King Paolo I of Tavolara

King of Tavolara: 1845 - 1886
Predecessor: Giuseppe
Successor: Carlo I

Son of Giuseppe Bertoleoni and Laura Ornano, born 1815. In 1839 he visited King Charles Albert in Turin and obtained a royal charter to Tavolara. During this period, the Italian patriot Giuseppe Garibaldi was associated with the Bertoleoni family, often visiting Paolo's relatives on the islands of La Maddalena and Caprera. After the creation of the Italian Kingdom in 1861, Paolo pressed and obtained recognition for Tavolara from Victor Emmanuel II. After he fell ill in 1882, his wife Pasqua Favale acted as regent until his death on May 30, 1886. A number of newspapers published the report that on his deathbed he asked that the kingdom die with him, and that his family therefore established a republic. These reports, however, were erroneous.