Postcards from... Milan

Milan had never been on my list of places to go, not least because everyone I knew who'd been there hated it. But having booked flights to Italy for Easter 2011, I found myself wondering how I was going to get back to the UK without breaking the bank. And that's when I realised that Milan was an affordable option...

Today, Milan is known for business and high fashion, but it has a long and chequered history that can be traced back to around 400 BC when the Celtic Insubres settled in the area. The settlement was conquered by the Romans in 222 BC, who renamed it Mediolanum, apparently from the Latin words medio, meaning 'in the middle', and lanus meaning 'plain'.

Several centuries later, in 286 AD, Emperor Diocletian (r. 284-305) declared Mediolanum the capital of the Western Roman Empire. Diocletian ruled the Eastern Roman Empire from Nicomedia (today's İzmit, in Turkey) while his co-emperor, Maximian (r. 285-305), ruled the Western one. Under Maximian several monuments, including a circus and a complex of imperial palaces, were built.

Over the following centuries, the city came under attack from all sides, first by the Visigoths in 402, then the Huns in 452 and finally the Ostrogoths in 539, who conquered and destroyed the city. In 569, a Teutonic tribe called the Lombards (from which the name of the region Lombardy derives) overpowered the Byzantine army who had been left to defend the area, and conquered Milan.

In 774, Milan surrendered to the Franks and, under their king, Charlemagne (r. 768-814), the city became part of the Holy Roman Empire. Not content with taking the city, Charlemagne also took the title of 'King of the Lombards' (r. 774-814). This was a novel decision because while Germanic tribes had conquered each other's territory before, they had never taken the kingship of another people. But there was more to come. In 800, at the height of his power, Charlemagne was crowned Emperor by Pope Leo III (t. 795-816), making him the first Emperor in Western Europe since the fall of the Western Roman Empire three centuries earlier.

The Middle Ages saw Milan prospering as a centre of trade. However, the city was still under the rule of the Holy Roman Empire, and in 1162, the Milanese launched a rebellion against Empire. This rebellion was unsuccessful, and three weeks later, on the orders of Frederick I Barbarossa, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Italy (r. 1155-1190), the city was largely destroyed. This led to the founding of the Lega Lombarda (Lombard League) in 1167, whose aim was to oust the Holy Roman Empire from Italian territory. The war between the German emperor and the Italian communes went on for several more years before finally ending in 1176 at the Battle of Legnano with Italian victory. And in 1183, Milan became a duchy.

But it did not bring peace to the city. The next century saw Milan dragged into a long, vicious feud between the della Torre and Visconti families. Martino della Torre's reign as Capitano del Popolo (r. 1259-1277) was harsh and reckless and led to an increasing support for his enemy, the Visconti family. Despite this, it wasn't until 1277 at the Battle of Desio that the Visconti succeeded in winning the city and ousting the della Torre family forever. And the city as we know it began to take shape.

Intriguing modern art near the Duomo

Same art, different view

The fifth largest cathedral in the world, and the largest in Italy, Il Duomo di Milano is a Gothic cathedral that took almost six centuries to build. Construction of the cathedral commenced in 1386 shortly after the accession to power of Gian Galeazzo I Visconti, Lord of Milan (r. 1378-1395) and, later, first Duke of Milan (r. 1395-1402). His cousin, Archbishop Antonio da Saluzzo (t. 1376-1401), oversaw the work. By the time of Visconti's death in 1402, almost half the cathedral had been built. But, thanks to a lack of money, progress slowed to a near standstill until around 1480. Work continued, once again, under Ludovico Sforza, Duke of Milan (r. 1489-1500) who, as patron of Leonardo da Vinci, was the man who commissioned The Last Supper. This last fact has nothing to do with the cathedral – I just thought it was interesting!

Some sixty years later and the cathedral still wasn't finished. Under Carlo Borromeo, Archbishop of Milan (t. 1564-1584), the cathedral underwent revisions to subdue the Gothic style and promote a more Renaissance or Italian feel. The church was finally consecrated in 1577.

Having succeeded Gaspar Visconti (t. 1584-1595) as Archbishop of Milan, Federico Borromeo (t. 1595-1631) had the foundations of the new façade laid. Work continued on it until 1638 under the new Archbishop, Cesare Monti (t. 1632-1650). Then in 1649, the new chief architect, Carlo Buzzi, decided that the façade was the revert to the original Gothic style. In 1805, Napoleon Bonaparte, President of the Italian Republic (r. 1802-1805) and about to be crowned Napoleon I, King of Italy (r. 1805-1814) ordered Carlo Pellicani to finish the façade. For the most part, Pellicani honoured Buzzi's design, and within seven years, it was done.

In the following years, statues were finished, missing arches and spires were constructed and new stained glass windows replaced the old ones. However, it took until the 20th century for the work to be deemed finished. On 6th January, 1965, the last gate was inaugurated, bringing to an end 579 years of work.

The magnificent Duomo

 

Close up of one of the windows



Part of the façade



The spires

Close-up of some of the carvings on the façade

 

 

Detail on the façade



Candles inside the cathedral

 

 

Light cast from the stained glass windows on the floor

The Visconti family ruled Milan until the middle of the 15th century when Filippo I Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan (r. 1412-1447) died without a male heir and brought the House of Visconti to an end. Following his death, the Golden Ambrosian Republic, which took its name from St Ambrose, the patron saint of Milan, was enacted. But the Republic collapsed in 1450 when the city was conquered by the House of Sforza under Francesco I Sforza, who became the new Duke of Milan (r. 1450-1466). During his reign Milan became one of the leading cities of the Italian Renaissance.

One of his biggest contributions to the city is Castello Sforzesco (Sforza Castle), which stands on the remains of a 14th-century fortification. The original construction was built by Galeazzo II Visconti, Lord of Milan (r. 1354-1378), and enlarged by his successors, Gian Galeazzo I Visconti, Lord of Milan (r. 1378-1395) and, later, Duke of Milan (r. 1395-1402), Giovanni Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan (r. 1402-1412) and Filippo I Maria Visconti, Duke of Milan (r. 1412-1447). The castle was the main residence in Milan of the Visconti dukes until its destruction in 1447 by the short-lived Golden Ambrosian Republic.

In 1450, Francesco I Sforza started rebuilding the castle. Two years later, he commissioned Filarete, (architect Antonio di Pietro Averlino), to design and decorate the central tower, which was to be called Torre del Filarete. The tower you see today is still called Torre del Filarete, but it's a modern reconstruction because in 1521, the original tower, which was being used as a weapons depot, exploded. After Francesco's death, his son Galeazzo III Maria Sforza, Duke of Milan (r. 1466-1476), continued the work using architect Benedetto Ferrini.

The castle passed down through the House of Sforza, until Lombardy fell under Spanish rule (1540-1706). Carlos V, Holy Roman Emperor and King of Italy (r. 1519-1556) claimed the area as a fiefdom for his son, King Felipe II of Spain (r. 1540-1598), during whose rule the castle became a citadel. The Spaniards were later replaced by the Austrians, who ruled Lombardy from 1706-1800, but the castle remained a fortress.

The reconstructed Torre del Filarete



The courtyard with one of a pair of matching round towers commissioned by Francesco I Sforza

While wandering around, a painted crest caught my eye. It turned out to be the Sforza-Visconti Coat of Arms, which had been created in 1441&nbsp the marriage of Francesco Sforza to Bianca Maria Visconti, the last direct (if illegitimate) descendent of the House of Visconti. The Coat of Arms depicts a basilisk (serpent) devouring a child, which was the Visconti Arms, combined with the imperial eagle from the Sforza Arms.

The Sforza-Visconti Coat of Arms

During the rule of Napoleon Bonaparte, President of the Italian Republic (r. 1802-1805) and King of Italy (r. 1805-1814), most of the outer fortifications were demolished. The semi-circular Piazza Castello was constructed, and a 700m square parade ground, called Piazza d'Armi, was laid out.

 

After the unification of Italy in 1871, the castle was transferred from military use to the City of Milan and the parade ground was turned into a park called Parco Sempione. Today, it is a tranquil space, perfect for taking a shady walk or just sitting on a bench watching the world go by.

Tranquility in Parco Sempione, a park created on the former parade grounds



Spring at Sempione

Near the cathedral is Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, one of the world's oldest shopping malls. Named after King Vittorio Emanuele II (r. 1861-1878), who laid the inaugural stone in 1865, the shopping mall was built by architect Guiseppe Mengoni (1829-1877). I recently discovered that it was inspired by Galeries Royales Saint-Hubert in Brussels, Belgium.

The Piazza del Duomo entrance to Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II

 

The triumphal arch above the entrance

 

 

Inside the galleries

  

The Galleria was officially inaugurated in 1867, but work continued for another ten years, mainly on the triumphal arch at the entrance. Unfortunately, in December 1877, the day before the project's completion, Mengoni slipped off the roof and plummeted to his death.

 

On the floor of the Galleria under the central dome are four mosaics depicting aspects from the Coats of Arms of four Italian cities. Milan is represented by a white flag with a red cross, Rome by a wolf, Florence by a lily, and Turin by a bull. Local legend has it that the bull mosaic marks the spot where Mengoni fell and died. To avoid such bad luck, Milanese tradition dictates that you should stand on the mosaic of the bull, grind your heel firmly into its testicles (now just a hole in the ground!), and do three anti-clockwise turns.

The beleaguered bull



A passer-by trying it out

The central dome under which the bull lies

  

No trip to Milan would be complete without a wander around the Quadrilatero d'Oro (Golden Rectangle), the city's posh shopping quarter. The most famous street is Via Monte Napoleone, locally known as Monte Napo, and it was there that I got to see how the other half live...

 

The sign for the famous Monte Napoleone street in the Quadrilatero d'Oro

Street art on Monte Napo

I am no particular fan of jewellery, but I adored the window displays. And one in particular caught my eye. I stopped to take a few shots of posh rings sitting on miniature chairs, and within minutes had attracted the attention of a less-than-friendly sales assistant who demanded to know what I was doing. Given that I had my camera in my hand, I would have thought it was fairly obvious, but I refrained from saying so. Instead I told her that I liked the chairs. But it seems that "because I like the chairs" was not a good enough reason to photograph their window display and I was quickly sent on my way.

On Monte Napo the rings are so posh, they have their own chairs!



Another posh ring



My favourite chair

Away from angry assistants on Monte Napo, I continued my wanderings through the Quadrilatero d'Oro passing endless designer shops, among them Armani, Fendi, Missoni, Hermès, Dolce & Gabbana, Miu Miu, Roberto Cavalli, Prada and Moschino... I stopped to take a couple of photos of a migraine-inducing Moschino window display, attracting and repelling in equal measures.

Migraine-inducing Moschino display

Heaven or hell at Moschino?

  

I spent just one day there, but Milan really surprised me. From sitting eating gelato on the steps of the Duomo to just wandering down little streets, window-shopping and photo-taking, I was in my element. To this day I am completely perplexed as to why everyone I know who's been there describes the city as 'boring' and 'ugly'. I LOVED it and I really want to go back.

 

Typical Italy