The Royal Palace (Palazzo Reale) is situated in the symbolic setting of piazza Plebiscito in the historic centre of Naples. Together with the gardens and Teatro San Carlo, it was the historic residence of the most important dynasties of Naples until the palace was made state property after being given to the nation by Victor Emmanuel III of Savoy in 1919. This date signalled the transformation of the palace into a museum complex with the creation of an important national library. The palace underwent various phases of restoration over the centuries carried out by leading architects including Luigi Vanvitelli and Domenico Fontana.