The Duchy of Savoy (Italian: Ducato di Savoia; French: Duché de Savoie) was a country in Western Europe that existed from 1416. It was created when Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, raised the County of Savoy into a duchy for Amadeus VIII. The duchy was an Imperial fief, subject of the Holy Roman Empire, until 1792, with a vote in the Imperial Diet. From the 16th century, Savoy belonged to the Upper Rhenish Circle. The main Vulgar languages that were spoken within the Duchy of Savoy were Piedmontese and Arpitan.