Vittorio Emanuele II (Italian: Vittorio Emanuele II, English: Victor Emmanuel II; March 14, 1820 – January 9, 1878 [1]) was the king of Sardinia Piedmont, also known as the Kingdom of Sardinia (reigned from 1849 to 1861). The first king of Italy after unification (1861-1878). The Italians gave him the nickname "Father of the Motherland".
Vittorio Emmanuel II was born in Turin in 1820. In his early years, he received regular monarchy education, emphasizing religious and military training. In 1849, his father abdicated and became king. Appoint Gabriel as Prime Minister. In order to unify and consolidate the kingdom and support the Italian Renaissance movement, he fought against Austria (1859-1861) and achieved victories in the battles of Magenta and Solferino. After his death in 1879, his body was buried in the Pantheon of Rome.

Early experiences
Vittorio Emmanuel became the King of Sardinia in the crucial year of 1849. His family is called the Savoy family, an ancient and prominent Italian family that has had its own territory since the 11th century. The territory of the Duchy of Savoy expanded through generations and finally became the Kingdom of Sardinia in the 18th century. When it comes to Vittorio Emmanuel, it is necessary to mention his father Carlo Alberto. Carlo Alberto made the Kingdom of Sardinia a the center of Italian youth's attention due to his open-minded ideas and clear anti Austrian stance. He declared war on Austria during the peak of the revolution in 1848 and supported Milan's anti Austrian uprising. Despite his failure due to lack of strength, Carlo Alberto was discouraged and abdicated, but the Kingdom of Sardinia has become the hope in the hearts of Italians.
After his father abdicated, 29 year old Vittorio Emmanuel II took over the baton seeking national unity. When he was young, he received strict authoritarian education and tended to strengthen the monarch's dictatorship. However, the test of the revolutionary wave in the 1940s increased his political flexibility, tolerated liberal ideas, and retained the constitution promulgated in 1848, becoming the only country among Italian princes to retain a constitutional form. This was crucial, as only with the support of liberals could the great cause of Italian unification be achieved.

Employ wise officials
In the second year of Vittorio Emmanuel II's reign, a sharp minded and resourceful figure stood out in the cabinet. He was the then Chancellor of the Exchequer, Gabriel. He came from the nobility and was a very successful industrialist. Starting from the founding of the Renaissance newspaper in 1847, he rose to the forefront of the times. In 1852, the king appointed Gabriel to form a cabinet, marking the beginning of their nearly 10-year collaboration. Their cooperation, like that of William I and Bismarck in their time, may seem very successful to outsiders, but only the parties involved can appreciate the ups and downs involved. Gabriel once caused dissatisfaction among the devout king and empress dowager due to his crackdown on church power, and also provoked the king's aversion by urging him to marry France. He even resigned after the signing of the Treaty of Villefranca. However, the two rational politicians still made this cooperation one of the successful examples in world political history.
After becoming Prime Minister, Gavre first carried out reforms aimed at enriching the country and strengthening the military domestically, including rewarding industry, promoting trade, and weakening church power. He allowed a certain degree of freedom of speech, especially allowing newspapers to publish intense anti Austrian articles. At the same time, expanding military resources and increasing the number of troops are clearly preparing for a war. But it is not possible to achieve unity solely with the power of the government of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which is very clear to the monarchs and ministers. For this reason, the Kingdom of Sardinia participated in the Crimean War and engaged in combat with Britain and France, bringing it closer together. In 1858, Gabriel reached an agreement with French Emperor Napoleon III to send 200000 troops to assist in the upcoming Sardinian War. After recapturing Lombardy and Venice, Sardinia would cede Savoy and Nice as compensation.
When the court of Turin was confidently preparing, the people of Mazini were also working hard in another way. He constantly created uprisings and assassinations, but like hitting a rock with an egg, he could only shed heroic tears time and time again in the face of the rock solid old forces. At this time, another folk hero is playing an increasingly important role, and he is Garibaldi. The democratic camp in Italy was unwilling to cooperate with the king and join the government army. Therefore, Garibaldi raised the banner of "volunteer army", absorbed them, and provided them with opportunities to serve the country. The Sardinian government also supported Garibaldi by establishing a volunteer army fund and other means.

Unified process
In 1859, a long-awaited war finally broke out. After enticing the Austrian army to cross the border river, the Sardinian French coalition fought steadily and won the Battle of Macintosh, taking Milan. Garibaldi's volunteer army attacked from the flank, causing many unexpected troubles for the Austrian army, forcing them to retreat to the four fortresses of Vines. At the same time, democratic factions launched uprisings in small states such as Toscana and Parma in central Italy, and pro Austrian regimes were expelled. These small states announced their merger with the Kingdom of Sardinia. At a critical moment, Napoleon III was intimidated by the revolutionary situation in Italy and made peace with Austria alone. The treaty stipulated that Lombardy would be handed over from France to the Kingdom of Sardinia, Venice would still belong to Austria, and the Sino Italian states would still resume monarchy. This was a heavy blow to the Kingdom of Sardinia, but the suffering of his own lack of strength made Victor Emmanuel swallow this tone, while Gabriel protested by resigning. Of course, a few months later, he returned to his position. Savoy and Nice were still given as rewards to the traitors halfway through, but the merger of the Italian states and Sardinia remained unchanged.
In 1860, the Great Uprising of Sicily brought new opportunities for unification. Garibaldi's "Thousand People Volunteer Army" landed in Marsala and rapidly expanded to over 20000 people, occupying Sicily in just over a month. Then, disregarding Gabriel's opposition, Garibaldi crossed the strait to attack Naples. The corrupt and backward Kingdom of Naples could not withstand such a blow and turned into smoke. Later, Garibaldi handed over southern Italy to Vittorio Emmanuel, who was more loyal to the ideal of Italian unity than to the king.
On February 18, 1861, in the parliamentary hall of the Kingdom of Sardinia, Victor Emmanuel ushered in the most glorious moment of his life. The parliament solemnly declared "King Vittorio Emmanuel II to himself and to his descendants the title of King of Italy." However, surprisingly, Vittorio Emmanuel did not change his name to I as the first King of Italy, but continued to be called "Vittorio Emmanuel II" according to the family lineage of the Savoy dynasty.
However, fate played tricks on people. In June of that year, Gavre passed away, and nearly 10 years of high-intensity selfless work had exhausted the 51-year-old superstar's greatest revolutionary capital - his body. Afterwards, the king was never able to find a suitable partner like Gabriel, and the Prime Minister changed quickly. However, fortunately, the international situation was constantly changing, and the unification of Germany also gave Italy the last two generous gifts.

In 1866, the Austro Prussian War broke out, and Italy allied with Prussia to attack Venice under Austrian rule. Despite repeated defeats, Austria's defeat still led to Venice's return to the young Kingdom of Italy. Four years later, Napoleon III's empire was crushed by Prussian chariots, and the Papal States lost their guardians. They were powerless against Italy's attack, and the 1100 year old Roman theocracy came to an end. Pope Pius IX reluctantly gave up all secular rights and retreated to the Vatican. In 1871, the capital of the Kingdom of Italy was solemnly relocated to Rome.
To achieve success and fame
The great cause of unification was basically completed, but Vittorio Emmanuel did not enjoy the pleasure of being king comfortably. The left-wing and right-wing factions continue to struggle in parliament, while Mazini and his successors firmly refuse to cooperate with the monarchy. Local autonomy is actively active, and the Pope incites the Catholic world to isolate Italy, all of which make the king anxious. But everything came to an end in 1878, and Vittorio Emmanuel completed his life journey, solidifying himself in history as a successful emperor. The Savoy dynasty continued to rule Italy until it perished alongside the dictatorship of Mussolini during World War II.