Towers of Milan
The towers of Milan have played significant military and civilian roles throughout the history of the city. Built starting from the Roman era, they were for centuries one of the characteristic features of Milan, especially in the Middle Ages, when they served as reference points for the. In modern times, the construction of buildings in the form of towers, with a predominant vertical development, has continued with the erection of the skyscrapers of Milan.
History
The history of the towers of Milan begins in the Roman era, with the construction of towers serving military purposes, such as those incorporated into the Roman walls of Milan, and civilian functions, such as the tower of the carceres, i.e., the gates from which the chariots of the Roman circus of Milan started.A turning point, particularly in their military function, occurred starting in the Middle Ages. Each contrada of Milan, a historical subdivision of the city’s inhabited center used from the Middle Ages to the 19th century, had a watchtower as a reference point, often integrated into a noble palace, which was garrisoned by a cavalry unit, composed of nobles. The towers along the medieval walls of Milan were instead garrisoned by most of the city’s troops
Noteworthy are the towers of the Sforza Castle, which was built as an expansion of a pre-existing fortification, the Castello di Porta Giovia, constructed between 1360 and 1370 in the form of a quadrangular military fortification with four towers at the corners, with the two facing the city being particularly imposing. It was Francesco Sforza who transformed, through works that began in 1450, the Castello di Porta Giovia into the Castello Sforzesco, from which the fortification takes its name.
In 1452, the Filarete was commissioned by the duke for the construction and decoration of the central tower of the Castello Sforzesco, still called the Torre del Filarete. In 1476, under the regency of Bona of Savoy, the tower named after her was built, along with the Torre del Tesoro, also known as the Torre della Castellana, located at the western corner of the castle. On June 28, 1521, the Torre del Filarete exploded due to a French soldier who accidentally detonated a bomb after the tower had been converted into an armory. The Torre del Filarete was rebuilt during the restoration of the Castello Sforzesco, completed in 1905, using 16th-century drawings that allowed for the reconstruction of its original appearance.
Other towers in Milan were built as part of the Spanish walls of Milan, where they played a significant defensive and military role. Towers continued to be constructed in the following centuries, up to modern times, when the city’s skyscrapers were added, built starting from the early decades of the 20th century.