Collegio Raffaello

Also known as the “Palazzo degli Scolopi” or the “College of the Nobles,” it is one of the most prestigious buildings in the city. It was built in 1705 by order of Pope Clement XI on top of pre-existing medieval houses and the ancient churches of St. Agatha and the Corpus Domini. The structure was completed in 1741. It served as the College run by the Piarist Fathers until 1808, when it was transformed by Napoleon into a Royal Boarding School, and in 1865 it was named after Raphael. Among its students were Cardinal Annibale Albani, Louis Bonaparte, Giovanni Pascoli, and Francesco Puccinotti.

Since the late 19th century, it has been managed, together with the adjacent Palazzo Nuovo Albani, by the Albani Trust, a municipal entity. Today, it houses the City Council, several departments of the local university, the Physics and Science Museum.