L'Italo-Americano

www.italoamericano.org 8 THURSDAY, JANUARY 27, 2022 L'Italo-Americano W hile I am w r i t i n g , t h e election s for our thirteenth President are in full swing and, by the look of it, they'll be going on for quite some time. It seems t h e r i g h t m o m e n t , s o , t o d e l v e i n t o t h e h i s t o r y o f power and leadership in the country or, even better, into t h e h i s t o r y o f t h e i r residences. From the year the Unification, when Italy was still a kingdom, to the Ventennio Fascista, all the way to our beloved Republic, our leaders have always had beautiful official homes. But are you familiar with them all? 1861 - The first home o f t h e K i n g o f I t a l y : Palazzo Reale, Turin One of the Savoias' royal residences, Turin's Palazzo R e a l e i s p a r t o f t h e UNESCO World Heritage along with other castles and palaces, all once belonging to the family. Located at the heart of the city, adjacent to Piazza Castello and to the most important streets of t h e h i s t o r i c c e n t e r - V i a Roma, Via Po, Via Garibaldi a n d V i a P i e t r o M i c c a - Palazzo Reale was the first home of unified Italy's head of state, Vittorio Emanuele II. Designed between the e n d o f t h e 1 6 t h a n d t h e b e g i n n i n g o f t h e 1 7 t h century by Ascanio Vittozzi for the Duke of Savoia, it is perhaps better known for the interventions carried out b y b a r o q u e a r c h i t e c t F i l i p p o J u v a r r a i n t h e 1700s. Annexed to it, the Cappella della Sindone, the H o l y S h r o u d C h a p e l , d e s i g n e d b y G u a r i n o Guarini . Today, Palazzo Reale is one of the Musei Reali di Torino, a series of art and history museums l o c a t e d i n k e y S a v o i a locations around the city. 1865 - Away from the A l p s : P a l a z z o P i t t i , Florence The Savoias loved their m o u n t a i n s . T h e y l o v e d Piedmont's cold winters and T u r i n ' s e l e g a n c e a n d proximity to France. They w e r e a c c u s t o m e d t o a lifestyle that involved weekly t r i p s t o t h e i r m a n y c o u n t r y s i d e a n d a l p i n e r e s i d e n c e s . V i t t o r i o Emanuele II, the first king of I t a l y , n e v e r m a d e i t a mystery: he didn't want to move. But governing such a b i g c o u n t r y f r o m s u c h a northern and, at the time, relatively isolated location, w a s n ' t s i m p l e , e s p e c i a l l y because the main issues of e a r l y u n i f i e d I t a l y c a m e from the South. The court n e e d e d t o m o v e f u r t h e r south, this was the advice of V i t t o r i o E m a n u e l e I I ' s political entourage, because p e o p l e n e e d e d t o s e e t h e Savoias loved and cared for a l l o f I t a l y , n o t o n l y f o r P i e d m o n t . A n d s o , w i t h R o m e s t i l l s o l i d l y i n t h e h a n d s o f t h e P o p e , t h e Italian royal court moved, n o t w i t h o u t s o m e d r a m a a n d d e f i n i t e l y p l e n t y o f t e a r s , f r o m T u r i n t o Florence. It was 1865 and the chosen residence was P a l a z z o P i t t i . T o d a y m o s t l y k n o w n f o r i t s c o n n e c t i o n w i t h h i g h f a s h i o n , P a l a z z o P i t t i ' s o r i g i n a l a r c h i t e c t u r a l nucleus dates back to 1458 when it was designed for banker Luca Pitti. It was then acquired by the Medicis and remained a residence of great political importance throughout the 16th, 17th and 18th centuries, as the Grandukes of Tuscany chose it as their home. In 1865, as s a i d , i t b e c a m e t h e m a i n residence of the King of Italy and remained so until 1870, when the kingdom's capital finally moved to Rome. In 1 9 1 9 , K i n g V i t t o r i o Emanuele III donated it to the State. Today, Palazzo Pitti, just like Palazzo Reale in Turin, is a museum. 1870 to today - Finally i n R o m e : P a l a z z o d e l Q u i r i n a l e , P a l a z z o V e n e z i a , P a l a z z o M a d a m a , P a l a z z o Montecitorio, Palazzo Chigi O n c e t h e S a v o i a c o u r t moved to Rome, things took a shape we are more familiar with. They made Palazzo del Quirinale their Roman home. The palace, located on the highest of Rome's Colli, began its existence in the 15th century but was often r e d e s i g n e d t o p l e a s e t h e tastes and demands of its main resident: the Pope. Yes, because before moving to t h e V a t i c a n , p o p e s l i v e d t h e r e , a t t h e Q u i r i n a l e , i n i t i a l l y o n l y d u r i n g t h e s u m m e r t h e n f u l l - t i m e , starting with Pope Paul V Borghese, in 1605. In 1870, after the Breccia di Porta Pia and the annexation of R o m e t o t h e K i n g d o m o f Italy, the Pope packed his - many - and moved to the Vatican. During the Savoia y e a r s , t h a t i s , u n t i l t h e p r o c l a m a t i o n o f t h e R e p u b l i c , P a l a z z o d e l Q u i r i n a l e w a s k n o w n a s R e g g i a d e l Q u i r i n a l e , t o u n d e r l i n e i t s c o n n e c t i o n with the Italian royal family. K e e n o n m a k i n g t h e Quirinale their home, the S a v o i a s h a d p l e n t y o f furniture, paintings, and art objects moved from other r e s i d e n c e s t o t h e p a l a c e , increasing its already rich artistic patrimony. With the proclamation of the Republic in 1946, the Quirinale became the home of our President, and it is still today. Its look, design, and decor have remained virtually unaltered since the S a v o i a s , b u t p l e n t y o f restorative and conservation works have been carried out t h r o u g h o u t t h e y e a r s , t o p r e s e r v e t h e b e a u t y a n d preciousness of the building and of what it contains. B u t 2 0 t h c e n t u r y I t a l y h a d a n o t h e r n o t o r i o u s center of power, Palazzo V e n e z i a . Also known as Palazzo Barbo and located between Piazza Venezia and V i a d e l P l e b i s c i t o , i t w a s built between 1455 and 1467 for Cardinal Pietro Barbo, w h o w a s t o b e c o m e P o p e P a u l I I . I n 1 9 2 9 , B e n i t o M u s s o l i n i , c h i e f o f t h e F a s c i s t p a r t y a n d I t a l i a n dictator, turned it into the party's headquarters: it was from here he'd give his most m e m o r a b l e s p e e c h e s , including that during which h e a n n o u n c e d I t a l y h a d entered the war. After the end of the regime, Palazzo del Quirinale became the i n s t i t u t i o n a l s e a t o f t h e p r e s i d e n t a n d P a l a z z o Venezia was transformed into a museum. W e a l l k n o w t h a t a Republic doesn't only have a p r e s i d e n t , b u t a l s o legislative and gubernatorial powers, each of which has i t s o w n s p e c i a l s e a t . T h e Italian Senate, for instance, m e e t s a t P a l a z z o Madama, built upon the ruins of Nero's bath and is not far from Piazza Navona. The Chamber of Deputies at Palazzo Montecitorio, which takes its name from the gentle hill it was built upon, the Mons Citatorius, created while clearing the area of the Campus Martius, back in Roman times. Last b u t n o t l e a s t , o f c o u r s e , Palazzo Chigi, home to the Italian Prime Minister and located in Piazza Colonna, j u s t l i k e P a l a z z o Montecitorio. From top, clockwise: Palazzo del Quirinale in Rome (Photo: Enrico Della Pietra/Dreamstime), Palazzo Madama in Turin (Photo: Claudiodivizia/Dreamstime) and Palazzo Pitti in Florence (Photo: Antanovich1985/Dreamstime) I Palazzi d'Italia: Italy's institutional palaces, from Turin to Rome CHIARA D'ALESSIO LIFE PEOPLE PLACES HERITAGE

• Cover