Crema, Lombardy
By the 1859 Treaty of Zurich which ended the Austro-Sardinian War, Austria ceded Lombardy, including Crema, to France, who then immediately ceded it to Sardinia. This formed part of the "Risorgimento", which saw Sardinia become the Kingdom of Italy in 1861. In 1946, the Kingdom became the modern Italian Republic.
List of marquesses in Italy
The following section contains the list of all Marquessates that have been existing or have existed in the Kingdom of Sardinia. Titles were created through letters patent by the King of Sardinia, who was also King of Aragon since 1326 (actual creation of the Kingdom of Sardinia) to 1500, King of Spain and of Aragon since 1500 to 1713, Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire since 1519 to 1556 and since 1713 to 1720 and Duke of Savoy since 1720 to 1847. The autonomous Kingdom of Sardinia ceased in 1847, when its Parliament asked the King – and obtained – for the unification (Italian: "perfetta fusione") with the other States belonging to him, namely the Dukedom of Savoy, the Principality of Piedmont, the County of Nice and the Dukedom of Genoa. Titles granted after 1847 by the kings of Sardinia, who became also Kings of Italy since 1861, are not listed here.
Feudalism ceased in the years 1838–1840, when fiefs were "redeemed" by the Crown, i.e. bought. Afterwards, titles continued to be recognized as honours, and nothing changed to this regard after the unification of Italy. Since the establishment of the Italian Republic in 1946, titles are not officially recognized anymore and they exist as traditional and historical remains. The main associations that privately protect titles and nobility are the Corpo della Nobiltà Italiana ("body of the Italian nobility", also known as CNI) and the Corpo della Nobiltà Sarda ("body of the Sardinian nobility").