Charles Emmanuel III of Sardinia

Charles Emmanuel III took the Savoyard throne on 3 September 1730 when his father stepped aside. The War of the Polish Succession gave him Lombardy, then took it back in exchange for smaller parcels. When the War of the Austrian Succession arrived, he held Piedmont against a Franco-Spanish force and won at Assietta; the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle in 1748 returned what he'd lost and added more. He wove marriage ties to Spain, then made a cold calculation when the Seven Years War broke out: he stayed neutral, poured energy into administrative reforms, and kept his army sharp. He died 20 February…