All roads lead to Rome — every path, if followed with persistence, leads to the same destination. Also: there are many ways to achieve the same goal.
This Piedmontese version of the universal proverb carries special historical weight in Turin. The House of Savoy spent centuries manoeuvring to make Rome the capital of a unified Italy — a goal finally achieved in 1870. For the Savoy dynasty and the Piedmontese political class, all roads did literally lead to Rome, though it took six hundred years and several false starts. Cavour, the great Piedmontese statesman who engineered Italian unification, was the supreme example of the proverb's wisdom: every diplomatic manoeuvre, every alliance, every war was a road toward the same destination. In the hills of the Langhe the proverb had a humbler meaning: the shepherd who lost the path would eventually find it, because all the valleys led down to the same plain. Today in Turin it is used with historical irony by those who remember that Rome, once reached, proved less rewarding than expected.
Piedmontese version of the universal proverb. In Turin, coloured by the Savoy dynasty's centuries-long project of making Rome the capital of a unified Italy under Piedmontese leadership.
A Turin history teacher explaining the Risorgimento
Cavour diceva in sostanza: tute le strade portan a Rum. Ogni alleanza, ogni guerra, ogni trattato era un passo verso Roma.
Cavour was essentially saying: all roads lead to Rome. Every alliance, every war, every treaty was a step toward Rome.
A young Torinese who took an indirect career path
Ho fatto il cuoco, poi il cameriere, poi il gestore, poi ho aperto il mio ristorante. Tute le strade portan a Rum — ci sono arrivato lo stesso.
I worked as a cook, then waiter, then manager, then opened my own restaurant. All roads lead to Rome — I got there all the same.
A Piedmontese mountain guide
— Mi sono perso sul sentiero. — Tute le strade portan a Rum. Scendi sempre verso il fondovalle e trovi il paese.
— I got lost on the path. — All roads lead to Rome. Always go down toward the valley floor and you will find the village.
Two Torinesi friends discussing different life choices
Tu hai fatto il liceo classico, io il professionale. Adesso guadagniamo uguale. Tute le strade portan a Rum.
You did the classical high school, I did the vocational one. Now we earn the same. All roads lead to Rome.