The transformation of Piazza del Popolo in the19th century
The Piazza took on its modern-day form in the 1800s. In 1793, architect Giuseppe Valadier presented a project to Pope Pius VI for two cavalry barracks to be built along the sides of the square. When the French arrived in Rome, they chose a design for a “public villa and promenade” commissioned from French architect Louis Martin Berthault. But when the Pope returned, it was Valadier who put this plan into practice: the piazza became the square we know today, Giacomo Della Porta’s fountain was removed and replaced by a new design; two almost identical fountains were built at the centre of the curved walls around the ellipsoid piazza, and wide linking ramps were built, decorated with trees and carriage roads to provide access to the Pincio terrace.
Giovanni Battista Cipriani, Progetto del sig. Giuseppe Valadier architetto presentato a papa Pio VI nel 1794 per decorare la Piazza del Popolo con due caserme per cavalleria ed infanteri, in: Id., Vedute principali e più interessanti di Roma, Roma 1799