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- This article is about the historical region of Savoy. For other uses, see Savoy (disambiguation)
- For the two French départements of the region of Savoy, see Savoie and Haute-Savoie
Savoy (French: Savoie, pronounced /savwa/; Franco-Provençal: Savouè; Italian: Savoia) is a region of western Europe that emerged, along with the free communes of Switzerland, following the collapse of the Frankish Kingdom of Burgundy. Installed by Rudolph III, King of Burgundy, officially in 1003, the House of Savoy maintained independence as counts (see County of Savoy, ca 1000 to 1416) and then dukes (see Duchy of Savoy, 1416 to 1714), until Savoia was linked with the Kingdom of Sardinia, which included Piemonte in north-western Italy. Savoy was largely absorbed into France in 1860, as part of the political agreement with Napoleon III that brought about the unification of Italy.
In modern France, Savoy was part of the Rhône-Alpes region. Articles about the départements of created following annexation by France are to be found as Savoie and Haute-Savoie. The modern separatist / regionalist movements are discussed in the "Annexation and Opposition" section in this article.
The traditional capital remains Chambéry (Chiamberì), on the rivers Leysse and Albane, hosting the castle of the House of Savoy and the Savoyard senate. The state included six districts:
- Savoy proper (capital Chambéry)
- Chablais (capital Thonon-les-Bains)
- Faucigny (capital Bonneville)
- Tarentaise (capital Moûtiers)
- Maurienne (capital Saint-Jean-de-Maurienne)
- Genevois (capital Annecy).
[edit] History
Map of Savoy in the 16th century, white lines are modern borders
The name Savoy stems from the Celtic word Sapaudia, referring to a forest or woodland. It is first recorded in 354.[citation needed]
In 1714, as a consequence of the War of the Spanish Succession, Savoy was technically subsumed into the Kingdom of Sicily, then (after that island was traded to Austria for Sardinia) the Kingdom of Sardinia from 1720.
It is worth noting that the seat of the Savoyards remained in Turin, in Piedmont, and the name change was really just a political maneuver designed to secure a change in the state's status from duchy to kingdom. Sardinia was economically and politically moribund in comparison to Savoy and Piedmont, but traditionally had the title "King" associated with its possession (Regnum Sardiniae et Corsicae), hence the renaming.
[edit] French occupation
Savoy was occupied by France's revolutionary forces between 1792 and 1815. The region was first added to the département of Mont Blanc, then in 1798 was divided between the départements of Mont Blanc and Léman (French name of Lake Geneva.)
On September 13, 1793 the combined forces of Savoy, Piedmont and Valdot fought the occupying French forces at the Battle of Méribel (Sallanches).
[edit] Annexation and opposition
Savoy was annexed by France on March 24, 1860. This followed a plebiscite in which the people were offered the option of joining France or joining the new Italian state; the disallowed options of either joining Switzerland (with which the region had close ties), or of regaining its independence, were the source of some opposition. With a 99.8% vote in favour of joining France, there were also allegations of vote-rigging.
Some opposition to French rule was manifest when, in 1919, France officially (but contrary to the annexation treaty) ended the military neutrality of the parts of the region that had originally been agreed at the Congress of Vienna, and also eliminated the free trade zone - both treaty articles having been broken unofficially in World War I.
For reasons such as these, there is currently a peaceful separatist movement in the départements, as well as a faction in favor of greater regional powers.
The Mouvement Région Savoie (Savoy Regional Movement) was founded in December 1971 as a 'movement' (rather than a traditional political party) in favour or regional autonomy. In the 1996 local elections the Savoie Regional Movement received 19,434 votes.
In the March 1998 regional elections, 1 seat (out of 23) was won by Patrice Abeille, leader of the Ligue Savoisienne (Savoie League, founded 1994) which two years earlier had set up a 'provisional Savoie government'. The League gathered a total of 17,865 votes across the two départements. In the same elections a further 4,849 voted in favor of the Savoie Movement.
As a result of the regional debate sparked by the political advances, the non-party organisation La Région Savoie, j’y crois ! (I believe in the Savoy Region!), was founded in 1998. The organisation campaigns for the replacement of the Savoie and Haute-Savoie départements with a regional government, separate from the Rhône-Alpes region, with greater devolved powers. According to surveys conducted in 2000, between 41% and 55% of the population are in favor of the proposal. 19% to 23% were in favor of separation from France.
Since 2001, no activities.
[edit] See also
- House of Savoy
- List of active autonomist and secessionist movements
[edit] External links
