 Furthermore, it proved a valuable training ground for large-scale amphibious operations–lessons that would be essential for the invasion of Normandy.Following some political agitation, Sicily became an autonomous region in 1946 under the new Italian constitution, with its own parliament and elected President.The latifundia (large feudal agricultural estates) were abolished by sweeping land reform mandating smaller farms in 1950–1962, funded from the "Cassa per il Mezzogiorno", the Italian government's development Fund for the South (1950–1984).