About us

Welcome to the National Museum of Risorgimento Italian from Turin.

Among the museums dedicated to this historical period, ours is the only one of national importance and the oldest and most prestigious in Italy, thanks to the richness of its collections and its history.

The Museum, which was ideally born in 1878, is located in Palazzo Carignano, an extraordinary baroque masterpiece designed by Guarino Guarini, recognized as a UNESCO heritage site since 1997. A place that speaks for itself: residence of the cadet branch of the Savoy-Carignano, here was born Vittorio Emanuele II, the first King of Italy.

Visiting the Museum's rooms will take you on a true journey through the birth of unified Italy, told through objects, documents, fascinating stories, and unique testimonies.

You will be able to know and relive the Risorgimento Not only as a political and military process, but also as a cultural, social, and economic phenomenon. An extraordinary journey, set within the broader context of European national movements, which is crucial to understand and which was made possible by the contributions of intellectuals, visionaries, thinkers from diverse political backgrounds, young volunteers, soldiers, rulers, extraordinary women, leading figures, and many anonymous figures. A process fueled by reforms, battles, revolutions, diplomatic agreements, and decisive achievements, such as the Constitution and the birth of an independent, unitary, and liberal state.

We want the museum to be an open, plural, inclusive, and stimulating space for ongoing dialogue between past and present, capable of sparking reflection on the meaning of national identity, the value of democracy, and the great civil and social challenges of the contemporary world.

Next to the Museum, a specialized library, with a historical archive, newspaper library, and print room, completes the experience, offering scholars and enthusiasts further tools to delve into a key period in our history.

Alexander Bollo

Director, National Museum of Risorgimento Italian