History of Italy May") and the Constitutional Referendum that abolished the monarchy; De Gasperi briefly became acting Head of State as well as Prime Minister on 18 June 1946, but ceded the former role to Provisional President Enrico de Nicola ten days later. The aftermath of World War II left Italy with a destroyed economy and a divided society. Following Victor Emmanuel III's abdication, his son, the new king Umberto II, was pressured by the threat of another civil war to call a Constitutional Referendum to decide whether Italy should remain a monarchy or become a republic. On 2 June 1946, the republican
Commemorative Medal of the Reign of King Leopold II Commemorative Medal of the Reign of King Leopold II The Commemorative Medal of the Reign of King Leopold II (, ) was a Belgian civilian and later military and police forces medal originally established on 21 July 1905 by royal decree to commemorate the 40th year of the reign of King Leopold II. The medal was initially awarded to civil servants with a minimum of 20 years of honourable service between 1865 and 1905 who were eligible for the Civic Decoration for long service. It was reissued slightly modified (see description below) in 1951 at the request of veterans' groups,