By the union of the crowns of Aragon and Castile, Sardinia became an appendage of the vast Spanish monarchy, and was ruled for two centuries by triennial viceroys sent from Spain. In the war of the Spanish succession, the mountaineers of Gallura having declared them selves for Charles of Austria, an English fleet under Sir John Leake appeared before Cagliari, and the viceroy capitulated, and the islaud acknowledged Charles ; but by the peace of Utrecht in 1713, Charles having resigned his claims to Spain, Sardinia was given to him as emperor. In 1717 Alberoni, the minister of Philip V., sent a large force in the midst of peace, under the Marquis de Lede, which took possession of Sardinia in less than two mouths. By the treaty of London of 1720 Philip was obliged to restore Sardinia, which was fivally given to Victor Amadeus, duke of Savoy, who then assumed the kingly title. From that time the history of Sardinia becomes closely connected with that of the house of Savoy.
In December, 1792, the National Convention, having declared war in the name of the French republic against the king of Sardinia, sent a large fleet under Admiral Truguet to attack the island. The French, who attempted a lauding at Cagliari and Quarto, were repulsed by the natives, who are generally good marksmen, end accustomed to the use of fire-arms. The admiral, after uselessly bombarding the town for several days, re-embarked the soldiers and sailed away.
The king of Sardinia, pleased with his insular subjects, invited them to ask for anything that they might think useful for the island. The Studs demanded, I, the convocation of the stamenti ; 2, the confirm ation of their laws, customs, and privileges ; 3, that all Officei in the island, except that of viceroy, should be held by natives; 4, the establishment of a council to advise the viceroy ; 5, permission to send a minister to reside at Turin and watch over their interests. The Piedmontese ministers however dissuaded the king from listening to the petition ; situations continued to be filled with Piedmontese; and the consequence was that insurrections broko out in 1794 and 1795, and the commander-in-chief and the intendant-general were killed by the people of Cagliari. By the mediation of the archbishop of Cagliari however, and of the Pope, a general amnesty was proclaimed in 1796, and some of the demands of the islanders were granted. Charles Emmanuel IV., driven away by the French from his conti nental states, landed at Cagliari in March 1799, and was received with enthusiasm. The king however returned soon after to the continent, and in 1802 abdicated in favour of his brother Victor Emmanuel, who, having lost all hopes of recovering his continental dominions, repaired to his island kingdom in February 1806, and continued to reside in Sardinia till the fall of Napoleon in 1814.