Kingdom of Sardinia
On 17 March 1861, law no. 4671 of the Sardinian Parliament proclaimed the Kingdom of Italy, so ratifying the annexations of all other Apennine states, plus Sicily, to the Kingdom of Sardinia. The institutions and laws of the Kingdom were quickly extended to all of Italy, abolishing the administrations of the other regions. Piedmont became the most dominant and wealthiest region in Italy and the capital of Piedmont, Turin, remained the Italian capital until 1865, when the capital was moved to Florence. But many revolts exploded throughout the peninsula, especially in southern Italy, and on the island of Sicily, because of the perceived unfair treatment of the south by the Piedmontese ruling class. The House of Savoy ruled Italy until 1946 when Italy was declared a republic by referendum. In this referendum the southern regions, including Sardinia, voted overwhelmingly in favor of the House of Savoy, with the results being 63.8% in favor of maintaining the monarchy.
First Italian War of Independence
At the beginning of 1848, all of Sicily had revolted against the Bourbons and defeated the army of Ferdinand II. A new constitution was approved and on 10 July, the Sicilian Parliament spontaneously elected Ferdinand of Savoy, Duke of Genoa, as their new king. He decided that he had to refuse the offer, given the serious military situation in Savoy at the time. The refusal of the Duke of Genoa led to serious weakening of the Sicilian government, even as a military force departed from Naples, on 30 August 1848, led by Carlo Filangieri, prince of Satriano, who would reconquer Sicily in 1849.