Editing Victor Emmanuel III (section)

==Post war and fall of the monarchy==
===Abdication===
{{See also|1946 Italian institutional referendum}}
Within a year of the war's end, public opinion forced a referendum on whether to retain the monarchy or become a republic. In hopes of helping the monarchist cause, Victor Emmanuel formally abdicated in favor of his son, who ascended to the throne as Umberto II on 9 May 1946.

===Abolition of the monarchy ===
This move failed. In the referendum held a month later, 54 per cent of voters favoured a republic, and the [[Kingdom of Italy]] was no more. Some historians such as [[Sir Charles Petrie]], have speculated that the result might have been different if Victor Emmanuel had abdicated in favour of Umberto shortly after the Allied invasion of Sicily in 1943, or at the latest had abdicated outright in 1944 rather than simply transferring his powers to his son. Umberto had been widely praised for his performance as ''de facto'' head of state beginning in 1944, and his relative popularity might have saved the monarchy. The Italian conductor [[Arturo Toscanini]] declared that he would not come back to Italy as a subject of the "degenerate king" and more generally as long as the house of Savoy was ruling;<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=UveVeFi02igC&dq=%22toscanini%22+%22re+degenerato%22&pg=PA292|title=Arturo Toscanini|first=Andrea Della|last=Corte|date=14 June 1981|publisher=Edizioni Mediterranee|via=Google Books}}</ref> [[Benedetto Croce]] had previously stated in 1944 that "as long as the present king remains head of state, we feel that Fascism has not ended, ... that it will be reborn, more or less disguised."<ref>{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Wg-dBgAAQBAJ&dq=benedetto+croce+%22fascismo%22+%22addosso%22&pg=PT360|title=Vittorio Emanuele III|first=Antonio|last=Spinosa|date=2015|publisher=Mondadori|isbn=9788852061165 |via=Google Books}}</ref>

===Exile and death===
In any event, once the referendum's result was certified, Victor Emmanuel and all other male members of the House of Savoy were required to leave the country. Taking refuge in [[Kingdom of Egypt|Egypt]], where he was welcomed with great honour by King [[Farouk of Egypt|Farouk]], Victor Emmanuel died in [[Alexandria]] a year later, of [[pulmonary edema|pulmonary congestion]].<ref>{{cite news |url=http://torino.repubblica.it/cronaca/2017/12/17/news/savoia_sepolti_all_estero_le_ragioni_storiche_e_le_polemiche-184391789/ |title=Il fascismo, le leggi razziali, la fuga |last=Griseri |first=Paolo |newspaper=La Repubblica |access-date=18 December 2017}}</ref> He was interred behind the altar of [[St. Catherine's Cathedral, Alexandria|St Catherine's Cathedral]]. He was the last surviving grandchild of [[Victor Emmanuel II of Italy]]. In 1948, ''[[Time (magazine)|Time]]'' magazine included an article about "The Little King".<ref name="The Little King" />

====2017 repatriation====
[[File:Tomba di Vittorio Emanuele III al Santuario di Vicoforte nella cappella di San Bernardo .jpg|thumb|Tomb of Victor Emmanuel III at the [[sanctuary of Vicoforte]]. The wreath is arranged as the cross of the House of Savoy.]]

On 17 December 2017, an Italian air force military plane officially repatriated the remains of Victor Emmanuel III, which were transferred from Alexandria to the [[sanctuary of Vicoforte]], near [[Turin]], and interred alongside those of Elena, which had been transferred two days earlier from [[Montpellier, France]].<ref>{{cite web |url=https://abcnews.go.com/International/wireStory/remains-exiled-italian-king-returned-70-years-51833720|title=Remains of Exiled Italian King to be Returned after 70 years |last=Winfield |first=Nicole |work=ABC News |access-date=17 December 2017}}</ref>