Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour
In November 1854, he sent a letter to King Victor Emmanuel II and admonished him to oppose the confiscation of church property and suppression of the orders, but the King failed to respond. His actions, which had been described by the Italian historian Roberto Petoia as having "manifest blackmailing intentions", ended only after the intervention of Prime Minister Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour. The king's family suffered several deaths in a short period. From January to May 1855, the king's mother (age 54), wife (32), newborn son (Vittorio Emanuele, Count of Genoa; nearly four months old), and his only brother (32) all died.