Emanuele Filiberto, Prince of Venice and Piedmont
Encyclopedia
Emanuele Filiberto, Prince of Venice and Piedmont (Emanuele Filiberto Umberto Reza Rene Maria di Savoia; born 22 June 1972) is a member of the House of Savoy
and the only child and heir of Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples
. He is the grandson of Umberto II
, last King of Italy
. Although addressed as Prince of Venice and Piedmont by monarchists, those titles are not recognized by the Italian republic, where he is commonly known as Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia.
Emanuele Filiberto grew up as an exile
from Italy, in accordance with the provision of the Italian constitution prohibiting the male line of the House of Savoy from entering Italy (see also Birth of the Italian Republic
). Since returning to Italy he has made many appearances on national television, including his participation as a contestant in Ballando con le stelle (the Italian version of Dancing with the Stars
), and the Sanremo Music Festival.
He is married to French actress Clotilde Courau.
in the male-line
, the heir apparent
to the House of Savoy, Italy's former ruling dynasty
. As such, royalist
Italians consider him their crown prince
and the titular Prince of Venice and Piedmont, though this has been disputed since June 2006 when his distant cousin Amedeo, 5th Duke of Aosta
declared himself to be head of the house and rightful Duke of Savoy
. Amedeo maintains that Vittorio Emanuele
forfeited his dynastic rights when he married Emanuele Filiberto's mother, Marina Doria, in 1971 without the legally required permission of his father and sovereign-in-exile, Umberto II
. Emanuele Filiberto and his father applied for judicial intervention to forbid Amedeo from using the title "Duke of Savoy". An initial hearing was scheduled in the court of Arezzo
, with a ruling expected by 6 June 2008.
, Switzerland
, the only child of Vittorio Emanuele, head of the House of Savoy, and his wife, the former Marina Doria, a Swiss water ski champion.
Emanuele Filiberto married Clotilde Courau, a French actress and daughter of Jean Claude Courau and Catherine du Pontavice des Renardières, in Rome, Italy at the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels
, on 25 September 2003. The basilica is where Filiberto's great-grandfather King Victor Emmanuel III married Helen of Montenegro in 1896. Albert II, Prince of Monaco
, who introduced the couple in 2003, was the best man. Around 1,200 people are thought to have attended the wedding. The bride, then six months pregnant, wore a Valentino
dress, a veil held in place by a diamond tiara and gems belonging to the House of Savoy.
The couple have two daughters:
The couple also sponsor two boys from Kenya since January 2011
)
On 10 November 2002, he accompanied his father and mother to Italy, following revocation of the provision in the Italian constitution that barred the male-line descendants of the House of Savoy from setting foot in the country. On the three day trip, he accompanied his parents on a visit to the Vatican
for a 20-minute audience with Pope John Paul II
.
as a hedge fund
manager. Since returning to Italy in 2002, he has also appeared on Italian television on football discussion programmes and in commercials for olives.
Emanuele Filiberto is involved in charitable and cultural activities. In 2001, he founded the Prince of Venice Foundation to promote 'cultural diversity'. He is a licensed pilot for helicopters and planes. Emanuele Filiberto has also published two books, including Sognando L'Italia (Dreaming of Italy), a memoir about growing up in exile
.
In 2007 Emanuele Filiberto requested formally that the Italian Republic pay him financial damages of 90 million euro. The financial damages claim is based on having suffered moral injustice during the exile and submitted along his father's request for 170 million euro. The government of Italy has rejected the demand and, in response, indicated that it may seek damages for historic grievances.
Minister of interior Roberto Calderoli
, then a senator of Lega Nord, proposed a constitutional law to repeal the previous one which allowed Emanuele Filiberto and the father to return in Italy.
In 2009, Emanuele Filiberto participated as a contestant in the 5th series of Ballando con le Stelle, the Italian version of Dancing with the Stars
, and won the contest.
That same year he announced he was a candidate for the Union of the Centre party at the 2009 European Parliament election
. He received 22,000 votes and was not elected.
In October 2009 the Italian news agency ANSA reported that Emanuele Filiberto had stated that he had abused drugs in his youth.
In 2010, he participated as a contestant in the Sanremo Music Festival. At the finals, he came in second place losing out to Valerio Scanu
.
House of Savoy
The House of Savoy was formed in the early 11th century in the historical Savoy region. Through gradual expansion, it grew from ruling a small county in that region to eventually rule the Kingdom of Italy from 1861 until the end of World War II, king of Croatia and King of Armenia...
and the only child and heir of Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples
Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples
Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, formerly Crown Prince of Italy is the only son of the Umberto II, the last King of Italy. He is commonly known in Italy as Vittorio Emanuele di Savoia...
. He is the grandson of Umberto II
Umberto II of Italy
Umberto II, occasionally anglicized as Humbert II was the last King of Italy for slightly over a month, from 9 May 1946 to 12 June 1946. He was nicknamed the King of May -Biography:...
, last King of Italy
King of Italy
King of Italy is a title adopted by many rulers of the Italian peninsula after the fall of the Roman Empire...
. Although addressed as Prince of Venice and Piedmont by monarchists, those titles are not recognized by the Italian republic, where he is commonly known as Emanuele Filiberto di Savoia.
Emanuele Filiberto grew up as an exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
from Italy, in accordance with the provision of the Italian constitution prohibiting the male line of the House of Savoy from entering Italy (see also Birth of the Italian Republic
Birth of the Italian Republic
The Italian constitutional referendum which officially took place on 2 June 1946, is a key event of Italian contemporary history. Until 1946, Italy was a kingdom ruled by the House of Savoy, kings of Italy since the Risorgimento and previously rulers of Savoy...
). Since returning to Italy he has made many appearances on national television, including his participation as a contestant in Ballando con le stelle (the Italian version of Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars is the name of several international television series based on the format of the British TV series Strictly Come Dancing, which is distributed by BBC Worldwide – the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the format has been licensed to over 35 countries...
), and the Sanremo Music Festival.
He is married to French actress Clotilde Courau.
Titles and honours
Emanuele Filiberto is, by strict primogeniturePrimogeniture
Primogeniture is the right, by law or custom, of the firstborn to inherit the entire estate, to the exclusion of younger siblings . Historically, the term implied male primogeniture, to the exclusion of females...
in the male-line
Patrilineality
Patrilineality is a system in which one belongs to one's father's lineage. It generally involves the inheritance of property, names or titles through the male line as well....
, the heir apparent
Heir apparent
An heir apparent or heiress apparent is a person who is first in line of succession and cannot be displaced from inheriting, except by a change in the rules of succession....
to the House of Savoy, Italy's former ruling dynasty
Dynasty
A dynasty is a sequence of rulers considered members of the same family. Historians traditionally consider many sovereign states' history within a framework of successive dynasties, e.g., China, Ancient Egypt and the Persian Empire...
. As such, royalist
Royalist
A royalist supports a particular monarch as head of state for a particular kingdom, or of a particular dynastic claim. In the abstract, this position is royalism. It is distinct from monarchism, which advocates a monarchical system of government, but not necessarily a particular monarch...
Italians consider him their crown prince
Crown Prince
A crown prince or crown princess is the heir or heiress apparent to the throne in a royal or imperial monarchy. The wife of a crown prince is also titled crown princess....
and the titular Prince of Venice and Piedmont, though this has been disputed since June 2006 when his distant cousin Amedeo, 5th Duke of Aosta
Amedeo, 5th Duke of Aosta
Prince Amedeo of Savoy-Aosta, Duke of Aosta, is a claimant to the headship of the House of Savoy, the family which ruled Italy from 1861 to 1946, as well as the heir to the short-lived Kingdom of Croatia during World War II...
declared himself to be head of the house and rightful Duke of Savoy
Duchy of Savoy
From 1416 to 1847, the House of Savoy ruled the eponymous Duchy of Savoy . The Duchy was a state in the northern part of the Italian Peninsula, with some territories that are now in France. It was a continuation of the County of Savoy...
. Amedeo maintains that Vittorio Emanuele
Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples
Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, formerly Crown Prince of Italy is the only son of the Umberto II, the last King of Italy. He is commonly known in Italy as Vittorio Emanuele di Savoia...
forfeited his dynastic rights when he married Emanuele Filiberto's mother, Marina Doria, in 1971 without the legally required permission of his father and sovereign-in-exile, Umberto II
Umberto II of Italy
Umberto II, occasionally anglicized as Humbert II was the last King of Italy for slightly over a month, from 9 May 1946 to 12 June 1946. He was nicknamed the King of May -Biography:...
. Emanuele Filiberto and his father applied for judicial intervention to forbid Amedeo from using the title "Duke of Savoy". An initial hearing was scheduled in the court of Arezzo
Arezzo
Arezzo is a city and comune in Central Italy, capital of the province of the same name, located in Tuscany. Arezzo is about 80 km southeast of Florence, at an elevation of 296 m above sea level. In 2011 the population was about 100,000....
, with a ruling expected by 6 June 2008.
Early life and family
Emanuele Filiberto was born in GenevaGeneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
, Switzerland
Switzerland
Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition....
, the only child of Vittorio Emanuele, head of the House of Savoy, and his wife, the former Marina Doria, a Swiss water ski champion.
Emanuele Filiberto married Clotilde Courau, a French actress and daughter of Jean Claude Courau and Catherine du Pontavice des Renardières, in Rome, Italy at the Basilica of Saint Mary of the Angels
Santa Maria degli Angeli e dei Martiri
The Basilica of St. Mary of the Angels and the Martyrs is a titular basilica church in Rome, built inside the frigidarium of the Baths of Diocletian. The Cardinal priest of the is William Henry Keeler.- The basilica :...
, on 25 September 2003. The basilica is where Filiberto's great-grandfather King Victor Emmanuel III married Helen of Montenegro in 1896. Albert II, Prince of Monaco
Albert II, Prince of Monaco
Albert II, Sovereign Prince of Monaco is the head of the House of Grimaldi and the ruler of the Principality of Monaco. He is the son of Rainier III, Prince of Monaco, and the American actress Grace Kelly...
, who introduced the couple in 2003, was the best man. Around 1,200 people are thought to have attended the wedding. The bride, then six months pregnant, wore a Valentino
Valentino SpA
Valentino SpA is a clothing company founded in 1959 by Valentino Garavani. Nowadays it is a part of Valentino Fashion Group. New creative directors Maria Grazia Chiuri and Pier Paolo Piccioli will take Alessandra Facchinetti's seat as creative designer...
dress, a veil held in place by a diamond tiara and gems belonging to the House of Savoy.
The couple have two daughters:
- Princess Vittoria of Savoy, born on 29 December 2003
- Princess Luisa of Savoy, born on 16 August 2006
The couple also sponsor two boys from Kenya since January 2011
- Alan
- Moses
Return to Italy from exile
(See also: Vittorio EmanueleVittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples
Vittorio Emanuele, Prince of Naples, formerly Crown Prince of Italy is the only son of the Umberto II, the last King of Italy. He is commonly known in Italy as Vittorio Emanuele di Savoia...
)
On 10 November 2002, he accompanied his father and mother to Italy, following revocation of the provision in the Italian constitution that barred the male-line descendants of the House of Savoy from setting foot in the country. On the three day trip, he accompanied his parents on a visit to the Vatican
Vatican City
Vatican City , or Vatican City State, in Italian officially Stato della Città del Vaticano , which translates literally as State of the City of the Vatican, is a landlocked sovereign city-state whose territory consists of a walled enclave within the city of Rome, Italy. It has an area of...
for a 20-minute audience with Pope John Paul II
Pope John Paul II
Blessed Pope John Paul II , born Karol Józef Wojtyła , reigned as Pope of the Catholic Church and Sovereign of Vatican City from 16 October 1978 until his death on 2 April 2005, at of age. His was the second-longest documented pontificate, which lasted ; only Pope Pius IX ...
.
Other activities
Emanuele Filiberto works in GenevaGeneva
Geneva In the national languages of Switzerland the city is known as Genf , Ginevra and Genevra is the second-most-populous city in Switzerland and is the most populous city of Romandie, the French-speaking part of Switzerland...
as a hedge fund
Hedge fund
A hedge fund is a private pool of capital actively managed by an investment adviser. Hedge funds are only open for investment to a limited number of accredited or qualified investors who meet criteria set by regulators. These investors can be institutions, such as pension funds, university...
manager. Since returning to Italy in 2002, he has also appeared on Italian television on football discussion programmes and in commercials for olives.
Emanuele Filiberto is involved in charitable and cultural activities. In 2001, he founded the Prince of Venice Foundation to promote 'cultural diversity'. He is a licensed pilot for helicopters and planes. Emanuele Filiberto has also published two books, including Sognando L'Italia (Dreaming of Italy), a memoir about growing up in exile
Exile
Exile means to be away from one's home , while either being explicitly refused permission to return and/or being threatened with imprisonment or death upon return...
.
In 2007 Emanuele Filiberto requested formally that the Italian Republic pay him financial damages of 90 million euro. The financial damages claim is based on having suffered moral injustice during the exile and submitted along his father's request for 170 million euro. The government of Italy has rejected the demand and, in response, indicated that it may seek damages for historic grievances.
Minister of interior Roberto Calderoli
Roberto Calderoli
Roberto Calderoli is an Italian politician and a member of the Senate of Italy. He is currently a Minister without portfolio for Legislative Simplification in the Berlusconi IV Cabinet....
, then a senator of Lega Nord, proposed a constitutional law to repeal the previous one which allowed Emanuele Filiberto and the father to return in Italy.
In 2009, Emanuele Filiberto participated as a contestant in the 5th series of Ballando con le Stelle, the Italian version of Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars is the name of several international television series based on the format of the British TV series Strictly Come Dancing, which is distributed by BBC Worldwide – the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the format has been licensed to over 35 countries...
, and won the contest.
That same year he announced he was a candidate for the Union of the Centre party at the 2009 European Parliament election
European Parliament election, 2009 (Italy)
European elections to elect 72 members of the European Parliament representing Italy were held on Saturday 6 and Sunday 7 June 2009, as decided by the Italian government on December 18, 2008...
. He received 22,000 votes and was not elected.
In October 2009 the Italian news agency ANSA reported that Emanuele Filiberto had stated that he had abused drugs in his youth.
In 2010, he participated as a contestant in the Sanremo Music Festival. At the finals, he came in second place losing out to Valerio Scanu
Valerio Scanu
Valerio Scanu is an Italian pop singer.In 2008 Valerio took part in the 8th edition of the Italian talent show Amici di Maria De Filippi, in which he came second place....
.