Milan was founded around 400 BC by the Insubri Gauls, a Celtic tribe who settled along the banks of the Po river. In 196 BC it was occupied by the Romans who gave it the name of Mediolanum due to its geographical position, strategic for trade routes and to hinder the barbarian invasions.

Towards the third century, Mediolanum became the capital of the Empire to strengthen the northern area, threatened by the invasions of the populations of the Danube and the Alps.

The dominion of Milan grew with Gian Galeazzo Visconti (1385) thanks to the annexation of Verona, Vicenza, Padua, Pisa, Perugia and Bologna. The Duchy of Milan thus assumed great political and economic importance in the Italian peninsula.

The Congress of Vienna of 1815 restored the power of the Austrians and Milan became the capital of the Lombard-Venetian Kingdom.
In 1848, the Milanese faced the Austrians in the five-day battle, from 18 to 22 March, managing to defeat them. Despite this, Milan remained under Austrian rule until 1859.

In 1859 the Austrians left the city and Milan was annexed to Piedmont. Once the Kingdom of Italy was created, the capital settled in Florence and then moved to Rome, while Milan remained the economic capital of the new state.

Milan is the city that has made beauty and style its trademark. Finance, Fashion, Food: Milan is the place to be. Only by living it, you can feel the privilege of getting up in the shadow of the Madonnina "che te brillet de faran" and walking the same streets that were trodden by characters like Leonardo da Vinci , the genius who resided here for about 20 years and worked at the Renaissance court of Ludovico il Moro.

Our novelist par excellence, Alessandro Manzoni, was born and lived in Milan. Giuseppe Verdi elected it as his adopted city. It was in the Milan Cathedral that Napoleon decided to crown himself King of Italy. Milan is a hotbed of artists, of legendary songwriters such as Gaber and Iannacci, of musicians who experiment with new genres and musical trends, it is the undisputed homeland of record companies.

Even a world icon like the Statue of Liberty in New York was made in the image of a statue of the Milan Cathedral.

Also, if you are in Milan and are looking for a bit of luck, don't forget to go to Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II. If you arrive from the Duomo, once you reach the center of the Gallery, move slightly to the left and on the ground you will see the mosaic of a bull. It is not difficult to find, as there are already many people gathered waiting their turn to attract some good luck. Tradition has it that placing the heel of the right foot on the bull's genitals, rotating three times on oneself, brings good luck.