The term annexation of Savoy to France is used to describe the union of all of Savoy—including the future departments of Savoie and Haute-Savoie, which corresponded to the eponymous duchy—and the County of Nice, which was then an integral part of the Kingdom of Sardinia, with France (Second Empire) in 1860. This union is expressed in the French version of the Treaty of Turin.
Despite the country's history of occupation and annexation by various powers, including the French (from 1536 to 1559, from 1600 to 1601, 1689, and then from 1703 to 1713) and the Spaniards (from 1742 to 1748), the expression in question pertains to the "union" clause outlined in Article 1 of the Treaty of Turin of March 24, 1860. This clause concerns the joint rule of France and the Savoy during the Carolingian Empire. The expression is also used about the "union" clause in Article 1 of the Treaty of Turin of March 24, 1860, which pertains to the historical fact that France and Savoy had been jointly ruled during the Carolingian Empire. This occurred on seven occasions: first, from 749; then, by France during the Revolution from 1792 to 1814; and finally, on five occasions by France between 1860 and 1947.
Terminology
Use of terms
The terminology employed to designate this period is variable, and four terms have become established in usage: "annexation", "union", "cession", and "attachment".
The words "annexation" and "union", preferred to "cession", were used during the 1860 debates by both supporters and opponents of union with the French Empire. However, the term "union" appears in the text of the 1860 treaty. "Article One – His Majesty the King of Sardinia consents to the union of Savoy and the arrondissement of Nice." Indeed, it gives the impression that the populations consent to the decisions of the princes. Professor Luc Monnier, in his book L'Annexion de la Savoie à la France et la politique suisse (1932), notes: "They did not speak of annexing Nice and Savoy, but of consulting the wishes of these two provinces, a more elegant formula that respected propriety." Moreover, Count Cavour seems to have insisted on using the word "union" instead of "cession". The acceptance by the populations of this cession will be highlighted with the results of the April 1860 plebiscite, which marked the definition of the term in 19th-century Larousse: "the acquisition of a territory, a country, with the formally expressed adherence of the populations of that territory, that country".
The expression is frequently written with a capital "A", particularly in certain works. In his book, Histoire de la Savoie en images: images & récits, Christian Sorrel discusses using the capitalized "A" in the context of the region's history. He notes that the history of Savoy, on a large scale, is not exempt from these tensions, as evidenced by the ongoing debates surrounding the millennium of the dynasty, the Revolution, the Annexation, and the Resistance. These words, when capitalized, convey a sense of timelessness, stimulate the imagination, and rekindle passions, which can sometimes be contrived.
The term "union" was also employed during the fiftieth anniversary in 1910. However, during the centennial celebration in 1960, official documents used the term "attachment", which persists during the sesquicentennial celebrations.
Historians specializing in the theme from the Savoyard school of thought, such as Professors Jacques Lovie and Paul Guichonnet, employ the term "annexation." Italian authors, on the other hand, tend to use the term "cessione" ("cession"), which aligns more closely with the legal reality of the situation.
Local usages
The principal urban centers of Savoy have a thoroughfare designated as "Annexation Street." However, the designation is considerably more prevalent in the northern reaches of the region than in the south, where Chambéry, the erstwhile capital of the duchy, has renamed it "General-de-Gaulle Avenue".
History
Prelude: a secret agreement
On July 21, 1858, Emperor Napoleon III and Camille Benso, Count of Cavour, President of the Council of the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia, convened in secret at Plombières to deliberate the prospect of providing military and diplomatic assistance to the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia in its conflict with the Austrian Empire. In return, they proposed the transfer of the Savoyard and Niçois territories to France. Subsequently, a treaty was signed in Turin on January 26, 1859, to formalize the Franco-Piedmontese alliance by Prince Napoleon Jérôme, who married Princess Clotilde of Savoy four days later.
However, on July 7, 1859, following the armistice of Villafranca, Napoleon III renounced Savoy, citing the failure to achieve the desired military objectives. In their departure, the Savoyard population greeted the French troops with enthusiasm for their support of the Italian cause. Witnessing the unraveling of his plans, Cavour was compelled to relinquish power, paving the way for the unpopular Urbano Rattazzi.
Debates on union with France
From August 1859 to January 1860, Savoy was beset by uncertainty regarding its future. In response, liberals mobilized in favor of Savoy's attachment to their sovereigns. Concurrently, a pro-French annexationist party emerged, while in the north of the duchy, the idea of attachment to Switzerland arose.
On July 25, 1859, approximately twenty-five or thirty Savoyard individuals, lacking notable political or economic influence, primarily from Chambéry, led by Dr. Gaspard Dénarié and lawyer Charles Bertier, editor-in-chief of the conservative newspaper Courrier des Alpes, presented an address to King Victor Emmanuel II of Savoy, requesting his consideration of the desires of the ducal province.
The very acts emanated from Your Government proclaim the foundation of an Italian nationality delineated by the Alps as well as by the race, customs, and language of those who are called to be part of it. The aforementioned conditions preclude Savoy from being considered Italian. Consequently, it is uncertain what the future holds for this region. We hope that Your Majesty, who has demonstrated a commitment to the Italian cause, will consider the interests of Savoy in a manner that aligns with its aspirations.
The question words affirm a "Savoyard nationality," as the Revue des deux Mondes reported. This address was the subject of a petition throughout Savoy, marking the beginning of an opinion movement across the country, notably through the Savoyard, Turin, Geneva, and French press.
In the days that followed, on July 28, 1859, in Annecy, a group of approximately a dozen Savoyard deputies, all of whom identified as conservative Catholics, petitioned the government to address the material fate of the province of Savoy.
The government of Urbano Rattazzi sought to mitigate the impact of the Courrier des Alpes by suspending its publication on August 3, 1859. This was in response to the newspaper's call for the residents of Savoy to be granted the same nationality voting rights as those in central Italy. Following a period of suspension, the publication resumed on December 1.
In August 1859, Count Cavour, who was on a period of rest in Switzerland, returned to the Kingdom of Sardinia via Savoy. He seized the opportunity to engage with prominent figures such as General Intendant Pietro Magenta, a democrat who had held the office in Chambéry since 1856 and was disliked by conservatives, as well as anti-annexationists François Buloz, co-founder of the Revue des deux Mondes, and the liberal Albert Blanc, who published La Savoie et la Monarchie constitutionnelle. This visit was followed by that of the king's two young sons, but the reception remained polite, as noted by historians of the period, such as Henri Menabrea. However, the Revue des Deux Mondes, which was anti-annexationist, indicated that the reception given to these young princes had not been as cold as had been claimed, especially in the ultramontane papers of France. Mr. Albert Blanc had refuted this allegation in writing in which he had reduced the separatist movement of Savoy to its proper value.
In the period between December 1859 and January 1860, the government dispatched clandestine emissaries to ascertain the prevailing sentiment among the Savoyard populace regarding the proposed union with the French Empire. "All evidence leads to the conclusion that the Piedmontese regime is profoundly unpopular among the elites, the Church and the general population. The prospect of joining France, a prosperous and powerful country, represents a significant temptation for the Savoyards."
In Turin, Count Cavour returned to power on January 16, 1860, after six months of withdrawal, assuming the role of President of the Council. He was prepared to pursue the unification of Italy: "My task is more arduous and challenging than it was in the past. The objective of uniting the disparate elements that constitute Italy, of harmonizing the disparate regions of the country, presents as many difficulties as a war with Austria and the struggle for Rome."
The Swiss option
In February and March, petitions were circulated in the communes of Chablais and Faucigny, advocating for union with the Swiss Confederation. The petition stated: "A period of union with France spanned several years, and many still evoke a sense of nostalgia when contemplating that era. Since 1848, we have been closely allied with Piedmont. Nevertheless, despite our sympathies for either free Italy or France, other, more profound sympathies lead us to conclude that annexation to Switzerland is the optimal course of action. Indeed, such is our most fervent aspiration, rooted in our exclusive ties with Geneva, our commercial interests, and the myriad advantages that elude us elsewhere." This petition garnered 13,651 signatures across 60 communes of Faucigny, 23 of Chablais, and 13 surrounding Saint-Julien-en-Genevois (cited by Paul Guichonnet).
Those who advocated this solution included the attorneys Edgar Clerc-Biron and Joseph Bard, representing Bonneville, and Henri Faurax, representing Saint-Julien, as well as the surveyor Adolphe Bétemps, representing Thonon. Additionally, the idea was advanced in the Turin Chamber by the deputy Joseph-Agricola Chenal. However, the matter did not persist for an extended period. A limited number of newspapers outside the province disseminated the information. The Journal de Genève published the petition, and the Parisian newspaper La Patrie participated in the discourse by publishing a motion from Savoyards residing in the northern region of the duchy. The reaction of conservatives in favor of maintaining Savoyard unity was prompt, invoking the historical precedent of Bernese domination during the 16th century.
The prospect of a split of Northern Savoy prompted a response from some notable figures, including fifteen personalities from Chambéry. These included lawyer Charles Bertier, Dr. Gaspard Dénarié, Amédée Greyfié de Bellecombe, and deputies Gustave de Martinel, Timoléon Chapperon, and Louis Girod. De Montfalcon, among others, was supported by approximately forty individuals who published a Déclaration on February 15, 1860, denouncing the potential division of Savoy as a violation of its historical and cultural identity. They asserted that such a move would be detrimental to the region's pride and sense of national identity, and would be perceived as an insult to the deeply held values and aspirations of the Savoyard people. They would denounce any proposal for the fragmentation or division of the ancient Savoyard unity as a crime against the fatherland. Some of the signatories were present during the meeting with the Tuileries delegation.
On February 26, 1860, the French government rejected the notion of an autonomous Savoy.
On March 1, 1860, Napoleon III proclaimed to the Legislative Body his intention to claim the gratuity agreed upon at Plombières, namely, the western slope of the Alps mountains, comprising Nice and Savoy, in exchange for his support for Italian unity. On March 8, 1860, the divisional councils, convened in Chambéry, articulated a preference for the preservation of Savoy's territorial integrity, thereby rejecting the proposed partition of Savoy between Switzerland and France.
The treaty and the plebiscite
On March 12, 1860, a clandestine preliminary convention was concluded in Turin, whereby the cession of Savoy and Nice to France was acknowledged. The principle of consulting the population was accepted.
The duchy's divisional councils convened and resolved to dispatch a delegation of 41 Savoyards (nobles, bourgeois, and ministerial officers) in favor of annexation. This delegation was to be led by Count Amédée Greyfié de Bellecombe and would receive a solemn reception at the Tuileries from the Emperor on March 21, 1860.