Milan history

hree times in its history, Milan had to rebuild after being conquered. Founded in the seventh century BC by Celts, the city, then known as Mediolanum ('mid-plain'), was first sacked by the Goths in the 600s (AD), then by Barbarossa in 1157 and finally by the Allies in WWII.

Milan reinvented herself under French, Spanish and Austrian rulers from 1499 until the reunification of Italy in 1870, which is when its economic success truly began, when metal and rubber industries were established here. After such repeated bombardments, it's a miracle that so many historic treasures still exist, including La Scala opera house, Castello Sforzesco, and Leonardo da Vinci's The Last Supper, which survived a direct hit in WWII.