Bernardino of Susa rebuilt an ancient manor around the year 1000, and it later passed to Cistercian monks. The House of Savoy acquired it in the 16th century, and Charles Emmanuel I granted it to Thomas Francis, Prince of Carignano, in 1630. It was a moated brick fortress with a square plan and four corner towers. In the late 17th century Guarino Guarini transformed the central section and gave it a pagoda-like roof. Louis Victor renovated the interiors in neoclassical style in the late 18th century, and Charles Albert's court architect Ernesto Melano enlarged it.
André Le Nôtre is credited with the original French-style park, and Xavier Kurten designed the present romantic one. The parkland covers about 170 hectares. Pelagio Palagi designed the lakeside structures.
Umberto II, the last King of Italy, was born here in 1904. It is a UNESCO site since 1997, as part of the Residences of the Royal House of Savoy.
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