We Tell You The Story Of The Duomo Of Milan

The Duomo of Milan is a wonderful cathedral in the Gothic style that arouses the admiration of everyone who knows it. It is a majestic work where you have them with a unique and imposing facade that does not go unnoticed by anyone. Would you like to know its history? Well, we will tell you!

In addition to its beauty and intricate architecture, this cathedral is one of the largest Catholic churches in the world. In fact, it is about 157 meters long and its interior accommodates around 40,000 people. Let’s see why and how this spectacular monument was built.

The history of the Duomo of Milan

The construction of the Duomo of Milan began in 1386, but curiously the works were not completely finished until 1965, when the last door was inaugurated. But from the first moment it was the authentic heart of the Italian city, since the streets of Milan are around it.

Before this magnificent temple, the Basilica of San Ambrosio stood here, dating from the 5th century, although it was expanded in the 9th century. However, in the year 1075, and because of a fire, the temple was razed. Some centuries later the Duomo of Milan would be built in its place.

It took almost 600 years of construction, plans and projects to make Archbishop Antonio da Saluzzo’s idea come true. The Gothic style that the archbishop suggested was simply brilliant. This included elements that had never been used before and that came from French Gothic architecture, such as the aisles.

As a curiosity, we tell you that the construction began when the reign of the tyrant Bernabé Visconti ended and Gian Galeazzo Visconti, the bishop’s cousin, came to power. This construction was understood as a reward to the people who had suffered repression during the reign of the tyrant.

More about the history of the Duomo of Milan

When the cathedral was designed, it was intended to be the great religious center of the city. For this reason, other buildings were demolished, such as the Baptistry of San Esteban and the palaces of the Archbishop and Ordinari. The church of Santa Maria Maggiore was left standing in order to use it as a quarry.

The Italians were pleasantly surprised and excited about the construction.  This fact made it possible to collect large amounts of money in the form of donations. As a result, the work progressed rapidly in its early years.

In addition, it had the work of three hundred employees, with Simone da Orsenigo at the head, all belonging to the Fabricca del Duomo. And not only that, but Gian Galeazzo gave them free rein to use all the marble they needed from the Candoglia quarry and also exempted them from paying any taxes.

Just three years after starting construction, the project was entrusted to another architect, Nicolas de Bonaventure, who gave a very marked Gothic style to the exterior. There were experts who said that everything was built wrongly and without knowing, so it would soon collapse. Over time it has been proven that they were the wrong ones.

Too much time?

The works proceeded with enormous speed. In 1402 half the cathedral was already finished. However, the works were interrupted until 1480 due to lack of money and ideas to continue the project.

It seemed that a building of such magnitude was growing too big for them. Everything changed this year when Leonardo da Vinci visited the city and agreed to participate in the project improvement meetings. However, although none of his ideas came to fruition, it seemed to inspire other minds to come up with new ideas.

But the works progressed very slowly in the following centuries. In fact, it was Napoleon himself who in 1805 ordered the main façade to be completed. And the work on the temple would continue for a century and a half before it was completely finished.

Many may believe that almost 600 years is a long time to build a cathedral, but the Duomo of Milan is not just any cathedral. It is full of details, columns, windows, a colossal work of art! Possibly nothing has been seen, nor will anything remotely like it be seen. Are you already planning your next trip to beautiful Italy ?