Ascanio Vitozzi
Orvieto 1539 - Turin 1615
After his initial military career in the papal army (he was in the Battle of Lepanto of 1571 and then in the Hungary, Tunisia and Portugal campaigns), Vitozzi became architect of fortifications and defensive buildings.
His appreciated engineering ability took him to Turin at the court of Charles Emmanuel I of Savoy, at whose service not only did he build the fortifications to defend the Savoyard capital, but also new civilian buildings, streets and squares.
He was responsible for the current city structure and for taking the baroque style to Piedmont, restructuring Piazza Castello and its colonnades and the building which was subsequently named Palazzo Madama, designing the axis Via Roma (at the time Via Reale), designing the churches of Corpus Domini and of Monte dei Cappuccini and also working on the Royal Palace and Rivoli Castle.
Outside of Turin, the Sanctuary of Madonna Santissima in Vicoforte and the Church of Trinità in Mondovì are worth mentioning.
