Built on the ancient Aurelian Walls, a masterpiece of military architecture begun by Emperor Aurelian in 271 AD, stands the majestic complex of Porta Pia, the last work conceived by the genius Michelangelo Buonarroti – built between 1561 and 1565 – who imagined the façade and courtyard as a single large theatrical setting.
This extraordinary location is home to the Historical Museum of Bersaglieri, a living page of Italian history. Its location is no coincidence: it stands on the spot where, on 20 September 1870, the Royal Italian Army, led by the Bersaglieri, opened the famous breach that put an end to the Papal States and definitively marked Rome’s entry into the Kingdom of Italy.
Every space in the museum interacts with visitors, conveying the epic dimension of one of the most distinctive and beloved military corps in our history. The visit begins in Michelangelo’s courtyard, a prelude to the entrance to the exhibition rooms. The first room you encounter is dedicated to the founder of the Corps, General La Marmora, followed by the Hall of Honour and the Memorial: a monumental space with a powerful emotional impact, dedicated to the memory of the more than one hundred thousand people who fell for their country. From here, the tour continues through the rooms dedicated to the Italian Risorgimento, where uniforms, flags and period weapons reconstruct the long road to unification. In this section, numerous paintings and graphic works illustrate key episodes of the period – from the battles of San Martino and Solferino to the Breach of Porta Pia in 1870 – together with portraits of the protagonists, such as Goffredo Mameli, author of the Italian national anthem. Among the 19th-century masterpieces, the portrait of King Victor Emmanuel II of Savoy dressed as a Zouave stands out. The tour then continues to the section dedicated to colonial campaigns, from the first landing of the Bersaglieri in Eritrea in 1885 to the conquest of East Africa in the 1930s. Next come the two World Wars, which recount the courage of the Bersaglieri in good times and adversity including through the celebration of emblematic figures worthy of a Hollywood film script, such as Enrico Toti, a Roman Bersagliere and the ultimate symbol of Italian heroism: with his left leg amputated, he crossed Europe on a bicycle he modified himself so that he could pedal with just one leg. His extraordinary bicycle is now preserved in the museum: an exciting object that embodies the determination and tenacity of a man who became a legend.
