Corso Francia
Corso Francia is the great straight boulevard that runs from piazza Statuto across Turin and Collegno all the way to Rivoli, for 11.75 kilometres; it was decreed in 1711 by Vittorio Amedeo II as the «strada di Francia», to link Palazzo Reale to the castello di Rivoli.[1]
History
From 1939 the stretch between piazza Statuto and piazza Bernini was named corso Gabriele d'Annunzio, and the rest, during the war, corso Italia; after the war the original name was restored.[1] On 9 December 1942 a bombing raid struck the Aeronautica d'Italia aircraft factory along the boulevard.[2] Today nine stations of the metro run beneath the boulevard.[1]
The buildings
At the corner with piazza Statuto, the BBPR studio built in 1959 for Reale Mutua a complex of offices and homes with a corner tower.[3] The boulevard is a showcase of Liberty style: the villino Raby at number 8 bis (1901) and casa Macciotta at number 32 (1904), both by Pietro Fenoglio, the small palazzo at number 20 by Antonio Vandone (1903), and not far away the casa Fenoglio-La Fleur.[4][5][6][1]
At number 186 stands Villa Sartirana, known as la Tesoriera, built in 1713-1715 by Jacopo Maggi for the treasurer general of Vittorio Amedeo II; since 2012, following restoration, it has housed the «Andrea Della Corte» civic music library.[7]
Related articles: Pietro Fenoglio