The original idea and construction of Pitti Palace was due to a wealthy Florentine Banker back in the mod 1400's; Luca Pitti.
Pitti wanted to build a palace better and bigger than that of the famous and prominent Medici Palace where his friend Cosimo de' Medici lived. Sadly, Luca Pitti found himself in great financial difficult and never saw the building completed before his death in 1472.
His family, however, continued with the plan and managed to maintain the estate up until 1549 when a descendant of Luca, Bonaccorso Pitti, had no choice but to sell the palace, and ironically, it was sold to the wife of Cosimo I of the Medici's, Eleonora of Toledo of Tuscany.
Very soon after, the elaborate gardens behind the villa were created, better known today as the Boboli Gardens.
The Medici's lived in Pitti Palace until the fall of their dynasty in 1737 when it became the Austrian House of Lorraine.
In 1869, Pitti Palace became the House of Savoy and was resided in by King Vittorio Emanuele II until 1871. Nearly fifty years later, the king's grandson, Vittorio Emanuele III, donated Pitti Palace to his country. From that time the palace began to be divided into separate galleries and museums which today host numerous priceless collections of art including paintings, sculptures done by well known artists like Raphael, Titan, Correggio and Reubans just to name a few.