Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont

The Kingdom of Sardinia-Piedmont, which included the island of Sardinia and parts of northern Italy, was established in 1720. It managed to stay independent of France and Spain, two major imperialistic powers of the time. In 1801, Napoleon annexed it to France, but after his defeat in 1815, it once again became independent. In 1848, King Charles Albert granted the country a constitution. However, that same year, he was defeated by the Austrians and forced to abdicate in favor of his son, Victor Emmanuel II. Twelve years later, Sardinia-Piedmont united with central Italy, and in 1861, southern Italy joined the new state through the efforts of Giuseppe Garibaldi, thus creating the united country of modern Italy under the rule of King Victor Emmanuel II.