron's Medal 1838. Together they form the most prestigious of the society's awards. They are given for "the encouragement and promoti ...

for his work.

Marriage and issue

After being romantically linked with Infanta Beatriz of Spain, the daughter of King

Alfonso XIII Alfonso XIII (Spanish language, Spanish: ''Alfonso León Fernando María Jaime Isidro Pascual Antonio de Borbón y Habsburgo-Lorena''; French language, French: ''Alphonse Léon Ferdinand Marie Jacques Isidore Pascal Antoine de Bourbon''; 17 May ...

, he married, on 1 July 1939 at the church of Santa Maria del Fiore,

Florence Florence ( ; ) is the capital city of the Italy, Italian region of Tuscany. It is also the most populated city in Tuscany, with 362,353 inhabitants, and 989,460 in Metropolitan City of Florence, its metropolitan province as of 2025. Florence ...

, Princess Irene of Greece and Denmark, daughter of King

Constantine I Constantine I (27 February 27222 May 337), also known as Constantine the Great, was a Roman emperor from AD 306 to 337 and the first Roman emperor to convert to Christianity. He played a Constantine the Great and Christianity, pivotal ro ...

and Princess Sophie of Prussia. They had one son, Prince Amedeo, Duke of Aosta, born in 1943.

War years

Croatian throne

On 18 May 1941, in a ceremony at the

Quirinal Palace The Quirinal Palace ( ) is a historic building in Rome, Italy, the main official residence of the President of Italy, President of the Italian Republic, together with Villa Rosebery in Naples and the Tenuta di Castelporziano, an estate on the outs ...

, to which

Ante Pavelić Ante Pavelić (; 14 July 1889 – 28 December 1959) was a Croatian politician who founded and headed the fascist ultranationalist organization known as the Ustaše in 1929 and was dictator of the Independent State of Croatia (NDH), a fasc ...

, the leader of the fascistic

Ustaše The Ustaše (), also known by anglicised versions Ustasha or Ustashe, was a Croats, Croatian fascist and ultranationalist organization active, as one organization, between 1929 and 1945, formally known as the Ustaša – Croatian Revolutionar ...

movement that had assumed power in Croatia in April 1941 after the

invasion of Yugoslavia The invasion of Yugoslavia, also known as the April War or Operation 25, was a Nazi Germany, German-led attack on the Kingdom of Yugoslavia by the Axis powers which began on 6 April 1941 during World War II. The order for the invasion was put fo ...

, led a delegation of Croats requesting that Italy's King

name a member of the

king of Croatia This is a complete list of dukes and kings of Croatia () under domestic ethnic and elected Dynasty, dynasties during the Duchy of Croatia (until 925), the Kingdom of Croatia (925–1102), the Croatia in personal union with Hungary, Kingdom of Croa ...

. The

was a fascist puppet state that was partly under Italian and German control, covering most of present-day states of

Croatia Croatia, officially the Republic of Croatia, is a country in Central Europe, Central and Southeast Europe, on the coast of the Adriatic Sea. It borders Slovenia to the northwest, Hungary to the northeast, Serbia to the east, Bosnia and Herze ...

and

Bosnia and Herzegovina Bosnia and Herzegovina, sometimes known as Bosnia-Herzegovina and informally as Bosnia, is a country in Southeast Europe. Situated on the Balkans, Balkan Peninsula, it borders Serbia to the east, Montenegro to the southeast, and Croatia to th ...

, but its leaders tried to assert their legitimacy by instating a monarchy that would resemble the medieval Croatian state. Aimone was then officially named king by his cousin Victor Emmanuel III. On assuming the Crown of Zvonimir he took the

regnal name A regnal name, regnant name, or reign name is the name used by monarchs and popes during their reigns and subsequently, historically. Since ancient times, some monarchs have chosen to use a different name from their original name when they accede ...

Tomislav II. Originally on learning that he had been named king of Croatia, he told close colleagues that he thought his nomination was a bad joke by his cousin King Victor Emmanuel III, though he accepted the crown out of a sense of duty. The Italian Foreign Minister and

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...

's son in law, and Count Ciano's informants said of Aimone "The Duke doesn't give a damn about Croatia and wants only money, money and more money." Ciano's diary noted a conversation between Aimone and himself, where Aimone was "proud of having been chosen King of Croatia, but has no exact idea of what he is supposed to do and is vaguely uneasy about it". He was due to be crowned in

Duvno Tomislavgrad ( Cyrl, Томиславград, ), also known by its former name Duvno ( Cyrl, Дувно, ), is a town and the seat of the Municipality of Tomislavgrad in Canton 10 of the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina, an entity of Bosni ...

(Tomislavgrad), in modern-day Bosnia and Herzegovina, but he refused to go to there due to the "

n question" which arose due to Italy taking some of Dalmatia's coastal territory. Aimone felt that Dalmatia "was a land that could never be Italianized" and was an obstacle to Italo-Croatian reconciliation. Other reasons why he never went to Croatia were because of an ongoing insurgency, and that his safety could not be guaranteed. Because of this he exercised what little power he had from

Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...

and

Hungary Hungary is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning much of the Pannonian Basin, Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia and ...

, however he never held any real authority throughout his reign as the Ustaše government had deprived the monarchy of most powers and reduced the status of the king to that of a figurehead. Count Gyula Cseszneky was the counsellor to the king for Croatian affairs. Prince Aimone also established a Croatian office in Rome where he received confidential reports, official documents, and military, political and economic information from Croatia. After the

fall of the Fascist regime in Italy The Fall of the Fascist regime in Italy, also known in Italy as (, ; ), came as a result of parallel plots led respectively by Count Dino Grandi and King Victor Emmanuel III during the spring and summer of 1943, culminating with a successfu ...

, Aimone abdicated as king of Croatia on 31 July 1943 on the orders of Victor Emmanuel III.B. Krizman, NDH između Hitlera i Mussolinija (Independent State of Croatia between Hitler and Mussolini,)p.102 Prince Aimone succeeded to the title

duke of Aosta Duke of Aosta (; ) was a title in the Italian nobility. It was established in the 13th century when Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, made the County of Aosta a duchy. The region was part of the Savoyard state and the title was granted to variou ...

on 3 March 1942, following the death of his elder brother Prince Amedeo, 3rd Duke of Aosta, in a British

prisoner of war A prisoner of war (POW) is a person held captive by a belligerent power during or immediately after an armed conflict. The earliest recorded usage of the phrase "prisoner of war" dates back to 1610. Belligerents hold prisoners of war for a ...

camp in

Kenya Kenya, officially the Republic of Kenya, is a country located in East Africa. With an estimated population of more than 52.4 million as of mid-2024, Kenya is the 27th-most-populous country in the world and the 7th most populous in Africa. ...

. In the autumn of 1942, Aimone contacted Allied forces via his courier, the consul general Alessandro Marieni, about the possibility of a peace settlement between Italy and Allied forces. Secret talks would continue into 1943, motivated in part by the aim of preserving the royal dynasty of Savoy.

Aftermath

In the latter months of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

, he became the commander of the Italian Naval Base of

Taranto Taranto (; ; previously called Tarent in English) is a coastal city in Apulia, Southern Italy. It is the capital of the province of Taranto, serving as an important commercial port as well as the main Italian naval base. Founded by Spartans ...

but he was dismissed from his post for his criticism of the judges that had found General

Mario Roatta Mario Roatta (2 February 1887 – 7 January 1968) was an Italian general. After serving in World War I he rose to command the Corpo Truppe Volontarie which assisted Francisco Franco's nationalist forces during the Spanish Civil War. He was the d ...

guilty of war crimes. During his naval career he reached the rank of Squadron Admiral.

Death

In 1947, following the birth of the Italian Republic the previous year, Prince Aimone left Italy for

South America South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...

. Just a year after his arrival, he suddenly died on 29 January 1948 in his temporary residence, a private suite at the Alvear Palace Hotel in the French Borough of Recoleta in

Buenos Aires Buenos Aires, controlled by the government of the Autonomous City of Buenos Aires, is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Argentina. It is located on the southwest of the Río de la Plata. Buenos Aires is classified as an Alpha− glob ...

, while his entourage was arranging his permanent residency documents and the purchase of his new home in Argentina. The claim to the Aosta ducal title passed to his son Prince Amedeo.

Honours

National

* Independent State of Croatia: Sovereign Knight Commander of the Military Order of the Iron Trefoil, 1st Class * Independent State of Croatia: Sovereign Knight Grand Cross of the Order of the Crown of King Zvonimir, Special Class * Independent State of Croatia: Sovereign Recipient of the Medal of the Crown of King Zvonimir *

: Knight Grand Collar of the

Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation The Supreme Order of the Most Holy Annunciation () is a Catholic order of chivalry, originating in County of Savoy, Savoy. It eventually was the pinnacle of the Orders, decorations, and medals of Italy#The Kingdom of Italy, honours system in the ...

vivailre.it
Aimone wearing the Greek Italian and Romanian orders
*

: Knight Grand Cordon of the

Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus The Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus () (abbreviated OSSML) is a Roman Catholic dynastic order of knighthood bestowed by the royal House of Savoy. It is the second-oldest order of knighthood in the world, tracing its lineage to AD 1098, a ...

: Knight Grand Cordon of the

Order of the Crown of Italy The Order of the Crown of Italy ( or OCI) was founded as a national order in 1868 by King Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, Vittorio Emanuele II, to commemorate Italian unification, the unification of Italy in 1861. It was awarded in five degrees for ...

: Knight Grand Cordon of the

Military Order of Savoy The Military Order of Savoy was a military honorary order of the Kingdom of Sardinia first, and of the Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946), Kingdom of Italy later. Following the abolition of the Italian monarchy, the order became the Military Order of ...

: Knight of the Civil Decoration of Savoy *

: Recipient of the Silver Medal of Military Valor *

: Recipient of the

Bronze Medal of Military Valor The Bronze Medal of Military Valor () is an Italian medal for gallantry. It was established by Charles Albert of Sardinia on 26 March 1833, along with the higher ranking Gold Medal of Military Valor and Silver Medal of Military Valor, which were ...

: Recipient of the

Medal of Military Valor The Medal of Military Valor (Italian language: ''Medaglia al valor militare'') is an Italian medal, originally established as a Kingdom of Sardinia, Sardinian award. It is awarded to military personnel, units above the level of Company (milita ...

: Recipient of the Medal of Honour for Long-time Maritime Navigation ** Malta:

Sovereign Military Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta, and commonly known as the Order of Malta or the Knights of Malta, is a Catholic lay religious ...

: Bailiff Knight Grand Cross of Justice of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta, 1st Class

Foreign

* Spain: Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of Charles III The Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III, originally Royal and Much Distinguished Order of Charles III (, originally ; Abbreviation, Abbr.: OC3) is a knighthood and one of the three preeminent Order of merit, orders of merit bes ...

Greece Greece, officially the Hellenic Republic, is a country in Southeast Europe. Located on the southern tip of the Balkan peninsula, it shares land borders with Albania to the northwest, North Macedonia and Bulgaria to the north, and Turkey to th ...

: Knight Grand Cross of the

Order of the Redeemer The Order of the Redeemer (), also known as the Order of the Saviour, is an order of merit of Greece. The Order of the Redeemer is the oldest and highest decoration awarded by the modern Greek state. Establishment The establishment of the Orde ...

* Imperial Iran: Knight Grand Cordon of the Order of PahlaviLive Journal
/ref> *

Romania Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central Europe, Central, Eastern Europe, Eastern and Southeast Europe. It borders Ukraine to the north and east, Hungary to the west, Serbia to the southwest, Bulgaria to the south, Moldova to ...

: Knight Grand Cross with Collar of the

Order of Carol I The Order of Carol I () was the highest ranking of the Orders, decorations, and medals of Romania, Romanian honours of the Kingdom of Romania until the founding of the Order of Michael the Brave in 1916 by King of Romania, King Ferdinand I of Ro ...

* United Kingdom: Recipient of the Victory Medal

Ancestry

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Aimone, Prince, Duke of Aosta Dukes of Aosta Military personnel from Turin 1900 births 1948 deaths Princes of Savoy Princes in Italy Nobility from Turin Recipients of the Bronze Medal of Military Valor Recipients of the Silver Medal of Military Valor Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Knights Grand Cross of the Military Order of Savoy Italian admirals People of the Independent State of Croatia Burials at the Basilica of Superga Princes della Cisterna Recipients of the War Cross for Military Valor Collaboration with Fascist Italy Collaboration with Nazi Germany Regia Marina personnel of World War II Exiled royalty