Editing Victor Amadeus II (section)

==Duke of Savoy==
[[File:VictorAmedee dli 0613700230.jpg|thumb|Engraved by Pieter Stevens van Gunst after L. Bourdin, ''Portrait of Victor Amedée II, Duc de Savoye'', early-18th-century engraving]]
Having succeeded in ending his mother's power in Savoy, Victor Amadeus looked to his oncoming marriage with the youngest child of [[Philippe I, Duke of Orléans]] (brother of Louis XIV) and [[Henrietta of England]]. The contract of marriage between Anne Marie and the Duke of Savoy was signed at [[Palace of Versailles|Versailles]] on 9 April; On 10 April 1684, Anne Marie was married at Versailles, by proxy, to Victor Amadeus. The couple were married in person on 6 May 1684.

===The Vaudois===
{{Main|Savoyard–Waldensian wars}}
At the urging of Louis, Victor Amadeus II began a large-scale persecution of the [[Waldensians|Vaudois]] (Piedmontese and Savoyard [[Protestants]]) in 1685. The state had been bankrupted due to various conflicts and a famine in 1679 which had used all last resources.{{sfn|Symcox|1983|p=92}} Due to his alliances with [[Kingdom of England|England]] and the [[Dutch Republic]] during the [[Nine Years' War]], he was forced to cease this practice from 1688, and in 1694 granted an [[Edict of Toleration]]. However, in 1698 Louis XIV forced him to expel all [[Protestant]] immigrants from Savoy in accordance with a treaty of 1696.{{sfn|Storrs|1999|p=147}}

During this period he became anxious to free himself of domination by Louis, and his first sign of independence was his independent visit to [[Venice]] in 1687, where he conferred with [[Prince Eugene of Savoy]] and others. Louis discovered this and demanded that Victor Amadeus launch another expedition against the Vaudois; he grudgingly complied, but as described below soon chose the allies countering France.{{sfn|Chisholm|1911}}

===Internal reforms===
[[File:Portrait of Duke Victor Amadeus II of Savoy, in armour.png|thumb|A portrait presumed to be Victor Amadeus II wearing armour|left]]
Victor Amadeus II undertook sweeping administrative reforms within Savoy. In 1696 he established a system of [[intendant]]s, based on the French model, responsible for collecting taxes and law enforcement. In 1697 he began a land survey which was largely completed by 1711, the Perequazione, to examine the land holdings and privileges of the Church and nobility. In 1717 he reformed the secretariat system in Turin establishing individual secretaries for war, internal affairs and foreign affairs. From the 1670s he also had a new administrative zone built in Turin, around the ducal palace. This zone included a military academy, the ministry of war, a mint, and a customs house. This work was still ongoing upon his death.

Victor Amadeus also undertook a number of military reforms. Often when one of his key fortresses was under attack, he would replace its commanding officer with one of his most reliable and trusted leaders.{{sfn|Storrs|1999|p=29}} In 1690 he established a select militia within his territories, and he later overhauled the militia system in 1714 and strictly codified it. This included an obligation for each region under his rule to provide some men for the militia based on population.{{sfn|Storrs|1999|p=36-37}} From 1713 he also began to establish his own navy based on the limited Sicilian naval forces he had been granted.

Victor Amadeus was able to use the experienced armies he developed in foreign wars to establish more firm control within his territories. Faced with rebellion by [[Mondovì]] at the end of the century, he brought a force of veterans from the Nine Years War there and re-established his authority. He employed a similar strategy against an anti-tax riot in [[Cigliano]] in 1724.{{sfn|Storrs|1999|p=21}}