Margherita of Savoy was Queen of Italy by marriage to her first cousin King Umberto I of Italy. She was the daughter of Prince Ferdinand of Savoy, Duke of Genoa and Princess Elisabeth of Saxony, and the mother of the King Victor Emmanuel III of Italy.

Umberto I was King of Italy from 9 January 1878 until his assassination in 1900. His reign saw Italy's expansion into the Horn of Africa, as well as the creation of the Triple Alliance among Italy, Germany and Austria-Hungary.