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Why did Charles Albert abdicate after the Battle of Novara in 1849?
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unification of Italy
The unification of Italy. The dates are those of annexation, first to Sardinia-Piedmont and after 1861 to the Kingdom of Italy.
Charles Albert, the king of Sardinia-Piedmont, abdicated following his decisive defeat at the Battle of Novara on March 23, 1849.12
Seeking to vindicate his earlier military failures against Austria, Charles Albert had denounced the existing armistice on March 12, 1849, and resumed hostilities. However, the Piedmontese forces were thoroughly defeated by the Austrian army under Field Marshal Joseph Radetzky, whose military superiority and better-trained troops proved decisive.132
Facing this crushing defeat and the collapse of his campaign to lead the unification of Italy, Charles Albert abdicated in favor of his son, Victor Emmanuel II, and subsequently went into exile in Portugal.12