1860… And Savoy Became French!
Savoy and Haute-Savoie, two departments of a region with many facets…
It’s hard to imagine that Savoy was once a powerful state, whose influence extended on both sides of the Alpine range, from the Middle Ages to the 19th century!
After leaving Chambéry in 1563 to establish its new capital in Turin, in the 18th century, the House of Savoy somewhat abandoned the cradle of its ancestors. The King of Sardinia, Victor Amadeus III, then allied himself with other kings against the French Revolution.
Nevertheless, it was in a festive atmosphere, in Chambéry, that the Savoyards welcomed the French general Montesquieu, who came to annex Savoy in 1792… This revolutionary interlude lasted about twenty years, with Savoy becoming the 84th French department, that of Mont-Blanc. The Treaty of Vienna, signed in 1815, marked the return to the Kingdom of Sardinia.
In the first half of the 19th century, the Savoyard economy hardly grew. The population became increasingly dissatisfied with the presence of the tax collectors, officials, and Piedmontese soldiers, and became worried about the movements in favor of Italian unity happening on the other side of the Alps.
Indeed, Victor Emmanuel II, like his father, and his prime minister, Cavour, dreamed of unifying Italy, which was still divided into states under foreign rulers. Through the secret Plombières agreement, in the Vosges, in 1858, Emperor Napoleon III agreed to help Piedmont in its struggle against Austria, receiving Nice and Savoy in exchange.
War against Austria resumed in 1859. After the bloody victories of the Sardinian and French armies, such as at Solferino, Napoleon III, concerned about Prussia’s posture and French public opinion, reconsidered the annexation of Savoy by signing the armistice of Villafranca.
From then on, in Savoy, propaganda was organized for or against union with France. Contrary to their 1848 views, conservatives (nobility, clergy, and peasants) supported the annexation, while liberals preferred independence or even joining Switzerland.
By the Treaty of Turin on March 24, 1860, Savoy and Nice were ceded to France. This annexation was ratified by the plebiscite of April 22 and 23, 1860, during which the people of Savoy were called upon to vote for or against the annexation. It was at the Court of Appeal in Chambéry that the results were officially declared for the question: “Does Savoy wish to be united with France?” Only men voted and, out of 135,449 registered voters, there were 71 invalid ballots, 235 “No” votes, and 130,533 “Yes” votes (141,893 including the results of the military registered on particular lists).
In August and September 1860, the two newly created departments—Savoy and Haute-Savoie—triumphantly welcomed their new sovereigns, Emperor Napoleon III and Empress Eugénie, during prestigious celebrations throughout the province, especially in Chambéry and Annecy.
So, a strange destiny indeed for Savoy, once a county, then a duchy, then a kingdom, whose capital shifted from Chambéry to Turin, and whose dynasty, related to all of Europe’s ruling houses, did not hesitate to leave its ancestral home to France in order to reign over a finally unified Italian peninsula.
Source: Ecomuseum of Lake Annecy in Sevrier
