Royal Palace of Turin

{{Infobox building | name = Royal Palace of Turin | native_name = Palazzo Reale di Torino | native_name_lang = it | image = Torino - Palazzo Reale - 1.jpg | caption = The façade (1646–1660). The top of the dome of the [[Sindone Chapel|Chapel of the Holy Shroud]] is visible on the left. | address = Piazzetta Reale 1 | location_town = [[Turin]] | location_country = Italy | coordinates = {{coord|45.0727|N|7.686|E}} | groundbreaking_date = 1645 | architect = [[Ascanio Vittozzi]], [[Carlo di Castellamonte|Carlo]] and [[Amedeo di Castellamonte]], [[Filippo Juvarra]], [[Benedetto Alfieri]], [[Pelagio Palagi]].<ref>{{cite web|title=Musei Reali Torino|url=https://www.museireali.beniculturali.it/palazzo-reale}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|title=Museo Torino|url=http://www.museotorino.it/view/s/b4ae43ed44ed4bc7923bf0f39d31e82f}}</ref> | website = [https://www.museireali.beniculturali.it/palazzo-reale Musei Reali Torino] | embedded = {{Infobox UNESCO World Heritage Site | WHS = Residences of the Royal House of Savoy | Type = Cultural | Criteria = i, ii, iv, v | ID = 823 | Year = 1997 | Session = 21st | embedded = | child = yes | Link = https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/823 }} | pushpin_map = Italy Turin | pushpin_label = Royal Palace of Turin | architectural_style = [[Baroque]], [[Neoclassical architecture|Neoclassical]] }}

The '''Royal Palace of Turin''' ({{langx|it|Palazzo Reale di Torino}}) is a historic palace of the [[House of Savoy]] in the city of [[Turin]] in [[Northern Italy]]. It was originally built in the 16th century and was later modernized by [[Christine Marie of France]] (1606–1663) in the 17th century, with designs by the Baroque architect [[Filippo Juvarra]]. The palace also includes the [[Palazzo Chiablese]] and the [[Sindone Chapel|Chapel of the Holy Shroud]], the latter of which was built to house the famous [[Shroud of Turin]].

In 1946, the building became the property of the state and was turned into a museum. In 1997, it was placed on the [[UNESCO World Heritage Site]] list<ref>{{cite web|url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/823|title=Residences of the Royal House of Savoy|first=UNESCO World Heritage|last=Centre}}</ref> along with 13 other [[residences of the House of Savoy]].

==History== Construction of the palace was ordered by the [[Regent]] Christine Marie in 1645.<ref>{{cite web|title=a-torino.com|url=http://www.a-torino.com/web/en/torino/palazzo_reale.html}}</ref> She wanted a new residence for the court after her son returned from the civil war.

The chosen location was the previous Bishop's Palace, which had been built in the middle of the new capital of [[Savoyard state|Savoy]], [[Turin]], during the reign of [[Emmanuel Philibert, Duke of Savoy]] (1528–1580). Its advantages included an open and sunny position, in addition to being close to other buildings where the court met.<ref name="italia.it">{{cite web|url=http://www.italia.it/en/travel-ideas/unesco-world-heritage-sites/turin-the-savoy-residences.html|title=Turin, the Savoy Residences|date=23 March 2015|access-date=4 August 2014|archive-date=8 November 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171108081348/http://www.italia.it/en/travel-ideas/unesco-world-heritage-sites/turin-the-savoy-residences.html|url-status=dead}}</ref> The Duke was able to monitor the two entrances of the city (the Palatine and the Pretoria gates) from the Bishop's Palace. The Bishop's Palace in Turin was later captured by the French in 1536 and served as a residence of the French [[Viceroy]]s of Savoy, who were appointed by [[Francis I of France]]. Opposite the Bishop's Palace was the ''Palazzo Vecchio'' or the ''Palazzo di San Giovanni''. This building, disparagingly known as ''Pasta con Tonno'' (English: Pasta with tuna) because of its architecture, was later replaced by the grand Ducal Palace.<ref name="italia.it"/>

Thus the old Bishop's Palace became the seat of power and was greatly expanded by Emmanuel Philibert to house his ever-growing collection of art, animals, marbles, and furniture. Emmanuel Philibert died in Turin in August 1580 and the Savoyard throne was handed down to his son, [[Charles Emmanuel I, Duke of Savoy]] (1562–1630). In celebration of the joint marriages of his daughters [[Margarida of Savoy, Vicereine of Portugal|Princess Margaret]] and [[Isabella of Savoy|Princess Isabella]] in 1608, Charles Emmanuel I commissioned the construction of a ring of porches topped off by an open gallery. His son, the future [[Victor Amadeus I, Duke of Savoy]] (1587–1637), entered into a prestigious marriage when he married the French Princess [[Christine Marie of France]]. Their marriage took place in [[Paris]] at the [[Louvre Palace]] in 1619.

Victor Amadeus I succeeded to the [[Duchy of Savoy]] in 1630. He had previously spent his youth in [[Madrid]] at the court of his grandfather, [[Philip II of Spain]]. His wife set the tone for Victor Amadeus I's reign. Christine Marie had the court moved from the ducal palace in Turin to the [[Castello del Valentino]], which at that time, was on the outskirts of the small capital. Many of Victor Amadeus I and Christine Marie's children were born at Valentino, including [[Francis Hyacinth, Duke of Savoy]] and his successor [[Charles Emmanuel II, Duke of Savoy]]. Christine Marie became the regent of Savoy after the death of her husband in 1637 on behalf of her two sons, who succeeded as dukes of Savoy.

From 1660 to 1663, [[Bartolomeo Caravoglia]] worked on the new decoration of the Royal Palace, where he produced some paintings for the Sala delle Principesse, based on an iconographic plan conceived by [[Emanuele Tesauro]] to celebrate the marriages of members of the House of Savoy to foreign consorts.

During the reign of [[Victor Amadeus II]], the Daniel gallery was created and named after [[Daniel Seiter]], who painted the lavish murals seen there. Victor Amadeus II also had a collection of summer apartments built to look onto the court and a winter apartment overlooking the gardens. His wife was the niece of [[Louis XIV]], born [[Anne Marie d'Orléans]]. [[Louis XV]]'s [[Princess Marie-Adélaïde of Savoy|mother]] and [[Maria Luisa of Savoy|aunt]] were born in the palace in 1685 and 1688, respectively.

The [[Chapel of the Holy Shroud]], the current location of the [[Shroud of Turin]], was added to the structure in 1668–1694.

The Dukes of Savoy became the [[Kingdom of Sicily under Savoy|Kings of Sicily]] in 1713, but they swapped it for the [[Kingdom of Sardinia]] and ruled from 1720 after the [[Treaty of The Hague (1720)|Treaty of The Hague]]. Anne Marie d'Orléans died at the palace in 1728.

[[File:Throne_of_the_King_Turin_Italy.jpg|thumb|right|The King's Throne, seen in 2018]] [[Victor Amadeus III]] married [[Maria Antonietta of Spain]] and the couple preferred to reside in the country in the [[Palazzina di caccia di Stupinigi]]. The Neoclassical style was introduced to the palace in the reign of [[Charles Emmanuel III]]. The palace was overshadowed by the Stupinigi building later on, when [[Victor Emmanuel II]] of Sardinia married [[Maria Adelaide of Austria]]. The palace once again saw some life with the redecoration of some of its rooms.

In 1946, the palace was claimed by the Italian Republic and turned into a "Museum of the Life and Works of the House of Savoy". Its rooms are decorated with rich [[tapestries]] and a collection of Chinese and Japanese vases. The [[Armeria Reale|Royal Armoury]] houses an extensive array of arms, including examples from the 16th and 17th centuries.

The palace houses the ''Scala delle Forbici'', a staircase by Filippo Juvarra. The Chapel of the Holy Shroud, with its spiral dome, was built in the west wing of the palace, joining the [[apse]] (a semicircular recess) of the [[Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist (Turin)|Cathedral of St. John the Baptist]], to house the famous [[Shroud of Turin]], which belonged to the family from 1453 until 1946. The royal gates of the palace have a golden Medusa symbol embossed on them, in order to fend off intruders.

[[Anna Caterina Gilli]] was active as a decorative painter at the palace.<ref>[http://www.pastellists.com/Articles/Gilli.pdf Profile of Anna Caterina Gilli] at the ''Dictionary of Pastellists Before 1800''.</ref>

== See also == * [[List of Baroque residences]]

==References== {{Reflist}}

==External links== {{commons category|Royal Palace (Turin)}} * [https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/823 Residences of the Royal House of Savoy]

{{coord|45.0727|7.686|source:dewiki_type:landmark_region:IT-TO|display=title}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Royal Palace Of Turin}} [[Category:Royal Palace of Turin| ]] [[Category:Palaces in Turin]] [[Category:Residences of the Royal House of Savoy]] [[Category:Historic house museums in Italy]] [[Category:Museums in Turin]] [[Category:National museums of Italy]] [[Category:World Heritage Sites in Italy]] [[Category:Baroque palaces in Italy]] [[Category:Baroque architecture in Turin]]