Turin

History

Ancient origins

The Taurini were an ancient Celto-Ligurian, Alpine people, who occupied the upper valley of the River Po, in the centre of modern Piedmont. In 218 BC, they were attacked by Hannibal as he was allied with their long-standing enemies, the Insubres. The Taurini chief town (Taurasia) was captured by Hannibal's forces after a three-day siege. As a people they are rarely mentioned in history. It is believed that a Roman colony was established after 28 BC under the name of Julia Augusta Taurinorum (modern Turin). Both Livy and Strabo mention the Taurini's country as including one of the passes of the Alps, which points to a wider use of the name in earlier times.

Roman era

In the 1st century BC, the Romans founded Augusta Taurinorum. Via Garibaldi traces the exact path of the Roman city's decumanus which began at the Porta Decumani, later incorporated into the Castello or Palazzo Madama. The Porta Palatina, on the north side of the current city centre, is still preserved in a park near the cathedral. Remains of the Roman-period theatre are preserved in the area of the Manica Nuova. Turin reached about 5,000 inhabitants at the time, all living inside the high city walls.

Middle Ages

After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, the town, along with the rest of the Italian peninsula, was conquered by the Heruli and the Ostrogoths, recaptured by the Romans, but then conquered again by the Lombards whose territory then fell into the hands of the Franks under Charlemagne (773). The Contea di Torino (countship) was founded in the 940s and was held by the Arduinic dynasty until 1050. After the marriage of Adelaide of Susa with Humbert Biancamano's son Otto, the family of the Counts of Savoy gained control. While the title of count was held by the Bishop as count of Turin (1092–1130 and 1136–1191) it was ruled as a prince-bishopric by the Bishops. In 1230–1235, it was a lordship under the Marquess of Montferrat, styled Lord of Turin. At the end of the 13th century, when it was annexed to the Duchy of Savoy, the city already had 20,000 inhabitants. Many of the gardens and palaces were built in the 15th century when the city was redesigned. The University of Turin was also founded during this period.

Early modern

Emmanuel Philibert, also known under the nickname of Iron Head (Testa 'd Fer), made Turin the capital of the Duchy of Savoy in 1563. Piazza Reale (named Piazza San Carlo today) and Via Nuova (current Via Roma) were added along with the first enlargement of the walls, in the first half of the 17th century; in the same period the Palazzo Reale (Royal Palace of Turin) was also built. In the second half of that century, a second enlargement of the walls was planned and executed, with the building of the arcaded Via Po, connecting Piazza Castello with the bridge on the Po through the regular street grid.

In 1706, during the Battle of Turin, the French besieged the city for 117 days without conquering it. By the Treaty of Utrecht the Duke of Savoy acquired Sicily, soon traded for Sardinia, and part of the former Duchy of Milan, and obtained the title of King of Sardinia; thus Turin became the capital of a European kingdom. The architect Filippo Juvarra began a major redesign of the city; Turin had about 90,000 inhabitants at the time.

Late, modern, and contemporary

Turin, like the rest of Piedmont, was annexed by the French Empire in 1802. The city thus became the seat of the prefecture of Pô department until the fall of Napoleon in 1814, when the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia was restored with Turin as its capital. In the following decades, the Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia led the struggle towards the unification of Italy. In 1861, Turin became the capital of the newly proclaimed united Kingdom of Italy, having been the political and intellectual centre of the Risorgimento movement.

In 1865, the capital was moved to Florence, and then to Rome after the 1870 conquest of the Papal States.

The 1871 opening of the Fréjus Tunnel made Turin an important communication node between Italy and France. The city in that period had 250,000 inhabitants. Some of the most iconic landmarks of the city, such as the Mole Antonelliana, the Egyptian Museum, the Gran Madre di Dio church and Piazza Vittorio Veneto, were built in this period.

The late 19th century was also a period of rapid industrialisation, especially in the automotive sector: in 1899 Fiat was established in the city, followed by Lancia in 1906. The Universal Exposition held in Turin in 1902 is often regarded as the pinnacle of Art Nouveau design, and the city hosted the same event in 1911. By this time, Turin had grown to 430,000 inhabitants.

After World War I, harsh conditions brought a wave of strikes and workers' protests. In 1920 the Lingotto Fiat factory was occupied. The Fascist regime in Italy put an end to the social unrest, banning trade unions and jailing socialist leaders, notably Antonio Gramsci. On the other hand, Benito Mussolini largely subsidised the automotive industry, in order to provide vehicles to the army.

Turin was a target of Allied strategic bombing during World War II, being heavily damaged by the air raids in its industrial areas as well as in the city centre. Along with Milan, Genoa, and La Spezia, Turin was one of Italy's four cities that suffered area bombing by the RAF; the heaviest raid took place on 13 July 1943, when 295 bombers dropped 763 tons of bombs, killing 792 people. Overall, these raids killed 2,069 inhabitants of Turin, and destroyed or damaged 54% of all buildings in the city.

Geography

Turin is in northwest Italy. It is surrounded on the western and northern front by the Alps and on the eastern front by a high hill that is the natural continuation of the hills of Monferrato. Four major rivers pass through the city: the Po and three of its tributaries, the River Dora Riparia (once known as Duria Minor by the Romans, from the Celtic noun duria, 'water'), the Stura di Lanzo and the Sangone.

Climate

Located in northwestern Italy at the foot of the Alps, Turin features a mid-latitude, four seasons humid subtropical climate (Köppen: Cfa), similar to that of Grenoble, located not far away in the French Alps.

Winters are moderately cold and dry; summers are mild in the hills and quite hot in the plains. Rain falls mostly during spring and autumn; during the hottest months, otherwise, rains are less frequent but heavier (thunderstorms are frequent). During the winter and autumn months banks of fog, which are sometimes very thick, form in the plains but rarely on the city because of its location at the end of the Susa Valley. Snowfalls are not uncommon during the winter months, though substantial accumulation is quite uncommon.

Its position on the east side of the Alps makes the weather drier than on the west side because of the föhn wind effect.

The highest temperature ever recorded was 37.1 °C (98.8 °F) on 11 August 2003, and the lowest was −21.8 °C (−7.2 °F) on 12 February 1956.

Demographics

As of 2026, the population is 855,654, of which 48.4% are male, and 51.6% are female. Minors make up 13.4% of the population, and seniors make up 26.1%.

Immigration

As of 2025, immigrants make up 18.7% of the total population. The 5 largest foreign countries of birth are Romania, Morocco, Peru, Albania, and Egypt.

Administration

Turin is split up into 8 boroughs, locally called circoscrizioni; these do not necessarily correspond to the historical districts of the city, which are rather called quartieri, rioni, borghi, borgate or zone. The circoscrizioni system originally comprised 10 of them, that were reduced to 8 by merging borough 9 into 8, and 10 into 2.

The following list enumerates the boroughs and the location of the historical districts inside them:

Circoscrizione 1: Centro – Crocetta

Circoscrizione 2: Santa Rita – Mirafiori Nord – Mirafiori Sud

Circoscrizione 3: San Paolo – Cenisia – Pozzo Strada – Cit Turin – Borgata Lesna

Circoscrizione 4: San Donato – Campidoglio – Parella

Circoscrizione 5: Borgo Vittoria – Madonna di Campagna – Lucento – Vallette

Circoscrizione 6: Barriera di Milano – Regio Parco – Barca – Bertolla – Falchera – Rebaudengo – Villaretto

Circoscrizione 7: Aurora – Vanchiglia – Sassi – Madonna del Pilone

Circoscrizione 8: San Salvario – Cavoretto – Borgo Po – Nizza Millefonti – Lingotto – Filadelfia

The mayor of Turin is directly elected every five years. The current mayor of the city is Stefano Lo Russo (PD), elected in 2021.

Cityscape

City centre

Turin's historical architecture is predominantly Baroque and was developed under the Savoyard state. Nonetheless, the main street of the city centre, Via Roma, was built during the Fascist era (from 1931 to 1937) as an example of Italian Rationalism, replacing former buildings already present in this area.

Via Roma runs between Piazza Carlo Felice and Piazza Castello. Buildings on the portion between Piazza Carlo Felice and Piazza San Carlo were designed by rationalist architect Marcello Piacentini. These blocks were built into a reticular system, composed by austere buildings in clear rationalist style, such as the impressive Hotel Principi di Piemonte and the former Hotel Nazionale in Piazza CLN. Porches are built in a continuous entablature and marked with double columns, to be consistent with those of Piazza San Carlo. The section of the street between Piazza San Carlo and Piazza Castello was built in an eclectic style, with arcades characterised by Serliana-type arches. To this day Via Roma is the street featuring the most fashionable boutiques of the city.

Via Roma crosses one of the main squares of the city: the pedestrianised Piazza San Carlo, built by Carlo di Castellamonte in the 17th century. In the middle of the square stands the equestrian monument to Emmanuel Philibert, also known as Caval ëd Brons in the local dialect ('Bronze Horse'); the monument depicts the Duke sheathing his sword after the Battle of St. Quentin. Piazza San Carlo arcades host the most ancient cafés of the city, such as Caffé Torino and Caffé San Carlo.

At the northern end of Via Roma stands Piazza Castello, regarded as the heart of the city. The half-pedestrianised square hosts some significant buildings such as Palazzo Reale (Former Savoy Royal House), the Palazzo Madama (which previously hosted the Savoy senate and, for few years, the Italian senate after Italian unification), the former Baroque Teatro Regio di Torino (rebuilt in modern style in the 1960s, after being destroyed by fire), the Royal Library of Turin which hosts the Leonardo da Vinci self-portrait, and the baroque Royal Church of San Lorenzo. Moreover, Piazza Castello hosts a Fascist era building, the Torre Littoria, a sort of skyscraper which was supposed to become the headquarters of the Fascist party, although it never served as such. The building's style is quite different from the Baroque style of Piazza Castello. The square regularly hosts the main open space events of the city, live concerts included.

San Salvario

Southeast of the city centre stands San Salvario district, which extends from Corso Vittorio Emanuele II to Corso Bramante and is delimited by the Turin-Genoa railway on the west side and by the River Po on the east side. Home to an increasing immigrants' community, the district is an example of integration among different cultures; it also features an incremented nightlife after the opening of several low-cost bars and restaurants.

San Salvario is crossed by two main roads, Via Nizza and Via Madama Cristina, and just as the city centre it is characterised by the grid plan typical of Turin's old neighbourhoods. The hub of the district is Piazza Madama Cristina which hosts a big open market, while several commercial activities flourish around it.

The celebrated Parco del Valentino is situated in the east side of San Salvario and, albeit not in downtown, it represents a type of central park of Turin. Thanks to the vicinity to the city centre, the park is very popular among the local people, during the day but also at night, because of the several bars and nightclubs placed here. From the terraces of Parco del Valentino, many sights of the hills on the other side of the river can be appreciated.

In the centre of the park stands the Castello del Valentino, built in the 17th century. This castle has a horseshoe shape, with four rectangular towers, one at each angle, and a wide inner court with a marble pavement. The ceilings of the false upper floors are in transalpino (i.e. French) style. The façade sports the huge coat of arms of the House of Savoy. Today, Castello del Valentino serves as the faculty of Architecture of the Polytechnic University of Turin.

Another cluster of buildings in the park is the Borgo Medioevale (Medieval village), a replica of medieval mountain castles of Piedmont and Aosta Valley, built for the 1884 International Exhibition.

Other buildings in Corso Massimo d'Azeglio include the Torino Esposizioni complex (Turin's exhibition hall built in the 1930s) featuring a monumental entrance with a large full height porch, a main hall designed by Pier Luigi Nervi in reinforced concrete, and the Teatro Nuovo, a theatre mostly focused on ballet exhibitions. Another building is the largest synagogue of the city, in Piazzetta Primo Levi, a square. Its architecture stands in the main sight of the city, as characterised by four large towers—27 m (89 ft) high—topped by four onion-shaped domes.

Crocetta

South of Centro stands the Crocetta district, considered one of the most exclusive districts of the city, because of highly rated residential buildings. At the heart of the district is the partially pedestrianised area crossed by Corso Trieste, Corso Trento and Corso Duca D'Aosta, plenty of some notable residential buildings in eclectic, neo-Gothic and Art Nouveau style. The area was built between 1903 and 1937 replacing the old parade ground, which was moved in the southern part of the city.

North of this area stands the GAM (Galleria d'Arte Moderna), one of the two Museum of Modern Arts of the Turin Metro area (the second and largest one is hosted in Castello di Rivoli, a former Savoy royal castle in the suburbs). The museum stands in front a huge monument situated in the centre of the roundabout between Corso Vittorio Emanuele II and Corso Galileo Ferraris: the Monument to Vittorio Emanuele II, a king of Savoy statue situated on a 39-metres high column. Next to the museum, another significant residential building previously hosted the head office of Juventus, one of the two main Turin football clubs.

West of this area, the main building of Polytechnic University of Turin stands along Corso Duca Degli Abruzzi. The 1958 building, a 122,000 m2 (1,313,197 sq ft) complex, hosts approximately 30,000 students and is considered one of the major institutes of technology of the country—mainly due to the vocation of the city for the industrialisation, pushed by the automotive sector. This institute recently expanded in the western district of Cenisia with additional modern buildings.

Crocetta is crossed by large and modern avenues, such as Corso Duca degli Abruzzi, Corso Galileo Ferraris, and Corso Einaudi. These avenues feature long rows of trees, symbolic of Turin's typical urbanity. However, the most popular avenue is Corso De Gasperi, which, albeit smaller than other avenues of the district, hosts one of the most fashionable open markets of the city, the so-called Mercato della Crocetta, in which it is possible to find some discounted branded clothing among the more popular ones.

The Western border of Crocetta is instead an example of contemporary architecture. The huge avenue, made up of Corso Mediterraneo and Corso Castelfidardo, is part of Spina Centrale boulevard and was recently built over the old railway (now undergrounded): as a result, the avenue is very large (up to 60 m (200 ft)) and modern, having been rebuilt with valuable materials, including a characteristic lighting system supported by white high poles. This avenue hosts some examples of contemporary art, such as Mario Merz's Igloo fountain or the Per Kirkeby's Opera per Torino monument in Largo Orbassano.

Cenisia

Bordered by Corso Castelfidardo, Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, Corso Trapani and Corso Peschiera, this small district is mainly significant for hosting the recent expansion of Turinese institute of technology Politecnico. The expansion was possible after under-grounding the railway under Corso Castelfidardo and the subsequent disposal of the old buildings dedicated to the train maintenance present in this area (so-called Officine Grandi Riparazioni or OGR). Politecnico expanded its facilities through two huge overpass buildings over the avenue, linked to new buildings on the west side. This cluster of buildings forms an evocative square with a unique architectural style. The main building on the west side hosts a General Motors research centre, the General Motors Global Propulsion Systems (formerly known as General Motors Powertrain Europe). Politecnico area extends until Via Boggio with further facilities hosted in the former OGR facilities. The institute plans to further build new facilities in the current parking area.

North of Politecnico facilities, the main building of the OGR former cluster, became an open space which hosts temporary exhibitions. During the hot seasons, its external spaces became a fashionable site to have a typical Italian aperitivo.

North of OGR, a former prison complex called Le Nuove is a significant example of old European prison building. The complex was built between 1857 and 1869 during the reign of Victor Emmanuel II. After being disposed of during the 1990s, the complex was changed into a museum and it is possible to visit its facilities.

An example of contemporary art is the heating plant in Corso Ferrucci, which has been covered with aluminium panels. Another building (19th century), now abandoned, is the former Westinghouse factory of train brakes situated in Via Borsellino.

The residential and business zone of the district sprawls westward, beyond the former—now demolished—customs wall (cinta daziaria), which previously separated the city from the mainly rural landscape that marked the outskirts of Turin until the late 19th century. Urban planning outside the local city gate (so-called barriera di San Paolo) led to the construction of an industrial and working-class neighbourhood in the early 20th century, although factories have long been discontinued, torn down or converted to other uses nowadays. Together with San Paolo district, Cenisia hosts an extensive street market along Corso Racconigi, which is locally known as the longest street market in Europe.

Cit Turin

The smallest district of the city is Cit Turin ('Little Turin' in Piedmontese language). This small triangle surrounded by Corso Vittorio Emanuele II, Corso Francia and Corso Inghilterra hosts some high rated residential buildings and is regarded as a prestigious residential neighbourhood by local people.

The district features many buildings in Art Nouveau, Art Deco and Neo-Gothic style. Among them, one of the most impressive and well known is the Casa della Vittoria (architect Gottardo Gussoni). Another notable example is Casa Fenoglio-Lafleur. Both buildings face Corso Francia.

The district is well known for its commercial vocation mainly in its two main streets, Via Duchessa Jolanda and Via Principi d'Acaja, ideally crossing each other among the gardens Giardino Luigi Martini, locally called Piazza Benefica, which hosts a popular open market.

The district is also characterised by two massive recent buildings: the Palazzo di Giustizia, Turin's new courthouse built in the 1990s (in a 350-metre-long facility), and the first real skyscraper of Turin, the Torre Intesa Sanpaolo, which house the headquarters of one of the major Italian private banks.

San Donato

San Donato district is between Corso Francia, Corso Lecce, Corso Potenza, Via Nole, the Parco Dora and Corso Principe Oddone. It was populated since the medieval era, but becomes bigger during the 19th century, prospering around the canal Canale di San Donato, which does not exist anymore, currently replaced by the central street of the district, Via San Donato. Buildings in the district are relatively recent (around 1820), except for the oldest group of small houses in the Brusachœr neighbourhood (Palazzo Forneris building) along Via Pacinotti near the small Piazza Paravia. The conservation of the street and of this old building influences the straightness of Via San Donato, which makes a slight curve to result in parallel with Via Pacinotti before ending in central Piazza Statuto square.

Main church of the district is the Chiesa di Nostra Signora del Suffragio e Santa Zita, which with its 83 m (272 ft) height of its bell tower, is well known to be the fifth tallest structure in the city of Turin, after the Mole Antonelliana, the Intesa-Sanpaolo skyscraper, the Torre Littoria and the two pennons of the Juventus Stadium. The church is hosting the Istituto Suore Minime di Nostra Signora del Suffragio and it was promoted and designed by Francesco Faà di Bruno. The legend says, that he wanted to build the tallest bell tower of the town and put a clock on the top, to all the poor people to know the time for free. The small building near the church is what remains of Casa Tartaglino, a small residential building which was also extended and modified by Faa di Bruno.

Villino Cibrario in Via Saccarelli is another significant building designed by Barnaba Panizza in 1842. The building was equipped with a large garden which was eliminated to host the street. The neighbourhood has a high concentration of historic buildings in Art Nouveau style designed by architect Pietro Fenoglio (among the others, the prestigious Villino Raby in Corso Francia 8). Other significant buildings are the Villa Boringhieri in Via San Donato, and other Art Nouveau and Neo-Gothic buildings are situated in Via Piffetti and Via Durandi.

Among the modern buildings of the district, the most significant one is, of course, the Torre BBPR Tower (which took the name from the architecture office who designed it). The building is representing the post-rationalism Italian architecture (same style of the better known Torre Velasca tower in the city of Milan). The tower is facing the central Piazza Statuto square. The district is crossed by some significant avenues: on Corso Svizzera, which crosses the district from north to south, faces the Business Centre Piero Della Francesca, where the offices of Tuttosport, one of the three national sports daily newspapers has its head offices. Also on Corso Svizzera, stands one of the oldest hospitals of the city, the Ospedale Amedeo di Savoia, specialised in infectious diseases. Other major avenues are Corso Umbria and Corso Tassoni.

Aurora

Aurora is one of the most ancient districts which developed out of the medieval city walls, north of the historical city centre. It stretches from downtown northern boundaries in Corso Regina Margherita (an extended and important thoroughfare of Turin) up to Corso Vigevano and Corso Novara in the North Side (namely the old excise boundary until the early 20th century); the western boundary is Corso Principe Oddone (now part of the Spina Centrale boulevard) and the eastern border is the River Dora.

The district was named Aurora after the so-called Cascina Aurora, an old farmstead lying north of the River Dora, right at the intersection between Corso Giulio Cesare and Corso Emilia. The farmstead has long been demolished and the area has been converted to office buildings, hosting the Turinese textile company Gruppo Finanziario Tessile (GFT) headquarters until the early 21st century.

The historical hub of the district is Borgo Dora (The 'Dora Borough'), a small neighbourhood next to Porta Palazzo and enclosed by Corso Regina Margherita, Via Cigna, the River Dora and Corso Giulio Cesare. Once known as Borgo del Pallone ('Ball Borough') or Balon in Piedmontese dialect (locally [baˈlun]), this neighbourhood is known for its mercatino del Balon or simply Balon, the Turinese flea market that opens every Saturday in its tiny and twisted streets. Borgo Dora hosts several places, such as: Piccola Casa della Divina Provvidenza ('Little House of the Divine Providence'), also known as Cottolengo, a charitable organisation which has been operating for almost 200 years in the city; Arsenale della Pace ('Arsenal of Peace'), a former weapons factory that currently hosts the headquarters of SERMIG (Servizio Missionario Giovani), a nonprofit association which assists poor and homeless people; Caserma Cavalli ('Cavalli Barracks'), a former barracks topped by a clock tower which now hosts Scuola Holden, a storytelling and performing arts school; the Cortile del Maglio ('Mallet Courtyard'), a covered pedestrian area featuring bars and clubs. Across from Cortile del Maglio and Arsenale della Pace stands a wide pedestrian area which features a hot air balloon, a clear allusion to the neighbourhood's old name Balon: recently installed, the balloon is open to public which can now take a view of the city from this new high observation point.

Right at the borders of Borgo Dora stands part of Porta Palazzo open market which hosts the New Exhibition Hall, designed by the Italian architect Massimiliano Fuksas. The building has replaced the Clothes Market, one of the four covered pavilions of Porta Palazzo market, but unfortunately, this glass green-shaded building has been highly criticised because of its lack of usability for commercial activities, albeit an example of contemporary architecture.

Vanchiglia

Vanchiglia is bordered by Corso San Maurizio, Corso Regio Parco and the River Po, crossed also by the River Dora Riparia and by two big avenues, Corso Regina Margherita and Corso Tortona.

Borgo Vanchiglia is the historical district: a little triangle next to downtown, situated between Corso San Maurizio, Corso Regina Margherita and the River Po. The district is quite popular nowadays because being quite closer to the heart of Turin nightlife Piazza Vittorio Veneto, many bars and restaurants opened recently in this area. However, Vanchiglia also includes the area called Vanchiglietta, north of Borgo Vanchiglia.

Notable church in Borgo Vanchiglia is the French neo-Gothic Chiesa di Santa Giulia situated into Piazza Santa Giulia.

A notable and unusual building in the area is the so-called "Fetta di Polenta" (lit. 'polenta slice'), formerly known as Casa Scaccabarozzi. This building is where Corso San Maurizio meets Via Giulia di Barolo, and it is one of the most peculiar examples of Turin architecture: a thin trapezoid 27 m (89 ft) wide on Via Giulia Di Barolo, 5 m (16 ft) on Corso San Maurizio and just 0.70 m (2 ft 4 in) wide on the opposite end. It was designed in 1840 by Alessandro Antonelli for his wife, Francesca Scaccabarozzi. The curious name comes from the shape of the palace, which resembles a "slice of polenta", and also because it is painted with an ochre colour.

In the surroundings, in Via Vanchiglia 8 (although in downtown and not really in Vanchiglia anymore), there is another trapezoid house, albeit with less extreme design: similarly, this building is nicknamed "Fetta di Formaggio" (lit. 'cheese slice'), built in 1832 for the rich Marchese Birago di Vische by the architect Antonio Talentino.

Other notable buildings are the town public baths, eclectic building built in 1905 (Corso Regina Margherita crossing Via Vanchiglia), and theTeatro della Caduta theatre, opened in 2003 in Via Michele Buniva 23, which with its 45 seats is the smallest theatre in Turin and among the smallest theatres in Europe.

In Corso Regina Margherita, another notable building is the former Opera pia Reynero, a charitable organisation. The building was built in 1892. Being abandoned for a long time after it closed in 1996, it was then occupied by the Askatasuna Social Center, a non-profit anarchic organisation, hosting since then various activities such as concerts, dinners, seminars and homeless solidarity initiatives.

Main churches

The Santuario della Consolata, a sanctuary much frequented by pilgrims, stands on the site of the 10th-century Monastery of St. Andrew, and is a work by Guarini. It was sumptuously restored in 1903. Outside the city are: the Basilica of Our Lady, Help of Christians built by St. John Bosco, the Gran Madre built in 1818 on occasion of the return of King Victor Emmanuel I of Sardinia and Santa Maria del Monte (1583) on Monte dei Cappuccini.

In the hills overlooking the city, the Basilica of Superga provides a view of Turin against a backdrop of the snow-capped Alps. The basilica holds the tombs of many of the dukes of Savoy, as well as many of the kings of Sardinia. Superga can be reached by means of the Superga Rack Railway from Sassi suburb. The Basilica of Superga was built by Amadeus II of Savoy as an ex-voto for the liberation of Turin (1706), and served as a royal mausoleum since 1772.

Villas, parks and gardens

The most popular park in the city is Parco del Valentino. In 1961, during the celebrations of Italia61 (Italian unification centenary), an important international exhibition (FLOR61: Flowers of the world in Turin) took place in the park with 800 exhibitors from 19 countries. For the occasion the plan for the new lighting of the park, along with its fountains and paths, was assigned to Guido Chiarelli, the head engineer at the city hall.

Other large parks are Parco della Pellerina, Parco Colletta, Parco Rignon, Parco Colonnetti and the University botanical gardens. Around the city are several other parks such as La Mandria Regional Park and the Parco della Palazzina di Caccia di Stupinigi, once hunting grounds of the Savoy, and those on the hills of Turin. Many parks are smaller, in the various districts: there is also a total of 240 playgrounds in these parks. In the early 1960s, mayor Amedeo Peyron had the first garden in Italy with games for children inaugurated. According to a Legambiente report from 2007, Turin is the first Italian city as far as structures and policies on childcare are concerned. One of the most famous parks featuring a children's playground is Parco della Tesoriera, which is also home to Andrea della Corte Municipal Music Library; this facility is housed in Villa Tesoriera, built in 1715 and once the Royal Treasurer's residence. The park is in the Parella suburb (Turin's West Side) and hosts many concerts in summer.

Rosa Vercellana, commonly known as Rosina and, in Piedmontese as La Bela Rosin ('The Beautiful Rosin'), was the mistress and later wife of King Victor Emmanuel II. She was made Countess of Mirafiori and Fontanafredda, but never Queen of Italy. As the Savoy family refused to allow her to be buried next to her husband in the Pantheon, her children had a mausoleum built for her in a similar form and on a smaller scale in Turin, next to the road to the Castello di Mirafiori. The circular copper-domed neoclassical monument, surmounted by a Latin cross and surrounded by a large park, was designed by Angelo Dimezzi and completed in 1888.

Economy

Turin developed as a Fordist city in the early 20th century, which meant a shift from a service-based economy to an industry-based one. In the vein of many Fordist economies Turin's economy relies heavily upon its automotive and aerospace industries. Despite the general decline of the automotive industry since the oil crisis of 1973, the city still relies heavily upon its automotive industry. Since before the Second World War, the automotive industry has been the largest employer in the city, and almost all exports from Turin are manufactured goods. The city serves as the headquarters to Fiat (Fabbrica Italiana Automobili Torino; Turin Italian Automobiles Factory), which has since been absorbed by its parent company, the Fiat Chrysler Automobiles group (now Stellantis) headquartered in Amsterdam, the eighth largest automotive company in the world. Turin is still home to a sizeable Fiat factory.

From the 1980s, Turin diversified its economy and is shifting back towards a service economy. Tech and innovation industries are booming in Turin, which was ranked third in number of innovative startups and firms in the information-tech sector, and has some of the most patent applications to the European Patent Office of any city. In 2008 the city generated a GDP of $68 billion, ranking as the world's 78th richest city by purchasing power, and 16th in Europe, according to PricewaterhouseCoopers. Turin accounts for 8 percent of Italy's GDP. The city has been ranked in 2010 by Globalization and World Cities Research Network as a Gamma-level city.

Other companies operating in Turin are Maserati, Lancia, Alfa Romeo, Iveco, Pininfarina, Bertone, Sparco, Italdesign Giugiaro, New Holland, Comau, Magneti Marelli, Graziano Oerlikon, Ghia, Fioravanti (automotive), Rai (national broadcasting company), Banca Investis, FCA Bank, Intesa Sanpaolo, Reale Mutua (finance), Invicta, Kappa, Superga (fashion), Ferrero, Lavazza, Martini & Rossi (food & beverage), Alpitour (hospitality and tourism), TILab (ex-CSELT), and Aurora (pen manufacturer).

The city is also well known for its aerospace industry Alenia Aeronautica, Thales Alenia Space and Avio. The International Space Station modules Harmony, Columbus, Tranquility, as well as the Cupola and all MPLMs were produced in Turin. The future European launcher projects beyond Ariane 5 will also be managed from Turin by the new NGL company, a subsidiary of EADS (70%) and Aircraft Division of Leonardo (30%).

Culture

Visual art and museums

Turin, as the former capital of the Kingdom of Sardinia and the Kingdom of Italy, is home of the Savoy Residences. In addition to the 17th-century Royal Palace, built for Madama Reale Christine Marie of France (the official residence of the Savoys until 1865) there are many palaces, residences and castles in the city centre and in the surrounding towns. Turin is home to Palazzo Chiablese, the Royal Armoury, the Royal Library, Palazzo Madama, Palazzo Carignano, Villa della Regina, and the Valentino Castle. The complex of the Residences of the Royal House of Savoy in Turin and in the nearby cities of Rivoli, Moncalieri, Venaria Reale, Agliè, Racconigi, Stupinigi, Pollenzo and Govone was declared a World Heritage Sites by UNESCO in 1997. UNESCO also recognises Turin as a "Design City." In recent years, Turin has become an increasingly popular tourist destination, ranking 203rd in the world and tenth in Italy in 2008, with about 240,000 tourist arrivals.

The Egyptian Museum of Turin specialises in archaeology and anthropology, in particular the art of ancient Egypt. It is home to what is regarded as one of the largest collections of Egyptian antiquities outside of Egypt. In 2006 it received more than 500,000 visitors. The Museum of Oriental Art houses one of the most important Asian art collections in Italy.

Other museums include the National Museum of Cinema, the Museo Nazionale dell'Automobile, the J-Museum, the Museum of Human Anatomy Luigi Rolando, the Museo delle Marionette (puppet museum) and the Museo Nazionale della Montagna (National Museum of the Mountains). Art museums include the Sabauda Gallery, the Museo Civico d'Arte Antica, Pinacoteca Giovanni e Marella Agnelli, the Accademia Albertina, the Gallery of Modern and Contemporary Art, and the Diocesan Museum of Turin.

After it had been little more than a town for a long time, in 1559 the Duke Emmanuel Philibert of Savoy made Turin the capital of his domains. The Duke had the ambition to transform the city into a major artistic and cultural capital, and in the following centuries numerous artists were to work at the Savoy court, especially architects and planners such as Carlo di Castellamonte and his son Amedeo, Guarino Guarini and, in the 18th century, Filippo Juvarra and Benedetto Alfieri.

As for the painting and the visual arts, Turin became a point of reference, especially in the 20th century. In the 1920s, the painter Felice Casorati inspired a number of students called The group of six of Turin and these included Carlo Levi, Henry Paolucci, Gigi Chessa, Francesco Menzio, Nicola Galante and Jessie Boswell. Artists born in Turin include the sculptor Umberto Mastroianni and the architect Carlo Mollino. Between the 1960s and the 1970s, the international centre of Turin (Arte Povera), the presence in the city of artists such as Alighiero Boetti, Mario Merz, Giuseppe Penone, Piero Gilardi and Michelangelo Pistoletto. In those years there was a strong artistic influence of designer Armando Testa. Artists currently operating in the city include Ugo Nespolo and Carol Rama.

Music

The city's main opera house is Teatro Regio di Torino, where Puccini premiered his La bohème in 1896. It was burned down in 1936 and was rebuilt after World War II. On 8 October 2021, the European Broadcasting Union (EBU) and RAI announced that the city would host the Eurovision Song Contest 2022, following Italy's victory at the 2021 contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands, with the song "Zitti e buoni", performed by Måneskin. The contest took place at the Pala Alpitour, with both semi-finals of the contest took place on 10 and 12 May, and the grand final on 14 May. It was the first time that Turin has hosted the contest and the third time that Italy has hosted the contest overall, with the last being in Rome in 1991.

Literature

A literary centre for many centuries, Turin began to attract writers only after the establishment of the court of the Dukes of Savoy. One of the most famous writers of the 17th century was Giambattista Marino, which in 1608 moved to the court of Charles Emmanuel I. Marino suffered an assassination attempt by a rival, Gaspare Murtola, and was later imprisoned for a year because of gossip that he had said and written against the duke. Perhaps, because of this, in 1615 Marino left Turin and moved to France.

The main literary figures during the Baroque age in Turin were Emanuele Tesauro and Alessandro Tassoni. In the next century Torino hosted the poet Vittorio Alfieri from Asti for a while. The situation was very different in the 19th century, especially since the city became a point of reference for Italian unification and, subsequently, the capital of the Kingdom of Italy. Indeed, in those years Tommaseo, Settembrini and John Meadows resided in the city. A major literary and cultural woman of that time was Olimpia Savio. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, Turin was home to writers such as Guido Gozzano, Edmondo De Amicis, Emilio Salgari and Dino Segre, the latter known by the pseudonym of Pitigrilli.

Turin had a very important role in Italian literature after World War II. A major publishing house, Giulio Einaudi, published works by authors such as Cesare Pavese, Italo Calvino, Vitaliano Brancati, Primo Levi, Natalia Ginzburg, Fernanda Pivano, Beppe Fenoglio, Carlo Fruttero and Franco Lucentini. In more recent years, writers active in the city are Giovanni Arpino, Nico Orengo, Giuseppe Culicchia, Margherita Oggero, Laura Mancinelli, Alessandra Montrucchio, Alessandro Perissinotto, Guido Quartz, Piero Soria and Alessandro Baricco. Baricco was also among the founders of the Scuola Holden, dedicated to writing techniques teaching.

There is also a literary tradition in the local Piedmontese language, including authors such as Nicoletto da Torino, Ignas Isler (author of epic poems), and Eduard Calv.

Religion

The city is home to the well-known Shroud of Turin: a linen cloth bearing the image of a man who appears to have suffered physical trauma in a manner consistent with crucifixion. The shroud is taken by many Christians to be a miraculous image of Jesus at the time of his death. It is kept in the royal chapel of the Cathedral of Saint John the Baptist in the city centre. The shroud is one of the city's main symbols and tourist attractions, it is a symbol of religious devotion.

Science and technology

Turin had an astronomical observatory used by Giovanni Plana. The scientist Amedeo Avogadro worked as a professor in Turin. Galileo Ferraris, a professor at Turin University, discovered the working principles of the electric motor during the 19th century.

In modern times, Turin hosted the CSELT telco laboratory.

Media

After Alexandria, Madrid, New Delhi, Antwerp and Montreal, Turin was chosen by UNESCO as World Book Capital for the year 2006. The International Book Fair is one of the most important fairs of its type in Europe. Turin is home to one of Italy's principal national newspapers, La Stampa, and the sports daily newspaper Tuttosport. The city is also served by other publications such as the Turin editions of La Repubblica, il Giornale, Leggo, City, Metro and E Polis. RAI has had a production centre in Turin since 1954.

Sport

The city has a rich sporting heritage as the home to two historically significant football teams: Juventus FC (founded in 1897) and Torino FC (founded in 1906). Juventus has the larger fan base, especially all over Italy and worldwide, while Torino enjoys a greater support in the city itself. The two clubs contest the oldest derby in Italy, the Derby della Mole.

Juventus is Italy's most successful football club and one of the most successful in the world. It ranks joint twelfth in the list of the world's clubs with the most official international titles (sixth between European clubs), and was the first in association football history—remaining the only one in the world (as of 2022, after the first UEFA Europa Conference League Final)—to have won all possible official continental competitions and the world title. Juventus' owned ground, the Juventus Stadium, was inaugurated in 2011 and hosted the 2014 UEFA Europa League final, the 2021 Nations League finals and the 2022 Women's Champions League final. This was the first time the city hosted a seasonal UEFA club competition's single-match final. Juventus' female team has won, among others, five straight Serie A titles since its inception in 2017, becoming one of the most winning teams in the country.

Torino FC was founded by the union of one of the oldest football teams in Turin, Football Club Torinese (founded in 1894), with breakaways from Juventus and was the most successful team, called "Grande Torino", in the Serie A during the 1940s. In 1949, in the Superga air disaster, a plane carrying almost the whole team crashed into the Basilica of Superga in the Turin hills. Torino currently plays its home games at the Stadio Olimpico "Grande Torino", named after the team of the 1940s, which was a host stadium for the 1934 FIFA World Cup and the venue of the opening ceremonies of the XX Winter Olympics and IX Paralympic Winter Games and the closing ceremony of the former; moreover the team recently rebuilt the historic Stadio Filadelfia, used for games of the youth teams and trainings of the first squad, and the planned seat of the team museum.

The city hosted the final stages of the EuroBasket 1979. The most important basketball club team is the Auxilium Torino, refounded in 2009, playing in the Italian LBA. In 2018 Auxilium Torino went to win its first Italian Basketball Cup ever. Turin hosted the 2006 Winter Olympics in February 2006. Turin is the largest city to have ever hosted a Winter Olympics, and was the largest metropolitan area to host them at the time. The city was awarded with the title of European Capital of Sport 2015. The candidature sees the city strongly committed to increasing sports activities. The city hosted the ATP Finals tennis event from 2021 to 2025. Turin hosted the 2025 Special Olympics World Winter Games.

Cinema

Turin is the Italian city where film chromatography was first established. As such, it forms the birthplace of Italian cinema. Because of its historic, geographical and cultural proximity to France, Italian filmmakers were naturally influenced by French cinema and the Lumière brothers. The first Italian cinema screening occurred in Turin in March 1896. In November 1896, Italian filmmakers performed the first cinema screening of a film before a fee-paying audience.

By the start of the 20th century (especially after 1907), a number of the first Italian films were aired in Turin. Examples include Giovanni Pastrone Cabiria, in 1914, one of the first blockbusters in history.

The Turin-based company Ambrosio Film, established in 1906 by Arturo Ambrosio, was one of the leading forces in Italian cinema and boosted the importance of the city as a filmmaking destination. The company, noted in particular for its historical epics, produced a large number of films until it was dissolved in 1924.

During the 1920s and 30s, Turin hosted a number of film productions and major film studios (film houses), such as the Itala film, Aquila and Fert Studios. Today their heritage is in the modern Lumiq Studios and Virtual Reality Multi Media Spa. Turin's prominence in Italian film continued until 1937, the year Cinecittà was inaugurated in Rome.

After World War II, the cinematic scene in Turin continued to thrive. 1956 saw the opening of the National Museum of Cinema, first housed in the Palazzo Chiablese and then, from 2000, in the imposing headquarters of the Mole Antonelliana. In 1982 the film critic Gianni Rondolino created Festival Internazionale Cinema Giovani, which later became the Torino Film Festival.

Today Turin is one of the main cinematographic and television centres in Italy, thanks to the role of the Turin Film Commission that reports the production of many feature films, soap operas and commercials.

Turin streets were the locations where Audrey Hepburn played War and Peace, Michael Caine drove a Mini Cooper in The Italian Job, Claudio Bisio becomes the president of the Italian Republic, Carlo Verdone set his version of Cinderella, Marco Tullio Giordana shot Piazza Fontana: The Italian Conspiracy, Woody Allen shot Hannah and Her Sisters, Cate Blanchett played Heaven, Giovanna Mezzogiorno Vincere, Marcello Mastroianni and Jacqueline Bisset The Sunday Woman, and Harvey Keitel The Stone Merchant. Turin also became the capital of the tsar for The Demons of St. Petersberg.

Cuisine

Turin is well known for its chocolate production, especially for its traditional, ingot-shaped chocolate called gianduiotto, named after Gianduja, a local commedia dell'arte mask. Moreover, the city is also known for the so-called bicerin, a traditional hot drink made of espresso, drinking chocolate and whole milk served layered in a small rounded glass. Every year Turin organises CioccolaTÒ, a two-week chocolate festival run with the main Piedmontese chocolate producers, such as Caffarel, Streglio, Venchi and others, as well as some big international companies, such as Lindt & Sprüngli.

As for snack food, the now popular tramezzini were first served in a historic café of downtown Turin, namely Caffè Mulassano, where they were devised in 1925 as an alternative to English tea sandwiches. In recent years, another trademark drink of the city is MoleCola, an Italian cola that entered production in 2012 and quickly spread both in Italy and outside its native country.

Local cuisine also features a particular type of pizza, so-called pizza al padellino or pizza al tegamino, which is basically a small-sized, thick-crust and deep-dish pizza typically served in several Turin pizza places.

Since the mid-1980s, Piedmont has also benefited from the start of the Slow Food movement and Terra Madre, events that have highlighted the rich agricultural and vinicultural value of the Po Valley and northern Italy.

Education

Turin is home to one of Italy's oldest universities, the University of Turin, including its affiliated Collegio Carlo Alberto, which ranks among the best universities in the country. Another established university in the city is the Polytechnic University of Turin, ranking among Top 50 universities in the world and #1 in Italy in the fields of engineering, technology and computer science ("Academic Ranking of World Universities" published by Shanghai Jiao Tong University). Turin also hosts the United Nations System Staff College, the European Training Foundation, and a campus of the ESCP business school, ranked among the 10 best business schools in Europe. Moreover, the city hosts three small English language post-secondary institutions: St. John International University, International University College of Turin, and the Turin School of Development.

In 2025, Turin becomes the first city in Italy with a plan to combat Islamophobia.

Transport

The city currently has a large number of rail and road work sites. Although this activity has increased as a result of the 2006 Winter Olympics, parts of it had long been planned. Some of the work sites deal with general roadworks to improve traffic flow, such as underpasses and flyovers, but two projects are of major importance and will radically change the shape of the city.

One is the Spina Centrale ('Central Spine') project which includes the doubling of a major railway crossing the city, the Turin-Milan railway locally known as Passante Ferroviario di Torino ('Turin Railway Bypass'). The railroad previously ran in a trench, which will now be covered by a major boulevard running from north to south of Turin, in a central position along the city. Porta Susa, on this section, will become Turin's main station to substitute the terminus of Porta Nuova with a through station. Other important stations are Stura, Rebaudengo, Lingotto and Madonna di Campagna railway stations, though not all of them belong to the layout of the Spina Centrale.

The other major project is the construction of a subway line based on the VAL system, known as Metrotorino. This project is expected to continue for years and to cover a larger part of the city, but its first phase was finished in time for the 2006 Olympic Games, inaugurated on 4 February 2006 and opened to the public the day after. The first leg of the subway system linked the nearby town of Collegno with Porta Susa in Turin's city centre. On 4 October 2007, the line was extended to Porta Nuova and then, in March 2011, to Lingotto. A new extension of the so-called Linea 1 ('Line 1') is expected in the near future, reaching both Rivoli (up to Cascine Vica hamlet) in the Western belt of Turin and Piazza Bengasi in the southeast side of the city. Furthermore, a Linea 2 is in the pipeline that will connect the south-western district of Mirafiori with Barriera di Milano in the north end. In June 2018, the project entered the public consultation phase with the proposed list of 23 stations published on the city's website.

The main street in the city centre, Via Roma, runs atop a tunnel built during the fascist era (when Via Roma itself was totally refurbished and took on its present-day aspect). The tunnel was supposed to host the underground line, but it is now used as an underground car park. A project to build an underground system was ready in the 1970s, with government funding for it and for similar projects in Milan and Rome. Whilst the other two cities went ahead with the projects, Turin's local government led by mayor Diego Novelli shelved the proposal as it believed it to be too costly and unnecessary.

Public transportation statistics

The average amount of time people spend commuting with public transit in Turin (for example, to and from work) on a weekday is 65 minutes. 14% of public transit riders ride for more than 2 hours every day. The average time spent waiting at a stop or station for public transit is 14 minutes, while 19% of riders wait for over 20 minutes on average every day. The average distance people usually ride in a single trip with public transit is 5.9 km (3.7 mi), while 9% travel more than 12 km (7.5 mi) in a single direction.

International relations

Twin towns – sister cities

Turin is twinned with:

The sixth district of Turin is twinned with:

Bagneux, France

Cooperation agreements

Turin also cooperates with: