Victor Emmanuel of Savoy He died this Saturday at 86 years old at his home in Geneva in the company of his family, as confirmed a few hours ago by the Royal House of Savoy. The son of the last king of Italy, Umberto II, was baptized as 'the prince who never reigned', since, in 1946, after a popular referendum, the transalpine country was transformed into a Republic. Although he did not reign, Victor Manuel's life was full of scandals.
During his stay at a Swiss boarding school, the prince clung to alcohol and drug use. Likewise, he made friends that led to his first problems with the law. To the point that he was investigated for an alleged crime of arms trafficking.
Victor Manuel's life also affected the Spanish Royal House. In his documentary 'The heir who never became king', the son of Umberto II confessed what his relationship with the emeritus king was like. “He was very rude to my wife and me when we had disagreements. And I don't know why, because we were always very kind, and he knew it. I was there! We were in exile and we used to shoot at jars and bottles on the beach of Cascais“, he stated in the film.
In his documentary, the prince recounted one of the most controversial episodes of the Spanish monarchy. “Juanito made it big. She shot his brother and killed him. His name was Alfonsito. He didn't shoot her directly, but through a closet. I was there. It was one hundred percent accident, huh? I hid my gun immediately. Otherwise, they would have blamed me again. After that, Franco called him and said: 'I will make him king,'” he said.
The strong episode with the Spanish Royal House does not end here. In May 2004, Víctor Manuel punched Amadeo of Aosta at the dinner before the wedding King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia.
His relationship with Marina Doria
Victor Emmanuel of Savoy and the Olympic water ski champion Marina Doria were secretly married in 1970 in Las Vegas, since the prince's father (King Umberto) did not approve of his first-born's relationship.
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