Prince Emanuele Filiberto Vittorio Eugenio Alberto Genova Giuseppe Maria di Savoia, 2nd Duke of Aosta (

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

: ''Manuel Filiberto''; 13 January 1869 – 4 July 1931) was an Italian general and member of the

House of Savoy The House of Savoy (, ) is a royal house (formally a dynasty) of Franco-Italian origin that was established in 1003 in the historical region of Savoy, which was originally part of the Kingdom of Burgundy and now lies mostly within southeastern F ...

, as the son of Amadeo I, and was also a cousin of

Victor Emmanuel III of Italy Victor Emmanuel III (; 11 November 1869 – 28 December 1947) was King of Italy from 29 July 1900 until his abdication on 9 May 1946. A member of the House of Savoy, he also reigned as Emperor of Ethiopia from 1936 to 1941 and King of the Albania ...

. Filiberto was also commander of the Italian Third Army during

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

, which earned him the title of the "Undefeated Duke". After the war he became a

Marshal of Italy Marshal of Italy () was a rank in the Royal Italian Army (''Regio Esercito''). Originally created in 1924 by Italian dictator Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and jo ...

Biography

He was born in

Genoa Genoa ( ; ; ) is a city in and the capital of the Italian region of Liguria, and the sixth-largest city in Italy. As of 2025, 563,947 people live within the city's administrative limits. While its metropolitan city has 818,651 inhabitan ...

, the eldest son of Prince Amadeo of Savoy, Duke of Aosta (second son of King

Vittorio Emanuele II Victor Emmanuel II (; full name: ''Vittorio Emanuele Maria Alberto Eugenio Ferdinando Tommaso di House of Savoy, Savoia''; 14 March 1820 – 9 January 1878) was King of Sardinia (also informally known as Piedmont–Sardinia) from 23 March 1849 u ...

) and his first wife Donna Maria Vittoria dal Pozzo della Cisterna. In 1870, Amadeo was elected King of Spain, but abdicated and returned to Italy in 1873. Amadeo died in 1890, and Emanuele Filiberto succeeded as

Duke of Aosta Duke of Aosta (; ) was a title in the Italian nobility. It was established in the 13th century when Frederick II, Holy Roman Emperor, made the County of Aosta a duchy. The region was part of the Savoyard state and the title was granted to variou ...

. He began his career in the

Italian Army The Italian Army ( []) is the Army, land force branch of the Italian Armed Forces. The army's history dates back to the Italian unification in the 1850s and 1860s. The army fought in colonial engagements in China and Italo-Turkish War, Libya. It ...

Naples Naples ( ; ; ) is the Regions of Italy, regional capital of Campania and the third-largest city of Italy, after Rome and Milan, with a population of 908,082 within the city's administrative limits as of 2025, while its Metropolitan City of N ...

, in 1905, as commander. During

, he commanded the Italian Third Army, which gained the nickname of ''Armata invitta'' ("undefeated army"). Following the war he was promoted to the rank of

Benito Mussolini Benito Amilcare Andrea Mussolini (29 July 188328 April 1945) was an Italian politician and journalist who, upon assuming office as Prime Minister of Italy, Prime Minister, became the dictator of Fascist Italy from the March on Rome in 1922 un ...

in 1926. Prince Emanuele Filiberto died in 1931 at

Turin Turin ( , ; ; , then ) is a city and an important business and cultural centre in northern Italy. It is the capital city of Piedmont and of the Metropolitan City of Turin, and was the first Italian capital from 1861 to 1865. The city is main ...

. In accordance and observance of his will, he was buried in the military cemetery of Redipuglia, together with thousands of soldiers of the Third Army. Named after him were: * the Duke of Aosta Bridge in

Rome Rome (Italian language, Italian and , ) is the capital city and most populated (municipality) of Italy. It is also the administrative centre of the Lazio Regions of Italy, region and of the Metropolitan City of Rome. A special named with 2, ...

, completed in 1942 * a bridge on the Piave at

Jesolo Jesolo (; ) is a seaside resort town and ''comune'' of 26,873 inhabitants in the Metropolitan City of Venice, Italy. With around 5.5 million visitors per year, Jesolo ranks second among beach resorts in the country for number of tourists, and t ...

, inaugurated in 1927 * a street in Rome * the cruiser ''Emanuele Filiberto Duca d'Aosta'', which was given to the

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after

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Family and children

He was married in 25 June 1895 to

Princess Hélène of Orléans Princess Hélène of Orléans (; 13 June 1871 – 21 January 1951) was a member of the deposed House of Orléans, Orléans royal family of France and, by marriage to the head of a cadet branch of the Italian royal family, the Prince Emanuele Fi ...

(1871–1951). She was a daughter of

Prince Philippe of Orléans Prince Philippe of Orléans, Count of Paris (Louis Philippe Albert; 24 August 1838 – 8 September 1894), was disputedly King of the French from 24 to 26 February 1848 as Louis Philippe II, although he was never officially proclaimed as such. ...

and the Infanta Maria Isabel of Spain. They had two sons: *

Amedeo, 3rd Duke of Aosta Prince Amedeo, 3rd Duke of Aosta (Amedeo Umberto Isabella Luigi Filippo Maria Giuseppe Giovanni di Savoia-Aosta; 21 October 1898 – 3 March 1942) was the third Duke of Aosta and a first cousin once removed of the King of Italy, Victor Emmanu ...

(21 October 1898 – 3 March 1942); married Princess Anne of Orléans with issue. * Aimone, 4th Duke of Aosta (9 March 1900 – 29 January 1948), who briefly

reign A reign is the period of a person's or dynasty's occupation of the office of monarch of a nation (e.g., King of Saudi Arabia, Saudi Arabia, List of Belgian monarchs, Belgium, Co-princes of Andorra, Andorra), of a people (e.g., List of Frankish kin ...

ed as King Tomislav II of Croatia; married

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with issue.

Honours and awards

* : ** Knight of the Annunciation, ''14 March 1890'' ** Grand Cross of Saints Maurice and Lazarus, ''14 March 1890'' ** Grand Cross of the Crown of Italy, ''14 March 1890'' ** Grand Cross of the

Military Order of Savoy The Military Order of Savoy was a military honorary order of the Kingdom of Sardinia first, and of the Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946), Kingdom of Italy later. Following the abolition of the Italian monarchy, the order became the Military Order of ...

, ''28 December 1916''"Di Savoia Emanuele Filiberto Duca di Aosta"
(in Italian), ''Il sito ufficiale della Presidenza della Repubblica''. Retrieved 2018-08-05. **

Gold Medal of Military Valour The Gold Medal of Military Valor () is an Italian medal established on 21 May 1793 by King Victor Amadeus III of Sardinia for deeds of outstanding gallantry in war by junior officers and soldiers. The face of the medal displayed the profile o ...

, ''24 June 1937'' *

Austria-Hungary Austria-Hungary, also referred to as the Austro-Hungarian Empire, the Dual Monarchy or the Habsburg Monarchy, was a multi-national constitutional monarchy in Central Europe#Before World War I, Central Europe between 1867 and 1918. A military ...

: ** Grand Cross of the Royal Hungarian Order of St. Stephen, ''1895'' **

Knight of the Golden Fleece This article contains a list of knights of the Order of the Golden Fleece. Burgundian Golden Fleece 15th century !Year of induction!!Name!!Born!!Died!!Notes , - , rowspan=25, 1430, , Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, , 1396, , 1467, , Founde ...

, ''1899'' * : Knight of the Black Eagle, ''17 May 1893'' *

Siam Thailand, officially the Kingdom of Thailand and historically known as Siam (the official name until 1939), is a country in Southeast Asia on the Mainland Southeast Asia, Indochinese Peninsula. With a population of almost 66 million, it spa ...

: Knight of the

Order of the Royal House of Chakri The Most Illustrious Order of the Royal House of Chakri (; ) was founded in 1882 by King Chulalongkorn (Rama V) of the Kingdom of Siam (now Thailand) to commemorate the Bangkok Centennial. The order is awarded to members of the House of Chakri ...

, ''1 June 1897'' *

Sweden-Norway Sweden and Norway or Sweden–Norway (; ), officially the United Kingdoms of Sweden and Norway, and known as the United Kingdoms, was a personal union of the separate kingdoms of Sweden and Norway under a common monarch and common foreign poli ...

: Knight of the Seraphim, ''18 September 1897'' * : Stranger Knight Companion of the Garter, ''15 July 1902'' * : Knight of the Rue CrownJustus Perthes, ''Almanach de Gotha'' (1913
p. 49
/ref> * : Grand Cross of the

Order of Charles III The Royal and Distinguished Spanish Order of Charles III, originally Royal and Much Distinguished Order of Charles III (, originally ; Abbreviation, Abbr.: OC3) is a knighthood and one of the three preeminent Order of merit, orders of merit bes ...

, with Collar, ''28 December 1923''

Ancestry

References

*''Encyclopædia Britannica'' (1950) *

External links

Genealogy of the Royal House of Italy
, - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Filiberto, Emanuele, 2nd Duke Of Aosta 1869 births 1931 deaths Princes of Savoy Dukes of Aosta Dukes of Apulia Nobility from Genoa Princes della Cisterna Military personnel from Genoa Knights Grand Cross of the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus Recipients of the Order of the Crown (Italy) Knights Grand Cross of the Military Order of Savoy Extra Knights Companion of the Garter Knights of the Golden Fleece of Austria Grand Crosses of the Order of Saint Stephen of Hungary Field marshals of Italy Italian Army generals Italian military personnel of World War I Nobility from Turin Heirs apparent who never acceded Recipients of the Gold Medal of Military Valor Sons of kings