Philip was the granduncle of the previous duke
Charles II, and the youngest surviving son of Duke
Louis of Savoy and
Anne of Cyprus. However, he was not the
heir general of the previous duke, there being several females before him in the
line of succession. To ensure male inheritance to the Savoy line, his eldest son Philibert was married to his cousin, the only sister of the deceased young Duke. However, the plan did not succeed: the girl died at age twelve. (Philip had already died in the meantime.) The children of the daughters of Philip's eldest brother Duke
Amedeo IX of Savoy were next in line, and were entitled to the inheritance of the line of
heirs-general, including Cyprus and Jerusalem. Despite the fact that Cyprus and Jerusalem did not bar succession in female line, Philip took those claims and used those titles as well. His male successors in Savoy also continued to do so, thus giving their ducal title a higher, royal titulary. He spent most of his life as a junior member of the ducal family. His original
apanage was the district of
Bresse, close to the French and Burgundian border, but it was lost and therefore Philip received his sobriquet "the Landless", or "Lackland". ==Family==