King of Italy 1900-1946

King Victor Emmanuel III (1869-1947), was the grandson of the Italian King Victor Emmanuel II, who had founded the Kingdom of Italy in 1861 and was a native of the House of Savoy. He supported Italy’s attempts to gain colonies in Africa and Italy’s entry into World War I in 1915. As a result of a state crisis, he appointed Benito Mussolini as prime minister in 1922. He supported the establishment and expansion of the fascist dictatorship for a long time, even though he was against entering the Second World War. After Mussolini’s fall in July 1943, he had the “Duce” arrested. With the liberation of Rome by the Allies, he handed over the official functions to his son, Umberto II, but remained king until the end of the monarchy in June 1946.