The Role of the Crown in the Building of an Italian Identity (1878–1922)

Historiography has long undervalued the role of the Crown in the political and institutional history of Italy. At the beginning of Italian constitutional history, historians tended to attribute some importance to Charles Albert and Victor-Emmanuel I’s actions, but the monarchy has since then been presented as being less and less central or relevant. In truth, this version of the facts is ever less convincing. This essay, depicting a different point of view, focuses on the historical period of the Savoy monarchy between Umberto I’s crowning (1878) and Mussolini’s rise to power (1922). It explains the Crown’s importance in the state-building of a unified Italy. The reigns of Umberto I and Victor Emmanuel III are shown to be marked by the creation of legendary images of both kings (the “Good King” and the “Soldier King”), which contributed to the reinforcement of the relationship with their subjects. This relationship often appears to have been quite strong as well as crucial to the process of Italian nation building. The popular response to the attempts on Umberto I’s life (in particular, the successful assassination on July 29, 1900), as witnessed by testimonies and newspaper reports, confirms the feelings of the Italian people. Victor Emmanuel III rose to the throne unexpectedly: he was young, and the monarchy seemed to become stronger thanks to the winds of change he brought with him. Some have even spoken of the institution under his leadership as a “socialist monarchy”. This essay discusses the instances in which the king played a remarkably visible role, with a particular emphasis on the Italian victory in the First World War. This victory would link the Crown to the people even more firmly, and this strong relationship would produce effects in the years to come, even into the fascist period.