Vittorio Emanuele III di Savoia

Vittorio Emanuele III di Savoia (Vittorio Emanuele Ferdinando Maria Gennaro di Savoia; born in Naples on November 11, 1869, died in Alexandria, Egypt on December 28, 1947) was King of Italy (from 1900 to 1946), Emperor of Ethiopia (from 1936 to 1943), First Marshal of the Empire (from April 4, 1938), and King of Albania (from 1939 to 1943). He abdicated on May 9, 1946, and was succeeded by his son Umberto II. Son of Umberto I of Savoy and Margherita of Savoy, he was titled Prince of Naples at birth, emphasizing national unity recently achieved. His long reign (46 years) spanned two world wars and witnessed the introduction of universal male suffrage (1912) and female suffrage (1945), significant developments in social welfare, the decline and fall of the liberal state (1900-1922), the rise and fall of the fascist state (1925-1943), the resolution of the Roman Question (1929), the expansion of Italy’s territorial boundaries, and major colonial conquests (Libya and Ethiopia). He passed away just over a year and a half after the end of the Kingdom of Italy. After Italy’s victory in World War I, he was hailed as the “Soldier King.” He played a pivotal role in Italy’s shift from neutrality to entering World War I, the rise of fascism, colonial wars, Italy’s entry into World War II, the removal of Mussolini following the armistice in 1943, and in 1946, he made a belated attempt to save the monarchy by abdicating in favor of his son and choosing self-exile in Egypt. In Italy, there are 409 places named in his honor, scattered unevenly across the country.