Milan, A Short History

A guide-book which leads you through the history of Milan, giving voice to the city itself, going back to its origins and the protagonists of its past. The narrator of the most crucial moments and the most enjoyable anecdotes was one of the great experts in the history of the city; he was one who walked along the tiniest alleys and into the most hidden courtyards lured on by the curiosity of a reporter, but with the punctilious precision of a historian in love with the city and with its inhabitants, from the famous to the most humble. The book goes from the first Celtic settlement to the Second World War bombings, passing through the Roman era, the Longobards, the Viscontis, the Sforzas with Ludovico il Moro and Leonardo at his court, the Spaniards and later the Austrian domination, then Napoleon, the Risorgimento risings of the Cinque Giornate and comes to an end in May 1946 with Toscanini and his Concert at the Teatro alla Scala. This marked the moment when, with great determination, the city, devastated by the war, started on its reconstruction. Almost two thousand years of facts and events unfold before our eyes in a captivating and gripping style, with the author indulging particularly in the narration of the Sforza years, a period he knew so well and loved so dearly, a time when Milan enjoyed great splendour and international fame.


Guido Lopez (1924-2010), writer and reporter, was born in Milan and has lived there all his life. One of the greatest experts in Milanese history and art, he narrated the city past and present in numerous writings, essays and articles published in «la Repubblica», «Il Giorno», «Epoca». With Mursia he published in 1965 Milano in mano, a guide book which became a best seller, revised several times and with many additions reaching 15 editions; and Leonardo e Ludovico il Moro. La roba e la libertà (2001) and Festa di nozze per Ludovico il Moro (2008).