Umberto II of Italy to serve the new republic. The monarchy of the House of Savoy formally ended on 12 June 1946, and Umberto left the country. Prime Minister Alcide de Gasperi assumed office as Italy's interim Head of State. Umberto and Marie José separated in exile; it had been an arranged marriage of state, following a long tradition of royal families. However, they never divorced, partly for political reasons. Some academics have explored Umberto's possible homosexuality. As early as the 1920s, Mussolini had collected a dossier on his private life for purposes of blackmail. Certainly during the war, newspapers asserted that Umberto was
Funeral of King Edward VII Funeral of King Edward VII The funeral of King Edward VII of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and Emperor of India occurred on Friday, 20 May 1910. The funeral was the largest gathering of European royalty ever to take place, with representatives of 70 states, and the last before many royal families were deposed in World War I and its aftermath. King Edward VII had died on 6 May, and the funeral was held two weeks later. Huge crowds gathered to watch the procession, which passed from Buckingham Palace to Westminster Hall, where a small ceremony was