Il viceré Des Hayes e il governo del Regnum Sardiniae

The research aspires to realize the first monographic study of political and administrative activity of the Earl Vittorio Lodovico d’Hallot Des Hayes, Viceroy of Savoy in Sardinia from 1767 to 1771. This was the crucial moment in the policy of reformation for the Island, starting with Gian Battista Lorenzo Bogino, the Minister for Sardinian Affairs (1759-1773), intent upon increasing bureaucracy on the Island and realizing an administrative centralization. Reconstructing the political activity of Des Hayes allows the controversial studies of this reform politics of the Savoy household to be revised. This required new investigation of the documents regarding these years, correspondence, reports and essays, to realize an efficient wider framework. Des Hayes participated in debates in Cagliari and Turin about reform projects for the Island, disclosing their real efficiency, the modality of their application, and also class involvement, namely nobility and clergy (diocesan and regular) and their feelings about this. First of all, analysis of discussions within the councils reveals that Cagliari was less marginal than what has often considered by historians: Sardinian bureaucrats took an active part in these open discussions, suggesting many concrete and solid state interventions to face political, administrative, economic, feudal, ecclesiastical and cultural problems. Secondly, it results that the viceroy pursued a clear intent of reformation, but with extreme prudence. He found it essential to reconstitute warily, not upset drastically. Therefore, his approach was pragmatic: every reform had to be based on field work, the only way to remove preconceptions and to avoid intervention resulting from rash determination. For this reason, Des Hayes seem to be viceroy who had political freedom, supporting or declining the proposals developed in Cagliari and in Turin after an accurate analysis of their feasibility.