In a break with the traditions of the House of Savoy, Umberto was an intense Catholic, described by his biographer Domenico Bartoli as "almost to the point of fanaticism", but he was unable to resist what he called his "satanic" homosexual urges. [36] On the morning of 9 September 1943, Umberto arrived with Victor Emmanuel and Badoglio in Brindisi. [35] In the fall of 1943, many Italian monarchists, like Benedetto Croce and Count Carlo Sforza, pressed for Victor Emmanuel III to abdicate and for Umberto to renounce his right to the succession in favor of his 6-year-old son, with a regency council to govern Italy as the best hope of saving the monarchy. [37] By 16 September 1943, a line had formed across Italy with everything to north held by the Germans and to the south by the Allies. Berlin in July 1945 (HD 1080p color footage) - Duration: 7:05. [28] By this time, many Fascist gerarchi had become convinced that it was necessary to depose Mussolini to save the Fascist system, and on the night of 24–25 July 1943, at a meeting of the Fascist Grand Council a motion introduced by the gerarchi Dino Grandi to take away Mussolini's powers was approved by a vote of 19 to 8. Continuing to use this site, you agree with this. Umberto later stated that he would have never signed the peace treaty of 1947 under which Italy renounced its empire. [80] However, Churchill during a visit to Rome in January 1945 called Umberto "a far more impressive figure than the politicians". [80] In the same interview, Umberto mentioned his belief that after the war that monarchies all over the world would move towards the left, and stated that under his leadership Italy would go leftwards "in an ordered, liberal way" as he understood "the weight of the past is the monarchy's greatest handicap", which he would resolve by a "radical revision" of the Statuto Albertino. [13] Umberto was described as a "sensuous" man who constantly craved sex, but he always felt very guilty and tormented afterward for violating the Catholic teaching that homosexuality and fornication are sins. [13] Balbo, who opposed Mussolini's policy of allying Italy with Nazi Germany, warned the king that the Fascist secret police, the OVRA, had collected a file on Umberto's "pederasty" in order to blackmail him when he succeeded to the throne. [76], By late 1944, the question of whether it was the CLN or the Crown that represented the Italian people came to a head. He reigned for 34 days,[1] from 9 May 1946 to 12 June 1946, although he had been de facto head of state since 1944, and was nicknamed the May King (Italian: Re di Maggio). [23], On 10 July 1943, in Operation Husky, the Allies invaded Sicily. Umberto II era figlio di Vittorio Emanuele III e di Elena del Montenegro e aveva quattro sorelle: Iolanda, Mafalda, Giovanna e Maria Francesca. ... Umberto II, roi d'Italie. Humbert II d'Italie roi d'Italie. [97] The republicans charged that Umberto had done nothing to oppose Fascism with his major interest being his "glittering social life" in the high society of Rome and Turin, and that as a general knew that Italy was unready for war in 1940, but did not warn Mussolini against entering the war.[98]. [87], Umberto earned widespread praise for his role in the following three years with the Italian historian Giuseppe Mammarella calling Umberto a man "whose Fascist past was less compromising" than that of Victor Emmanuel and who as lieutenant general showed certain "progressive" tendencies. Prince Ferdinand of Savoy, Duke of Genoa, Grand Master of the Supreme Order of the Annunziata, Grand Cross of the Order of Saint Alexander Nevsky, Bailiff Grand Cross of Honour and Devotion of the, Thomas Francis, Prince of Carignano, 1596–1656, Emmanuel Philibert, Prince of Carignan, 1628–1709, Victor Amadeus I, Prince of Carignan, 1690–1741, Louis Victor, Prince of Carignan, 1721–1778, Victor Amadeus II, Prince of Carignan, 1743–1780, Grand Masters of the Order of the Most Holy Annunciation, Grand Masters of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus, Grand Masters of the Gold Medal of Military Valor, Grand Masters of the Civil Order of Savoy, Grand Masters of the Order of the Crown of Italy, Recipients of the Order of Alexander Nevsky, Recipients of the Order of the White Eagle (Poland), Recipients of the Order of Saint Stanislaus (Russian), Grand Cordons of the Order of Leopold (Belgium), Knights Grand Cross of Justice of the Sacred Military Constantinian Order of Saint George. [70] On 5 June 1944, Victor Emmanuel formally gave up his powers to Umberto, finally recognizing his son as Lieutenant General of the Realm. [59], As Regent, Umberto initially made a poor impression on almost everyone as he surrounded himself with Fascist-era generals as his advisers, spoke of the military as the basis of his power, frequently threatened to sue for libel anyone who made even the slightest critical remarks about the House of Savoy, and asked the ACC to censor the press to prevent the criticism of himself or his father. [45] The statement from Victor Emmanuel in late 1943 that he felt he borne no responsibility for Italy's plight, for appointing Mussolini prime minister in 1922 and for entering the war in 1940 further increased his unpopularity and led to demands that he abdicate at once. [21] In June 1941, supported by his father, Umberto strongly lobbied to be given command of the Italian expeditionary force sent to the Soviet Union, saying that as a Catholic he fully supported Operation Barbarossa and wanted to do battle with the "godless communists". [65] In the same interview, Umberto stated that his hope was to make Italy a democracy by executing "the vastest education programme Italy has ever seen" to eliminate illiteracy in Italy once and for all.[65]. [24] The way in which Victor Emmanuel mishandled the armistice was to become as almost controversial in Italy as his support for Fascism. [16] Umberto conformed to his father's expectations to behave like his father was an officer and he a soldier, obediently getting down on his knees to kiss his father's hand before speaking, but privately resented what he regarded as a deeply humiliating relationship with his cold and emotionally distant father. [23] Adding to their worries were a number of strikes in Milan starting on 5 March 1943 with the workers openly criticising both the war and the Fascist regime which had led Italy into the war, leading to fears in Rome that Italy was on the brink of revolution. Find the perfect Roi Umberto D'italie stock photos and editorial news pictures from Getty Images. [47] After the war, Umberto claimed that he wanted to join the partisans, and only his wartime duties prevented him from doing so. [24] The fact that during the strikes in Milan and Turin, Italian soldiers fraternized with the striking workers, who used slogans associated with the banned Socialist and Communist parties deeply worried Italy's conservative establishment. [57] The king bitterly told General Noel Mason-MacFarlane that his son was unqualified to rule, and that handing power over to him was equivalent to letting the Communists come to power. [22] In October–November 1942, in the Battle of El Alamein, the Italo-German force was defeated by the British 8th Army, marking the end of Axis hopes of conquering Egypt. [20], After the capitulation of France, Mussolini kept Umberto inactive as Army commander. De Rosa was arrested and, under interrogation, claimed to be a member of the Second International who had fled Italy to avoid arrest for his political views. At about 3 pm on 13 June 1946, Umberto left the Quirinal Palace for the last time with the servants all assembled in the courtyard to see him off and many were in tears. [78] The Catholic Church saw the continuation of the monarchy as the best way of keeping the Italian left out of power, and during the referendum campaign Catholic priests used their pulpits to warn that "all the pains of hell" were reserved for those who voted for a republic. [26] Just before the invasion of Sicily, Umberto had gone on inspection tour of the Italian forces in Sicily and reported to his father that the Italians had no hope of holding Sicily. An attempted assassination took place in Brussels on 24 October 1929, the day of the announcement of his betrothal to Princess Marie José. [15], Following the Savoyards' tradition ("Only one Savoy reigns at a time"), Umberto kept apart from active politics until he was named Lieutenant General of the Realm. [22], In 1943, the Crown Princess Marie José involved herself in vain attempts to arrange a separate peace treaty between Italy and the United States. He was nicknamed the King of May(Italian: Re di Maggio) Contents. The Axis retreated back into Libya. In 1935, Umberto supported the war against Ethiopia, which he called a "legitimate war" that even Giovanni Giolitti would have supported had he still been alive. In the summer of 1940, Umberto was to command a planned invasion of Yugoslavia, but Mussolini subsequently cancelled the invasion of Yugoslavia in favor of invading Greece. [30] The American historian Gerhard Weinberg wrote that Badoglio as prime minister "...did almost everything as stupidly and slowly as possible", as he dragged out the secret peace talks going on in Lisbon and Tangier, being unwilling to accept the Allied demand for unconditional surrender. After Rome was liberated in June, Victor Emmanuel transferred his remaining constitutional powers to Umberto, naming his son Lieutenant General of the Realm. It's where your interests connect you with your people. [67] Croce wrote: "The Prince of Piedmont for twenty-two years has never shown any sign of acting independently of his father. [60] The historian and philosopher Benedetto Croce, a minister in the Badoglio cabinet, called Umberto "entirely insignificant" as he found the crown prince to be shallow, vain, superficial, and of low intelligence, and alluding to his homosexuality stated his private life was "tainted by scandal". Select from premium Roi Umberto D'italie of the highest quality. Umberto Di Savoia roi d'Italie 1904-1983. [22] For all these reasons, the king vetoed Marie José's peace attempt. [78] The De Gasperi cabinet accepted Umberto as king, but refused to accept the normal appellation for Italian kings "by the grace of God and the will of the people". [53] For the same reason, Sforza wanted a republic as soon as possible, arguing the House of Savoy was far too closely associated with Fascism to enjoy moral legitimacy, and the only hope of establishing a liberal democracy in Italy after the war was a republic. [102] Umberto rejected the advice that he should go to Naples, proclaim a rival government with the intention of starting a civil war in which the Army would presumably side with the House of Savoy, under the grounds that "My house united Italy. In an effort to repair the monarchy's image after the fall of Benito Mussolini's regime, Victor Emmanuel transferred his powers to Umberto in 1944 while retaining the title of king. [82] On 25 November 1944, Bonomi resigned as prime minister, saying he could not govern owing to his difficulties with the CLN, and as the politicians could not agree on a successor, Umberto used the impasse to reassert the Crown's powers. Humbert II (en italien, Umberto II), né le 15 septembre 1904 à Racconigi, Cuneo et mort le 18 mars 1983 à Genève, est le dernier roi d'Italie qui a régné durant 35 jours, du 9 mai … [55] Besides for the "institutional question", the principle responsibility of the Italian government was reconstruction of the liberated areas of Italy. In November 1942, as part of the Battle of Stalingrad, the Red Army launched Operation Uranus, which saw the Soviets annihilate much of the Italian expeditionary force in Russia and encircle the German 6th Army. Humbert II, King of Italy, 1904-1983. The disastrous Italian defeats at Stalingrad and El Alamein turned Umberto against the war and led him to conclude that Italy must sign an armistice before it was too late. [71] After the liberation of Rome, Umberto received a warm welcome from ordinary people when he returned to the Eternal City. Prime Minister Alcide de Gasperi assumed office as Italy's interim Head of State. [13] One biographer wrote of Umberto that he was "forever rushing between chapel and brothel, confessional and steam bath. With his preceptor, Bonaldi, he went to Brazil, Uruguay, Argentina and Chile. [12] Umberto's principal arguments for retaining the monarchy were it was the best way to revive Italy as a great power; it was the only institution capable of holding Italy together by checking regional separatism; and it would uphold Catholicism against anti-clericalism. To me it seems unworthy to try to unload the blame and errors of royalty on the people. [94] The Catholic Church presented the referendum not as a question of republic vs. monarchy, but instead as a question of Communism vs. Catholicism, warning to vote for a republic would be to vote for the Communists. [89] On the day before the referendum, 1 June 1946, Pope Pius XII in a sermon on St. Peter's Square that was widely seen as endorsing Umberto said: "What is the problem? It will not divide it". In addition he is weak and dissipated, with a degenerate and even oriental disposition inherited from his Balkan mother". [63] On 15 April 1944, in an interview with The Daily Express, Umberto stated his hope that Italy would become a full Allied power, expressing his wish that the Regia Marina would fight in the Pacific against Japan and the Regio Esercito would march alongside the other Allied armies in invading Germany. [41] In 1943–44, the cost of living in southern Italy skyrocketed by 321% while it was estimated that people in Naples needed 2, 000 calories per day to survive while the average Neapolitan was doing well if they consumed 500 calories a day in 1943–44. [69] After the liberation of Rome on 6 June 1944, the various Italian political parties all applied strong pressure on Umberto to dismiss Badoglio who had loyally served the Fascist regime until the royal coup on 25 July 1943, which resulted in the moderate socialist Ivanoe Bonomi being appointed prime minister. Umberto la 2-a. [75] As Umberto continued as regent, he surprised many after his rocky start in the spring of 1944 with greater maturity and judgement than was expected. ', Fernando de Rosa fired a single shot that missed him. [88] In April 1946, a public opinion poll of registered members of the conservative Christian Democratic party showed that 73% were republicans, a poll that caused immense panic in the monarchist camp. Certainly during the war, newspapers asserted that he was homosexual, and information continued to be spread in the lead-up to the post-war referendum on the monarchy in the hope of influencing the outcome. Umberto II, koning van Italie͏̈, 1904-1983. [62] However, De Gasperi admitted that though the monarchy was a conservative institution, "it was difficult to answer the argument that the monarchy had done little to serve the interests of the country or people during the past thirty years". [53] The fact that contrary to expectations that Togliatti and Badoglio got along very well led to widespread fears amongst liberal-minded Italians that a Togliatti-Badoglio duumvirate might emerge, forming an alliance between what rapidly was becoming Italy's largest mass party and the military. Coat of Arms of Victor Emmanuel III and Umberto II of Italy (Supreme Order of Christ).svg 594 × 1,033; 5.28 MB King Umberto II of Italy with his only son.jpg 1,101 × 1,600; 165 KB King Victor Emmanuel III, Queen Elena and their children.jpg 1,280 × 788; 431 KB During his period as Regent, Umberto saw his father only three times, partly out of a bid to distance himself and partly because of tensions between father and son. [78] People in the Mezzogiorno loved their king, who on the campaign trail in Sicily showed an encyclopedic knowledge of Sicilian villages which greatly endeared him to the Sicilians. This trip was part of the political plan of Fascism to link the Italian people living outside of Italywith their mother country and the interests of the regime. Umberto II, re d'Italia, 1904-1983. [64] In the same interview, Umberto demanded the ACC censor the Italian press to end the criticism of the royal family, and claimed he had no choice, but to support Mussolini because otherwise he would have been disinherited. As such, he became heir apparent upon his birth, since the Italian throne was limited to male descendants. Togliatti wanted the monarchy to continue as the best way of winning the Communists support after the war. 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