The fleet traced its origins to the rule of Victor Amadeus II in the early 18th century, who as Duke of Savoy became the King of Sardinia in 1720.

As duke he relied on the one or two galleys and smaller vessels belonging the Order of Saints Maurice and Lazarus and on ducal letters of marque authorizing privateers to operate out of his main ports, Nice and Oneglia.

Victor Amadeus was forced to rely on privateers for the duration of the conflict, but when he gave up Sicily in exchange for Sardinia in 1720 he also received back his fleet.

The kingdom was a small country with a limited budget; it was also surrounded by potentially hostile states, most significantly France and the Austrian Empire, which placed greater demand for spending on the Royal Sardinian Army than for the navy.

The shallow-draft vessels could be used close to shore, where the larger British warships could not easily maneuver, though their small size rendered them vulnerable to bad weather, which kept them from operating through the winter.

Victor Emmanuel embarked on a naval expansion program under the direction of Admiral Giorgio des Geneys, who ordered a series of warships from Italian and British shipyards.

[1][7] Victor Emmanuel did not remain on the throne to see the fruits of his program; revolution in 1821 forced him to abdicate in favor of his brother Charles Felix.

[1][7] The Sardinian success at Tripoli convinced Charles Felix to continue his predecessor's construction program, ordering a number of frigates, corvettes and sloops in the late 1820s.

[1] During this period, the fleet kept warships in the Levant to protect Sardinian interests in the region during the Greek War of Independence, but they saw little activity.

[10] In the 1830s, the fleet sent its warships abroad, frequently to South American waters, to protect Sardinian economic interests in the region.

[12] The Neapolitans were withdrawn after a revolt toppled their government, prompting the Sardinians to send every available vessel of their fleet to reinforce the Italian squadron.

By now, the Sardinian contingent consisted of four frigates, two corvettes, two brigs, and eight steamships, commanded by Vice Admiral Giuseppe Albini.

Following the Vienna Uprising, Albini returned to Venice in October to operate with a French squadron that was at that time passively obstructing the Austrian blockade of the city.

[1][14][15] The appointment of Camillo Benso, Count of Cavour as the Sardinian naval minister in 1850 marked another period of reorganization and construction; he restored discipline in the ships' crews and improved the technical quality of the fleet.

[16][17] To ensure better discipline and aggressiveness in its officer corps, Cavour worked to instill strong nationalist sentiment in the Sardinian naval academy in Genoa.

The powerful French squadron, including six screw ships of the line and three ironclad floating batteries, compelled the Austrians to retreat to Pola.

At the same time, Giuseppe Garibaldi led the Expedition of the Thousand to begin the conquest of the Kingdom of the Two Sicilies, supported by the Sardinians.