Teenage Instagram queen anointed heir to Italy's royal family after succession law changed

A teenage girl living in Paris who has 40,000 followers on Instagram has been anointed the heir to the Italian monarchy - even though the crown has been defunct since the end of the Second World War.

Vittoria di Savoia, a 17-year-old schoolgirl, represents the fresh-faced younger generation of the House of Savoy, an ancient royal lineage which provided Italy’s kings from unification in the 19^th century to the abolishing of the monarchy in 1946.

Despite being sent into exile for decades, the family has never quite given up hope that they might one day be reinstated to the throne – despite the fact that there is currently scant support for such a restoration.

Now Prince Vittorio Emanuele, the son of Italy’s last king, has changed an ancient custom known as the Salic Law, which had stipulated that the royal line could only pass to male heirs.

It means that Vittoria, his grand-daughter, is now second in line after her father Prince Emanuele Filiberto, who is well known in Italy for having taken part in a local version of Dancing with the Stars.

He is also an entrepreneur and set up a food truck in Los Angeles, naming it The Prince of Venice after one of his many titles.

The change to the succession rules has provoked the ire of a rival branch of the royal dynasty, the Dukes of Aosta, who have long jostled with their cousins for primacy over the House of Savoy name.

There has been bad blood between them for years – in 2004, Prince Vittorio Emanuele was involved in a dust-up at a Spanish royal wedding in which he allegedly punched his cousin and rival, Duke Amedeo of Aosta.

The Aostas have condemned the repeal of the Salic Law and the change to the rules of succession as illegitimate.

That criticism does not faze Prince Emanuele Filiberto, who says that reforming the succession law is simply keeping up with the times, a way of recognising gender equality.

“It’s true that the monarchy does not exist in Italy anymore, but never say never. Look at what happened in Spain, when the king was restored after the Franco dictatorship. You never know,” he told The Telegraph from his home in Monte Carlo.

Once she finishes school, Vittoria will study economics, philosophy and art at the University of London.

The experience could make her “just a little bit British,” the prince jokes, saying that The Crown and the saga of Harry and Meghan has helped raise interest in all royal families, including Italy’s.

In the meantime, his daughter – the eldest of two sisters - is being groomed to inherit the leadership of the House of Savoy by her father, who calls her the “rock n’ roll princess” for her interest in fashion and social media.

“We’re one of the oldest royal families in Europe, with more than 1,000 years of history. She will be a guardian of that heritage and will also run our charities, which do important work in Italy, like taking underprivileged kids in Naples, Rome and Turin to theatres and museums,” he said.

Vittoria, whose mother is the French actress Clotilde Courau, will one day be head of the Savoy’s dynastic order, which counts 3,000 knights among its members.

“She’s a young girl and I’m sure she’ll be able to bring modernity to the institution. There are lots of female heads of royal families now and in Britain you have the most outstanding example – the Queen has been a wonderful leader of the House of Windsor all these years,” the prince said.

The Aosta branch of the royal dynasty argue that any changes to the rules of succession should only be allowed once the monarchy is restored – which for now seems a very distant prospect.

One of the scions of the Aosta branch, Prince Aimone, has two sons so the principle of male-only succession suits the family well.

“I would rather not stoke the controversy,” the prince, who works as a manager for the tyre-manufacturing firm Pirelli in Moscow, told Corriere della Sera last year.

“Realistically I don’t believe the monarchy will return to Italy, although one cannot predict the future or exclude anything.”

Despite the bitter feud, Prince Emanuele Filiberto says he tries to be magnanimous to his upstart cousins.

“I really have nothing against the Aostas,” he said. “It was our branch that was recognised by the Italian Republic, not their junior branch. I have invited them to come and work with us. It is a sad situation – mainly for them.”