1.
King of Sardinia
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The following is a list of rulers of Sardinia, in particular, of the monarchs of the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica from 1323 and then of the Kingdom of Sardinia from 1479 to 1861. Owing to the absence of sources, little is known of the history of the Nuraghic civilization which constructed impressive megalithic structures between the 18th and the 12th centuries BCE. Greek colonization of the city of Olbia has been confirmed by recent archaeological excavations, Godas 533–535 According to Procopius, Godas was a Vandal governor of Sardinia who rebelled against his king, Gelimer, who ruled northern Africa and Sardinia. Procopius wrote that Godas behaved like a king, but it was a short-lived kingdom, Godas was defeated and killed after two years by an expedition from Carthage led by King Gelimers brother, Tzazo. Shortly afterwards, Roman troops sent by Emperor Justinianus and led by General Belisarius, totally annihilated the Vandal kingdom, before the Kingdom of Sardinia was founded, the rulers of the island were known as archons or judges. The island was organized into one judicatus from the 9th century, after the Muslim conquest of Sicily in the 9th century, the Byzantines could no longer defend their isolated far western province. In all likelihood a local noble family came to power, still identifying themselves as vassals of the Byzantines, of those rulers, only two names are known, Salusios and the protospatharios Turcoturios, who probably reigned some time in the 10th and 11th centuries. They were still linked to the Byzantines, both by a pact of ancient vassalage and from culturally, with the use of the Greek language. In the early 11th century, Muslims based in Spain attempted to conquer the island, the only records of that war are from Pisan and Genoese chronicles. The Christians won but afterwards the previous Sardinian kingdom had been undermined and was divided into four small judicati, Cagliari, Arborea, Gallura, List of judges of Arborea, c. 1070–1410 List of judges of Cagliari, c, 1060–1258 List of judges of Gallura, c. 1070–1288 List of judges of Logudoro, c, in 1249, he was captured by his enemies and imprisoned in Bologna, where he died 26 years later. None of these rulers had authority over the whole island. In 1269, a faction in Logudoro elected Philip of Sicily as king of all Sardinia. James II of Aragon received royal investiture from Pope Boniface VIII in 1297 as Rex Sardiniae et Corsicae, the Aragonese did not take possession of the island until 1323, after a victorious military campaign against the Pisans. However, the Sardinian royal title did not have a line of succession. Between 1410 and 1412 there was an interregnum, Sardinia was taken over by Habsburg troops in 1708 during the War of the Spanish Succession in the name of the Habsburg claimant to the Spanish throne, Charles III. At the end of the war, Sardinia remained in Charles possession and, Spanish forces invaded the kingdom in 1717 during the War of the Quadruple Alliance
2.
Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia
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Charles Emmanuel III was the Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia from 1730 until his death. He was born a Prince of Savoy in Turin to Victor Amadeus II of Savoy and his maternal grandparents were Prince Philippe of France and his first wife Princess Henrietta Anne, the youngest daughter of King Charles I of England and Henrietta Maria of France. From his birth he was styled as the Duke of Aosta, at the time of his birth, Charles Emmanuel was not the heir to the Duchy of Savoy, his older brother Prince Victor Amadeus John Philip, Prince of Piedmont, was the heir apparent. Charles Emmanuel was the second of three males that would be born to his parents and his older brother died in 1715 and Charles Emmanuel then became heir apparent. As a result of his aid in the War of the Spanish Succession, Victor Amadeus was forced to exchange Sicily for the less important kingdom of Sardinia in 1720 after objections from an alliance of four nations, including several of his former allies. Yet he retained his new title of King, however, Victor Amadeus in his late years was dominated by shyness and sadness, probably under the effect of some mental illness. In the end, on 3 September 1730, he abdicated and he was not loved by Victor Amadeus, and consequently received an incomplete education. He however acquired noteworthy knowledge in the field along his father. In summer,1731, after having recovered from a fatal illness. The old king was confined to the Castle of Rivoli, where he died without any further harm to Charles. In the War of the Polish Succession Charles Emmanuel sided with the French- backed king Stanislaw I, after the treaty of alliance signed in Turin, on 28 October 1733 he marched on Milan and occupied Lombardy without significant losses. However, when France tried to convince Philip V of Spain to join the coalition, he asked to receive Milan and this was not acceptable for Charles Emmanuel, as it would recreate a Spanish domination in Italy as it had been in the previous centuries. While negotiations continued about the matter, the Savoy-French-Spanish troops attacked Mantua under the command of Charles Emmanuel himself. Sure that in the end Mantua would be assigned to Spain, the Franco-Piedmontese army was victorious in two battles at Crocetta and Guastalla. In the end, when Austria and France signed a peace, in exchange, he was given some territories, including Langhe, Tortona and Novara. Charles Emmanuel was involved in the War of the Austrian Succession, in which he sided with Maria Theresa of Austria, with financial and naval support from England. After noteworthy but inconclusive initial successes, he had to face the French-Spanish invasion of Savoy and, after a failed allied attempt to conquer the Kingdom of Naples, when the enemy army invaded Piedmont, in 1744 he personally defended Cuneo against the Spanish-French besiegers. The following year, with some 20,000 men, he was facing an invasion of two armies with a total of some 60,000 troops, the important strongholds of Alessandria, Asti and Casale fell
3.
Charles Emmanuel IV of Sardinia
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Charles Emmanuel IV was King of Sardinia from 1796 to 1802. He abdicated in favour of his brother Victor Emmanuel I, carlo Emanuele Ferdinando Maria di Savoia was born in Turin, the eldest son of Victor Amadeus III, King of Sardinia and of his wife Infanta Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain. From his birth to his own succession to the throne of Sardinia in 1796, in 1775, Charles Emmanuel married Marie Clotilde of France, the daughter of Louis, Dauphin of France and Princess Marie-Josèphe of Saxony, and sister of King Louis XVI of France. Although the union was arranged for political reasons, Charles Emmanuel and their attempts to have children, however, were unsuccessful. At the death of his father, Charles Emmanuel succeeded as King of Sardinia, the kingdom included not only the island of Sardinia, but also significant territories in northwest Italy including all of Piedmont. At his succession to the throne in 1796, Sardinia had been forced to conclude the disadvantageous Treaty of Paris with the French Republic, the following year he tried unsuccessfully to regain Piedmont. He and his wife lived in Rome and in Naples as guests of the wealthy Colonna family, on 7 March 1802 Charles Emmanuels wife Marie Clothilde died. He was so moved by her death that he decided to abdicate, Charles Emmanuel retained the personal title of King. He lived in Rome and in the town of Frascati. In Frascati he was a frequent guest of Henry Benedict Stuart, Cardinal Duke of York, last member of the Royal House of Stuart, who was his cousin. Charles was descended from Henrietta Anne Stuart, the youngest daughter of Charles I, when Henry died in 1807, Charles Emmanuel became the senior heir-general of King Charles I of England and Scotland. There is no evidence that Charles Emmanuel ever attempted to make a public claim to the title of King of England or Scotland. Indeed, in 1815 at the age of sixty-four Charles Emmanuel took simple vows in the Society of Jesus and he was never ordained to the priesthood, but lived the rest of his life at the Jesuit novitiate in Rome. Charles Emmanuel died at the Palazzo Colonna in Rome on 6 October 1819 and he is buried in the Church of SantAndrea al Quirinale
4.
Royal Palace of Turin
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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 modernized by Christine Marie of France in the 17th century. The palace also includes the Palazzo Chiablese and the Chapel of the Holy Shroud, in 1946, the building became the property of the state and was turned into a museum. In 1997, it was placed on the UNESCO World Heritage Site list along with 13 other residences of the House of Savoy, construction of the palace was ordered by the Regent Maria Christina in 1645. She wanted a new residence for the court after her son returned from the civil war. The chosen location was the previous Bishops Palace, which had built in the middle of the new capital of Savoy, Turin, during the reign of Emmanuel Philibert. Its advantages included an open and sunny position, in addition to being close to buildings where the court met. The Duke was able to monitor the two entrances of the city from the Bishops Palace, the Bishops Palace in Turin was later captured by the French in 1536 and served as a residence of the French Viceroys of Savoy, who were appointed by Francis I of France. Opposite the Bishops Palace was the Palazzo Vecchio or the Palazzo di San Giovanni and this building, disparagingly known as Pasta con Tonno because of its architecture, was later replaced by the grand Ducal Palace. Thus the old Bishops Palace became the seat of power and was expanded by Emmanuel Philibert to house his ever growing collection of art, animals, marbles. Emmanuel Philibert died in Turin in August 1580 and the Savoyard throne was handed down to his son, Charles Emmanuel I and his son, the future Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy, entered into a prestigious marriage when he married the French Princess Christine Marie of France. Their marriage took place in Paris at the Louvre in 1619, Victor Amadeus I succeeded to the Duchy of Savoy in 1630. He had previously spent his youth in Madrid at the court of his grandfather and his wife set the tone for Victor Amadeus Is reign. Christine Marie had the court moved from the palace in Turin to the Castello del Valentino. Many of Victor Amadeus I and Christine Maries children were born at Valentino, including Francis Hyacinth, Duke of Savoy and his successor Charles Emmanuel II, Duke of Savoy. Christine Marie became the regent of Savoy after the death of her husband in 1637 on behalf of her two sons, who succeeded as Dukes of Savoy. During the reign of Victor Amadeus II, the Daniel gallery was created and named after Daniel Seiter, Victor Amadeus II also had a collection of summer apartments built to look onto the court and a winter apartment overlooking the gardens. His wife was the niece of Louis XIV, born Anne Marie dOrléans, Louis XVs mother and aunt were born in the palace in 1685 and 1688, respectively
5.
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
6.
Castle of Moncalieri
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The Castle of Moncalieri is a palace in Moncalieri, 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, the first structure was a fortress built by Thomas I of Savoy around 1100 on a hill, to command the main southern access to Turin. In the mid-15th century Yolanda of Valois, wife of Duke Amadeus IX, architect Carlo di Castellamonte enlarged the construction substantially, and the interiors were redesigned by him and other local artists. The castle was the site of the marriage between Maria Vittoria Francesca of Savoy to the Prince of Carignano and it was also the place where Maria Carolina of Savoy married Anthony of Saxony by proxy in 1781. It was the scene of the death of Maria Antonietta of Spain in 1785, Victor Amadeus would later die there in 1796. The castle was used extensively by the Savoyards, and was the first castle occupied in 1798 by the French armies, who retained it until 1814. Returned to Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia and later to his distant nephew Charles Albert of Sardinia, Prince of Carignano, king Victor Emmanuel II preferred it to the Royal Palace of Turin, and had numerous apartments furnished according to his tastes. In 1849, it was from this palace that emerged the famous Proclamation of Moncalieri, written by Massimo DAzeglio, the palace was later was used by the Mother Queens and royal princesses. Since 1921 it has been the home of the 1st Battalion of the Carabinieri, on April 5,2008, a fire broke out in the castle, damaging one of the towers and the hall of the proclaim. The current structure of the castle is in the shape of a horseshoe facing south, with four square towers at each angle. The side sections have fived floors, brick walls and robust buttresses, two other minor buildings parallel the side sections and create two courts. The southern façade has a giardino allitaliana and two cylindrical towers, last remains of the 15th-century castle. The northern entrance has also a notable belvedere
7.
Basilica of Superga
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The Basilica of Superga is a church in the vicinity of Turin. It was built from 1717 to 1731 for Victor Amadeus II of Savoy, designed by Filippo Juvarra and this fulfilled a vow the duke had made during the Battle of Turin, after defeating the besieging French army within the War of the Spanish Succession. The architect alluded to earlier styles while adding a baroque touch, the church contains the tombs of many princes and kings of the House of Savoy, including the Monument to Carlo Emanuele III by Ignazio Collino and his brother Filippo. Under the church are the tombs of the Savoy family, including most of its members and this church by Juvarra is considered late Baroque-Classicism. The dome was completed in 1726 and resembles some elements of Michelangelos dome at St. Peters Basilica and this is no coincidence as Juvarra studied and worked in Rome for ten years prior to working in Turin. The temple front protrudes from a dome structure citing the Pantheon, the temple front is larger than typical proportions because the Superga is set upon this hill. It is also believed that Victor Amadeus wanted the basilica to rest on this hill as reminder of the power of the Savoy family as well as continue a line of sight to the castle in Rivolli. Later, the Stupinigi completed the triangle between the three residences of Savoy, the Royal Crypt of Superga is the burial place of the Savoy family. Victor Amadeus, having knelt down in front of an old prop, swore that, in case of victory, from dawn until the early hours of the afternoon of September 7 the armies clashed in the fields at Jaya and Madonna di Campagna. Piedmontese armies achieved victory over the French, the entrance of the basilica with its portico supported by eight columns. Vittorio Amedeo was crowned King of Sicily and he entrusted the design of this building to Filippo Juvarra. The mountain at which the Basilica is found was the site of the Superga air disaster of Grande Torino football team in 1949. The Royal crypt is the burial place of members of the House of Savoy, successively Dukes of Savoy, Kings of Sardinia. Two kings of Italy, Victor Emmanuel II and Umberto I have been interred in the Pantheon, Rome. The earlier generations of the House of Savoy as well as the last king of Italy, Umberto II, are buried in Hautecombe Abbey, padre Benedetto Marengo, La Basilica di Superga. Cenni storici del più grande monumento juvarriano, Tipografia Scarafaglio, Torino,1997 Reina Gabriele, Guadalupi Gianni, il Mausoleo dei Savoia, Omega,2008, ISBN 88-7241-528-4 official site
8.
Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain
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Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain was an Infanta of Spain and the youngest daughter of Philip V of Spain and Elisabeth Farnese. She was the wife of Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia whom she married in 1750 and she was the mother of the last three mainline Kings of Sardinia. She was born at the Royal Alcázar of Seville in Seville and was the youngest daughter of Philip V of Spain and she was born in Seville during the signing of the Treaty of Seville which ended the Anglo-Spanish War. She spent her infancy in the city of her birth before moving to Madrid in 1733 and she was baptised with the names María Antonia along with Fernanda in honour of her half brother, then the heir to the throne. Variations in her range from Antonia Fernanda and Antonietta Ferdinanda. As a daughter of the King of Spain, she held the title of Infanta of Spain, in a double marriage plan she would marry Louis, Dauphin of France, and her brother, Infante Philip, would marry the Dauphins sister Louise Élisabeth of France. Her mother consented to the union but insisted on waiting for Maria Antonia Ferdinanda to reach a more mature age. The Infantas hand was sought by the Electoral Prince of Saxony. The marriage between Infante Philip and Louise Élisabeth occurred in 1739 and eventually her older sister Infanta Maria Teresa Rafaela married the Dauphin in 1745. However, upon the death of Maria Teresa Rafaela in 1746 Ferdinand VI tried to engage Maria Antonia Fernandina to the Dauphin, instead he chose Maria Josepha of Saxony. The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle ended the war, as a wedding gift, the apartments of the new Duchess of Savoy at the Royal Palace of Turin were remodelled by the architect Benedetto Alfieri. Maria Antonia Ferdinanda was given a dowry of 3,500,000 Piedmontese Lires as well as Spanish possessions in Milan, in Italy she was known as Maria Antonietta Ferdinanda. Operas by Baldassare Galuppi were specially composed for her marriage to the Duke of Savoy, the match was seen as unpopular, but the two remained close until her death. From marriage until her husbands accession she was styled as the Duchess of Savoy, the couple surrounded themselves with modern thinkers and various politicians. The first lady of the land, she brought a rigid etiquette from her native Spain to the court of Savoy and she was very religious and was said to have a cold, shy personality. She was the mother of children, three of whom died in infancy. Two of her children had issue, at the death of her father-in-law Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia in 1773, her husband succeeded him as Victor Amadeus III. She was the first queen of Sardinia in over thirty years since the death of Elisabeth Therese of Lorraine in 1741 and her oldest son Charles Emmanuel, Prince of Piedmont married Marie Clotilde of France, sister of Louis XVI in 1775
9.
Princess Maria Theresa of Savoy
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Maria Theresa of Savoy was a princess of Savoy by birth and the wife of Charles Philippe, Count of Artois, grandson of Louis XV and younger brother of Louis XVI. Some nineteen years after her death, her husband assumed the throne of France as King Charles X, Princess Maria Theresa of Savoy was born at the Royal Palace in Turin during the reign of her grandfather Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia. The daughter of the apparent and his wife, Victor Amadeus and Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain, she was the couples third daughter. She was raised with her sister Princess Maria Giuseppina who was three years her senior and whom she would join later as a member of the family of France. Following a series of alliances, Maria Theresa was betrothed to the Count of Artois. Artois had previously intended to marry Louise Adélaïde de Bourbon. However the union never took place as her rank was much lower than Artois who, Maria Theresa married the count in a proxy ceremony at the Palazzina di caccia di Stupinigi before her official marriage, which took place at the Palace of Versailles on 16 November 1773. This marriage was the second of three Franco-Savoyard marriages that would take place four years. As her husband was the grandson of a king, the newly named Marie Thérèse held the rank of granddaughter of France and this rank allowed her to maintain the style of Royal Highness that she had enjoyed from birth as the granddaughter of the king of Sardinia. However, at Versailles, the simple style Madame la comtesse dArtois was used instead, Maria Theresa was one of the most disliked figures at the French court of the time, although she avoided the worst of the abuse directed at her sister-in-law Marie Antoinette. The Count of Mercy-Argenteau, who corresponded with Holy Roman Empress Maria Theresa regarding Marie Antoinette, said that she was silent, Maria Theresa was not regarded as a beauty at Versailles, but her complexion was generally admired. She was a cousin of the famous Princess Marie Louise of Savoy, Princess of Lamballe and she was also a cousin of the Prince of Condé, who would later be instrumental in leading a large counter-revolutionary army of émigrés. Roughly a year after Maria Theresas arrival at Versailles, she became pregnant with her first child, Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême, the next year she gave birth to a daughter Sophie, who was known as Mademoiselle as the most senior unmarried princess at court. She died at the age of six in 1783 and her second son, Charles Ferdinand, Duke of Berry, was born in 1778. Her last child, Marie Thérèse dArtois, presumably named after her mother, Maria Theresa fled France with her husband shortly after the storming of the Bastille, which marked the beginning of the French Revolution. Some time after, she took refuge in her homeland of Savoy and she died in exile at Graz, in 1805. Because she died before her husband became king of France, she remained Countess of Artois and she was buried in the Imperial Mausoleum next to Graz Cathedral. Louis Antoine, Duke of Angoulême married Marie Thérèse of France, had no issue, Sophie, Mademoiselle dArtois died in childhood
10.
Princess Maria Ana of Savoy
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Maria Anna of Savoy was a Princess of Savoy by birth and Duchess of Chablais by her marriage to her uncle. Maria Anna was the fourth but third surviving daughter of her parents and their younger surviving sister, Maria Carolina, married Anthony of Saxony. Three of her brothers were the last three Kings of Sardinia from the line of the House of Savoy, the future Charles Emmanuel IV, Victor Emmanuel I. After the death of the last one in 1831 without issue, the wedding took place on 19 March 1775 at the Chapel of the Holy Shroud in Turin. They had no children but had a union, although they were close. Their official residence were the Palazzo Chiablese and the Ducal Castle of Agliè and she had good relationships with her sisters-in-law Marie Clotilde of France, Princess of Piedmont and Maria Theresa of Austria-Este, Duchess of Aosta. When in December 1798 the Republic of France invaded the Kingdom of Sardinia, the Duke and Duchess of Chablais left Turin and moved to Sardinia, where they remained until the end of 1799. Then they left the island and settled in Rome at the Papal States, in 1805, they spent a few months in Florence as guests at King Louis I of Etruria, and his wife Queen Maria Luisa. In Italy, the Duke of Chablais was given control of the Army of Italy which contained French troops and he took part in the Battle of Loano. Benedetto, Duke of Chablais died on 4 January 1808 in Rome, in 1816 the now Dowager Duchess of Chablais received her younger brother Charles Felix their cousin Charles Albert. However, Maria Anna didnt returned to her immediately, in 1820 she acquired the Villa Rufinella in Frascati near Rome. Only at the beginning of 1824 Maria Anna returned to Piedmont, where in the Castle of Moncalieri meet her brothers, the former King Victor Emmanuel I and the new monarch Charles Felix. In the summer of the year, together with Charles Felix and his wife Maria Cristina she made a trip to Savoy. Maria Anna died at the Palazzina di caccia of Stupinigi in Turin in 1824 aged 66 and was buried at the Royal Basilica of Superga. She bequeathed all her properties, including the Palazzo Chiablese, the Ducal Castle of Agliè and the Villa Rufinella in Frascate, to her brother Charles Felix
11.
Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia
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Victor Emmanuel I was the Duke of Savoy and King of Sardinia. Victor Emmanuel was the son of King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia and Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain, daughter of King Philip V of Spain. Victor Emmanuel was known from birth as the Duke of Aosta, from 1792 to 1796, Aostas 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. Charles Emmanuel and his family were forced to withdraw to Sardinia, Aosta took the throne on 4 June 1802 as Victor Emmanuel I. He ruled Sardinia from Cagliari for the twelve years, during which time he constituted the Carabinieri. Victor Emmanuel could return to Turin only in 1814, his realm reconstituted by the Congress of Vienna, the latter became the seat of the Sardinian Navy. After the outbreak of the revolution in his lands in 1821, he abdicated in favor of his brother. Victor Emanuel died in the Castle of Moncalieri and is buried in the Basilica of Superga, on 21 April 1789, he married Archduchess Maria Teresa of Austria-Este, daughter of Ferdinand, Duke of Modena
12.
Prince Maurizio, Duke of Montferrat
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Maurizio of Savoy was a prince of Savoy and styled the Duke of Montferrat. Prince Maurizio was born at the Royal Palace of Turin in 1762 and he was the ninth child but the fourth son of King Victor Amadeus of Savoy and Queen Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain. He was styled the Duke of Montferrat from birth, the capital of Montferrat, Casale Monferrato, was the scene of great celebration at his birth in his honour. As a royal prince, he received an appanage of 20 Million Piedmont scudo, to escape the threat of Napoleon I, the duke of Montferrat fled to Sardinia with his brothers Victor Emmanuel and Charles Felix where the trio lived in the Palazzo Carcassona. His oldest brother Charles Emmanuel fled to Rome, in June 1799 his brother Charles Emmanuel created him Governor of the province of Sassari. Montferrat died on the island in 1799 and he died of Malaria and was buried at the Cathedral of Alghero. His younger brother Giuseppe, Count of Asti also died of malaria in 1802,13 December 1762 –1 September 1799 His Royal Highness the Duke of Montferrat
13.
Princess Maria Carolina of Savoy
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Maria Carolina of Savoy was a Princess of Savoy from her birth. She was the youngest daughter of the future Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia and she died of Smallpox aged eighteen. Born to the Duke and Duchess of Savoy at the Royal Palace of Turin, she was the tenth child. Her sisters brother in law was the unfortunate Louis XVI of France and her brothers included the last three kings of Sardinia from the mainline, the future Charles Emmanuel IV, Victor Emmanuel I and Charles Felix of Sardinia. Her father became king of Sardinia in 1773 at the death of her grandfather Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia who had ruled Sardinia for 43 years and her father decided that Maria Carolina would marry Prince Anthony of Saxony, who at the time was the Electoral Prince of Saxony. He was the fifth but third surviving son of Frederick Christian, Elector of Saxony, Anthonys first cousins, included the future Louis XVIII of France and Charles X of France, Maria Carolinas brothers in law. The couple also were joint first cousins of Charles IV of Spain and Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies, Maria Carolina through her Spanish mother, the celebrations in Savoy were lavish with parties at the Royal Palace of her birth and at the Palazzo Gontieri. Maria Carolina left her home reluctantly in September 1781 and her family accompanied her as far as Vercelli when she had to be pushed out of the carriage to depart. She arrived at Augsburg, modern day Germany on 14 October, upon her arrival, she ranked as one of the highest females at the Saxon court, Anthonys mother Maria Antonia of Bavaria died in 1780. The highest ranking female was Amalie of Zweibrücken-Birkenfeld, wife of Frederick Augustus III, not happy with her adopted home, she caught Smallpox and died in Dresden 28 December 1782. Popular with her land, she was remembered in an old folk song composed in her honour after her early death. Her husband succeeded as King of Saxony in 1827 at the age of 71 and she is buried at crypt number 30 at the Katholische Hofkirche, Dresden
14.
Charles Felix of Sardinia
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Charles Felix was the Duke of Savoy, Piedmont, Aosta and King of Sardinia from 1821 to 1831. Carlo Felice di Savoia was born in Turin as the child and fifth son born to Victor Amadeus III of Savoy. His paternal grandparents were Charles Emmanuel III of Savoy and his German wife Polyxena of Hesse-Rotenburg and his maternal grandparents were French born King Philip V of Spain and his Italian wife, Elisabeth Farnese. He was a brother of two other rulers of Savoy Charles Emmanuel IV and Victor Emmanuel I. He spent his childhood with his sister Maria Carolina and Count of Moriana where they lived at the Castle of Moncalieri. Carlo Felice was reported as having a character, prone to loneliness, with an almost ascetic and a sacral conception of the monarchy. With the Napoleonic occupation of Piedmont in 1796, he lost the crown of Savoy, Carlo Felice, who was titled Duke of Genoa, obtained the title of Marquis of Susa in compensation for his nominal loss. He was a brother of Charles Emmanuel IV and Victor Emmanuel I. He was not expected to succeed to the throne. However Charles Emmanuel never had any children and abdicated the throne on 4 June 1802, Victor Emmanuel had four living daughters when he abdicated the throne in 1821. As the succession was regulated by the Salic Law, Charles Felix succeeded his brother on the throne, since Charles was in Modena at the time of his succession, he appointed as Regent his cousin, and heir, Charles Albert. Charles Albert was in touch with the revolutionaries at that time. All this occurred between the 6 and 14 March 1821, even before he reached Turin, Charles Felix repudiated the Regents promise and, to help restore order, called in the Austrians, who stayed in Piedmont till 1823. He was married by proxy to Princess Maria Cristina of Naples and she was a daughter of Ferdinand I of the Two Sicilies and Maria Carolina of Austria, sister of the famous Marie Antoinette, later Queen of France. Charles Felix died without issue, in Turin at the Palazzo Chablais which had given to him by his sister Princess Maria Anna, Duchess of Chablais. He was succeeded by the male member of his dynastic house. He was the last surviving grandchild of Philip V of Spain, the Teatro Carlo Felice in Genoa is named for him. The principal road of the island of Sardinia, the Strada statale 131 Charles Felix, which connects the towns of Cagliari and Sassari-Porto Torres, constructed in the 19th century, is named for him
15.
Prince Giuseppe, Count of Asti
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Giuseppe of Savoy was a prince of Savoy. He was styled the Count of Moriana from birth but was created the Count of Asti. Prince Giuseppe born at the Royal Palace of Turin, he was styled the Count of Moriana from birth and he was the youngest child of Victor Amadeus of Savoy and his wife, Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain. To escape the threat of Napoleon I, Montferrat fled to Sardinia with his brothers the Duke of Aosta, in June 1799 his brother Charles Emmanuel IV created his brother Maurice, the Governor of the province of Sassari but he later died of malaria on the island in 1799. At the death of Montferrat, Asti became governor of Sassari in his brothers place, catching malaria in 1802, Asti died of the disease having had a fit of convulsions and was buried at the Cathedral of Alghero. His other brother Genoa later became the viceroy of Sardinia,13 December 1762 –19 June 1796 His Royal Highness the Count of Moriana 19 June 1796 –29 October 1802 His Royal Highness the Count of Asti
16.
Dynasty
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A dynasty is a sequence of rulers from the same family, usually in the context of a feudal or monarchical system but sometimes also appearing in elective republics. The dynastic family or lineage may be known as a house, historians periodize the histories of many sovereign states, such as Ancient Egypt, the Carolingian Empire and Imperial China, using a framework of successive dynasties. As such, the dynasty may be used to delimit the era during which the family reigned and to describe events, trends. The word dynasty itself is often dropped from such adjectival references, until the 19th century, it was taken for granted that a legitimate function of a monarch was to aggrandize his dynasty, that is, to increase the territory, wealth, and power of his family members. The longest-surviving dynasty in the world is the Imperial House of Japan, dynasties throughout the world have traditionally been reckoned patrilineally, such as under the Frankish Salic law. Succession through a daughter when permitted was considered to establish a new dynasty in her husbands ruling house, however, some states in Africa, determined descent matrilineally, while rulers have at other times adopted the name of their mothers dynasty when coming into her inheritance. It is also extended to unrelated people such as poets of the same school or various rosters of a single sports team. The word dynasty derives via Latin dynastia from Greek dynastéia, where it referred to power, dominion and it was the abstract noun of dynástēs, the agent noun of dynamis, power or ability, from dýnamai, to be able. A ruler in a dynasty is referred to as a dynast. For example, following his abdication, Edward VIII of the United Kingdom ceased to be a member of the House of Windsor. A dynastic marriage is one that complies with monarchical house law restrictions, the marriage of Willem-Alexander, Prince of Orange, to Máxima Zorreguieta in 2002 was dynastic, for example, and their eldest child is expected to inherit the Dutch crown eventually. But the marriage of his younger brother Prince Friso to Mabel Wisse Smit in 2003 lacked government support, thus Friso forfeited his place in the order of succession, lost his title as a Prince of the Netherlands, and left his children without dynastic rights. In historical and monarchist references to formerly reigning families, a dynast is a member who would have had succession rights, were the monarchys rules still in force. Even since abolition of the Austrian monarchy, Max and his descendants have not been considered the rightful pretenders by Austrian monarchists, nor have they claimed that position. The term dynast is sometimes used only to refer to descendants of a realms monarchs. The term can therefore describe overlapping but distinct sets of people, yet he is not a male-line member of the royal family, and is therefore not a dynast of the House of Windsor. Thus, in 1999 he requested and obtained permission from Elizabeth II to marry the Roman Catholic Princess Caroline of Monaco. Yet a clause of the English Act of Settlement 1701 remained in effect at that time and that exclusion, too, ceased to apply on 26 March 2015, with retroactive effect for those who had been dynasts prior to triggering it by marriage to a Catholic
17.
House of Savoy
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The House of Savoy is one of the oldest royal families in the world, being founded in 1003 in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, it grew from ruling a small county in that region to the attainment of the rank of king in 1713, the Savoyard kings of Italy were Victor Emmanuel II, Umberto I, Victor Emmanuel III, and Umberto II. The last monarch ruled for a few weeks before being deposed following the Constitutional Referendum of 1946, the name derives from the historical region of Savoy in the Alpine region between what is now France and Italy. Over time, the House of Savoy expanded its territory and influence through judicious marriages, from rule of a small region on the French/Italian border, the dynastys realm included nearly all of the Italian Peninsula by the time of its deposition. The house descended from Humbert I, Count of Sabaudia, Humberts family are thought to have originated from near Magdeburg in Saxony, with the earliest recording of the family being two 10th century brothers, Amadeus and Humbert. Though Sabaudia was originally a county, later counts were diplomatically skilled. Two of Humberts sons were bishops at the Abbey of Saint Maurice on the River Rhone east of Lake Geneva and this diplomatic skill caused the great powers such as France, England, and Spain to take the counts opinions into account. Piedmont was later joined with Sabaudia, and the name evolved into Savoy, the people of Savoy were descended from the Celts and Romans. In 1494, Charles VIII of France passed through Savoy on his way to Italy and Naples, during the outbreak of the Italian war of 1521-1526, Emperor Charles V stationed imperial troops in Savoy. In 1536, Francis I of France invaded Savoy and Piedmont taking Turin by April of that year, Charles III, Duke of Savoy, fled to Vercelli. He served Philip II as Governor of the Netherlands from 1555 to 1559, in this capacity he led the Spanish invasion of northern France and won a victory at St. Quentin in 1557. He took advantage of various squabbles in Europe to slowly regain territory from both the French and the Spanish, including the city of Turin and he moved the capital of the duchy from Chambéry to Turin. The 17th century brought economic development to the Turin area. Charles Emmanuel II developed the port of Nice and built a road through the Alps towards France, and through skillful political manoeuvres territorial expansion continued. Savoy rule over Sicily lasted only seven years, the crown of Sicily, the prestige of being kings at last, and the wealth of Palermo helped strengthen the House of Savoy further. In 1720 they were forced to exchange Sicily for Sardinia as a result of the War of the Quadruple Alliance, on the mainland, the dynasty continued its expansionist policies as well. In 1798, Joubert occupied Turin and forced Charles Emmanuel IV to abdicate, eventually, in 1814 the kingdom was restored and enlarged with the addition of the former Republic of Genoa by the Congress of Vienna. In the meantime, nationalist figures such as Giuseppe Mazzini were influencing popular opinion, the Kingdom of Italy was the first Italian state to include the Italian Peninsula since the fall of the Roman Empire
18.
Polyxena of Hesse-Rotenburg
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Princess Polyxena of Hesse-Rheinfels-Rotenburg was the second wife of Charles Emmanuel, Prince of Piedmont whom she married in 1724. The mother of the future Victor Amadeus III, she was queen consort of Sardinia from 1730 until her death in 1735, king Victor Amadeus II of Sardinia approached her family and proposed a union between Polyxena and Victor Amadeus IIs son and heir Charles Emmanuel, Prince of Piedmont. A previous match orchestrated by Agostino Steffani with a daughter of Rinaldo, although only two years younger, Polyxena was a niece of Charles Emanuels first wife, and belonged to the only Roman Catholic branch of the reigning House of Hesse. In fact, she had been nominally a canoness of Thorn since 1720, the engagement was announced on 2 July 1724, and she wed Charles Emmanuel by proxy on 23 July in Rotenburg. The marriage was celebrated in person at Thonon in Chablais on 20 August 1724. Her stepson Victor Amadeus, heir after his father and grandfather to the Sardinian crown, nonetheless, she is said to have had a close relationship with her mother-in-law Anne Marie dOrléans and the two frequented the Villa della Regina outside the capital, where the latter died in 1728. In 1732 she founded a home for mothers in Turin, redecorated the Villa della Regina, Stupinigis hunting lodge. She carried out various improvements with Filippo Juvarra and popularised chinoiserie and she was also a patron of Giovanni Battista Crosato, a baroque painter. Having been ill since June 1734, she died at the Royal Palace of Turin, two years after her death, her widower married Princess Elisabeth Therese of Lorraine, sister of the future Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor. The senior branch of the House of Savoy ended with her grandson Charles Felix of Sardinia, the Villa Polissena in Rome is named in her honour. Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia, had issue, Prince Emanuele Filiberto of Savoy, Duke of Aosta. Prince Carlo of Savoy, Duke of Chablais
19.
Kingdom of Sardinia
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The Kingdom of Sardinia was a state in Southern Europe which existed from the early 14th until the mid-19th century. It was the state of todays Italy. When it was acquired by the Duke of Savoy in 1720, however, the Savoyards united it with their possessions on the Italian mainland and, by the time of the Crimean War in 1853, had built the resulting kingdom into a strong power. The formal name of the entire Savoyard state was the States of His Majesty the King of Sardinia and its final capital was Turin, the capital of Savoy since the Middle Ages. Beginning in 1324, James and his successors conquered the island of Sardinia, in 1420 the last competing claim to the island was bought out. After the union of the crowns of Aragon and Castile, Sardinia became a part of the burgeoning Spanish Empire, in 1720 it was ceded by the Habsburg and Bourbon claimants to the Spanish throne to Duke Victor Amadeus II of Savoy. While in theory the traditional capital of the island of Sardinia and seat of its viceroys was Cagliari, the Congress of Vienna, which restructured Europe after Napoleons defeat, returned to Savoy its mainland possessions and augmented them with Liguria, taken from the Republic of Genoa. In 1847–48, in a fusion, the various Savoyard states were unified under one legal system, with the capital in Turin, and granted a constitution. There followed the annexation of Lombardy, the central Italian states and the Two Sicilies, Venetia, in 238 BC Sardinia became, along with Corsica, a province of the Roman Empire. The Romans ruled the island until the middle of the 5th century, when it was occupied by the Vandals, in 534 AD it was reconquered by the Romans, but now from the Eastern Roman Empire, Byzantium. It remained a Byzantine province until the Arab conquest of Sicily in the 9th century, after that, communications with Constantinople became very difficult, and powerful families of the island assumed control of the land. Starting from 705–706, Saracens from north Africa harassed the population of the coastal cities, information about the Sardinian political situation in the following centuries is scarce. There is a record of another massive Saracen sea attack in 1015–16 from the Balearics, the Saracen attempt to invade the island was stopped by the Judicatus with the support of the fleets of the maritime republics of Pisa and Genoa, free cities of the Holy Roman Empire. Pope Benedict VIII also requested aid from the republics of Pisa. Even the title of Judices was a Byzantine reminder of the Greek church and state, of these sovereigns only two names are known, Turcoturiu and Salusiu, who probably ruled in the 10th century. The Archons still wrote in Greek or Latin, but one of the first documents of the Judex of Cagliari, their successor, was written in romance Sardinian language. The realm was divided into four kingdoms, the Judicati, perfectly organized as was the previous realm, but was now under the influence of the Pope. That was the cause of leading to a long war between the Judices, who regarded themselves as kings fighting against rebellious nobles
20.
Heir apparent
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An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting by the birth of another person. An heir presumptive, by contrast, is someone who is first in line to inherit a title, today these terms most commonly describe heirs to hereditary titles, particularly monarchies. They are also used metaphorically to indicate an anointed successor to any position of power, in France the title was le Dauphin. See crown prince for more examples and this article primarily describes the term heir apparent in a hereditary system regulated by laws of primogeniture—as opposed to cases where a monarch has a say in naming the heir. An heir presumptive, by contrast, can always be bumped down in the succession by the birth of more closely related in a legal sense to the current title-holder. The clearest example occurs in the case of a title-holder with no children, if at any time he or she were to produce children, they rank ahead of whatever more distant relative had been heir presumptive. Many legal systems assume childbirth is always possible regardless of age or health, in such circumstances a person may be, in a practical sense, the heir apparent but still, legally speaking, heir presumptive. Adelaide was 44 at the time, so pregnancy was even if unlikely. Daughters may inherit titles that descend according to male-preference primogeniture, thus, normally, even an only daughter will not be heir apparent, since at any time a brother might be born who, though younger, would assume that position. Hence, she is an heir presumptive, for example, Queen Elizabeth II was heir presumptive during the reign of her father, King George VI, because at any stage up to his death, George could have fathered a legitimate son. In a system of absolute primogeniture that disregards gender, female heirs apparent occur, several European monarchies that have adopted such systems in the last few decades furnish practical examples. Princess Ingrid Alexandra of Norway is heir apparent to her father, Victoria was not heir apparent from birth, but gained the status in 1980 following a change in the Swedish Act of Succession. Her younger brother Carl Philip was thus heir apparent for a few months, then, as the representative of her fathers line she would assume a place ahead of any more distant relatives. Such a situation has not to date occurred with the English or British throne, several times an heir apparent has died, however, there have been several female heirs apparent to British peerages. In one special case, however, England and Scotland had an heir apparent. William, by contrast, was to reign for life only, thus, although after Marys death William continued to reign, he had no power to beget direct heirs, and Anne became the heir apparent for the remainder of Williams reign. She eventually succeeded him as Queen of England, Scotland and Ireland, the position of an heir apparent is normally unshakable, it can be assumed they will inherit. Sometimes, however, extraordinary events—such as the death or the deposition of the parent—intervene
21.
Countess Palatine Anne Christine of Sulzbach
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She died during childbirth at the age of 19. Anne Christine Louise was born a Countess Palatine of Sulzbach and her parents had married in 1692, Anne Christine being their eighth child. Her older sister Francisca Christina became Princes-Abbess of Thorn and, later, Christine was a first cousin of her husbands subsequent wife Polyxena of Hesse, Queen consort of Sardinia, of Caroline of Hesse, Princess de Condé, and of Christine of Hesse, Princess di Carignano. On 15 March 1722 at Vercelli, she married Charles Emmanuel of Savoy, Prince of Piedmont, the following year, she gave birth to a son who was created the Duke of Aosta. She died a few days later on 12 March 1723 at the age of nineteen in Turin and her only child died in 1725 in his second year, thus she left no direct descendants. She was buried at Turin Cathedral and was moved to the Basilica of Superga in Turin in 1786, Prince Vittorio Amedeo Theodore of Savoy, died in infancy, buried at Superga. 5 February 1704 –15 March 1722 Her Serene Highness Countess Palatine Anne Christine of Sulzbach 15 March 1722 –12 March 1723 Her Royal Highness Anne, Princess of Piedmont
22.
Duke of Aosta
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In the mid-13th century the Hohenstaufen Holy Roman Emperor Frederick II made the County of Aosta a duchy, its arms were carried in the Savoyard coat of arms until the unification of Italy in 1870. The region remained part of Savoy lands, with the exception of a French occupation, the title Duke of Aosta was given to various princes of the dynasty of Sardinia, second sons of the reigning monarch. It can be compared to the English Duke of York, French Duke of Orléans, Swedish Duke of Södermanland and the Scottish Duke of Albany. It remained in the branch of Prince Amedeo of Savoia, the son of king Victor Emanuel II of Italy. Ponderano was created in 1559, Voghera in 1618, Cisterna, the title has been used since July 2006 by Amedeos son Prince Aimone, Duke of Apulia, who is married to Princess Olga of Greece, younger daughter of Prince Michael of Greece and Denmark. Duchess of Aosta Media related to Dukes of Aosta at Wikimedia Commons
23.
Hyacinthe Sigismond Gerdil
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Gerdil was born in 1718 at Samoëns in the Duchy of Savoy to Pierre Gerdil, a notary, and Françoise Perrier, a native of Taninges. While he improved his command of Italian, he came the attention of Propero Lambertini, Archbishop of Bologna, later Pope Benedict XIV, who used the young seminarian in his own study of French texts. After Gerdil had completed his studies in 1738, he was assigned to teach philosophy at the Barnabite college in Macerata. During this period, in 1741, he was ordained to the priesthood and that same year he was appointed as professor of philosophy at the University of Turin, transferring to the teach of moral theology in 1754. In 1758, upon the recommendation of Pope Benedict XIV, Gerdil was chosen as the tutor of the Prince of Piedmont and he left his teaching position at the university the following year to deal with his other responsibilities in the Church. In 1764 he was elected the Provincial Superior of the Barnabites in Savoy, in 1768 he was chosen as the tutor of the sons of his previous student, now the King of Sardinia. Gerdil was designated a cardinal in petto in 1773 by Pope Clement XIV, the King of Sardinia named him the commendatory abbot of the Abbey of San Michele della Chiusa in January 1777. He carried out his supervision of the distant abbey from Rome through correspondence, in March of that same year, Gerdil was appointed the bishop of the titular see of Dibona, and was consecrated at the Barnabite church by the Vicar General of Rome. The following June he again named a cardinal in petto by Pope Paul, receiving the red hat on 18 December 1777, the pope also appointed him to various congregations of the Roman Curia, including that of Prefect of the Propaganda Fide. Gerdil changed his title to that of the Basilica of Santa Cecilia in Trastevere and he served briefly as the Camerlengo of the Holy Roman Church. After the invasion of Rome by the French Revolutionary Army in February 1798 the pope fled to Siena, while Gerdil fled to his Abbey of San Michele. After the conclave accompanied the new pope, Pius VII, to Rome, after a brief illness, he died at the Barnabite motherhouse, and was buried in their. Among the most important may be mentioned, LImmortalité de lâme démontrée contre Locke et défense du P. Malebranche contre ce philosophe,2 vols, réflexions sur la théorie et la pratique de léducation contre les principes de J. -J. Rousseau, reprinted in a new edition under the title Anti-Emile, Exposition des caractères de la religion, written in Italian. This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Herbermann, Charles
24.
Maria Antonietta of Spain
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Maria Antonia Ferdinanda of Spain was an Infanta of Spain and the youngest daughter of Philip V of Spain and Elisabeth Farnese. She was the wife of Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia whom she married in 1750 and she was the mother of the last three mainline Kings of Sardinia. She was born at the Royal Alcázar of Seville in Seville and was the youngest daughter of Philip V of Spain and she was born in Seville during the signing of the Treaty of Seville which ended the Anglo-Spanish War. She spent her infancy in the city of her birth before moving to Madrid in 1733 and she was baptised with the names María Antonia along with Fernanda in honour of her half brother, then the heir to the throne. Variations in her range from Antonia Fernanda and Antonietta Ferdinanda. As a daughter of the King of Spain, she held the title of Infanta of Spain, in a double marriage plan she would marry Louis, Dauphin of France, and her brother, Infante Philip, would marry the Dauphins sister Louise Élisabeth of France. Her mother consented to the union but insisted on waiting for Maria Antonia Ferdinanda to reach a more mature age. The Infantas hand was sought by the Electoral Prince of Saxony. The marriage between Infante Philip and Louise Élisabeth occurred in 1739 and eventually her older sister Infanta Maria Teresa Rafaela married the Dauphin in 1745. However, upon the death of Maria Teresa Rafaela in 1746 Ferdinand VI tried to engage Maria Antonia Fernandina to the Dauphin, instead he chose Maria Josepha of Saxony. The Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle ended the war, as a wedding gift, the apartments of the new Duchess of Savoy at the Royal Palace of Turin were remodelled by the architect Benedetto Alfieri. Maria Antonia Ferdinanda was given a dowry of 3,500,000 Piedmontese Lires as well as Spanish possessions in Milan, in Italy she was known as Maria Antonietta Ferdinanda. Operas by Baldassare Galuppi were specially composed for her marriage to the Duke of Savoy, the match was seen as unpopular, but the two remained close until her death. From marriage until her husbands accession she was styled as the Duchess of Savoy, the couple surrounded themselves with modern thinkers and various politicians. The first lady of the land, she brought a rigid etiquette from her native Spain to the court of Savoy and she was very religious and was said to have a cold, shy personality. She was the mother of children, three of whom died in infancy. Two of her children had issue, at the death of her father-in-law Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia in 1773, her husband succeeded him as Victor Amadeus III. She was the first queen of Sardinia in over thirty years since the death of Elisabeth Therese of Lorraine in 1741 and her oldest son Charles Emmanuel, Prince of Piedmont married Marie Clotilde of France, sister of Louis XVI in 1775
25.
Philip V of Spain
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Before his reign, Philip occupied an exalted place in the royal family of France as a grandson of King Louis XIV. His father, Louis, the Grand Dauphin, had the strongest genealogical claim to the throne of Spain when it became vacant in 1700. It was well known that the union of France and Spain under one monarch would upset the balance of power in Europe, Philip was the first member of the House of Bourbon to rule as king of Spain. The sum of his two reigns,45 years and 21 days, is the longest in modern Spanish history and he was a younger brother of Louis, Duke of Burgundy, the father of Louis XV of France. At birth, Philip was created Duke of Anjou, a title for younger sons in the French royal family. He would be known by name until he became the king of Spain. Philip was tutored with his brothers by François Fénelon, Archbishop of Cambrai, the three were also educated by Paul de Beauvilliers. In 1700 the King Charles II of Spain died childless and his will named the turning 17-year-old Philip, grandson of Charles half-sister Maria Theresa, the first wife of Louis XIV, as his successor. Upon any possible refusal, the crown of Spain would be offered next to Philips younger brother, Philip had the better genealogical claim to the Spanish throne, because his Spanish grandmother and great-grandmother were older than the ancestors of the Archduke Charles of Austria. However, the Austrian branch claimed that Philips grandmother had renounced the Spanish throne for herself and this was countered by the French branchs claim that it was on the basis of a dowry that had never been paid. After the Royal Council decided to accept the provisions of the will of Charles II naming Philip king of Spain, the ambassador, along with his son, knelt before Philip and made a long speech in Spanish which Philip did not understand, although Louis XIV did. Philip only later learned to speak Spanish, on 2 November 1701 the almost 18 year old Philip married the 13-year-old Maria Luisa of Savoy, as chosen by his grandfather King Louis XIV, by then an old man of 63. She was the daughter of Victor Amadeus II, Duke of Savoy, there was a proxy ceremony at Turin, the capital of the Duchy of Savoy, and another one at Versailles on 11 September. As queen of Spain, Maria Luisa proved very popular with her subjects and she served as regent for her husband on several occasions. Her most successful term was when Philip was away touring his Italian domains for nine months in 1702, in 1714, she died at the age of 26 from tuberculosis, a devastating emotional blow to her husband. The actions of Louis XIV heightened the fears of the English, the Dutch, however, a second act of the French king justified a hostile interpretation, pursuant to a treaty with Spain, Louis occupied several towns in the Spanish Netherlands. This was the spark that ignited the powder keg created by the issues of the War of the League of Augsburg. Almost immediately the War of the Spanish Succession began, inside Spain, the Crown of Castile supported Philip of France
26.
Elisabeth Farnese
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Elisabeth Farnese was Queen of Spain by marriage to King Philip V. She exerted great influence over Spains foreign policy and was the de facto ruler of Spain from 1714 until 1746, from 1759 until 1760, she governed as regent. Elisabeth was born at the Palazzo della Pilotta in Parma, daughter of Odoardo Farnese, Elisabeth would later become the heiress of her fathers dominions after her uncle Francesco Farnese, Duke of Parma and his younger brother both remained childless. Elisabeth was raised in seclusion in an apartment in the Palace in Parma and she had a difficult relationship with her mother, but was reportedly deeply devoted to her uncle-stepfather. She was a student within dance, studied painting under Pierantonio Avanzini and enjoyed music. She survived a virulent attack of smallpox shortly after the War of the Spanish Succession and she was therefore made many marriage proposals. Victor Amadeus, Prince of Piedmont and Francesco dEste, Hereditary Prince of Modena both asked for her hand but negotiations failed, as well as Prince Pio della Mirandola. The Duchy of Parma would later be inherited by her first son, after his accession to the Spanish throne, the title passed on to her third son, Infante Felipe. It was he who founded the modern day House of Bourbon-Parma, on 16 September 1714 she was married by proxy at Parma to Philip V of Spain. The marriage was arranged by the ambassador of Parma, Cardinal Alberoni, with the concurrence of the Princesse des Ursins, Elisabeth was a natural choice for Philip V because of the traditional Spanish interests in Italian provinces, as she was the heir of the Parmesan throne. Elisabeth left Parma in September and traveled to Spain by land in a retinue led by Marquis Schotta, originally intended to travel by sea, she became ill in Genova, and the plans were therefore altered. On her way to Spain, she met the Prince of Monaco and the French ambassador, Elisabeth spent several days in Bayonne in November as guest of her maternal aunt, the Queen Dowager Maria Anna of Spain. At the Franco-Spanish border, she was met by Alberoni, who spent several days warning her against des Ursins, upon entrance to Spain, she refused to part with her Italian retinue in exchange with a Spanish one, as had originally been planned. On 23 December at Jadraque, Elisabeth met the Princesse des Ursins, the princess had sent out spies who reported that Elisabeth was in fact not at all a timid person who would be easy to control. Elisabeth received des Ursins and asked to speak with her privately, shortly after, the party could hear the sounds of a violent argument, after which des Ursins was arrested, fired, and immediately escorted over the border to France. There have been different versions of this incident, and different suggestions as to how it occurred. Her chief adviser was Alberoni, who guided her as how to protect the interests of herself and Parma, while he himself, Queen Elisabeth quickly obtained complete influence over Philip, who himself wished to be dominated. Reportedly she had physical charm and purposefulness, she was intelligent and could converse, be gay, jovial and charming, the king did not live in his own apartments but in the queens, where he spent the whole night
27.
Oulx
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Oulx is a comune in the Metropolitan City of Turin in the Italian region Piedmont, located about 70 kilometres west of Turin, in the Susa Valley on the border with France. Like many other towns in the Susa Valley, Oulx has different names reflecting the areas multiple linguistic traditions, one theory of the names origin is that it derives from Ulkos, the name of a leader of the Celtic Salassi tribe. Another theory holds that the derivation is from Ultor, a title of the god Mars and these names were first rendered as Ulces, and later Ulcium on maps in the Middle Ages, in Latin. From the older forms, the name became Olcs in the Occitan language and was later Francized as Oulx, as part of Italian Fascist Italianization, Oulx was renamed Ulzio from 1928 to 1947. However, this form is considered incorrect, deriving from the Latin Ultium rather than Ulcium. Today, the municipality is called Oulx in Italian and French, Ours in the local Cisalpine Occitan, Ors in standard Occitan, there are three parts of the village of Oulx proper, Borgo Superiore, Borgo Inferiore, and Abadia. Oulx is served by Oulx-Claviere-Sestriere railway station on the Turin-Modane railway, saint-Donat-sur-lHerbasse, France French Revolutionist Joseph Chalier was born in the village of Beaulard, now a frazione of Oulx. Oulx was the birthplace of Luigi Des Ambrois, an Italian unification-era politician and jurist, official commune website Oulx. org Map of Oulx at the official commune website
28.
Ferdinand VI of Spain
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Ferdinand VI, called the Learned, was King of Spain from 9 July 1746 until his death in 1759. He was the son of the previous monarch Philip V. Ferdinand, the member of the Spanish Bourbon dynasty, was born in Madrid on 23 September 1713. Born at the Royal Alcázar of Madrid, Ferdinand endured a lonely childhood and his stepmother, Elisabeth Farnese, was a domineering woman, who had no affection except for her own children, and who looked upon her stepson as an obstacle to their fortunes. The hypochondria of his father left Elisabeth mistress of the palace, Ferdinand was by temperament melancholic, shy and distrustful of his own abilities. When complimented on his shooting, he replied, It would be if there were not something I could do. Shooting and music were his only pleasures, and he was the patron of the famous singer Farinelli. Ferdinand was married in 1729 to Infanta Barbara of Portugal, daughter of John V of Portugal, when he came to the throne, Spain found itself in the War of the Austrian Succession which ended without any benefit to Spain. He started his reign by eliminating the influence of the widow Queen Elisabeth of Parma, as king he followed a steady policy of neutrality in the conflict between France and Britain, and refused to be tempted by the offers of either into declaring war on the other. Prominent figures during his reign were the Marquis of Ensenada, a Francophile, and José de Carvajal y Lancaster, the fight between both ended in 1754 with the death of Carvajal and the fall of Ensenada, after which Ricardo Wall became the most powerful advisor to the monarch. The most important tasks during the reign of Ferdinand VI were carried out by the Marquis of Ensenada and he suggested that the state help modernize the country. Among his reform projects were, New model of the Treasury suggested by Ensenada in 1749 and he proposed substitution of the traditional taxes with a special tax, the cadastre, that weighed the economic capacity of each contributor based on their property holdings. He also proposed a reduction of subsidies by the state to the Cortes, the opposition by the nobility caused the abandonment of the project. It is considered the predecessor to the Bank of San Carlos, the stimulation of commerce in the Americas, which tried to end the monopoly in the Indies and eliminate the injustices of colonial commerce. Thus he leaned toward registered ships rather than fleets of ships, the new system consisted of the substitution of the fleets and galleons so that a Spanish ship, previously authorized, could conduct trade freely in the Americas. This increased the revenues and decreased the fraud, even so, this system provoked many protests among merchants in the private sector. According to Ensenada, a navy was fundamental to power of an overseas empire and aspirations of being respected by France. Church relations which were really tense from start of the reign of Philip V because of the recognition of Charles VI as the King of Spain by the Pope
29.
Madrid
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Madrid is the capital city of the Kingdom of Spain and the largest municipality in both the Community of Madrid and Spain as a whole. The city has a population of almost 3.2 million with an area population of approximately 6.5 million. It is the third-largest city in the European Union after London and Berlin, the municipality itself covers an area of 604.3 km2. Madrid lies on the River Manzanares in the centre of both the country and the Community of Madrid, this community is bordered by the communities of Castile and León. As the capital city of Spain, seat of government, and residence of the Spanish monarch, Madrid is also the political, economic, the current mayor is Manuela Carmena from Ahora Madrid. Madrid is home to two football clubs, Real Madrid and Atlético de Madrid. Madrid is the 17th most liveable city in the according to Monocle magazine. Madrid organises fairs such as FITUR, ARCO, SIMO TCI, while Madrid possesses modern infrastructure, it has preserved the look and feel of many of its historic neighbourhoods and streets. Cibeles Palace and Fountain have become one of the monument symbols of the city, the first documented reference of the city originates in Andalusan times as the Arabic مجريط Majrīṭ, which was retained in Medieval Spanish as Magerit. A wider number of theories have been formulated on possible earlier origins, according to legend, Madrid was founded by Ocno Bianor and was named Metragirta or Mantua Carpetana. The most ancient recorded name of the city Magerit comes from the name of a built on the Manzanares River in the 9th century AD. Nevertheless, it is speculated that the origin of the current name of the city comes from the 2nd century BC. The Roman Empire established a settlement on the banks of the Manzanares river, the name of this first village was Matrice. In the 8th century, the Islamic conquest of the Iberian Peninsula saw the changed to Mayrit, from the Arabic term ميرا Mayra. The modern Madrid evolved from the Mozarabic Matrit, which is still in the Madrilenian gentilic, after the disintegration of the Caliphate of Córdoba, Madrid was integrated in the Taifa of Toledo. With the surrender of Toledo to Alfonso VI of León and Castile, the city was conquered by Christians in 1085, Christians replaced Muslims in the occupation of the centre of the city, while Muslims and Jews settled in the suburbs. The city was thriving and was given the title of Villa, since 1188, Madrid won the right to be a city with representation in the courts of Castile. In 1202, King Alfonso VIII of Castile gave Madrid its first charter to regulate the municipal council, which was expanded in 1222 by Ferdinand III of Castile
30.
War of the Austrian Succession
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The War of the Austrian Succession involved most of the powers of Europe over the question of Maria Theresas succession to the Habsburg Monarchy. The war included King Georges War in British America, the War of Jenkins Ear, the First Carnatic War in India, the Jacobite rising of 1745 in Scotland, and the First and Second Silesian Wars. Austria was supported by Great Britain and the Dutch Republic, the enemies of France, as well as the Kingdom of Sardinia. France and Prussia were allied with the Electorate of Bavaria, the war ended with the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748, by which Maria Theresa was confirmed as Archduchess of Austria and Queen of Hungary, but Prussia retained control of Silesia. But the peace was soon to be shattered, when Austrias desire to recapture Silesia intertwined with the political changes in Europe. In 1740, after the death of her father, Charles VI, Maria Theresa succeeded him as Queen of Hungary, Croatia and Bohemia, Archduchess of Austria and Duchess of Parma. The complications involved in a female Habsburg ruler had been long foreseen, problems began when King Frederick II of Prussia violated the Pragmatic Sanction and invaded Silesia on 16 December 1740, using the 1537 Treaty of Brieg as a pretext. For much of the century, France approached its wars in the same way. It would let its colonies defend themselves, or would offer only minimal help, similarly, several long land borders made an effective domestic army imperative for any ruler of France. At the end of the war, France gave back its European conquests, the British—by inclination as well as for pragmatic reasons—had tended to avoid large-scale commitments of troops on the Continent. For the War of the Austrian Succession, the British were allied with Austria, by the time of the Seven Years War, they were allied with its enemy, Prussia. In marked contrast to France, Britain strove to prosecute the war in the colonies once it became involved in the war. The British pursued a strategy of naval blockade and bombardment of enemy ports. They would harass enemy shipping and attack enemy outposts, frequently using colonists from nearby British colonies in the effort and this plan worked better in North America than in Europe, but set the stage for the Seven Years War. Prince Frederick had been only 28 years of age on 31 May 1740 when his father, Frederick William I died, neither Frederick nor his father had ever been fond of Austria and its various snubs against Prussia. Emperor Charles VI had made provision for the succession of his daughter, in support of his invasion of Silesia, Frederick also used a questionable interpretation of a treaty between the Hohenzollerns and the Piasts of Brieg as pretext. In particular, Frederick feared that Augustus III, Elector of Saxony and King of Poland, was preparing to seize Silesia for himself to unite Saxony and Poland. The only recent combat experience of the Prussian Army was their participation in the War of the Polish Succession, accordingly, the Prussian Army had an uninspiring reputation and was counted as one of the many minor armies of the Holy Roman Empire
31.
Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748)
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The resulting treaty was signed on 18 October 1748 by Great Britain, France, and the Dutch Republic. Two implementation treaties were signed at Nice on 4 December 1748 and 21 January 1749 by Austria, Spain, Sardinia, Modena, France withdrew from the Austrian Netherlands but had some of its colonies returned. France regained Cape Breton Island, lost during the war, and it returned the city of Madras in India to Great Britain. Maria Theresa ceded the Duchy of Parma, Piacenza and Guastalla in present-day Italy to Spain, the Duchy of Modena and the Republic of Genoa, conquered by Austria, were restored. The Asiento contract, which had guaranteed to Great Britain in 1713 through the Treaty of Utrecht, was renewed. Spain later raised objections to the Asiento clauses, and the Treaty of Madrid, signed on 5 October 1750, for the most part, the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle and the War of Austrian Succession concluded status quo ante bellum. In the commercial struggle between Britain and France in the West Indies, Africa, and India, nothing was settled, the treaty was thus no basis for a lasting peace. By the same token, British colonists in New England and merchants back in Great Britain resented the return of Louisbourg to the French after they had captured the stronghold in a 46-day siege and this resentment was an early seed of the later American Revolution. In fact, Britain had exchanged Louisbourg so that France would withdraw from the Netherlands, Madras, captured by French Admiral La Bourdonnais in 1746, was returned to Britain likewise. In Austria, reactions to the peace were mixed, ostensibly, the source of the long, bitter War of Austrian Succession, this sanction was upheld by the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle. The Austrians had saved Bohemia and the duchy of Milan, conceding only minor concessions in Italy, Maria Theresa was also happy that France had given back the Austrian Netherlands that it had conquered. Overall, she referred to the war as a miracle as she had saved her Empire from destruction, however, she was very upset by the loss of the rich province of Silesia at the hand of Prussia. Britains support for this repossession at Aix-la-Chapelle spurned Kaunitz to establish an alliance with Austrias traditional enemy, France. In the West Indies, the treaty did little to address possession of the islands, European powers had long pursued control of the Americas, viewing them as well-needed resources and proof of power. Spain, the Netherlands, France and Britain all had unresolved tensions following settlements like the Treaty of Breda, the Treaty of Westminster, by 1713, the islands of Saint Lucia and Tobago were the subjects of Anglo-Franco conflict. However, the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle declared neutrality in Tobago, Grenada, Saint Vincent and Dominica, allowing all European powers unfettered economic access, in addition, France gained Saint Lucia as a colony. In contrast to French and British unhappiness with the treaty, Italy gained stability for the first time in the 18th century. The new territorial settlement and the accession of the peaceful Ferdinand VI of Spain allowed the Aix settlement to last until the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars in 1792
32.
Nice
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Nice is the fifth most populous city in France and the capital of the Alpes-Maritimes département. The urban area of Nice extends beyond the city limits. Nice is about 13 kilometres from the principality of Monaco, the city is nicknamed Nice la Belle, which means Nice the Beautiful, which is also the title of the unofficial anthem of Nice, written by Menica Rondelly in 1912. The area of todays Nice contains Terra Amata, a site which displays evidence of a very early use of fire. Around 350 BC, Greeks of Marseille founded a permanent settlement and called it Nikaia, after Nike, through the ages, the town has changed hands many times. Its strategic location and port significantly contributed to its maritime strength, for centuries it was a dominion of Savoy, and was then part of France between 1792 and 1815, when it was returned to Piedmont-Sardinia until its re-annexation by France in 1860. The citys main seaside promenade, the Promenade des Anglais owes its name to visitors to the resort, for decades now, the picturesque Nicean surroundings have attracted not only those in search of relaxation, but also those seeking inspiration. The clear air and soft light have particularly appealed to some of Western cultures most outstanding painters, such as Marc Chagall, Henri Matisse, Niki de Saint Phalle and Arman. Their work is commemorated in many of the museums, including Musée Marc Chagall, Musée Matisse. Nice has the second largest hotel capacity in the country and it is one of its most visited cities and it also has the third busiest airport in France, after the two main Parisian ones. It is the capital city of the County of Nice. Nice was probably founded around 350 BC by the Greeks of Massalia, the ruins of Cemenelum are in Cimiez, now a district of Nice. In the 7th century, Nice joined the Genoese League formed by the towns of Liguria. In 729 the city repulsed the Saracens, but in 859 and again in 880 the Saracens pillaged and burned it, during the Middle Ages, Nice participated in the wars and history of Italy. As an ally of Pisa it was the enemy of Genoa, during the 13th and 14th centuries the city fell more than once into the hands of the Counts of Provence, but it regained its independence even though related to Genoa. The medieval city walls surrounded the Old Town, the landward side was protected by the River Paillon, which was later covered over and is now the tram route towards the Acropolis. The east side of the town was protected by fortifications on Castle Hill, another river flowed into the port on the east side of Castle Hill. Engravings suggest that the area was also defended by walls
33.
French Revolution
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Through the Revolutionary Wars, it unleashed a wave of global conflicts that extended from the Caribbean to the Middle East. Historians widely regard the Revolution as one of the most important events in human history, the causes of the French Revolution are complex and are still debated among historians. Following the Seven Years War and the American Revolutionary War, the French government was deeply in debt, Years of bad harvests leading up to the Revolution also inflamed popular resentment of the privileges enjoyed by the clergy and the aristocracy. Demands for change were formulated in terms of Enlightenment ideals and contributed to the convocation of the Estates-General in May 1789, a central event of the first stage, in August 1789, was the abolition of feudalism and the old rules and privileges left over from the Ancien Régime. The next few years featured political struggles between various liberal assemblies and right-wing supporters of the intent on thwarting major reforms. The Republic was proclaimed in September 1792 after the French victory at Valmy, in a momentous event that led to international condemnation, Louis XVI was executed in January 1793. External threats closely shaped the course of the Revolution, internally, popular agitation radicalised the Revolution significantly, culminating in the rise of Maximilien Robespierre and the Jacobins. Large numbers of civilians were executed by revolutionary tribunals during the Terror, after the Thermidorian Reaction, an executive council known as the Directory assumed control of the French state in 1795. The rule of the Directory was characterised by suspended elections, debt repudiations, financial instability, persecutions against the Catholic clergy, dogged by charges of corruption, the Directory collapsed in a coup led by Napoleon Bonaparte in 1799. The modern era has unfolded in the shadow of the French Revolution, almost all future revolutionary movements looked back to the Revolution as their predecessor. The values and institutions of the Revolution dominate French politics to this day, the French Revolution differed from other revolutions in being not merely national, for it aimed at benefiting all humanity. Globally, the Revolution accelerated the rise of republics and democracies and it became the focal point for the development of all modern political ideologies, leading to the spread of liberalism, radicalism, nationalism, socialism, feminism, and secularism, among many others. The Revolution also witnessed the birth of total war by organising the resources of France, historians have pointed to many events and factors within the Ancien Régime that led to the Revolution. Over the course of the 18th century, there emerged what the philosopher Jürgen Habermas called the idea of the sphere in France. A perfect example would be the Palace of Versailles which was meant to overwhelm the senses of the visitor and convince one of the greatness of the French state and Louis XIV. Starting in the early 18th century saw the appearance of the sphere which was critical in that both sides were active. In France, the emergence of the public sphere outside of the control of the saw the shift from Versailles to Paris as the cultural capital of France. In the 1750s, during the querelle des bouffons over the question of the quality of Italian vs, in 1782, Louis-Sébastien Mercier wrote, The word court no longer inspires awe amongst us as in the time of Louis XIV
34.
Princess Victoire of France
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Victoire de France, Daughter of France was the seventh child and fifth daughter of King Louis XV of France and his Queen consort Maria Leszczyńska. Originally known as Madame Quatrième, signifying the daughter of the King. She outlived eight of her nine siblings, and was survived by her older sister Madame Adélaïde by less than a year, Marie Louise Thérèse Victoire de France was born at the Palace of Versailles. Unlike the older children of Louis XV, Madame Victoire was not raised at the Palace of Versailles, rather, she was sent to live at the Abbey of Fontevraud. She remained there till 1748 when she was 15, at the age of 15, she was allowed to return to her fathers court, where her fathers attention increasingly focused on his mistresses, Madame de Pompadour and later Madame du Barry. In 1753, it was suggested that she eventually marry her brother-in-law, Ferdinand VI of Spain, as his wife. Despite her illness, though, the Queen of Spain survived another five years, in 1768, her mother Maria Leszczyńska died, her father having acquired a new maîtresse-en-titre, the comtesse du Barry, not long previously. Louis XV, however, sent Madame du Barry away from Versailles just before he died in 1774 in order that he could receive the last rites of the Catholic Church. In 1770, Madame Victoires nephew, Louis-Auguste, the Dauphin of France, married Archduchess Maria Antoinette of Austria at Versailles, in Italy, they first visited their niece, Clotilde, Queen of Sardinia, the sister of Louis XVI, in Turin. They arrived in Rome on 16 April 1791, as a result of the increasing influence of Revolutionary France, the sisters were forced to constantly move. They went to Naples in 1796, where Marie Caroline, the sister of their niece and they then moved to Corfu in 1799, and finally ended up in Trieste, where Victoire died of breast cancer. Adélaïde died one year later in Rome, the bodies of both princesses were later returned to France by their nephew, King Louis XVIII, and buried at the Abbey of Saint-Denis. Madame Victoires nephews included Ferdinand, Duke of Parma, Louis XVI of France, Louis XVIII of France and her nieces included Madame Élisabeth and Queen Maria Louisa of Spain. Her goddaughter was Angélique Victoire, comtesse de Chastellux
35.
Napoleon
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Napoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led several successful campaigns during the French Revolutionary Wars. As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 until 1814, Napoleon dominated European and global affairs for more than a decade while leading France against a series of coalitions in the Napoleonic Wars. He won most of these wars and the vast majority of his battles, one of the greatest commanders in history, his wars and campaigns are studied at military schools worldwide. Napoleons political and cultural legacy has ensured his status as one of the most celebrated and he was born Napoleone di Buonaparte in Corsica to a relatively modest family from the minor nobility. When the Revolution broke out in 1789, Napoleon was serving as an officer in the French army. Seizing the new opportunities presented by the Revolution, he rose through the ranks of the military. The Directory eventually gave him command of the Army of Italy after he suppressed a revolt against the government from royalist insurgents, in 1798, he led a military expedition to Egypt that served as a springboard to political power. He engineered a coup in November 1799 and became First Consul of the Republic and his ambition and public approval inspired him to go further, and in 1804 he became the first Emperor of the French. Intractable differences with the British meant that the French were facing a Third Coalition by 1805, in 1806, the Fourth Coalition took up arms against him because Prussia became worried about growing French influence on the continent. Napoleon quickly defeated Prussia at the battles of Jena and Auerstedt, then marched the Grand Army deep into Eastern Europe, France then forced the defeated nations of the Fourth Coalition to sign the Treaties of Tilsit in July 1807, bringing an uneasy peace to the continent. Tilsit signified the high watermark of the French Empire, hoping to extend the Continental System and choke off British trade with the European mainland, Napoleon invaded Iberia and declared his brother Joseph the King of Spain in 1808. The Spanish and the Portuguese revolted with British support, the Peninsular War lasted six years, featured extensive guerrilla warfare, and ended in victory for the Allies. The Continental System caused recurring diplomatic conflicts between France and its client states, especially Russia, unwilling to bear the economic consequences of reduced trade, the Russians routinely violated the Continental System and enticed Napoleon into another war. The French launched an invasion of Russia in the summer of 1812. The resulting campaign witnessed the collapse of the Grand Army, the destruction of Russian cities, in 1813, Prussia and Austria joined Russian forces in a Sixth Coalition against France. A lengthy military campaign culminated in a large Allied army defeating Napoleon at the Battle of Leipzig in October 1813, the Allies then invaded France and captured Paris in the spring of 1814, forcing Napoleon to abdicate in April. He was exiled to the island of Elba near Rome and the Bourbons were restored to power, however, Napoleon escaped from Elba in February 1815 and took control of France once again. The Allies responded by forming a Seventh Coalition, which defeated Napoleon at the Battle of Waterloo in June, the British exiled him to the remote island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic, where he died six years later at the age of 51
36.
Battle of Montenotte
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The French won the battle, which was fought near the village of Cairo Montenotte in the Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont. The modern town is located in the part of Italy. On 11 April, Argenteau led 3,700 men in several assaults against a French mountaintop redoubt, by the morning of the 12th, Bonaparte concentrated large forces against Argenteaus now-outnumbered troops. The strongest French push came from the direction of the mountaintop redoubt, in its hasty retreat from the field, Argenteaus force lost heavily and was badly disorganized. This attack against the boundary between the Austrian and Sardinian armies threatened to sever the link between the two allies and this action was part of the Montenotte Campaign. See Montenotte 1796 Campaign Order of Battle for the organization of the French, Austrian, on 27 March 1796, a young General Bonaparte arrived in Nice to take over the Army of Italy, his first army command. His army included 63,000 troops, but of these, the soldiers were badly fed, months behind in pay, and poorly equipped. Consequently, morale in many units was low and in a few cases this had led to mutiny, Bonapartes Austrian opponent, Feldzeugmeister Johann Peter Beaulieu was also new to the Italian theater of operations. Beaulieu directly controlled 19,500 Austrians of whom half were still in winter quarters, beaulieus subordinate Argenteau commanded an additional 11,500 Austrians who were deployed farther to the west around Acqui Terme. A Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont army of about 20,000 men was west of Argenteaus corps, colli, an Austrian on loan to the Sardinian army, shared a personal friendship with Beaulieu. However, the Austrian government secretly warned Beaulieu not to trust his Sardinian ally and this made it difficult for the two allied leaders to agree on a joint strategy. Colli feared an attack that would split the allied armies, which was exactly the plan that Bonaparte was contemplating and he argued for the allied armies to concentrate in the center. But Beaulieu became convinced that the French intended to seize Genoa, Laharpe and Meyniers divisions formed the advance guard under André Masséna. Laharpes 8,614 soldiers were divided between the 17th and 22nd Light Infantry Demi-Brigades and the 32nd and 75th Line Infantry Demi-Brigades, meynier commanded 9,526 men in the 11th and 27th Light and the 25th, 51st, old 51st, and 55th Line. Augereau led 10,117 troops in the 4th and 29th Light and 4th, 14th, sérurier directed 9,448 men in the 69th Light, 39th Line, and 85th Line. General of Brigade Jean-Baptiste Cervoni was detached at Voltri with the 3,181 troops of the 75th Line and 2,000 soldiers of the 51st Line, Beaulieu planned to fall on Cervoni with two columns under General-major Philipp Pittoni von Dannenfeld and Feldmarschall-Leutnant Karl Philipp Sebottendorf. Pittoni had infantry five battalions and four squadrons totalling 3,350 foot soldiers and 624 horsemen. Sebottendorf led 3,200 troops in five battalions, Argenteau counted 9,000 infantry and 340 cavalry in 11 battalions and two squadrons
37.
First Coalition
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France declared war on the Habsburg Monarchy of Austria on 20 April 1792. In July 1792, an army under the Duke of Brunswick and composed mostly of Prussians joined the Austrian side and invaded France, France suffered reverses and internal strife and responded with draconian measures. The Committee of Public Safety formed and the en masse drafted all potential soldiers aged 18 to 25. The new French armies counterattacked, repelled the invaders, and advanced beyond France, the French established the Batavian Republic as a sister republic and gained Prussian recognition of French control of the Left Bank of the Rhine by the first Peace of Basel. With the Treaty of Campo Formio, the Holy Roman Empire ceded the Austrian Netherlands to France, Spain made a separate peace accord with France and the French Directory carried out plans to conquer more of the Holy Roman Empire. The First Coalition collapsed, leaving only Britain in the fighting against France. The key figure, the Holy Roman Emperor Leopold II, brother to the French Queen Marie Antoinette, had looked on the Revolution calmly. He became more concerned as the Revolution grew further radical, although he hoped to avoid war. Dumouriez prepared an invasion of the Austrian Netherlands, where he expected the population to rise against Austrian rule. However, the revolution had thoroughly disorganized the French army, which had insufficient forces for the invasion and its soldiers fled at the first sign of battle, deserting en masse, in one case murdering General Théobald Dillon. While the revolutionary government frantically raised fresh troops and reorganized its armies, in July 1792 the invasion commenced. Brunswicks army, composed mostly of Prussian veterans, took the fortresses of Longwy, although the battle was a tactical draw, it bought time for the revolutionaries and gave a great boost to French morale. Dumouriez went on the offensive in Belgium once again, winning a victory over the Austrians at Jemappes on 6 November 1792. On 21 January the revolutionary government executed Louis XVI after a trial and this united all European governments, including Spain, Naples, and the Netherlands against the Revolution. France declared war against Britain and the Netherlands on 1 February 1793, in the course of the year 1793 the Holy Roman Empire, the kings of Portugal and Naples, and the Grand-Duke of Tuscany declared war against France. Thus the First Coalition was formed, the French government sent Citizen Genet to the United States to encourage them into entering the war on Frances side. The newly formed nation refused and remained throughout the conflict. After a victory in the Battle of Neerwinden in March, the Austrians suffered twin defeats at the battles of Wattignies, British land forces were defeated at the Battle of Hondschoote in September
38.
Cuneo
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Cuneo is a city and comune in Piedmont, Northern Italy, the capital of the province of Cuneo, the third largest of Italy’s provinces by area. It is located at 550 metres in the south-west of Piedmont, at the confluence of the rivers Stura and Gesso. Cuneo was founded in 1198 by the population, who declared it an independent commune, freeing themselves from the authority of the bishops of Asti. In 1210 the latter occupied it, and in 1231 the Cuneesi rebelled, in 1238 they were recognized as free commune by Emperor Frederick II. Together with Alba, it was the main Angevine possession in northern Italy, in all the sieges Cuneo resisted successfully. Cuneo was conquered by France only during the Napoleonic Wars, when it was made the capital of the Stura department, after the restoration of the Kingdom of Sardinia, and the unification of Italy, Cuneo became the capital of its namesake province in 1859. During World War II, from 1943 to 1945, it was one of the centres of partisan resistance against the German occupation of Italy. Villa Oldofredi Tadini, built in the 14th and 15th centuries as a watchtower and it is now a museum housing collections of the owners, the Mocchia and Oldofredi Tadini families. Villa Tornaforte, surrounded by an English-style park, civic Museum Railway Museum Churches of Santa Croce, San Giovanni Decollato and Santissima Annunziata, housing paintings by Giovan Francesco Gaggini. Panoramic funicolar that connects plateau to Gesso river, monument of Stura and Gesso in Torino Square The median way of the plateau, the commercial heart of Cuneo. Cuneo has a temperate climate, with cold winters and hot. However, it is situated more than 500 metres above sea level, which helps to make summers more bearable, the coldest, January, averages 1.7 °C. Annual precipitation is about 950 mm, distributed over 81 days, the rainfall pattern is similar to that of Turin, with two maxima—one primary and one secondary and two minima. The driest month is July,44 millimetres, snowfalls are frequent owing to high elevation and wind patterns. Cuneos specialty is Cuneesi al rhum, chocolates with a unique rum-based filling, the most famous brand is Arione, located in Piazza Galimberti. Arione, founded in 1923, has kept its traditional furniture, there is an important volleyball club, Piemonte Volley who won 1 Italian Volleyball League,3 CEV Cup,2 CEV SuperCup,4 Italian Volleyball Cup and 3 Italian Volleyball SuperCup. Associazione Calcio Cuneo 1905 who plays in the 3rd level of Italian football, many times stage of Giro dItalia. Since 1987 Cuneo has been the start and arrival point of the international race La Fausto Coppi
39.
Ceva
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Ceva, the ancient Ceba, is a small Italian town in the province of Cuneo, region of Piedmont,49 kilometres east of Cuneo. It lies on the bank of the Tanaro on a wedge of land between that river and the Cevetta stream. In the pre-Roman period the territory around Ceva was inhabited by the branch of the mountain Ligures known as Epanterii, the upper Val Tanaro was Romanized in the second century BC and it is known that the area was organized around a municipium. However, it is not certain that this was Ceba, Mombasiglio is also regarded as a candidate, in the first century AD Columella referred to a particular breed of cattle raised here, and Pliny the Elder praised its sheep’s milk cheese in his Natural History. In the Middle Ages it was the seat of a small marquisate, Ceva was heavily damaged by a flood of the Tanaro, Cevetta and Bovina rivers. Remains of the 16th century fort are also present, the Duomo of Ceva, also known as the Collegiata dellAssunzione della Beata Vergine Maria, was completed in 1605. Ceva is twinned with, Le Val, France Marquisate of Ceva This article incorporates text from a now in the public domain, Chisholm, Hugh. Media related to Ceva at Wikimedia Commons Pliny on the cheese of Ceba in Book 11 of the Natural History, at Perseus at LacusCurtius
40.
Alessandria
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Alessandria listen is a city and comune in Piedmont, Italy, and the capital of the Province of Alessandria. The city is sited on the plain between the Tanaro and the Bormida rivers, about 90 kilometres southeast of Turin. Alessandria is also a railway hub. Alessandria stood in the territories of the marchese of Montferrat, an ally of the Emperor, with a name assumed in 1168 to honor the Emperors opponent. In 1174–75 the fortress was tested by Imperial siege and stood fast. A legend says it was saved by a peasant, Gagliaudo, he fed his cow with the last grain remaining within the city. Here he was captured, and his cow cut open to be cooked and he answered that he was forced to feed his cow with grain because there was such a lot of it, and no room to place it within the city. The Emperor, fearing that the siege would last too long, a statue of Gagliaudo can be found on the left corner of the city cathedral. Alessandria entered into conflicts with the older communes of the region. The new domination was evidenced by the construction of a new big Cittadella on the side of the river Tanaro. With Napoleons success at the Battle of Marengo, Alessandria fell to France, during this period another substantial fort was built to the north of the city containing impressive and substantial barracks which are still used as a military headquarters and stores. The remains of a fort to the south of the city have been sliced in two by a railway, a third one still remains in the middle of the same quarter. From 1814 Alessandria was Savoyard territory once more, part of the Kingdom of Sardinia, during the years of the Risorgimento, Alessandria was an active center of the liberals. In a suburb, Spinetta Marengo, the Battle of Marengo is reenacted annually, Alessandria was the first capital of an Italian province to be governed by a Socialist, the clockmaker Paolo Sacco was elected mayor on July 25,1899. On end of month the city was liberated from the German occupation by the partisan resistance. On November 6,1994 the Tanaro flooded a part of the city, causing major damage. The first known Jews in Alessandria, named Abraham opened a bank in or about 1490. Of the 230 Jews living in the city in 1684,170 were members of the Vitale family, the Jewish Ghetto was established in 1724
41.
Tortona
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Tortona is a comune of Piemonte, in the Province of Alessandria, Italy. Tortona is sited on the bank of the Scrivia between the plain of Marengo and the foothills of the Ligurian Apennines. Known in ancient times as Dertona, the city was probably the oldest colony under Roman rule in the westernmost section of the Valley of the Po, on the road leading from Genua to Placentia. 123–118 BC at the junction of the roads, the Via Postumia. The site made Dertona an important military station under the Romans, strabo speaks of it as one of the most considerable towns in this part of Italy, and we learn from Pliny that it was a Roman colony. Velleius mentions it among those founded under the Republic, it appears to have been recolonised under Augustus, until the 9th century, the city was under the rule of its bishop, in 1090 it became a free commune with the name of Terdona. In 1133 the diocese was separated from the archbishopric of Milan to the new archdiocese of Genoa, in 1155 Frederick Barbarossa leveled Tortona to the ground, leaving not one stone upon another. During the Middle Ages, Tortona was an ally of the Guelphs and was destroyed several times. According to Machiavelli By this union Filippo became powerful, and reacquired Milan, by way of being grateful for these numerous favors, as princes commonly are, he accused Beatrice of adultery and caused her to be put to death. In this way, in 1347, Tortona was decisively incorporated into the territories of the Duchy of Milan, under which remained until 1735. Then following the vicissitudes of the War of the Polish Succession, the city was occupied by the King of Sardinia, Roman remains, traditionally identified as the Mausoleum of the Roman Emperor Maiorianus Palazzo Guidobono, rebuilt in 1939 with a Gothic façade. It has traces of Renaissance frescoes, the façade is a neoclassicist addition of the 19th century. The interior has works by Camillo Procaccini, Aurelio Luini and others and it houses also the relics of St. Martianus, patron of Tortona, and the tombs of many important religious figures, including Don Lorenzo Perosi and his brother Cardinal Carlo Perosi. Liceo Giuseppe Peano, built in the 19th century, the Bishops Palace, with a noteworthy Renaissance portal. It has a triptych of Madonna with Child and Saints by Macrino dAlba, abbey of Santa Maria di Rivalta, in the frazione of Rivalta Scrivia. It is a Romanesque structure founded before 1151, saint Innocent of Tortona, who survived the persecutions and was sent as bishop to Tortona by Pope Sylvester. Bishop Gezo of Tortona in the 10th century wrote a Treatise on the Body, marziano da Tortona, secretary to duke Filippo Maria Visconti of Milan is one of the people credited with inventing the card game of Tarocchi. Saint Luigi Orione founded the Sanctuary of the Madonna della Guardia in Tortona, Lorenzo Perosi, an associate of Orione, was a composer of church music and Perpetual Director of the Sistine Choir
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Savoy
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Savoy is a cultural region in Western Europe. It comprises roughly the territory of the Western Alps between Lake Geneva in the north and Dauphiné in the south, the historical land of Savoy emerged as the feudal territory of the House of Savoy during the 11th to 14th centuries. The historical territory is shared between the countries of France, Italy, and Switzerland. Installed by Rudolph III, King of Burgundy, officially in 1003 and it ruled the County of Savoy to 1416 and then the Duchy of Savoy from 1416 to 1860. The territory of Savoy was annexed to France in 1792 under the French First Republic, victor Emmanuels dynasty, the House of Savoy, retained its Italian lands of Piedmont and Liguria and became the ruling dynasty of Italy. In modern France, Savoy is part of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, following its annexation to France in 1860, the territory of Savoy was divided administratively into two separate departments, Savoie and Haute-Savoie. The traditional capital remains Chambéry, on the rivers Leysse and Albane, hosting the castle of the House of Savoy, the capital of the Duchy remained at the traditional Savoyard capital of Chambéry until 1563, when it was moved to Turin. The region was occupied by the Allobroges, a Celtic people that in 121 BC were subdued by the Roman Empire, the name Savoy stems from the Late Latin Sapaudia, referring to a fir forest. It is first recorded in Ammianus Marcellinus, to describe the part of Maxima Sequanorum. According to the Gallic Chronicle of 452, it was separated from the rest of Burgundian territories in 443 and this latter territory comprised what would become known as Savoy and Provence. From the 10th to 14th century, parts of what would ultimately become Savoy remained within the Kingdom of Arles. Beginning in the 11th century, the rise to power of the House of Savoy is reflected in the increasing territory of their County of Savoy between 1003 and 1416. The County of Savoy was detached de jure from the Kingdom of Arles by Emperor Charles IV in 1361, on February 19,1416, Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, made the County of Savoy an independent duchy, with Amadeus VIII as the first duke. Straddling the Alps, Savoy lay within two competing spheres of influence, a French sphere and a North Italian one, at the time of the Renaissance, Savoy showed only modest development. Its towns were few and small, Savoy derived its subsistence from agriculture. The geographic location of Savoy was also of military importance, during the interminable wars between France and Spain over the control of northern Italy, Savoy was important to France because it provided access to Italy. Savoy was important to Spain because it served as a buffer between France and the Spanish held lands in Italy, in 1563 Emmanuel Philibert moved the capital from Chambéry to Turin, which was less vulnerable to French interference. Vaud was annexed by Bern in 1536, and Savoy officially ceded Vaud to Bern in the Treaty of Lausanne of 30 October 1564
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Gold Medal of Military Valor
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The face of the medal displayed the profile of the king, and on its reverse was a flag decoration and the words al valore. On 14 August 1815, Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia replaced it with the Military Order of Savoy, charles Albert of Sardinia revived it on March 26,1833, and added to it the Silver and Bronze medals. These had, on their faces, the coat of arms of Savoy with laurel branches, the crown. On the reverse were two branches enclosing the name of the decorated soldier, and the place and date of the action. With the proclamation of the Republic on June 2,1946, for actions performed by individuals during World War I, the Gold Medal was awarded some 368 times, as well as 37 times to military units, and once to the Unknown Soldier. Only four of the awards went to foreigners, one of these being Czar Nicholas II of Russia. The other three were for acts of gallantry in which the recipient was killed in action or died from his injuries. The Gold Medal of Military Valor was one of the most parsimoniously awarded medals of World War I, the Axis-affiliated Italian Social Republic created another design of the medal to give to members of the Esercito Nazionale Repubblicano from 1943 to 1945. This version of the award was not given recognition by the postwar Italian government, cinque anni di storia italiana 1940-1945, da lettere e diari di caduti
Media related to Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia at Wikimedia Commons
