1.
Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy
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Charles Emmanuel I, known as the Great, was the Duke of Savoy from 1580 to 1630. He was nicknamed Testa dfeu for his rashness and military aggression and he was born in the Castle of Rivoli in Piedmont, the only child of Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy and Margaret of France, Duchess of Berry. He became duke on 30 August 1580, well-educated, and intelligent, he spoke Italian, French and Spanish, as well as Latin. He proved an able warrior although short and hunchbacked, being also ambitious and confident, he pursued a policy of expansion for his duchy, seeking to expand it into a kingdom. In the autumn of 1588, taking advantage of the civil war weakening France during the reign of his first cousin Henry III, he occupied the Marquisate of Saluzzo, which was under French protection. The new king, Henry IV, demanded the restitution of land, but Charles Emmanuel refused. The broader conflict involving France and Spain ended with the Peace of Vervins, after the Duke started talks with Spain, Henry threatened to return to war until, with the Treaty of Lyon, Saluzzo went to Savoy in exchange for Bresse and other territories over the Alps. By terms of the treaty, the eradication of Protestants was to be carried on in the duchy, in 1602 Charles Emmanuel attacked the city of Geneva. On 11 December that year he led his troops to the city during the night, the Savoyard cuirassiers were ordered to dismount and climb the city walls in full armour as a shock tactic. However, the alarm was raised by a watchman and Genevas militia rose to meet the invaders. The attempted raid was a failure, and 54 Savoyards were killed. Charles Emmanuels army retreated in a panic and the Savoyard prisoners were executed, the heavy helmets worn by Charles Emmanuels troops, which featured visors made in crude imitation of a human face, were henceforth known as Savoyard helmets after this notorious incident. A number of suits of armour were captured by the Swiss. The Geneva militias successful defence of the walls is still celebrated as an act of heroism during the annual festival of LEscalade. Nevertheless, Charles Emmanuel obtained the help of French troops to free Alba from the Spaniards and his sister Christine Marie was married to Charles Emmanuels son, Victor Amadeus in 1619. In the First Genoese-Savoyard War of 1625, Charles Emmanuel tried with the help of France to obtain access to the Mediterranean Sea at the expense of Genoa, after Spanish intervention, the status-quo was restored in the Treaty of Monçon. However, when the French occupied Casale Monferrato during the War of the Mantuan Succession, when Richelieu invaded Piedmont and conquered Susa, the duke changed sides again and returned to an alliance with France. The French troops, soon backed by army, occupied Pinerolo
2.
Francis Hyacinth, Duke of Savoy
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Francis Hyacinth was the Duke of Savoy from 1637 to 1638 under regency of his mother Christine Marie. Born at the Castle of Valentino in Turin he was the eldest surviving son of Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy, as the heir to the Savoyard throne, he was styled as the Prince of Piedmont. His parents had had another son but had died in 1628 prior to the birth of Francis Hyacinth, at his fathers death in October 1637, he succeeded and his mother took power having been claimed regent. While Duke of savoy he also held the titles of Marquess of Saluzzo, count of Aosta, Moriana and Nice. The infant was nicknamed the Flower of Paradise, having succeeded his father at such a young age, Francis Hyacinth did not rule de facto being only 5 years old. Having caught a fever, he died at the Castle of Valentino, the infant was buried at the Sacra di San Michele in Turin. 14 September 1632 –7 October 1637 His Highness The Prince of Piedmont 7 October 1637 –4 October 1638 His Highness The Duke of Savoy Merlini, ambienti e Figure di Torino Vecchia
3.
Turin
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Turin is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy, capital of the Piedmont region and was the first capital city of Italy. The city is located mainly on the bank of the Po River, in front of Susa Valley and surrounded by the western Alpine arch. The population of the city proper is 892,649 while the population of the area is estimated by Eurostat to be 1.7 million inhabitants. The Turin metropolitan area is estimated by the OECD to have a population of 2.2 million, in 1997 a part of the historical center of Torino was inscribed in the World Heritage List under the name Residences of the Royal House of Savoy. Turin is well known for its Renaissance, Baroque, Rococo, Neo-classical, many of Turins public squares, castles, gardens and elegant palazzi such as Palazzo Madama, were built between the 16th and 18th centuries. This was after the capital of the Duchy of Savoy was moved to Turin from Chambery as part of the urban expansion, the city used to be a major European political center. Turin was Italys first capital city in 1861 and home to the House of Savoy, from 1563, it was the capital of the Duchy of Savoy, then of the Kingdom of Sardinia ruled by the Royal House of Savoy and finally the first capital of the unified Italy. Turin is sometimes called the cradle of Italian liberty for having been the birthplace and home of notable politicians and people who contributed to the Risorgimento, such as Cavour. The city currently hosts some of Italys best universities, colleges, academies, lycea and gymnasia, such as the University of Turin, founded in the 15th century, in addition, the city is home to museums such as the Museo Egizio and the Mole Antonelliana. Turins attractions make it one of the worlds top 250 tourist destinations, Turin is ranked third in Italy, after Milan and Rome, for economic strength. With a GDP of $58 billion, Turin is the worlds 78th richest city by purchasing power, as of 2010, the city has been ranked by GaWC as a Gamma World city. Turin is also home to much of the Italian automotive industry, the Taurini were an ancient Celto-Ligurian Alpine people, who occupied the upper valley of the Po River, in the center of modern Piedmont. In 218 BC, they were attacked by Hannibal as he was allied with their long-standing enemies, the Taurini chief town was captured by Hannibals forces after a three-day siege. As a people they are mentioned in history. It is believed that a Roman colony was established in 27 BC under the name of Castra Taurinorum, both Livy and Strabo mention the Taurinis country as including one of the passes of the Alps, which points to a wider use of the name in earlier times. In the 1st century BC, the Romans created a military camp, the typical Roman street grid can still be seen in the modern city, especially in the neighborhood known as the Quadrilatero Romano. Via Garibaldi traces the path of the Roman citys decumanus which began at the Porta Decumani. The Porta Palatina, on the side of the current city centre, is still preserved in a park near the Cathedral
4.
Piedmont
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Piedmont is one of the 20 regions of Italy. It has an area of 25,402 square kilometres and a population of about 4.6 million, the capital of Piedmont is Turin. The name Piedmont comes from medieval Latin Pedemontium or Pedemontis, i. e. ad pedem montium, meaning “at the foot of the mountains”. Other towns of Piedmont with more than 20,000 inhabitants sorted by population and it borders with France, Switzerland and the Italian regions of Lombardy, Liguria, Aosta Valley and for a very small fragment with Emilia Romagna. The geography of Piedmont is 43. 3% mountainous, along with areas of hills. Piedmont is the second largest of Italys 20 regions, after Sicily and it is broadly coincident with the upper part of the drainage basin of the river Po, which rises from the slopes of Monviso in the west of the region and is Italy’s largest river. The Po collects all the waters provided within the semicircle of mountains which surround the region on three sides, from the highest peaks the land slopes down to hilly areas, and then to the upper, and then to the lower great Padan Plain. 7. 6% of the territory is considered protected area. There are 56 different national or regional parks, one of the most famous is the Gran Paradiso National Park located between Piedmont and the Aosta Valley, Piedmont was inhabited in early historic times by Celtic-Ligurian tribes such as the Taurini and the Salassi. They were later subdued by the Romans, who founded several colonies there including Augusta Taurinorum, after the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the region was repeatedly invaded by the Burgundians, the Goths, Byzantines, Lombards, Franks. In the 9th–10th centuries there were incursions by the Magyars. At the time Piedmont, as part of the Kingdom of Italy within the Holy Roman Empire, was subdivided into several marks, in 1046, Oddo of Savoy added Piedmont to their main territory of Savoy, with a capital at Chambéry. Other areas remained independent, such as the powerful comuni of Asti and Alessandria, the County of Savoy was elevated to a duchy in 1416, and Duke Emanuele Filiberto moved the seat to Turin in 1563. In 1720, the Duke of Savoy became King of Sardinia, founding what evolved into the Kingdom of Sardinia, the Republic of Alba was created in 1796 as a French client republic in Piedmont. A new client republic, the Piedmontese Republic, existed between 1798 and 1799 before it was reoccupied by Austrian and Russian troops, in June 1800 a third client republic, the Subalpine Republic, was established in Piedmont. It fell under full French control in 1801 and it was annexed by France in September 1802, in the congress of Vienna, the Kingdom of Sardinia was restored, and furthermore received the Republic of Genoa to strengthen it as a barrier against France. Piedmont was a springboard for Italys unification in 1859–1861, following earlier unsuccessful wars against the Austrian Empire in 1820–1821 and this process is sometimes referred to as Piedmontisation. However, the efforts were countered by the efforts of rural farmers
5.
Duchy of Savoy
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From 1416 to 1860, the Duchy of Savoy was a state in Western Europe. It was created by Sigismund, King of the Romans, raised the County of Savoy into a duchy for Duke Amadeus VIII, the duchy was a subject of the Holy Roman Empire with a vote in the Imperial Diet. From the 16th century, it belonged to the Upper Rhenish Circle, during all its history, it was ruled by the House of Savoy. The Duchy is considered to be a part of the Savoyard state, the Duchy was created in 1416 following Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, awarding the title Duke to Count Amadeus VIII. Being landlocked at its conception in 1388, the then-County of Savoy acquired a few kilometres of coastline around Nice, other than this expansion, the 14th century was generally a time of stagnation. Pressure from neighboring powers, particularly France, prevented development, which characterizes the rest of the Renaissance era for Savoy, the reign of Amadeus VIII was a turning point for the economy and the policy of the state, which deeply marked the history of the nation. His long reign was highlighted by wars, as well as reforms and edicts, the first was in 1434, when he chose to withdraw to the Château de Ripaille, where, living the life of a hermit, he founded the Order of St. Maurice. In 1439 he received an appointment as antipope which he accepted, the duke left the territory largely formed from the old Savoy domain. As a cultured and refined man, Duke Amadeus gave great importance to art, among others, he worked with the famous Giacomo Jaquerio) in literature and architecture, encouraging the entry of art to the Italian Piedmont. However, his first son Amedeo died prematurely in 1431, succeeded by his second son Louis, during this period, France was more or less free to control the affairs of Savoy, which bound Savoy to the crown in Paris. The Duchys economy suffered during these years, not only because of war, but also because of the administration by Violante. The future of the nation was entrusted to the hands of a boy, Philibert I and he was succeeded by Charles I, whose ascent to the throne seemed to promise a rebirth of the country. When Philibert II died in 1504, he was succeeded by Charles III the Good, since 1515, Savoy was occupied by foreign armies, and Francis I of France was just waiting for the opportunity to permanently annex the duchy of Savoy and its possessions. In 1536 Francis I ordered the occupation of the Duchy, which was invaded by a military contingent. Charles III realized too late the weakness of the state, however, the city was lost on April 3 of the same year. Charles III retired in Vercelli, trying to continue the fight, Emmanuel Philibert was the Duke who more than any influenced the future policy of Savoy, managing to put an end to the more than twenty-year long occupation. The Peace of Cateau-Cambrésis, signed in 1559, restored full autonomy for the duchy, from his military experience in Flanders, Emmanuel Philibert learned how to run an army, having won the famous Battle of St. Quentin. He was the first Duke of Savoy to establish a stable military apparatus that was not composed of mercenaries but rather by specially trained Savoyan soldiers
6.
Vercelli
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Vercelli listen, is a city and comune of about 47,000 inhabitants in the Province of Vercelli, Piedmont, northern Italy. One of the oldest urban sites in northern Italy, it was founded, according to most historians, the city is situated on the river Sesia in the plain of the river Po between Milan and Turin. It is an important centre for the cultivation of rice, and is surrounded by rice paddies, the climate is typical of the Po Valley with cold, foggy winters and oppressive heat during the summer months. Rainfall is most prevalent during the spring and autumn, thunderstorms are common in the summer, the languages spoken in Vercelli are Italian and Piedmontese, the variety of Piedmontese native to the city is called Varsleis. The worlds first university funded by public money was established in Vercelli in 1228, today it has a university of literature and philosophy as a part of the Università del Piemonte Orientale and a satellite campus of the Politecnico di Torino. The imperial magister militum Flavius Stilicho annihilated the Goths there 500 years later and it was half ruined in St. Jeromes time. After the Lombard invasion it belonged to the Duchy of Ivrea, from 885 it was under the jurisdiction of the prince-bishop, who was a Count of the Empire. It became an independent commune in 1120, and joined the first and its statutes are among the most interesting of those of the medieval republics. In 1197 they abolished the servitude of the glebe, in 1228 the University of Pavia was transferred to Vercelli, where it remained till the fourteenth century, but without gaining much prominence, only a university school of law has been maintained. In 1307, Fra Dolcino, the leader of the Dulcinian was tortured and burned at the stake, during the troubles of the 13th century it fell into the power of the Della Torre of Milan, of the Marquesses of Monferrato, who appointed Matteo I Visconti captain. The Tizzoni and Avogadri disputed the city from 1301 to 1334, the Guelphs were expelled several times, enabling the Marquess of Monferrato to take Vercelli, which voluntarily placed itself under the Viscount of Milan in 1334. In 1373, Bishop Giovanni Fieschi expelled the Visconti, but Matteo reconquered the city, in 1499 and 1553 Vercelli was captured by the French, and in 1616 and 1678 by the Spaniards. In 1704 it sustained a siege by the French, who failed to destroy the fortress. In 1821 Vercelli rose in favour of the Constitution, Vercelli is home to numerous relics of the Roman period, e. g. an amphitheatre, hippodrome, sarcophagi, and many important inscriptions, some of which are Christian. There are seven noteworthy towers in the town, most important are the Torre dell’Angelo, which rears up over the old square. Vercelli Cathedral, formerly adorned with pillars and mosaics, was erected and enlarged by Saint Eusebius of Vercelli. It was remodeled as of the century, and radically changed in the eighteenth by Count Alfieri. Like the other churches in the city, it contains paintings, especially those of Gaudenzio Ferrari, Gerolamo Giovenone and Bernardino Lanino
7.
Christine of France
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Christine Marie of France was the sister of Louis XIII and the Duchess of Savoy by marriage. At the death of her husband Victor Amadeus I in 1637, Christine was born in the Palais du Louvre in Paris, she was the third child and second daughter of King Henry IV of France and his second wife, the Italian Marie de Medici. As a daughter of the king, she was a Fille de France and she was a younger sister of Louis XIII of France and Elisabeth of France. She was also a sister of Nicholas Henri, Duke of Orléans, Gaston, Duke of Orléans. Christine was a sister-in-law of Philip IV of Spain through Élisabeth, after her marriage, the style went to her younger sister Henrietta Maria of France. She married Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy, on 10 February 1619 at the Louvre in the capital, from 1619 till her husbands accession, she was known as the Princess of Piedmont. He was a son of Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy, caterina Micaela was in turn a daughter of Philip II of Spain and Elisabeth of Valois. Elisabeth was a daughter of Henry II of France and Catherine de Medici and she was said to be volatile and frivolous. Educated at the French court, she introduced French culture to the court of Savoy and she was also the driving force for the reconstruction of the Castello del Valentino as well as the additions to the Royal Palace of Turin. She would also later own Vigna di Madama Reale, old residence of her brother in law Maurice of Savoy and she did as much as she could to ensure that her court rivalled in splendour that of her sister Henrietta Maria, wife of Charles I of England. The sisters would have somewhat of a rivalry and she did not keep it a secret that she would rather be a queen than a duchess, she also wanted to transform the minor Duchy of Savoy into a little France. Victor Amadeus became Duke after the death of his father on 26 July 1630, when her husband died in 1637, she was created regent in the name of her son Francis Hyacinth. At the death of Francis Hyacinth in 1638, her second son Charles Emmanuel II succeeded, both Prince Maurice and his younger brother Prince Thomas of Savoy disputed the power of their sister-in-law and her French entourage. When the first heir Francis Hyacinth died in 1638, both started the Piedmontese Civil War, with Spanish support. The two parties were called principisti and madamisti, Christine was notorious as much for her capricious rule as for her many lovers, a trait from her father Henry IV who was famed for his many lovers also. After four years of fighting, Christine was victorious, thanks to French military support, not only did she keep the Duchy for her son, she also prevented France getting too much power in the Duchy. She encouraged her son Charles Emmanuel to marry her niece Françoise Madeleine dOrléans, Christine died at the Palazzo Madama, Turin on 27 Dec 1663 at the age of 57 and was buried at the Basilica of SantAndrea. She had outlived 4 of her seven children, Françoise Madeleine died in January 1664 and her son later married another cousin, Marie Jeanne of Savoy
8.
Princess Luisa Cristina of Savoy
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Princess Luisa Cristina of Savoy was a Princess of Savoy by birth and the eldest daughter of Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy. She married her uncle Prince Maurice of Savoy but had no children and she was the owner of the future Villa della Regina. She was a first cousin of Louis XIV of France and Charles II of England, Luisa Cristina was born at the Castello del Valentino in Turin. She was the eldest daughter of the future Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy and her birth was greeted with excitement as prior to her birth, her parents had lost a son and heir and were expecting another son. However, being a female and due to the salic law, Luisa Cristina was said to have been illegitimate and the fruit of her mothers supposed affair with a French courtier named Pommeuse. As a child, two of her brothers succeeded their father who became ruler of Savoy in 1630 and her father died in 1637 and was succeeded quickly by her brother Francis Hyacinth who died in 1638 and was followed by another brother Charles Emmanuel II. Her mother took over a regency which was disputed by her uncles Thomas Francis, Prince of Carignano, the two brothers conspired against Christine Marie claiming the regency between the two of them causing a war in Savoy. The war resulted in Thomas Francis and Maurice fleeing to Spain for support which came to nothing and her mother was soon victorious in the ensuing wars thanks to French support in the form of her brother, Louis XIII. Returning to Savoy, Luisa Cristina was soon engaged to Maurice as part of a reconciliation between Christine Marie, Luisa Cristina married Maurice in Turin on 18 August 1642. Maurice had previously been a cardinal and had to receive permission from Pope Urban VIII who consented to the match, the thirteen-year-old bride and forty-nine-year-old Maurice moved to Nice where Maurice was the governor of the city – another part of the reconciliation. Her husband died in 1657 of a stroke leaving Luisa Cristina a widow aged twenty seven and her husband willed her his large art collection as well as his huge debts. In Turin she lived at her husbands villa outside Turin and she also did much to improve the structure under the direction of Amedeo di Castellamonte. She also commissioned Guarino Guarini to carry out works on churches in Savoy, Luisa Cristina died at the villa and left the property to her nephews consort, the French born Anne Marie dOrléans
9.
Charles Emmanuel II, Duke of Savoy
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Charles Emmanuel II,20 June 1634 –12 June 1675) was the Duke of Savoy from 1638 to 1675 and under regency of his mother Christine of France until 1648. He was also Marquis of Saluzzo, Count of Aosta, Geneva, Moriana and Nice, as well as claimant king of Cyprus, at his death in 1675 his second wife Marie Jeanne of Savoy acted as Regent for their nine-year-old son. He was born in Turin to Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy and his maternal grandparents were Henry IV of France and his second wife Marie de Medici. In 1638 at the death of his older brother Francis Hyacinth, Duke of Savoy and his mother governed in his place, and even after reaching adulthood in 1648, he invited her to continue to rule. Charles Emmanuel continued a life of pleasure, far away from the affairs of state and he became notorious for his persecution of the Vaudois culminating in the massacre of 1655. The massacre was so brutal that it prompted the English poet John Milton to write the sonnet On the Late Massacre in Piedmont. Oliver Cromwell, Lord Protector, called for a general fast in England, sir Samuel Morland was commissioned with that task. He later wrote The History of the Evangelical Churches of the Valleys of Piemont, only after the death of his mother in 1663, did he really assume power. He was not successful in gaining a passage to the sea at the expense of Genoa, but he greatly improved commerce and wealth in the Duchy, developing the port of Nice and building a road through the Alps towards France. He also reformed the army, which then was mostly composed of mercenaries, he formed instead five Piedmontese regiments and recreated cavalry. He constructed many buildings in Turin, for instance the Palazzo Reale. He died on 12 June 1675, leaving his wife as regent for his son. He is buried at Turin Cathedral, Charles Emmanuel first met Marie Jeanne of Savoy in 1659 and fell in love with her. They were married 3 April 1663 and his mother died at the end of 1663, and his first wife died at the start of 1664. This left him free to get married on 20 May 1665 to Marie Jeanne of Savoy,20 June 1634 –4 October 1638 His Highness Prince Charles Emmanuel of Savoy 4 October 1638 –12 June 1675 His Highness the Duke of Savoy Oresko, Robert. Maria Giovanna Battista of Savoy-Nemours, daughter, consort, and Regent of Savoy, queenship in Europe 1660-1815, The Role of the Consort
"Victor Amadeus I.". Collier's New Encyclopedia. 1921.
