Johanna LianderVittorio Emanuele of Savoy, who died on 3rd February 2025, was disowned by his father and forged a path as a power broker – but never regained the love of the Italian people.
Born in Naples in 1937, the only son of King Umberto II of Italy and Princess Marie José of Belgium, Prince Vittorio Emanuele emerged in the dying days of Italian monarchy. Upon his birth, Vittorio Emanuele was given the courtesy title, Prince of Naples. His grandfather, Victor Emmanuel II, had ruled Italy during Mussolini’s fascist period and the family became indelibly tainted by association with him. After Victor Emmanuel II fell from power, Vittorio Emanuele’s father, Umberto II, gradually assumed the powers of a King – and was crowned in 1946. Yet he ruled for just 34 days before a referendum that June saw Italians vote to abolish the monarchy, sending the Savoys into exile. As the new Italian Republic surfaced from the ravages of war, a new article in its Constitution forbade any previous Kings of the House of Savoy, their wives or male descendants from stepping on Italian soil.
As an exiled King, Umberto II settled in Portugal, while Maria José and the children moved to Switzerland. Vittiorio Emanuele’s relations with his father grew ever more tense, until Umberto finally cut him off while he was at university in Geneva. This forced Umberto to explore the possibility of declaring his heir to be third cousin Amedeo, Duke of Aosta (rather than Vittorio Emanuele), a move which deeply irked the young Prince.
Father-son tensions exploded in 1969, when Vittorio Emanuele declared himself to be King by virtue of the fact that his father had acquiesced in the referendum. He believed his father had therefore renounced the right to kingship, making Vittorio Emanuele the true claimant. He later added to his father’s fury by marrying Marina Doria, a professional Swiss waterskier and a bride 10 years his junior.
After his father cut off his income, Vittorio Emanuele of Savoy had to use his name and his nous to make a living. Working as an arms dealer and a financier in his 30s, he became very wealthy. The Daily Telegraph cites a multi-million pound deal he brokered between the Italian firm Agusta and the Shah of Iran. Through his business dealings, Vittorio Emanuele became close with the Shah, eventually seeing his wedding to Marina Doria held during the famous 2,500-year anniversary celebrations for the Iranian monarchy. The anniversary party in the desert became widely known as the most luxurious party of all time, attended by royals from around the world.
The true extent of Vittorio Emanuele’s wealth was anyone’s guess. But in middle age, Vittorio still remained in the shadows politically. He was not recognised nor much lauded in Italy. Monarchists had tried to portray him as a glamorous figure but he had become exasperated and insecure in exile. He carried an air of impotence about him – and even his own sister characterised him as a money-obsessed, power-monger; lacking any depth of personality.
The ban on male Savoys entering Italy was finally lifted in 2002, seeing Vittorio Emanuele and his son Emanuele Filiberto make a long awaited return. In the Christmas of that year, Vittorio Emanuele returned to his homeland for the first time in 55 years. During the three-day trip, he had an audience with Pope John Paul II – but during a walkabout in Naples the following year, was harassed by onlookers. Their reception among the population was cool at best. The two men sought compensation of 260 million euros from the Italian government for their family’s exile and the return of confiscated property. The claims made little progress and were eventually dropped.
During much of his life, Vittorio Emanuele was largely irrelevant to modern Italian life – except when he made scandalous headlines, which he had a knack of. In 1978, Vittorio was holidaying near on his yacht near Corsica, when he noticed that the dinghy had been taken. Suspecting a thief, he emerged on deck with a rifle. After spotting the dinghy tied to another nearby boat, he set off to confront the suspected thieves. As somebody emerged on the deck of the other boat, he fired at them – but missed, hitting a German teenager who was sleeping on the deck of a nearby boat. The boy, Dirk Hamer, died of his injuries.
Vittorio Emanuele accepted civil liability for the death, but a French criminal investigation wore on for a decade. He was charged with manslaughter 1991, and subsequently acquitted. Fifteen years thereafter, Italian officials made secret recordings of him boasting about having eluded the French judges.
Among other reputation-incinerating incidents, Prince Vittorio Emanuele caused grave offence to Jews for explanations he tried to give for his family’s having signed Italy’s racial laws in 1938. A public apology was issued in 2005. A family feud brought the Prince back to the headlines in 2004, when he fell out – quite publicly – with his cousin Amadeo, at a dinner held by the King of Spain for Prince Felipe’s wedding. The issue with cousin Amadeo was that he also claimed to be head of the House of Savoy. At the dinner, Vittorio Emmanuele punched his rival in the face – twice – knocking him down a flight of stairs. Bleeding everywhere, the Duke was rescued by the ex-Queen of Greece.
The Prince was in trouble again in 2006, when he found himself arrested on charges of racketeering, taking bribes and procuring prostitutes for a casino. The charges were later dismissed.
Prince Vittorio Emanuele is survived by his wife and son, Emanuele Filiberto. Emanuele’s claim to the headship of the House of Savoy remains disputed by Amedeo’s family. Like his father, Emanuele Filiberto grew up in exile, though he returned to Italy after the lifting of the ban in 2002. He is married to the French actress, Clotilde Courau, with whom he has two children, Vittoria, Princess Carignano, and Princess Luisa. Princess Vittoria is one of the most glamorous young royals around in Europe; recently toasted by Tatler as the ‘diamond of the season’. In June 2023, Emanuele filiberto announced his intention to abdicate his claim to the throne in favour of the glamorous young Vittoria, when he felt she was ready to succeed.
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