Turin
last update: 20 Nov. 2019
For the moment this webpage on Turin covers a quick visit we made to the city in September 2019.
We have also prepared a small series of reports:-
On the hotel we stayed in, the 5-star 'Principi di Piemente' in the centre of Turin
On the restaurant 'Del Cambio'
On the Mole Antonelliana.
Our hotel, the restaurant, and the Mole Antonelliana are all in the traditional city centre.
A bit of history
Turin was
The transformation of the city centre during the latter part of the 1800's and early part of the 1900's was due to two major evolutions:-
Firstly, the change of the old Italian capital into an industrial centre.
Secondly, the 'resanamento' of areas that were considered morally and physically 'degradati' (degraded) according to the urbanisation law of Naples of 1885 (introduced after a cholera epidemic).
The result was the creation of new access roads, the widening of the major roads, and the building of 'borghesi' residences and commercial buildings. The transformation included the integration of prestigious Barocco buildings around Palazzo Reale, Piazza Castello, Piazza San Carlo, and Porta Nuova. This resulted in the destruction of both the old fortification and a saturated area of small commercial premises around via Roma. What emerged were large commercial buildings and grand religious monuments. The result was also a clear separation between Piazza San Carlo, Piazza Castello, and Piazza Carlo Felice.
These changes were some of the most important made in the city centre, and once started in 1861 they were only concluded in 1936. A multitude of small commercial premises were replaced by 'complessi piacentiniani'. This was not just the occasional construction of as piece of modern architecture, but was a historically significant change to the entire city centre.
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