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Home > Travel Italy > Italy Destinations > Vigevano
Vigevano
Italy, officially the Italian Republic or Repubblica Italiana, is a Southern European country comprising of the Po River valley, the Italian Peninsula and the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia. It is shaped like a boot and for this reason Italians commonly call it lo Stivale, the boot or, due to its prevalent peninsular geographical nature, la Penisola, the Peninsula.
Vigevano is a town and commune in the province of Pavia, Lombardy, northern Italy, which possesses many artistic treasures and runs a huge industrial business. It is at the center of a district called Lomellina, a great rice-growing agricultural center. Vigevano was a Ghibelline commune, favoring the emperor and was accordingly besieged and taken by the Milanese in 1201 and again in 1275. In 1328 it finally surrendered to Azzone Visconti, and thereafter shared the political fortunes of Milan. The Church of S. Pietro Martiere was built, with the adjacent Dominican convent, by Filippo Maria Visconti in 1445.
In the last years of Visconti domination it sustained a siege by Francesco Sforza, himself a native of the city. Once he was settled in power in Lombardy, Sforza procured the erection of Vigevano as the seat of a bishop and provided its revenues. Vigevano is crowned by the Castello Sforzesco, a stronghold rebuilt 1492 to 1994 for Ludovico Maria Sforza the great patron born in the town, who transformed the fortification of Luchino Visconti into a rich noble residence, at the cusp of Gothic and Renaissance. Leonardo da Vinci was his guest at Vigevano, and Bramante came to work for him.
Vigevano's main attraction is one of the finest piazzas in Italy, Piazza Ducale, an elongated rectangle that is almost in the ideal proportions 1 is to 2 advocated by the architectural theorist Antonio Filarete. Piazza del Duomo was actually planned to form a noble forecourt to his castle, unified by the arcades that completely surround the square, an amenity of the new North Italian towns built in the 13th century. The town's main street enters through a sham arcaded facade that preserves the unity of the space as at the Place des Vosges. Today, one can also learn about its history, from its earliest times and gain enthusiasm in its natural beauty and populace. Vigevano enjoys a very positive reputation with worldwide travelers.
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