Torino’s origins lie in Roman military history with Emperor Augustus
building the town around 2000 years ago as a military camp,
stationing his soldiers here to protect the Roman north border.
The structure of the town remained largely unchanged through the centuries until the 15th century. The Savoy Dukedom united the various administrative and political fractions within Piedmont,
and Turin became the Duke’s official residence.
The Savoy government expanded the city by adding massive defensive bastions.
Further expansion came in the late 17th century,
when the old Bishop’s Palace was replaced with the Royal Palace,
and the splendid Piazza Castello got some of its most imposing buildings:
the Church of San Lorenzo, and the Chapel of the famous Holy Shroud.


In the late 18th century, the city came under French rule
when Napoleon invaded Piedmont and took control.
He demolished the old city walls and fortifications to make it more suited to modern warfare.
This radical act enabled the city to expand dramatically in later years.
Although Torino retained its 18th century basic lay-out,
modern expansion took place in all directions, and incorporated the river Po into the town.
Because Torino could now grow freely,
the industrial revolution took a firm grip on the town and turned it into one of Italy’s manufacturing strongholds.
This status was boosted further when in 1861 Torino became the capital of the new United Italy.




Please, visit also Bruna's galleries, clicking HERE