Senate of the Kingdom of Italy

The Senate of the Kingdom of Italy was the upper house of the bicameral parliament of the Kingdom of Italy, established on 17 March 1861 upon Italian unification to replace the Subalpine Senate. It was suppressed on 7 November 1947 and replaced by the present-day Senate of the Republic. Its members were all appointed by the king of Italy.

The Senate of the Kingdom of Italy was created in 1861, following the Unification of Italy, as the direct successor of the Subalpine Senate of the Kingdom of Sardinia, with the addition of members drawn from the territories conquered during the Second Italian War of Independence and the Expedition of the Thousand.

The Senate was initially based at the Palazzo Madama in Turin, until 1864 when it was moved to the Palazzo Vecchio in Florence. Finally, in 1871, it was moved to the Palazzo Madama in Rome.

During the facist regime, there was no "fascistisation" (fascistizzazione) of the Senate equivalent to that carried out in the lower house. Members of the Senate appointed before the March on Rome, such as Einaudi and Croce, retained their seats in the senate. However, in 1939, when the lower house was transformed into the Chamber of Fasci and Corporations, 211 new members were added to the Senate. When Fascism fell on 25 July 1943, the king appointed Paolo Thaon di Revel as the President of the Senate - he entered office on 2 August.

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