He is remembered for the recovery of the Savoyard state (invaded and occupied by France when he was a child) following the Battle of St. Quentin (1557), and for moving its capital to Turin.

Born in Chambéry, Emmanuel Philibert was the only child of Charles III, Duke of Savoy, and Beatrice of Portugal to reach adulthood.

[4] After the death of his uncle, Henry I of Portugal, on 31 January 1580, Emmanuel Philibert fought to impose his rights as a claimant to the Portuguese throne.

However, he soon realized that he had quite a fragile position due to the claims of Philip II, who gained control of the country, thus uniting Spain and Portugal.

A skilled political strategist, he took advantage of various squabbles in Europe to slowly regain territory from both the French and the Spanish, including the city of Turin.