Victor Amadeus II, Italian Vittorio Amedeo II (14 May 1666 – 31 October 1732) was Duke of Savoy from 1675 to 1730. He also held the titles of marquis of Saluzzo, marquis of Monferrato, prince of Piedmont, count of Aosta, Moriana and Nizza. His mother Marie Jeanne Baptiste de Savoie-Nemours was the regent from 1675 to 1684. He first became king of Sicily (1713-1718), but he was forced to exchange this title and instead became king of Sardinia (1720-1730).

Biography

Victor Amadeus was born in Turin to Charles Emmanuel II, Duke of Savoy and his second wife Marie Jeanne Baptiste de Savoie-Nemours.

Internal reforms

Victor Amadeus II undertook sweeping administrative reforms within Savoy-Piedmont. In 1696 he established a system of intendents, based on the French model, responsible for collecting taxes and law enforcement. In 1697 he began a land survey which was largely completed by 1711, the Perequazione, to examine the land holdings and privileges of the Church and nobility. In 1717 he reformed the secretariat system in Turin establishing individual secretaries for war, internal affairs and foreign affairs. From the 1670s he also had a new administrative zone built in Turin, around the ducal palace. This zone included a military academy, the ministry of war, a mint, and a customs house. This work was still ongoing upon his death.

Victor Amadeus also undertook a number of military reforms. In 1690 he established a select militia within his territories, he later overhauled the militia system in 1714 and strictly codified it. From 1713 he also began to establish his own navy based on the limited Sicilian naval forces he had been granted.

Foreign policy

Under his mother's regency Savoy, despite being a state of the Holy Roman Empire, was closely linked to and heavily dependent upon France, essentially becoming a French satellite. Victor Amadeus II broke this link with France by joining alliances against Savoy's neighbour in both the Nine Years War and the War of the Spanish Succession.

Savoy was considered a valuable ally in both wars due to its geographical position, enabling a second front to be opened against France in the south. Savoy relied heavily on foreign subsidies, particularly from England and the Dutch Republic, in both wars to maintain its armies. During the War of the Spanish Succession, foreign subsidies amounted for almost half of the revenue raised by Savoy to fight the war. In the War of the Spanish Succession, Savoy fared particularly badly against the larger French forces resulting in a siege of Turin in 1706 which was only relieved by the intervention of an army of the Holy Roman Empire under Prince Eugene of Savoy.
As a result of his aid in the War of the Spanish Succession, Victor Amadeus II was made King of Sicily in 1713 under the Treaty of Utrecht which ended the war. Victor Amadeus was forced to exchange Sicily for the less important kingdom of Sardinia in 1720 after objections from an alliance of four nations, including several of his former allies. Yet he retained his new title of King. The rule was that there were no kings within the Empire, but if a ruler subject to the Emperor also possessed a large territory outside the Empire he might claim this title as the Elector of Brandenburg had done, styling himself King in Prussia based on his sovereignty over the Duchy of Prussia.

The Vaudois

Victor Amadeus II began a large scale persecution of the Vaudois (Piedmontese and Savoyard Protestants) in 1685. Due to his alliances with England and the Dutch Republic during the Nine Years War, he was forced to cease this practice from 1688, and in 1694 granted an Edict of Toleration.
left|thumb|HRH Anne Marie d'Orleans

Issue

Children of Victor Amadeus II by:

1. Princess Anne Marie d'Orléans (b. 27 August 27, 1669 – † 26 August 1728), daughter of Philippe I of Orléans and his first wife Henrietta Anne Stuart.

2. Anna Teresa Canalis di Cumiana (b. 1679 – † 1769) (morganatic).

3. Jeanne Baptiste d'Albert de Luynes, his mistress (b. 1670 – † 1736)