Superga

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The Superga near Turin
View of the entrance front

The Superga , named after its location , actually Basilica della Natività di Maria Vergine , is an important pilgrimage church near Turin in Italy .

The history of the church

From the site of today's church, Duke Viktor Amadeus II observed the siege of nearby Turin on September 2, 1706 and vowed the Blessed Mother to dedicate a church to her at this point if Turin would be liberated. After the city was actually not conquered, Viktor Amadeus tried to keep his promise and from 1716 the construction work on the church began, which should last until 1731. Filippo Juvarra , who was to become the most influential builder in Savoy at the time, and who carried out his first major project here, was won as the executive architect .

The church stands in an imposing position high above the city of Turin - in good weather the Alps can be seen from here - and is one of Juvarra's most important works. The Superga is a masterpiece of the baroque and a synthesis of architecture. Three outside stairs lead to the solemn portico , which forms the entrance to the domed church and is reminiscent of the Pantheon , while the mighty, 75 m high dome is modeled on that of St. Peter's Basilica . Even if individual architectural elements belong to the well-known repertoire of the time: with its use of colored materials and the reference to the landscape, Juvarra follows the pioneering building ideas of the 18th century. The effect of the church, on top of the mountain with the bell towers framing the dome, is similar to another sacred building of the time: since Juvarra made several extensive trips to Europe in the course of his career, a mutual stylistic influence with the collegiate church in Melk cannot be ruled out. Here as there, the church is integrated into the monastery district and extends far down from the facade axis. The similarity of the two systems is amazing, at least when viewed from the front, and the impression they convey is similar.

View into the dome of the Superga

For the construction of the church, large amounts of earth had to be moved to create a free plain on the sloping terrain. The building rises to the top of the dome cross 75 meters high, is 51 meters deep and 34 meters wide. The designation as basilica does not refer to the building type basilica , but to the ecclesiastical rank of the place of worship. Rather, the church is a central building with a choir and an adjoining courtyard surrounded by three wings. The interior of the church building was structured with rich chapels and is adorned with sculptures, paintings and stucco. In the sacrament chapel there is a wooden statue of the Virgin Mary, in front of which Viktor Amadeus II allegedly made his vows. There is also an important crypt in the church ; Since the Superga also served the Savoy as a mausoleum , the graves of several dozen members of the noble house can be found here.

A 12 km long street (Corso Francia et al.) Runs towards the church from the city center. It can be reached from the foot of the mountain with the Sassi – Superga rack railway .

Burial place of the House of Savoy

The following members of the House of Savoy are buried here:

  1. Princess Maria Anna (15.8.1687–18.4.1690) - (daughter of King Viktor Amadeus II. )
  2. Prince Emanuele Filiberto (December 1, 1705– December 19, 1705) - (son of King Viktor Amadeus II. )
  3. Prince Viktor Amadeus (May 6, 1699– March 22, 1715) - (son of King Viktor Amadeus II. )
  4. Christina von Sulzbach (February 5, 1704– March 12, 1723) - (first wife of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  5. Prince Viktor Amadeus (March 7th, 1723– August 1st, 1725) - (son of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  6. Anne Marie von Orléans (May 11, 1669– August 26, 1728), Queen of Sardinia - (first wife of King Viktor Amadeus II. )
  7. Viktor Amadeus II, King of Sardinia (May 14, 1666– October 31, 1732)
  8. Polyxena Christina von Hessen-Rheinfels-Rothenburg , Queen of Sardinia (21.09.1706–13.01.1735) - (second wife of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  9. Elisabeth Therese of Lorraine Queen of Sardinia (January 15, 1711– July 3, 1741) - (third wife of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  10. Princess Maria Luisa (25.03.1729–22.06.1767) - (daughter of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  11. Anna Teresa Canalis di Cumiana, Queen of Sardinia (23.04.1680–13.04.1769) - (second wife of King Viktor Amadeus II. )
  12. Charles Emmanuel III, King of Sardinia (April 27, 1701– February 20, 1773)
  13. Prince Carlo Romualdo (July 22, 1733– December 28, 1733) - (son of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  14. Prince Emanuele Filiberto (May 17, 1731– April 23, 1735) - (son of King Charles Emmanuel III. )
  15. Princess Maria Vittoria (June 21, 1740– July 14, 1742) - (daughter of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  16. Prince Carlo Francesco (December 1, 1738– March 25, 1745) - (son of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  17. Princess Maria Elisabetta Carlotta (July 16, 1752– April 17, 1753) - (daughter of King Viktor Amadeus III. )
  18. Prince Amedeo Alessandro (05.10.1754–29.04.1755) - (son of King Viktor Amadeus III. )
  19. Princess Maria Cristina (November 21, 1760– May 19, 1768) - (daughter of King Viktor Amadeus III. )
  20. Princess Eleonore Teresa (02/28/1728– 08/15/1781) - (daughter of King Charles Emmanuel III. )
  21. Maria Antonia , Queen of Sardinia (17.11.1729–19.09.1785) - (Wife of King Viktor Amadeus III. )
  22. Viktor Amadeus III., King of Sardinia (26.6.1726–16.10.1796)
  23. an unnamed princess (20.12.1800-04.01.1801) - (daughter of King Victor Emanuel I )
  24. Princess Maria Felicta (19.03.1730–13.05.1801) - (daughter of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  25. Princess Maria Adelaida (October 1, 1794– March 9, 1802) - (daughter of King Victor Emmanuel I )
  26. Prince Benedetto Maurizio, Duke of Chablais (June 21, 1741– January 4, 1808) - (son of King Karl Emmanuel III. )
  27. Victor Emanuel I, King of Sardinia (July 24th, 1759– January 10th, 1824)
  28. Princess Maria Anna (12/17/1757–12/11/1824) - (wife of Prince Benedetto Maurizio)
  29. Princess Maria Cristina (July 4th, 1826– July 25th, 1827) - (daughter of King Karl Albert )
  30. Maria Theresa of Austria-Este , Queen of Sardinia (01.11.1773–29.03.1832) - (wife of King Viktor Emanuel I )
  31. Karl Albert, King of Sardinia (October 2, 1798– July 28, 1849)
  32. an unnamed son (07/06/1852– 07/11/1852) - (son of King Victor Emmanuel II )
  33. Prince Carlo Alberto (06/02/1851– 06/28/1854) - (son of King Victor Emmanuel II )
  34. Maria Teresa of Austria-Tuscany, Queen of Sardinia (03/21/1801– 01/12/1855) - (wife of King Karl Albert )
  35. Adelheid Austria, Queen of Sardinia (03.06.1822–20.01.1855) - (wife of King Viktor Emanuel II. )
  36. Fernando Maria (November 15, 1822– February 10, 1855) - (son of King Karl Albert )
  37. Prince Viktor Emanuel (January 18, 1855– May 17, 1855) - (son of King Victor Emmanuel II )
  38. Prince Oddone (07/11/1846– 01/22/1866) - (son of King Victor Emmanuel II )
  39. Maria Vittoria del Pozzo , Queen of Spain (August 9, 1847– November 8, 1876) - (first wife of King Amadeus I )
  40. Amadeus I, King of Spain (May 30, 1845– January 18, 1890)
  41. Napoléon Joseph Bonaparte (09.09.1822–18.03.1891) - (Consort of Princess Clotilde)
  42. Princess Clotilde (March 2nd, 1843– June 25th, 1911) - (daughter of King Victor Emmanuel II )
  43. Maria Pia of Savoy , Queen of Portugal (October 16, 1847– July 5, 1911) - (wife of King Louis I of Portugal )
  44. Elisabeth of Saxony (February 4, 1830– August 14, 1913) - (wife of Prince Ferdinando)
  45. Maria Letizia Bonaparte (November 20, 1866– October 25, 1926) - (second wife of King Amadeus I )
  46. Tomislav II, King of Croatia (March 9, 1900– January 29, 1948)
  47. Irene of Greece (02/13/1904– 04/15/1974) - (wife of King Tomislav II. )
  48. Princess Jolanda Margherita, Countess of Bergolo (01.06.1901–16.10.1986) - (daughter of King Viktor Emanuel III. )

see also: Tombs of European monarchs

The memorial stone for the victims of the crash

The plane crash

On May 4, 1949, the basilica was the scene of a plane crash that went down in history as the tragedy of Superga .

In thick fog, a Fiat G.212 aircraft crashed below the church, damaging the adjacent monastery building. All 31 inmates - most of them players from the AC Turin football club - died. On the return flight from a friendly against Benfica Lisbon , the team were known as Grande Torino and dominated Italian football in the 1940s. In addition to 18 players, including Valentino Mazzola , three coaches, officials and journalists were killed. The Grande Torino was almost completely wiped out. Only three players, Sauro Tomà , who had not flown due to an injury, the second goalkeeper Renato Gandolfi and Luigi Giuliano , who had a cold , escaped the disaster. The tragic flight was also missed by the President of Granata Ferruccio Novo, who also had a cold, and the former national coach of Italy (World Cup winner 1934 and 1938) and then sports journalist Vittorio Pozzo , who was left with the task of identifying bodies. A plaque commemorates the crash site.

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ “The church contains little that is forward-looking, but it is a brilliant summary of contemporary building ideas that are brought together here in unexpected ways.” ( Rudolf Wittkower : Art and Architecture in Italy. 1600–1750 (= Pelican History of Art. Z. 16, ISSN  0553-4755 ). Penguin Books, Harmondsworth 1958, p. 279).
  2. ^ Christian Norberg-Schulz: Architecture of the late baroque and rococo. Deutsche Verlags-Anstalt, Stuttgart 1985, ISBN 3-421-02831-1 , pp. 20, 50.

Web links

Commons : Superga  - album with pictures, videos and audio files

Coordinates: 45 ° 4 ′ 51 ″  N , 7 ° 46 ′ 3 ″  E