Death of the King of Italy.

Thames Star, Volume VII, Issue 2782, 14 January 1878, Page 3

Death of the King of Italy.

Tho following biographical sketch of Victor Emanuel 11., whose death is just reported by calogram, is from Chambers' Encyclopaedia:—

Victor Emanuel 11., King of Italy, is tho sou of Charles Albert (g.v.), King of Sardinia, and was born ou March 14, 1820. He was a pupil of the Jesuits; but, nevertheless, under his father's luperintendence received an excellent education, and, being heir to tho throne, he commanded, in accordance with an old custom of his house, the brigade of Savoy in the campaign of 1848-49, and displayed great gallantry at Goito and Novara. On the evening of the hitler battle his father, seeing the hopelessness of the struggle, andun willing lo bow to'the onerous conditions offered by Eadctsky, abdicated in favor of Victor Kmanuel, who being the husband of the Arch Duchess Adelaide (the cousin of the Austrian Emperor), and uncommitted to the views of the Italian ultra-democrats, anight hope to obtain more favorable terms from the victor. He thus ascended tho throne of Sardinia 23rd March 1849, and restrained effectually for a time, the enthusiasm of the more ardent among the national party, though, on the other hand, he maintained with the utmost fidelity the provisions of tho liberal constitution granted by his father. He mndo a happy choice of Ministers in such men as D'Azeglio, Ac, whose policy it was to increase the strength and importance of the country by improved administration, rigid economy in the finances, care of the army, and encouragement to trade by the conclusion of treaties with • foreign, nations. They saw too clearly that, despite the intense and almost unanimous desire for unity throughout Italy, a contest single handed with Austria, was utterly hopeless, and preferred, till a more convenient season, to seem to renounce all idea of any such project. The property ©f the State was sold, and various measures calculated to greatly diminish the privileges, and restrict within moderate limits, the inordinate influence of the clergy, adopted -changes which brought upon the King the thunders of the Vatican; but he nothing daunted, protested by a vigorous " memorandum," and more obstinately asserted and maintained his independence of the Papacy. The revolt at Genoa was sternly suppressed, but^the King and his Ministers were, in secret, by no means displeased to see that the feeling of nationality was still vigorous, for, following the traditional policy of the House of Savoy; he was only biding his time to " descend with the valley of the Po," and swallow " another leaf of the artichoke." With the view of improving his position in Europe, and gaining a place at its council board, he sent an army of 17,000 men, under La Marmora, to take part in the Crimean war on the side of Turkey; and visited (1855) in person the courts of Paris and London, being received by French and English with great enthusiasm. After the peace of Paris (1856), bo entered into a closer alliance with France, gave his elder daughter, Clotilde, in marriage (30th January, 1859) to Prince Napoleon, and* backed by the French arms, proToked a war with Austria. The campaign was brief but decisive: the Austrians were routed in every battle, and the Italians were hailing with exultation the near approach to fulfilment of their long cherished dreams of unity, when the suddenly concluded peace between France and Austria dashed their hopes to the ground. The Milanese (minus tho fortresses of Mantua and Peschiera) only was added to the Sardinian monarchy, and for this the "King ceded .Nice and Savoy (the cradle of his race) to France as the price of its alliance. But the people of Central Italy ' refused indignantly tho offer of Prince Napoleon as their sovereign; and Tuscany, Modena, Parma, and the Romagna, renouncing their allegiance to their v respective sovereigns, voted for annexation to Sardinia, and were formally adopted by Victor Emanuel as his subjects. This was a greater advance towards the unification of Italy than the French Emperor wished, and accordingly Victor Emanuel, who was still dependent on his ally for safety, though secretly favorable to the project of the 'Italian Liberator,' disavowed all knowledge of Garibaldi's expedition to Sicily, forbad him after the island was conquered, to pass over' to the continent; though he subsequently with the consent of Napoleon 111., who was desirous of preservingßonie to the Pope, sent an army to aid him in conquering Naples, and formally accepted the sovereignty of the two Sicilies. But in 1862, Garibaldi, thinking that the conquest of Rome in the same way would be equally acceptable to his sovereign, returned to Sicily, raised an army of volunteers, and was rapidly advancing on the ancient capital, when the King, forced by France, put an end to the expedition by capturing Garibaldi and his army at Aspromonte. Though proclaimed by the the Senate and House of Deputies King of Italy on February 1861, Victor Emanuel prudently postponed all attempts to annex Rome and Venice ; and directed his attention to the internal affairs of his kingdom, which was much distracted by the intrigues of the sovereigns whom he supplanted. At length, in the quarrel between Prussia and Austria for supremacy in Germany, appeared his opportunity, and an offensivjar a.nd. defensive alliance with the former of these powers, was followed by the invasion of Venetia (23rd June, 1866.) The Italians, though defeated in the bloody battle of Custozza (24th June), succeeded in overrunning various parts of the province, and even penetrating into \he Tyrol; and the uninterrupted series pf disasters which befel her in the simultaneous contest with Prussia, forced Austria ultimately to surrender Venetia. From Rome, the evacuation of which within two years by the French had been agreed to by a convention on Sept. 15th, 1864, the last detachment of the Emperor Napoleon's troops was withdrawn on August Bth, 1870; and Rome became the capital of the kingdom of Italy, and the seat of Victor Emanuel's Court.