Luca Demontis

In the second half of the XIII century, the Commune of Milan was lead by the “pars populi” and the family della Torre. They opposed Ottone Visconti and other rival nobles (“pars nobilium”) that had been exiled from the city and were living in the surrounding countryside (contado). In order to better contrast their rivals, the family della Torre decided to acquire the lands and the rights (“honor et districtus”) over several countryside places, including the village of Trezzano sul Naviglio. The policy of the family della Torre in the countryside is here investigated by the mean of three documents from the archive of the Canonica of S. Ambrogio of Milan. The help given by the Canonica was fundamental to the consolidation of della Torre’s hegemonic power in Trezzano sul Naviglio and more generally in the countryside.