Editing House of Savoy (section)

=== Early history ===
The name derives from the historical region of Savoy in the [[Alps]] between what is now France and Italy. Over time, the House of Savoy expanded its territory and influence through judicious marriages and international diplomacy.<ref>{{cite book |last=Cox |first=Eugene |title=The kingdom of Burgundy, the land of the house of Savoy and adjacent territories |date=1999 |publisher=[[Cambridge University Press]] |editor-last=McKitterick |editor-first=Rosamond |series=The New Cambridge Medieval History |volume=5, C.1198-C.1300 |pages=365–366 |editor-last2=Abulafia |editor-first2=David}}</ref> The house descended from [[Humbert I, Count of Sabaudia]], also known as Umberto I "Biancamano" (1003–1047 or 1048). The ancestry of Humbert is uncertain, as contemporary documents make no mention of his father. His family was traditionally believed to have come from Saxony;<ref>{{Cite Catholic Encyclopedia|wstitle=Savoy}}</ref> more recent investigations into the 21st century pointed to the [[County of Vienne]], where both Humbert and his relatives held extensive possessions, as a more plausible origin.<ref>Administrative charters of Humbert's family are studied in the thesis Laurent Ripart, « Les fondements idéologiques du pouvoir des comtes de la maison de Savoie (de la fin du Xe au début du XIIIe siècle) », Université de Nice, 1999, 3 volumes, Tome II, p. 496-695.</ref><ref>{{Cite book|language=fr|last1=Ducourthial|first1=Cyrille|chapter=Géographie du pouvoir en pays de Savoie au tournant de l’an mil|title=Le royaume de Bourgogne autour de l'an mil|publisher=Université de Savoie|year=2008|isbn=978-2915797350|url=http://www.mgh-bibliothek.de/dokumente/b/b071315.pdf|pages=223–225|archive-date=7 March 2024|access-date=22 December 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20240307200013/https://www.mgh-bibliothek.de/dokumente/b/b071315.pdf|url-status=dead}}</ref>

[[File:Abbaye royale de Hautecombe II - 200501.JPG|thumb|left|200px|[[Hautecombe Abbey]], where many of the dukes are buried]]
Although [[Sabaudia (Savoy)|Sabaudia]] was originally a poor county, later [[Count|counts]] were diplomatically skilled, and gained control over strategic mountain passes in the Alps. Two of Humbert's sons were commendatory abbots at the [[Abbey of St. Maurice, Agaunum]], on the river [[Rhône]] east of [[Lake Geneva]], and [[Saint Maurice]] is still the patron of the House of Savoy. Humbert's son, [[Otto of Savoy]], succeeded to the title in 1051 after the death of his elder brother [[Amadeus I of Savoy]]. Otto married the Marchioness Adelaide of [[Turin]], bringing the [[Marquessate of Susa]], with the towns of Turin and Pinerolo, into the House of Savoy's possession.<ref>{{Cite Catholic Encyclopedia|wstitle=Piedmont}}</ref> They once had claims on the modern [[canton of Vaud]], where they occupied the [[Château of Chillon]] in Switzerland; their access to it was cut by [[Geneva]] during the [[Protestant Reformation]], after which it was conquered by the [[Canton of Bern]]. Meanwhile, [[Piedmont]] was later joined with Sabaudia, and the name evolved into ''Savoy'' ({{langx|it|Savoia}}).