Victor Emmanuel I Of Savoy
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Victor Emmanuel I (; 24 July 1759 – 10 January 1824) was the
Duke of Savoy The titles of the count of Savoy, and then duke of Savoy, are titles of nobility attached to the historical territory of Savoy. Since its creation, in the 11th century, the House of Savoy held the county. Several of these rulers ruled as kings at ...
,
King of Sardinia Sardinia is traditionally known to have been initially ruled by the Nuragic civilization, which was followed by Greek colonization, conquest by the Carthagians, Carthaginians, and occupied by the Ancient Rome, Romans for around a thousand years, ...
and ruler of the Savoyard states from 4 June 1802 until his reign ended in 1821 upon
abdication Abdication is the act of formally relinquishing monarchical authority. Abdications have played various roles in the Order of succession, succession procedures of monarchies. While some cultures have viewed abdication as an extreme abandonment of ...
due to a liberal revolution. Shortly thereafter, his brother Charles Felix ascended the throne as the new King of Sardinia. Victor Emmanuel was the son of King
Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia Victor Amadeus III (Vittorio Amedeo Maria; 26 June 1726 – 16 October 1796) was King of Sardinia and ruler of the Savoyard state, Savoyard states from 20 February 1773 to his death in 1796. Although he was politically conservative, he carrie ...
and Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain. In 1789, he married Maria Theresa of Austria-Este, with whom he had seven children, including the future Empress of Austria. He was the King of Sardinia during the
Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...
, where he regained Piedmont after Napoleon's defeat in 1814.


Biography


Early life

Victor Emmanuel was born on 24 July 1754 at the
Royal Palace of Turin The Royal Palace of Turin () is a historic palace of the House of Savoy in the city of Turin in Northern Italy. It was originally built in the 16th century and was later modernized by Christine Marie of France (1606–1663) in the 17th century, w ...
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 ...
, Italy. He was the second son of King
Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia Victor Amadeus III (Vittorio Amedeo Maria; 26 June 1726 – 16 October 1796) was King of Sardinia and ruler of the Savoyard state, Savoyard states from 20 February 1773 to his death in 1796. Although he was politically conservative, he carrie ...
, son of King Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia and
Polyxena of Hesse-Rotenburg Princess Polyxena of Hesse-Rheinfels-Rotenburg (Polyxena Christina Johanna; 21 September 1706 – 13 January 1735) was the second wife of Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia, Charles Emmanuel, Prince of Piedmont whom she married in 1724. The mother ...
, and his wife, Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain, daughter of King
Philip V of Spain Philip V (; 19 December 1683 – 9 July 1746) was List of Spanish monarchs, King of Spain from 1 November 1700 to 14 January 1724 and again from 6 September 1724 to his death in 1746. His total reign (45 years and 16 days) is the longest in the ...
and Elisabeth Farnese. Victor Emmanuel was known from birth as the
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 ...
. From 1792 to 1796, Victor Emmanuel’s father had taken an active part in the struggle of the old powers against the revolutionary forces in France but was defeated and forced to make peace, signing the Treaty of Paris. The old king died shortly thereafter, and in December 1798, his eldest son and successor, Charles Emmanuel IV, was faced with a French occupation and eventually annexation, of his mainland territories.


Flight to Sardinia and accession

Charles Emmanuel and his family were forced to withdraw to
Sardinia Sardinia ( ; ; ) is the Mediterranean islands#By area, second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, after Sicily, and one of the Regions of Italy, twenty regions of Italy. It is located west of the Italian Peninsula, north of Tunisia an ...
, which was the only part of his domains not conquered by the French. Charles Emmanuel himself took little interest in the rule of Sardinia, living with his wife on the mainland in
Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...
and
Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...
until his wife's death in 1802, which led the childless Charles Emmanuel to abdicate the throne in favour of his younger brother. Victor Emmanuel took the throne on 4 June 1802 as Victor Emmanuel I. He ruled Sardinia from
Cagliari Cagliari (, , ; ; ; Latin: ''Caralis'') is an Comune, Italian municipality and the capital and largest city of the island of Sardinia, an Regions of Italy#Autonomous regions with special statute, autonomous region of Italy. It has about 146,62 ...
for the next twelve years, during which time he constituted the
Carabinieri The Carabinieri (, also , ; formally ''Arma dei Carabinieri'', "Arm of Carabineers"; previously ''Corpo dei Carabinieri Reali'', "Royal Carabineers Corps") are the national gendarmerie of Italy who primarily carry out domestic and foreign poli ...
, a
Gendarmerie A gendarmerie () is a paramilitary or military force with law enforcement duties among the civilian population. The term ''gendarme'' () is derived from the medieval French expression ', which translates to " men-at-arms" (). In France and so ...
corps, still existing as one of the main branches of the Italy's Armed Forces. In 1814,
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...
was defeated, and Victor Emmanuel was able to return to
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 ...
. His realm was reconstituted by the
Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...
, with the addition of the territories of the former
Republic of Genoa The Republic of Genoa ( ; ; ) was a medieval and early modern Maritime republics, maritime republic from the years 1099 to 1797 in Liguria on the northwestern Italy, Italian coast. During the Late Middle Ages, it was a major commercial power in ...
, and well he also wanted to annex
Monaco Monaco, officially the Principality of Monaco, is a Sovereign state, sovereign city-state and European microstates, microstate on the French Riviera a few kilometres west of the Regions of Italy, Italian region of Liguria, in Western Europe, ...
, but it only became a protectorate of his Kingdom. The latter became the seat of the Sardinian Navy. Victor Emmanuel abolished all the freedoms granted by the Napoleonic Codices and restored a fiercely oppressive rule: he restored the ''Regie Costituzioni'' of
Victor Amadeus II Victor Amadeus II (; 14 May 166631 October 1732) was the head of the House of Savoy and ruler of the Savoyard states from 12 June 1675 until his abdication in 1730. He was the first of his house to acquire a royal crown, ruling first as King o ...
and the ''
Jus commune or is Latin for "common law" in certain jurisdictions. It is often used by Civil law (legal system), civil law jurists to refer to those aspects of the civil law system's invariant legal principles, sometimes called "the law of the land" in Eng ...
'', strengthened
customs Customs is an authority or Government agency, agency in a country responsible for collecting tariffs and for controlling International trade, the flow of goods, including animals, transports, personal effects, and hazardous items, into and out ...
barriers, refused to grant a liberal constitution, entrusted education to the Church and reintroduced laws concerning labour and the justice system which discriminated against
Jew Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, religion, and community are highly inte ...
s and
Waldensians The Waldensians, also known as Waldenses (), Vallenses, Valdesi, or Vaudois, are adherents of a church tradition that began as an ascetic movement within Western Christianity before the Reformation. Originally known as the Poor of Lyon in the l ...
. He nurtured expansionist ambitions in
Lombardy The Lombardy Region (; ) is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in northern Italy and has a population of about 10 million people, constituting more than one-sixth of Italy's population. Lombardy is ...
, where nationalist anti-Austrian sentiments had developed, promoted largely by the bourgeoisie. This led to conflict with Austria. In March 1821, a liberal revolution exploded in Italy, largely the work of the
Carbonari The Carbonari () was an informal network of Secret society, secret revolutionary societies active in Italy from about 1800 to 1831. The Carbonari may have further influenced other revolutionary groups in France, Portugal, Spain, Brazil, Urugua ...
and it seemed that the anti-Austrian attitude of the revolutionaries matched that of Victor Emmanuel.


Abdication and later life

On Sunday 11 March 1821, the King called a meeting with the council of the crown, of which the members also included one of his distant cousins, Charles Albert. However, Victor Emmanuel was not willing to grant a liberal constitution as desired by the revolutionaries, so he abdicated the next day in favour of his brother, Charles Felix, on 12 March 1821. Because Charles Felix was in
Modena Modena (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It has 184,739 inhabitants as of 2025. A town, and seat of an archbis ...
at the time, Victor Emmanuel temporarily entrusted the regency to Charles Albert, who was second in line to the throne. Since his abdication, Victor Emmanuel lived in several cities until 1824, when he returned to the
Castle of Moncalieri The Castle of Moncalieri is a palace in Moncalieri (Metropolitan City of Turin), Piedmont, in northern Italy. It is one of the Residences of the Royal House of Savoy listed by UNESCO as World Heritage Sites in 1997. History The first structure wa ...
, where he died. He is buried in the Basilica of Superga.


Family and children

On 21 April 1789, he married Archduchess Maria Teresa of Austria-Este, daughter of Ferdinand, Duke of Modena (who was the son of
Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor Francis I (Francis Stephen; ; ; ; 8 December 1708 – 18 August 1765) was Holy Roman Emperor from 1745 to 1765, List of rulers of Austria#Dukes and archdukes of Austria under the House of Habsburg, Archduke of Austria from 1740 to 1765, List of ...
). They had six daughters and one son who died very young: # ''Maria Beatrice'' Victoria Josepha of Savoy (6 December 1792 – 15 September 1840); married her uncle Francis IV, Archduke of
Austria Austria, formally the Republic of Austria, is a landlocked country in Central Europe, lying in the Eastern Alps. It is a federation of nine Federal states of Austria, states, of which the capital Vienna is the List of largest cities in Aust ...
and Duke of
Modena Modena (, ; ; ; ; ) is a city and ''comune'' (municipality) on the south side of the Po Valley, in the Province of Modena, in the Emilia-Romagna region of northern Italy. It has 184,739 inhabitants as of 2025. A town, and seat of an archbis ...
. # ''Maria Adelaide'' Clothilde Xaveria Borbonia of Savoy (1 October 1794 – 2 August 1795); died in infancy. # Charles Emanuel (3 September 1796 – 9 August 1799); died of smallpox, died in early childhood. # A daughter (13 November 1800 – 10 January 1801) # ''Maria Teresa'' Fernanda Felicitas Gaetana Pia of Savoy (19 September 1803 – 16 July 1879); married
Charles II, Duke of Parma Charles Louis (; 22 December 1799 – 16 April 1883) was King of Etruria (1803–1807; reigned as Louis II), Duke of Lucca (1824–1847; reigned as Charles Louis), and Duke of Parma (1847–1849; reigned as Charles II). He was the son of Louis o ...
(1799–1883). # ''Maria Anna'' Ricciarda Carlotta Margherita Pia of Savoy (19 September 1803 – 4 May 1884); married
Ferdinand I of Austria Ferdinand I ( 19 April 1793 – 29 June 1875) was Emperor of Austria from March 1835 until his abdication in December 1848. He was also King of Hungary, King of Croatia, Croatia and King of Bohemia, Bohemia (as Ferdinand V), King of Lombardy– ...
. # ''Maria Cristina'' Carlotta Giuseppina Gaetana Elise of Savoy (14 November 1812 – 21 January 1836); married
Ferdinand II of the Two Sicilies Ferdinand II (; ; ; 12 January 1810 – 22 May 1859) was King of the Two Sicilies from 1830 until his death in 1859. Family Ferdinand was born in Palermo to King Francis I of the Two Sicilies and his second wife Maria Isabella of Spain. ...
. As a descendant of Henrietta of England, he carried the Jacobite claim to the thrones of England and Scotland.


Ancestry


See also

*
Napoleonic Wars {{Infobox military conflict , conflict = Napoleonic Wars , partof = the French Revolutionary and Napoleonic Wars , image = Napoleonic Wars (revision).jpg , caption = Left to right, top to bottom:Battl ...


References


Further reading

*


External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Victor Emmanuel 01 Of Savoy 1759 births 1824 deaths 19th-century kings of Sardinia Nobility from Turin Dukes of Aosta Monarchs who abdicated Claimant kings of Jerusalem Jacobite pretenders 18th-century Italian people Italian Roman Catholics Burials at the Basilica of Superga Princes of Savoy Grand masters of the Gold Medal of Military Valor 19th-century people from the Savoyard State