Margherita of Savoy
| Princess Margherita | |||||
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| Queen consort of Italy | |||||
| Tenure | 9 January 1878 – 29 July 1900 | ||||
| Born |
20 November 1851 Palazzo Chiablese, Turin, Kingdom of Sardinia |
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| Died | 4 January 1926 (aged 74) Bordighera, Italy |
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| Burial | Pantheon, Rome | ||||
| Spouse | Umberto I of Italy | ||||
| Issue | Victor Emmanuel III | ||||
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| House |
House of Savoy-Genoa (by birth) House of Savoy (by marriage) |
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| Father | Prince Ferdinand, Duke of Genoa | ||||
| Mother | Princess Elisabeth of Saxony | ||||
| Full name | |
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| Margherita Maria Teresa Giovanna di Savoia |
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Styles of Queen Margherita |
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| Reference style | Her Majesty |
| Spoken style | Your Majesty |
| Alternative style | Ma'am |
Princess Margherita of Savoy (Margherita Maria Teresa Giovanna; 20 November 1851 – 4 January 1926), was the Queen consort of the Kingdom of Italy by marriage to Umberto I.
Margherita was born to Prince Ferdinand, Duke of Genoa and Princess Elisabeth of Saxony. Her father died in 1855, and her mother remarried morganatically to Major Nicholas Rapallo.
She was educated by countess Clelia Monticelli di Casalrosso and her Austrian governess Rosa Arbesser. Reportedly, she was given a more advanced education than most princesses at the time, and displayed a great deal of intellectual curiosity. As a person, she was described as sensitive, proud and with a strong force of will without being hard, as well as the ability to be charming when she chose to. To her appearance, she was described as a tall, stately blonde, but was not regarded a beauty.
Initially, she was suggested to marry prince Charles of Romania. In 1867, however, the president of the royal council, L.F. Menabrea, pressed the king to arrange a marriage between Margherita and her cousin, Victor Emmanuel, Prince of Naples, heir to the Italian throne.
Margherita signed the wedding contract with her first cousin Umberto, Prince of Piedmont, on 21 April 1868 in the ballroom of the royal palace in Turin, followed the next day by one civilian and one religious wedding ceremony. After the wedding, the crown prince couple settled in Naples. On 11 November 1869, Margherita gave birth to Victor Emmanuel, Prince of Naples, later Victor Emmanuel III of Italy, in Capodimonte in Naples.
The personal relationship between Margherita and Umberto was not a success in regards to personal feelings; already before their wedding, Umberto was already involved in an affair with his long term lover duchess Eugenia Attendolo Bolognini, and two years after their wedding, the couple reportedly discontinued their marital relations. Their son was therefore to remain their only child. However, they never made their personal separation known to the public, and their relationship was in other aspects quite amiable: Margherita and Umberto worked together harmoniously as colleagues, Umberto even relying on her politically.
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