The Historical Wing, the New Wing and the Old Chapel

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Captain Federico Caprilli was a cavalry officer, known throughout the world for having developed the forward seat riding position that revolutionized equitation in Europe. Nicknamed the “horseman of horsemen” and “the flying horseman,” he crossed paths with the Cacherano di Bricherasio family when he met Count Emanuele at the military academy, developing a friendship that deepened during their time in the “Piemonte” cavalry regiment in Saluzzo. The two became best friends, sharing the sense of duty and discipline that comes with army life, a spirit of enterprise, and a charisma they would long be remembered for.

Federico Caprilli was a regular guest at Miradolo Castle, and it was here that he met Countess Sophia, with whom he became close. Just like with his friend Emanuele, Count of Bricherasio, his premature death in a riding accident in 1907 was never convincingly explained. It would seem he fell from his horse on slippery terrain and hit his head. At the behest of the Countess, he was buried in the Cacherano di Bricherasio Family Chapel in Fubine.

It is fitting that Emanuele and Federico should both be remembered here, in tribute to a deep friendship that bound them in life and in death, shaping two destinies that, like the halls of these wings, seem to have unfolded in close parallel.

Pinerolo is known as the “Cavalry City.” Since 1849, it has been home to the army’s Cavalry School, where Caprilli developed and taught his riding method.

The Cavalry School was established in Pinerolo because of the city’s strategic position, but there has always been a historical link to the Cavalry here, with a stable garrison.

The memory of this story is kept alive today by the Cavalry History Museum, located on the premises formerly belonging to the school, and by the Cavallerizza Caprilli in the center of Pinerolo. Built in 1910 as a training ground for the Cavalry School, the manège is a shining example of Art Nouveau architecture. Encompassing an area of more than 2000 square meters, the Cavallerizza Caprilli was once the biggest riding school in Europe after Moscow and Vienna, and it is still today the biggest covered manège in the world, with a reinforced concrete structure.