A monarch caught between constitutional authority and responsibility for Fascism
On 25 July 1943, he dismissed Mussolini, had him arrested, and appointed Badoglio to head a new government.
As king of Italy, he presided over the decline of liberal constitutionalism, the consolidation of the Fascist state, and two world wars. He approved Mussolini's seizure of power, colonial wars, the racial laws, and entry into the Second World War, making the monarchy a participant in Fascist rule. In July 1943 he dismissed Mussolini and appointed Pietro Badoglio, using the crown's constitutional powers to open a legal route for governmental change, but his flight from Rome after the armistice left the armed forces and state in disarray. He abdicated in 1946 after the monarchy failed to recover its legitimacy.
Also known as: Vittorio Emanuele III · Victor Emanuel III
Activities and affiliations
Career Timeline
- 1889Began service as an officer in the Italian Army
- 1900Became King of Italy
- 1915King as Italy entered the First World War
- 1922Invited Mussolini to form a government
- 1936Proclaimed Emperor of Ethiopia
- 1940Entered the Second World War on the Axis side
- 1943Dismissed Mussolini and appointed the Badoglio government
- 1946Abdicated and went into exile in Egypt
Related historical events
Enabling Mussolini's appointment in 1922
In October 1922, as Fascist forces threatened a march on Rome and the government prepared martial law, Victor Emmanuel III refused the signature needed to proclaim it. The cabinet resigned, and the king appointed Mussolini prime minister. Rather than use his constitutional authority to block the Fascist threat, this decision gave the movement a legal route into government. The king said he had sought to prevent civil war, but his choice decisively helped bring the Fascists to power.