Reggia di Venaria Reale – Venaria, Piedmont

Reggia di Venaria Reale (Palace of Venaria Reale) is one of the palaces of the House of Savoy, located in Venaria Reale. Reggia di Venaria Reale was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. In 2018, it recorded over 1 million visitors, making it the seventh most visited Italian museum.   SHORT HISTORY OF REGGIA DI VENARIA REALE Around the middle of the 17th century, Carlo Emanuele II, Duke of Savoy, wanted to make a base for hunting trips in the Turin hills. For this, he chose an area in the Lanzo Valleys (Valli di Lanzo), favored by the proximity of the woods known as the Great Country (Gran Paese), very rich in game. He bought the two small villages of Altessano Superiore and Altessano Inferiore from the Birago family, and comissioned the construction of the complex to the architects Amedeo di Castellamonte and Michelangelo Garove. The works started in 1658 and were completed around 1675. After the French destroyed some buildings on October 1, 1693, Vittorio Amedeo II, son of Carlo Emanuele II, commissioned a further intervention to the palace. During the siege of 1706, when the French of Louis d’Aubusson de la Feuillade took up residence Read more […]
Reggia di Venaria Reale (Palace of Venaria Reale) is one of the palaces of the House of Savoy, located in Venaria Reale. Reggia di Venaria Reale was included in the UNESCO World Heritage List in 1997. In 2018, it recorded over 1 million visitors, making it the seventh most visited Italian museum.   SHORT HISTORY OF REGGIA DI VENARIA REALE Around the middle of the 17th century, Carlo Emanuele II, Duke of Savoy, wanted to make a base for hunting trips in the Turin hills. For this, he chose an area in the Lanzo Valleys (Valli di Lanzo), favored by the proximity of the woods known as the Great Country (Gran Paese), very rich in game. He bought the two small villages of Altessano Superiore and Altessano Inferiore from the Birago family, and comissioned the construction of the complex to the architects Amedeo di Castellamonte and Michelangelo Garove. The works started in 1658 and were completed around 1675. After the French destroyed some buildings on October 1, 1693, Vittorio Amedeo II, son of Carlo Emanuele II, commissioned a further intervention to the palace. During the siege of 1706, when the French of Louis d'Aubusson de la Feuillade took up residence in the palace, the palace was again damaged. Vittorio Amedeo II, after the death of Michelangelo Garove, entrusted the renovation of the palace to Filippo Juvarra, who also built structures such as the stable (Scuderie Juvarriane) and the Church of Sant'Uberto (Chiesa di Sant'Uberto). In 1739, three years after Juvarra's death, Carlo Emanuele III entrusted Benedetto Alfieri with the task of expanding the stable and building communication galleries between the structures of the complex. During the Napoleonic domination, Reggia di Venaria Reale underwent serious transformations. The gardens were destroyed to make a parade ground and the entire complex was transformed into barracks. Starting with that period and until 1978, the palace was used for military purposes, causing its progressive deterioration. Only in 1978, the palace was handed over to the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape (Soprintendenza Archeologia, Belle Arti e Paesaggio) for restoration works. The impressive restoration work began in 1998, with the release of national and European funds. The works, equal to a cost of over 280 million €, concerned about 250,000 square meters of buildings and 800,000 square meters of gardens. The complex was reopened on October 13, 2007.   ART AND ARCHITECTURE OF REGGIA DI VENARIA REALE Through the main entrance, guarded by the Clock Tower (Torre dell’Orologio), you enter the Court of Honour (Corte d'Onore). To the right, there is a building known as Castelvecchio (Old Castle). In front, there is the main facade of the palace, built in the 17th century. To the left, there is the 18th-century wing. The left side of the complex presents the intervention of the second court architect, Michelangelo Garove, who built the two towers which were later united by a large gallery known as Galleria Grande (Grand Gallery). The Hall of Diana (Sala di Diana), located in the 17th-century body, is a rectangular room, decorated with stuccoes and paintings dedicated to hunting. These include the frescoed vault representing Olympus, which pictures Jupiter offering a gift to Diana, huge equestrian portraits of the dukes and the court, and hunting-themed canvases by Jan Miel. The centerpiece of the 18th-century wing is Galleria Grande, which is decorated with stuccos, has 44 arched windows, and a black and white tiled floor. The Juvarrian Stables (Scuderie Juvarriane) consist of a large atrium which overlooks the gardens, and a large vaulted room divided in two by a wall - Scuderia Grande (Large Stable) on the north side, and Citroneria (Orangery) on the south side. The gardens disappeared since Napoleon transformed them into a parade ground. However, recent works recreated a beautiful park, exhibiting modern works by Giuseppe Penone. In 2019, the garden of Reggia di Venaria was elected the most beautiful public park in Italy.   TIP: If you would like to discover more about Reggia di Venaria Reale, take a private tour of the complex, and you won't regret it.    HOW TO GET TO REGGIA DI VENARIA REALE Reggia di Venaria Reale is located about 850 meters away from the Venaria Reale railway station. The closest bus stop is located about 270 meters away from the main entrance to the palace, on the bus Lines 3991 and Venaria Express. The Venaria Express bus service connects Turin with Venaria Reale, and the Park of La Mandria (Parco della Mandria). The line is active every day, except on Mondays.

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