San Giorgio su Legnano
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San Giorgio su Legnano (
Legnanese Bustocco and Legnanese (natively and ) are two dialects of Western Lombard, spoken respectively in the cities of Busto Arsizio ( Province of Varese) and Legnano (Province of Milan), Lombardy. Although there is little evidence of Ligurian settl ...
: ) is a ''
comune The (; plural: ) is a local administrative division of Italy, roughly equivalent to a township or municipality. It is the third-level administrative division of Italy, after regions ('' regioni'') and provinces (''province''). The can also ...
'' (municipality) in the
Metropolitan City of Milan The Metropolitan City of Milan ( it, città metropolitana di Milano; lmo, label=Milanese, cittaa metropolitana de Milan ) is a metropolitan city (not to be confused with the metropolitan area) in the Lombardy region, Italy. It is the second mos ...
in the
Italian Italian(s) may refer to: * Anything of, from, or related to the people of Italy over the centuries ** Italians, an ethnic group or simply a citizen of the Italian Republic or Italian Kingdom ** Italian language, a Romance language *** Regional Ita ...
region
Lombardy Lombardy ( it, Lombardia, Lombard language, Lombard: ''Lombardia'' or ''Lumbardia' '') is an administrative regions of Italy, region of Italy that covers ; it is located in the northern-central part of the country and has a population of about 10 ...
, located about northwest of
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
. San Giorgio su Legnano borders the following municipalities:
Legnano Legnano (; or ''Lignàn'') is an Italian town and ''comune'' in the north-westernmost part of the Metropolitan City of Milan, Province of Milan, about from central Milan. With 60,259, it is the thirteenth-most populous township in Lombardy. Le ...
,
Villa Cortese Villa Cortese ( Legnanese: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northwest of Milan. The administrative municipalities borders Legnano, San Giorgio su Legnano, Busto Garolfo an ...
,
Canegrate Canegrate ( lmo, Canegraa ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northwest of Milan. The town gave its name to the Canegrate culture The Canegrate culture was a civili ...
,
Busto Garolfo Busto Garolfo ( Lombard: ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Milan of 13 978 inhabitants. Busto Garolfo is located in the Italian region Lombardy, placed about northwest of Milan. Toponymy In the local dialect, belongin ...
. It is located in the
Po Valley The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain ( it, Pianura Padana , or ''Val Padana'') is a major geographical feature of Northern Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of including its Venetic ex ...
northwest of
Milan Milan ( , , Lombard: ; it, Milano ) is a city in northern Italy, capital of Lombardy, and the second-most populous city proper in Italy after Rome. The city proper has a population of about 1.4 million, while its metropolitan city h ...
, from which it is 34 km away, near the valley in which the
Olona The Olona (''Olona'' in Italian; ''Ulona'', ''Urona'' or ''Uòna'' in Western Lombard) is an Italian river belonging to the Po Basin, long, that runs through the Province of Varese and Metropolitan City of Milan whose course is developed ent ...
river flows. Located slightly higher than the neighbouring Legnano (hence the preposition "su", en. "up", in the name), it is one of the smaller municipalities in the metropolitan city of Milan. Since 1957, the town has hosted the annual
Campaccio The Campaccio is an annual cross country running competition which takes place in early January in San Giorgio su Legnano, Italy. Organised by the ''Unione Sportiva Sangiorgese'' (Sangiorgese Sports Association), the event attracts participation fr ...
competition, a
cross country running Cross country running is a sport in which teams and individuals run a race on open-air courses over natural terrain such as dirt or grass. The course, typically long, may include surfaces of grass and earth, pass through woodlands and open coun ...
event which attracts world class athletes.3 STELLE CHE ILLUMINANO IL CAMPACCIO
Unione Sportiva Sangiorgese. Retrieved on 2011-01-12.
On 10 December 2006, San Giorgio su Legnano hosted the 2006 European Cross Country Championships.


Geography


Territory

The territory of San Giorgio su Legnano is located at the northern edge of the
Po Valley The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain ( it, Pianura Padana , or ''Val Padana'') is a major geographical feature of Northern Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of including its Venetic ex ...
, south of the
Alpine foothills The Alpine foothills, or Prealps (german: Voralpen; french: Préalpes; it, Prealpi; ), may refer generally to any foothills at the base of the Alps in Europe. They are the transition zone between the High Alps and the Swiss Plateau and the Bavar ...
. It rises on a
moorish The term Moor, derived from the ancient Mauri, is an exonym first used by Christian Europeans to designate the Muslim inhabitants of the Maghreb, the Iberian Peninsula, Sicily and Malta during the Middle Ages. Moors are not a distinct or se ...
plateau In geology and physical geography, a plateau (; ; ), also called a high plain or a tableland, is an area of a highland consisting of flat terrain that is raised sharply above the surrounding area on at least one side. Often one or more sides ha ...
at the edge of the hollow dug by the
Olona The Olona (''Olona'' in Italian; ''Ulona'', ''Urona'' or ''Uòna'' in Western Lombard) is an Italian river belonging to the Po Basin, long, that runs through the Province of Varese and Metropolitan City of Milan whose course is developed ent ...
river. The soil consists mainly of
pebble A pebble is a clast of rock with a particle size of based on the Udden-Wentworth scale of sedimentology. Pebbles are generally considered larger than granules ( in diameter) and smaller than cobbles ( in diameter). A rock made predominant ...
s,
gravel Gravel is a loose aggregation of rock fragments. Gravel occurs naturally throughout the world as a result of sedimentary and erosive geologic processes; it is also produced in large quantities commercially as crushed stone. Gravel is classifi ...
,
sand Sand is a granular material composed of finely divided mineral particles. Sand has various compositions but is defined by its grain size. Sand grains are smaller than gravel and coarser than silt. Sand can also refer to a textural class of s ...
and
clay Clay is a type of fine-grained natural soil material containing clay minerals (hydrous aluminium phyllosilicates, e.g. kaolin, Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4). Clays develop plasticity when wet, due to a molecular film of water surrounding the clay par ...
. Originally the territory was covered with a thin layer of
humus In classical soil science, humus is the dark organic matter in soil that is formed by the decomposition of plant and animal matter. It is a kind of soil organic matter. It is rich in nutrients and retains moisture in the soil. Humus is the Lati ...
unsuitable for forest growth and agricultural cultivation, so as to be largely
moorland Moorland or moor is a type of habitat found in upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and montane grasslands and shrublands biomes, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils. Moorland, nowadays, generally ...
. The territory has an area of 2.3 square kilometer and is distributed on land that has an altitude of between 189 m and 201 m
above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as ''orthometric heights''. The comb ...
. According to the
seismic hazard A seismic hazard is the probability that an earthquake will occur in a given geographic area, within a given window of time, and with ground motion intensity exceeding a given threshold. With a hazard thus estimated, risk can be assessed and incl ...
, the municipality is in zone 4 (irrelevant seismicity), as established by PCM ordinance 3274 of 20/03/2003.


The town

The urban fabric of San Giorgio su Legnano has developed around the
old town In a city or town, the old town is its historic or original core. Although the city is usually larger in its present form, many cities have redesignated this part of the city to commemorate its origins after thorough renovations. There are ma ...
. Then, gradually, between 1914 and 1958, San Giorgio was the subject of a marked
urbanization Urbanization (or urbanisation) refers to the population shift from rural to urban areas, the corresponding decrease in the proportion of people living in rural areas, and the ways in which societies adapt to this change. It is predominantly t ...
that led to the occupation of most of the area of the municipality. At the same time, there has been a significant increase in the number of new citizens entering the area, who have started to work in the fledgling industries in the area; as can be seen from demographic trends, between 1861 and 1961, the population of San Giorgio quadrupled. Then, due to the various
economic crises A financial crisis is any of a broad variety of situations in which some financial assets suddenly lose a large part of their nominal value. In the 19th and early 20th centuries, many financial crises were associated with banking panics, and man ...
that followed in the decades of the 20th century, a new phase began that led to the closure of many companies with the consequent birth of many brownfield areas, many of which were recovered.


Climate

According to , San Giorgio su Legnano is in Zone E with a rating of 2451 GR/G. Due to its location in the upper
Po Valley The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain ( it, Pianura Padana , or ''Val Padana'') is a major geographical feature of Northern Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of including its Venetic ex ...
, San Giorgio su Legnano has a
Continental climate Continental climates often have a significant annual variation in temperature (warm summers and cold winters). They tend to occur in the middle latitudes (40 to 55 north), within large landmasses where prevailing winds blow overland bringing som ...
with cold winters characterized by many days of snowfall and fog. Summers are hot humid, and moderately wet; temperatures can exceed and humidity 80%. That humidity persists for the entire year because of precipitation brought on by
cyclones In meteorology, a cyclone () is a large air mass that rotates around a strong center of low atmospheric pressure, counterclockwise in the Northern Hemisphere and clockwise in the Southern Hemisphere as viewed from above (opposite to an anti ...
originating in the
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the e ...
or in the
Russian north Russian North (russian: Русский Север) is an ethnocultural region situated in the northwestern part of Russia. It spans the regions of Arkhangelsk Oblast, the Republic of Karelia, Komi Republic, Vologda Oblast and Nenets Autonomous ...
. That precipitation itself remains in the Po Valley because of its poor ventilation. Data from the indicates that, based on the more than thirty years (1961–1990) of reference accumulated by the
World Meteorological Organization The World Meteorological Organization (WMO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for promoting international cooperation on atmospheric science, climatology, hydrology and geophysics. The WMO originated from the Internati ...
, that the average temperature of the Milan area the coldest month, January, is and that of the hottest month, July, is . Rainfall averages at and has peaks in spring and autumn, countered by a relative drop during the winter. The basic climatic data of San Giorgio su Legnano are:


Toponymy

The reference to the saint in the name of the municipality comes from a small church dedicated to
Saint George Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldier ...
attached to a
convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglican ...
of
Augustinian friars The Order of Saint Augustine, ( la, Ordo Fratrum Sancti Augustini) abbreviated OSA, is a religious mendicant order of the Catholic Church. It was founded in 1244 by bringing together several eremitical groups in the Tuscany region who were fo ...
present in the Legnano countryside, whose existence is attested by a manuscript of 1261. This monastery was the original nucleus of the Castle Visconteo of Legnano. It is likely that the presence of this monastery has then determined the title to Saint George, as well as the castle, also of a district of Legnano (the "Costa di San Giorgio") and the nearby municipality of San George su Legnano. In the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
, the community of San Giorgiowas known as "Sotena" or "Sotera", as can be read in some parish archival notes that refer to a medieval repert. The first reference to Saint George in the name of the village appears on documents from the early 15th century, which indicate the community as ''locus Sancti Georgi Plebis Parabiaghi Duc. Mlni'' (it. "the location of Saint George, of the
pieve In the Middle Ages, a pieve (, ; la, plebe, link=no; plural ''pievi'') was a rural church with a baptistery, upon which other churches without baptisteries depended. The Italian word ''pieve'' is descended from Latin ''plebs'' which, after th ...
of
Parabiago Parabiago (Milanese: ; la, Parabiacum) is a town located in the north-western part of the Metropolitan City of Milan, Lombardy, northern Italy. The town is crossed by the road to Sempione (S.S.33) and MilanGallarate Railway; nearby flow the Olo ...
,
Duchy of Milan The Duchy of Milan ( it, Ducato di Milano; lmo, Ducaa de Milan) was a state in northern Italy, created in 1395 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, then the lord of Milan, and a member of the important Visconti family, which had been ruling the city sin ...
), while on maps of the
Borromeo Borromeo is a surname. Notable people with the surname include: * House of Borromeo, an aristocratic family in Milan Members of the House of Borromeo * Andrea Borromeo (c. 1615 – 1683), Theatine priest * Charles Borromeo (1538 – 1584), cardina ...
era (16th century) the town is mentioned as ''Cascina Sancti Georgi Plebis Parabiaghi Duc. Mlni'' ("Cassina di San Giorgio, of the
pieve In the Middle Ages, a pieve (, ; la, plebe, link=no; plural ''pievi'') was a rural church with a baptistery, upon which other churches without baptisteries depended. The Italian word ''pieve'' is descended from Latin ''plebs'' which, after th ...
of
Parabiago Parabiago (Milanese: ; la, Parabiacum) is a town located in the north-western part of the Metropolitan City of Milan, Lombardy, northern Italy. The town is crossed by the road to Sempione (S.S.33) and MilanGallarate Railway; nearby flow the Olo ...
, Duchy of Milan"). San Giorgio was a member until 1535 of the municipality of Legnano, from which it was divided after the administrative reform of
Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain (Crown of Castile, Castil ...
. After the
Italian unification The unification of Italy ( it, Unità d'Italia ), also known as the ''Risorgimento'' (, ; ), was the 19th-century political and social movement that resulted in the consolidation of different states of the Italian Peninsula into a single ...
, following the enactment of the royal decree N°941, on 23 October 1862, the municipality took the name "San Giorgio su Legnano" to distinguish it from other municipalities of the same name.


History


From Prehistory to Middle Age

In
Prehistory Prehistory, also known as pre-literary history, is the period of human history between the use of the first stone tools by hominins 3.3 million years ago and the beginning of recorded history with the invention of writing systems. The use of ...
the ''sangiorgese'' territory was covered by
moorland Moorland or moor is a type of habitat found in upland areas in temperate grasslands, savannas, and shrublands and montane grasslands and shrublands biomes, characterised by low-growing vegetation on acidic soils. Moorland, nowadays, generally ...
. It was therefore an area where only
bushes A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...
grew spontaneously, given the poor
fertility Fertility is the capability to produce offspring through reproduction following the onset of sexual maturity. The fertility rate is the average number of children born by a female during her lifetime and is quantified demographically. Fertili ...
of the
soil Soil, also commonly referred to as earth or dirt, is a mixture of organic matter, minerals, gases, liquids, and organisms that together support life. Some scientific definitions distinguish ''dirt'' from ''soil'' by restricting the former te ...
. Over the centuries, thanks to the fertilization work of local
farmer A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mig ...
s and the construction of artificial canals in the surrounding areas, the ''sangiorgese'' territory has been made arable. Once vast areas were cultivated and the flora of the wooded areas was composed mainly of oaks,
hornbeam Hornbeams are hardwood trees in the flowering plant genus ''Carpinus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The 30–40 species occur across much of the temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. Origin of names The common English name ''hornbeam' ...
s,
chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...
s, common hazels, planes, ashes, poplars,
elm Elms are deciduous and semi-deciduous trees comprising the flowering plant genus ''Ulmus'' in the plant family Ulmaceae. They are distributed over most of the Northern Hemisphere, inhabiting the temperate and tropical-montane regions of North ...
s,
maple ''Acer'' () is a genus of trees and shrubs commonly known as maples. The genus is placed in the family Sapindaceae.Stevens, P. F. (2001 onwards). Angiosperm Phylogeny Website. Version 9, June 2008 nd more or less continuously updated since http ...
s and
alder Alders are trees comprising the genus ''Alnus'' in the birch family Betulaceae. The genus comprises about 35 species of monoecious trees and shrubs, a few reaching a large size, distributed throughout the north temperate zone with a few sp ...
s. The oldest archaeological records found in the territory of San Giorgio su Legnano are made up of
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *''Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a letter ...
necropolis A necropolis (plural necropolises, necropoles, necropoleis, necropoli) is a large, designed cemetery with elaborate tomb monuments. The name stems from the Ancient Greek ''nekropolis'', literally meaning "city of the dead". The term usually im ...
es, the dating of which corresponds to the imperial age (1st century BC-4th century). The oldest tombs are strongly affected by Celtic influence, as the
Romanization Romanization or romanisation, in linguistics, is the conversion of text from a different writing system to the Roman (Latin) script, or a system for doing so. Methods of romanization include transliteration, for representing written text, and ...
process is not yet complete. The first documented naming the sangiorgese community is to an inscription carved on some
brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...
s dated 1393 that were found during some excavations at the Church of Santissimo Crocifisso carried out in 1769, as evidenced by some notes in the San Giorgio su Legnano
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
archive: In English this archive text means: "this Church, having been landed in the refabrication of a new one in 1769, found two large bricks on the foundations on which Count Giorgio Giulini writer read the following inscription: 1393 – 26 May – is the first church built in this Sotena Commune in Glory of God and Saint George and was consecrated by the Reverend Archbishop". Thus, originally, the ''sangiorgese'' community was called ''Sotena'' or ''Sotera'' and the aforementioned church, now no longer existing and later replaced by the Church of Santissimo Crocifisso, turns out to be the oldest temple of San Giorgio that has been traced. A widespread
folk etymology Folk etymology (also known as popular etymology, analogical reformation, reanalysis, morphological reanalysis or etymological reinterpretation) is a change in a word or phrase resulting from the replacement of an unfamiliar form by a more famili ...
of the word ''Sotera'', which ran among the inhabitants of the area, would like this term to be a reference to the allusion to the Roman necropolis ("underground": in the legnanese dialect ''sota'' ''tèra''). Apart from this
inscription Epigraphy () is the study of inscriptions, or epigraphs, as writing; it is the science of identifying graphemes, clarifying their meanings, classifying their uses according to dates and cultural contexts, and drawing conclusions about the wr ...
, there is no written news of the ''sangiorgese'' community of the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
. In the register of churches of the ''Liber Notitiae Sanctorum Mediolani'' of Geoffrey da Bussero, which describes the religious context of the Milanese area between the end of the 13th century and the beginning of the 14th century, San Giorgio is not yet present. In this historical period, San Giorgio su Legnano was therefore a small group of houses that did not yet have its own
church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...
; the first religious building in the community to be traced is the church mentioned above, which was consecrated in 1393. The only tangible evidence of the medieval San Giorgio is a sixth-door window, with a
terracotta Terracotta, terra cotta, or terra-cotta (; ; ), in its material sense as an earthenware substrate, is a clay-based ceramic glaze, unglazed or glazed ceramic where the pottery firing, fired body is porous. In applied art, craft, construction, a ...
edge, present in a building overlooking the main square, the so-called ''Casa della regina'' (en. "Queen's House"), which is perhaps the oldest building in the country; on this dwelling, until the 1930s there was a
coat of arms A coat of arms is a heraldry, heraldic communication design, visual design on an escutcheon (heraldry), escutcheon (i.e., shield), surcoat, or tabard (the latter two being outer garments). The coat of arms on an escutcheon forms the central ele ...
indicating the belonging of the building to the
Visconti Visconti is a surname which may refer to: Italian noble families * Visconti of Milan, ruled Milan from 1277 to 1447 ** Visconti di Modrone, collateral branch of the Visconti of Milan * Visconti of Pisa and Sardinia, ruled Gallura in Sardinia from ...
and that was taken away by an antique dealer: then the traces were lost. The
Battle of Legnano The Battle of Legnano was a battle between the imperial army of Frederick Barbarossa and the troops of the Lombard League on May 29, 1176, near the town of Legnano in present-day Lombardy, in Italy. Although the presence of the enemy nearby wa ...
may have also been fought on the territory of San Giorgio su Legnano. One of the chronicles of the famous battle (29 May 1176), the ''Annales of Cologne'', contains information indicating where the
Carroccio A carroccio (; ) was a large four-wheeled wagon bearing the city signs around which the militia of the medieval communes gathered and fought. It was particularly common among the Lombard, Tuscan and, more generally, northern Italian municipali ...
was probably, and therefore where plausibly the battle would be fought: so that no warrior could withdraw, the Lombardi "aut vincere aut mori parati, grandi fossa suum exercitum circumdederunt", i.e. "ready to win or die in the field, placed their army inside a large pit". This would suggest that the Carroccio was placed on the edge of a steep slope, so that the imperial cavalry, whose arrival was expected along the course of the
Olona The Olona (''Olona'' in Italian; ''Ulona'', ''Urona'' or ''Uòna'' in Western Lombard) is an Italian river belonging to the Po Basin, long, that runs through the Province of Varese and Metropolitan City of Milan whose course is developed ent ...
river, would be forced to storm the center of the army of the Lombard League going up the hollowing. Considering the phases of the battle, this could mean that the famous battle may have also been fought on ''sangiorgese'' soil near the ''Costa San Giorgio'', quartier belonging to municipality of Legnano, or on the territory of today's ''San Martino'', another quartier belonging to municipality of Legnano, not being detectable, in other parts of the area, a hollow with these characteristics.
Federico Barbarossa Frederick Barbarossa (December 1122 – 10 June 1190), also known as Frederick I (german: link=no, Friedrich I, it, Federico I), was the Holy Roman Emperor from 1155 until his death 35 years later. He was elected King of Germany in Frankfurt am ...
's army then came to the other side, from Borsano: this forced the municipal fanties to resist around the Carroccio, since they had the escape road barred by the Olona river, which they had behind them. Popular
legend A legend is a Folklore genre, genre of folklore that consists of a narrative featuring human actions, believed or perceived, both by teller and listeners, to have taken place in human history. Narratives in this genre may demonstrate human valu ...
has it that in those days a tunnel connected San Giorgio at the castle of Legnano, and that through this tunnel the emperor Federico Barbarossa managed to escape and save himself after the defeat in battle. In the 20th century, during some excavations, trunks of a very ancient tunnel were actually found. The first, not far from San Giorgio su Legnano, was explored by one of the workers who brought it back to light. The worker was dissuaded from exploration after walking five or six meters, due to a breath of wind that extinguished the candle. A second section towards Legnano was discovered and immediately obstructed by the municipal administration for safety reasons.Le pubblicazioni de' "Il Belvedere" – San Giorgio su Legnano – Cenni storici – con il patrocinio dell'Amministrazione comunale In addition, during excavations carried out in 2014 at the castle of Legnano, the entrance to another secret gallery was identified. In April 1273,
Napoleone Napoleone is an Italian male given name. St. Napoleone of Alexandria, alternatively rendered as ''Neopulus'', ''Neopolus'', ''Neopolis'' or ''Neópolo'', whose feast day is August 15, was martyred during the early fourth century during the Diocleti ...
and Francesco della Torre welcomed king
Edward I of England Edward I (17/18 June 1239 – 7 July 1307), also known as Edward Longshanks and the Hammer of the Scots, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from 1272 to 1307. Concurrently, he ruled the duchies of Aquitaine and Gascony as a vassa ...
and
Eleanor of Castile Eleanor of Castile (1241 – 28 November 1290) was Queen of England as the first wife of Edward I, whom she married as part of a political deal to affirm English sovereignty over Gascony. The marriage was known to be particularly close, and ...
to Milan on their return from a trip to the
Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...
. After taking leave of the
Della Torre The House of Della Torre (Torriani or Thurn) were an Italian noble family who rose to prominence in Lombardy during the 12th–14th centuries, until they held the lordship of Milan before being ousted by the Visconti. History The family originall ...
, the royals were taken to the castle of Legnano, where they stopped for one night. A popular legend, however, claims that the royals, on the way back, stayed overnight at San Giorgio su Legnano in the so-called "Queen's House". On the documents of the time, the event is described, citing the fact that the English royals had been housed "''a Santo Georgio near Legnano''".


From Middle Age to 18th century

In the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
the community of ''Sotena'', like the nearby Legnano, was on the border between the
Seprio Castelseprio was the site of a Roman fort in antiquity, and a significant Lombard town in the early Middle Ages, before being destroyed and abandoned in 1287. It is today preserved as an archaeological park in the modern ''comune'' of Castelsepri ...
peasants (whose capital was Castelseprio) and Burgaria (probably under the hegemony of
Parabiago Parabiago (Milanese: ; la, Parabiacum) is a town located in the north-western part of the Metropolitan City of Milan, Lombardy, northern Italy. The town is crossed by the road to Sempione (S.S.33) and MilanGallarate Railway; nearby flow the Olo ...
), two counties dependent on the Lombardy Brand, which was a territorial division from the
Longobards The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 and ...
and
Franks The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools, ...
. At the time, the community depended on both the civil and religious aspects of the
Pieve In the Middle Ages, a pieve (, ; la, plebe, link=no; plural ''pievi'') was a rural church with a baptistery, upon which other churches without baptisteries depended. The Italian word ''pieve'' is descended from Latin ''plebs'' which, after th ...
of Parabiago. Since the 16th century, San Giorgio had a
mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well a ...
, even at the time a representative of the community. The mayor was flanked by a
chancellor Chancellor ( la, cancellarius) is a title of various official positions in the governments of many nations. The original chancellors were the of Roman courts of justice—ushers, who sat at the or lattice work screens of a basilica or law cou ...
whose duties were similar to those of the municipal secretary in the contemporary Italian order. Among other tasks, the chancellor kept the municipal archive in his own home. In 1558, as shown by the
Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many Latin American countries **Spanish cuisine Other places * Spanish, Ontario, Can ...
register, the municipality consisted of eleven courtyards. At that time San Giorgio was therefore a small village. One of the defining aspects of The history of San Giorgio in the 17th century was the infeudation. During this century the Spanish government auctioned off many land where the buyer, who had become a feudalist in this way, had the prerogative to boast political, economic and social rights to the fiefdom. Communities had the opportunity to redeem the land by paying a fee that was set based on the number of families in the community. San Giorgio secured the
ransom Ransom is the practice of holding a prisoner or item to extort money or property to secure their release, or the sum of money involved in such a practice. When ransom means "payment", the word comes via Old French ''rançon'' from Latin ''red ...
in 1648 by taking on a debt of 3,000 lire with Francesco Castelli, a landowner. However, two years of poor harvests prevented the ''sangiorgese'' community from repaying the money. For this reason the ''sangiorgesi'' asked Camillo Castelli, son of Francesco, who had since died, to be unfaithful. The infeudation took place on 10 November 1656 for a sum of 3,430 lire. The ''sangiorgese'' community remained a fiefdom of the Castelli until 1780, when, with the death of Cardinal Giuseppe Castelli, the last descendant of the house, the debt was extinguished. In 1706 the
Austrians , pop = 8–8.5 million , regions = 7,427,759 , region1 = , pop1 = 684,184 , ref1 = , region2 = , pop2 = 345,620 , ref2 = , region3 = , pop3 = 197,990 , ref3 ...
took over from the Spanish as rulers of the
Duchy of Milan The Duchy of Milan ( it, Ducato di Milano; lmo, Ducaa de Milan) was a state in northern Italy, created in 1395 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, then the lord of Milan, and a member of the important Visconti family, which had been ruling the city sin ...
. Among the initiatives promoted by the new government was the preparation of a register that was characterized by having much more detailed parameters than the previous ones. In addition to the precise measurement of all real estate, houses and land, a
map A map is a symbolic depiction emphasizing relationships between elements of some space, such as objects, regions, or themes. Many maps are static, fixed to paper or some other durable medium, while others are dynamic or interactive. Although ...
was also made for each municipality of the Duchy. For the first time, the properties of the
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
, which until then had been tax-exempt, were also recorded.
Charles VI, Holy Roman Emperor , house = Habsburg , spouse = , issue = , issue-link = #Children , issue-pipe = , father = Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor , mother = Eleonore Magdalene of Neuburg , birth_date ...
, issued a decree establishing a working group, whose task was to accurately survey the municipalities belonging to his Lombard domains. In the case of San Giorgio, the determination of the size of the territory began on 20 November 1721, thanks to a team of detectors and designers led by surveyor Benito Corradini. In addition to the size of the municipality, all the inhabitants were registered and cataloged all the real estate properties. It took eight days to complete the work. The product was a 1:2000 scale map showing the real estate (land and buildings), as well as the boundaries of the municipality. A copy of this map is still preserved at the
town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
and also accurately shows the silhouettes of the buildings. The map shows the name given by the ''sangiorgesi'' to the various terrains, a denomination from the oral tradition. This map was complemented by a document, called "summary", where the various real estate properties were listed, with the measurement and destination of the land. The inhabitants of San Giorgio su Legnano, as of 16 March 1730, were 777 and resided in 60
courtyard A courtyard or court is a circumscribed area, often surrounded by a building or complex, that is open to the sky. Courtyards are common elements in both Western and Eastern building patterns and have been used by both ancient and contemporary ...
s. There were 58 owners of real estate, but 11 of them owned as many as 92% of the municipality's land. According to this register, San Giorgio had an extension of 3,133 Milanese '' pertiche''.


From 19th century to 21st century

In Napoleonic times, from an administrative point of view, the municipality of San Giorgio was suppressed and incorporated in the neighboring municipality of
Canegrate Canegrate ( lmo, Canegraa ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Metropolitan City of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about northwest of Milan. The town gave its name to the Canegrate culture The Canegrate culture was a civili ...
. He was a member of the aforementioned municipality from 4 November 1809 to 8 November 1811.
Agricultural Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating Plant, plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of Sedentism, sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of Domestication, domesticated species created food ...
crop A crop is a plant that can be grown and harvested extensively for profit or subsistence. When the plants of the same kind are cultivated at one place on a large scale, it is called a crop. Most crops are cultivated in agriculture or hydroponic ...
s were very varied. The main crops were
cereal A cereal is any Poaceae, grass cultivated for the edible components of its grain (botanically, a type of fruit called a caryopsis), composed of the endosperm, Cereal germ, germ, and bran. Cereal Grain, grain crops are grown in greater quantit ...
s (
millet Millets () are a highly varied group of small-seeded grasses, widely grown around the world as cereal crops or grains for fodder and human food. Most species generally referred to as millets belong to the tribe Paniceae, but some millets al ...
and
wheat Wheat is a grass widely cultivated for its seed, a cereal grain that is a worldwide staple food. The many species of wheat together make up the genus ''Triticum'' ; the most widely grown is common wheat (''T. aestivum''). The archaeologi ...
),
vine A vine (Latin ''vīnea'' "grapevine", "vineyard", from ''vīnum'' "wine") is any plant with a growth habit of trailing or scandent (that is, climbing) stems, lianas or runners. The word ''vine'' can also refer to such stems or runners themselv ...
and
mulberry ''Morus'', a genus of flowering plants in the family Moraceae, consists of diverse species of deciduous trees commonly known as mulberries, growing wild and under cultivation in many temperate world regions. Generally, the genus has 64 identif ...
, which is the basis of the breeding of silkworms. In addition to the cereal crop, the economy of San Giorgio su Legnano was also based on livestock
farming Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
. The agricultural contract spread in these centuries in the Altomilanese was that of the sharecropper. Vine was the most common crop in the area. In 1723, in fact, about 70% of the ''sangiorgese'' territory was cultivated with vineyards. The vine was so common that, as recently as 1855, San Giorgio su Legnano was among the communities where the fraction of the land worked in
vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...
s was predominant. On the
social Social organisms, including human(s), live collectively in interacting populations. This interaction is considered social whether they are aware of it or not, and whether the exchange is voluntary or not. Etymology The word "social" derives from ...
and
economic An economy is an area of the Production (economics), production, Distribution (economics), distribution and trade, as well as Consumption (economics), consumption of Goods (economics), goods and Service (economics), services. In general, it is ...
front, this period was characterized by the profound transformation of the ''sangiorgese'' production system. It went from an agricultural economy to an industrial one. In the second half of the 19th century, the first small proto-industrial activities appeared. According to a document from 1872, two protoindustries for the treatment of silk were based in San Giorgio su Legnano, one for processing and the other for twisting. Overall, they employed about 200 people, mostly women. According to a written testimony of 1891, among the proto-industrial activities, a detached headquarters of the ''Kramer & C.'' plant in Legnano appeared and a craft activity for the production of spirits appeared. The process of industrialization that led to the gradual transformation of the ''sangiorgese'' economy was accelerated by two natural disasters that put local agriculture in crisis:
cryptogam A cryptogam (scientific name Cryptogamae) is a plant (in the wide sense of the word) or a plant-like organism that reproduces by spores, without flowers or seeds. The name ''Cryptogamae'' () means "hidden reproduction", referring to the fact ...
y, a disease that affected the vine, and nosematosis, an epidemic that damaged the cocoons of
silkworms The domestic silk moth (''Bombyx mori''), is an insect from the moth family Bombycidae. It is the closest relative of ''Bombyx mandarina'', the wild silk moth. The silkworm is the larva or caterpillar of a silk moth. It is an economically imp ...
. For the first infection, which appeared between 1851 and 1852, the result in Lombardy was the rapid fall in the amount of
wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...
produced. The hectolitres of wine produced rose from 1,520,000 in 1838 to 550,000 in 1852. The final blow to wine production came from two other diseases of the vine that, between 1879 and 1890, affected the plant: the
peronospora ''Peronospora'' is a genus of oomycetes that are obligate plant pathogens of many eudicots. Most species in this group produce a downy mildew disease, which can cause severe damage to many different cultivated crops, as well as wild and ornamenta ...
and the
phylloxera Grape phylloxera is an insect pest of commercial grapevines worldwide, originally native to eastern North America. Grape phylloxera (''Daktulosphaira vitifoliae'' (Fitch 1855) belong to the family Phylloxeridae, within the order Hemiptera, bugs ...
. Following these epidemics, the wineries in San Giorgio su Legnano disappeared for good and the peasants concentrated their efforts on the production of cereals and the breeding of silkworms. In other wine areas the problem was solved by grafting species of vines immune to the disease (American grapes). However, this did not happen in San Giorgio: in 1911 about 80% of the agricultural land of San Giorgio su Legnano was destined for the cultivation of mulberries, with the cultivation of the vine having completely disappeared. Shortly after the spread of the disease of the vine, an infection of the silkworm, nosematosis, appeared. It was also called pébrin because it was revealed by small dark spots that covered the body of the bug. It was a disease that had never appeared before, and was considerably more dangerous than the kick that for centuries ruined part of the crop. The mulberry culture did not follow the fate of
viticulture Viticulture (from the Latin word for ''vine'') or winegrowing (wine growing) is the cultivation and harvesting of grapes. It is a branch of the science of horticulture. While the native territory of ''Vitis vinifera'', the common grape vine, ran ...
. The end of the cultivation of silkworms was in fact less rapid than that of viticulture. In San Giorgio, mulberries were cultivated until the early part of the 20th century. In the second part of the 19th century, Europe was hit by an agricultural crisis involving cereal crops. This was due to the spread of American
grain A grain is a small, hard, dry fruit (caryopsis) – with or without an attached hull layer – harvested for human or animal consumption. A grain crop is a grain-producing plant. The two main types of commercial grain crops are cereals and legum ...
s at competitive prices on the markets. In fact, large areas of the American Middle West were destined for cultivation. In addition, thanks to technological advancement, there was a marked decrease in the cost of transport by sea. The effect was a deep crisis that affected cereal crops in Europe. This juncture, which reached its peak in the 1880s, characterized the agriculture of the old continent until the beginning of the 20th century. At this point the economic structure of San Giorgio su Legnano changed completely into an industrial system. In 1911, the Ministry of Agriculture, Industry and Commerce released data from the first statistical survey of industrial plants. Out of 3,015 ''sangiorgesi'', almost 50% worked in the
industrial sector In macroeconomics, the secondary sector of the economy is an economic sector in the three-sector theory that describes the role of manufacturing. It encompasses industries that produce a finished, usable product or are involved in construction ...
. To make the idea more precise of the economic system would be enough to mention the animals present in 1937 in the stables of ''sangiorgesi'', compared to almost 3,900 inhabitants: 17 oxen, 31 calves, 126
cow Cattle (''Bos taurus'') are large, domesticated, cloven-hooved, herbivores. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae and the most widespread species of the genus ''Bos''. Adult females are referred to as cows and adult ma ...
s, 46
horse The horse (''Equus ferus caballus'') is a domesticated, one-toed, hoofed mammal. It belongs to the taxonomic family Equidae and is one of two extant subspecies of ''Equus ferus''. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million y ...
s, 3
donkey The domestic donkey is a hoofed mammal in the family Equidae, the same family as the horse. It derives from the African wild ass, ''Equus africanus'', and may be classified either as a subspecies thereof, ''Equus africanus asinus'', or as a ...
s, 1
mule The mule is a domestic equine hybrid between a donkey and a horse. It is the offspring of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The horse and the donkey are different species, with different numbers of chromosomes; of the two pos ...
, 1
hinny A hinny is a domestic equine hybrid, the offspring of a male horse (a stallion) and a female donkey (a jenny). It is the reciprocal cross to the more common mule, which is the product of a male donkey (a jack) and a female horse (a mare). The hi ...
, 12
pig The pig (''Sus domesticus''), often called swine, hog, or domestic pig when distinguishing from other members of the genus '' Sus'', is an omnivorous, domesticated, even-toed, hoofed mammal. It is variously considered a subspecies of ''Sus ...
s and 11
goat The goat or domestic goat (''Capra hircus'') is a domesticated species of goat-antelope typically kept as livestock. It was domesticated from the wild goat (''C. aegagrus'') of Southwest Asia and Eastern Europe. The goat is a member of the a ...
s. To complete the picture around the
agricultural economy Agricultural economics is an applied field of economics concerned with the application of economic theory in optimizing the production and distribution of food and fiber products. Agricultural economics began as a branch of economics that speci ...
of the ''sangiorgese'' community, in the early 1940s, the cultivated fields provided about 1,800 tons of wheat, 400 rye and 80 oats. At the turn of the 1950s and 1960s there was the golden age of the ''sangiorgese'' industry, mainly related to the
textile Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
and
mechanic A mechanic is an artisan, skilled tradesperson, or technician who uses tools to build, maintain, or repair machinery, especially cars. Duties Most mechanics specialize in a particular field, such as auto body mechanics, air conditioning and r ...
al industries. In the decades that followed, there was a slow decline caused by competition from textiles from developing countries. The crisis progressively worsened, damaging the economy, employment and industrial fabric, that resized. These processes continue to this day. Agriculture, marginal in its impact on the production system, is practiced in the few areas free of construction and infrastructure. These soils are grown from cereals, mainly wheat and
maize Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples in southern Mexico about 10,000 years ago. Th ...
. San Giorgio su Legnano, like the whole surrounding area, is still among the most developed and industrialized areas of Italy.


Main sights


Religious architecture

In San Giorgio su Legnano there are two
church Church may refer to: Religion * Church (building), a building for Christian religious activities * Church (congregation), a local congregation of a Christian denomination * Church service, a formalized period of Christian communal worship * C ...
es, a subsidiary and a
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
one. Prior to the construction of the latter, the community referred to a church before 1750 and later demolished and also called by the same name as the modern parish. The parish church of San Giorgio su Legnano, Church of Beata Vergine Assunta, that is dedicated to
Assumption of Mary The Assumption of Mary is one of the four Marian dogmas of the Catholic Church. Pope Pius XII defined it in 1950 in his apostolic constitution ''Munificentissimus Deus'' as follows: We proclaim and define it to be a dogma revealed by Go ...
, was consecrated on 23 April 1935 by the
Archbishop of Milan The Archdiocese of Milan ( it, Arcidiocesi di Milano; la, Archidioecesis Mediolanensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Italy which covers the areas of Milan, Monza, Lecco and Varese. It has l ...
,
Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster Alfredo Ildefonso Schuster OSB (, ; 18 January 1880 – 30 August 1954), born Alfredo Ludovico Schuster, was an Italian Roman Catholic prelate and professed member from the Benedictines who served as the Archbishop of Milan from 1929 until his ...
. The domed octagonal church is an example of a
Bramante Donato Bramante ( , , ; 1444 – 11 April 1514), born as Donato di Pascuccio d'Antonio and also known as Bramante Lazzari, was an Italian architect and painter. He introduced Renaissance architecture to Milan and the High Renaissance style ...
s-inspired
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ideas ...
style, easily inferred from the central plant. On each of the eight sides open the corresponding side
chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...
s and the presbytery, which develops in depth. The two side chapels, one of the
Sacred Heart The Most Sacred Heart of Jesus ( la, Cor Jesu Sacratissimum) is one of the most widely practised and well-known Catholic devotions, wherein the heart of Jesus is viewed as a symbol of "God's boundless and passionate love for mankind". This devo ...
and the other of Our Lady are increased, forming a circle-shaped outline closed by a dome. Another peculiarity of the church is the use of
brick A brick is a type of block used to build walls, pavements and other elements in masonry construction. Properly, the term ''brick'' denotes a block composed of dried clay, but is now also used informally to denote other chemically cured cons ...
s of clear Lombard derivation. The subsidiary church, dedicated to
Saint George Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldier ...
, is known as the Church of Santissimo Crocifisso. It is located in the place where the oldest religious building in the community was located. After the construction of 1703, it was called a ''Chiesa Nuova'' (en. "New Church"). In 1933 it was called the ''Chiesa del Santissimo Crocifisso''. The first documented reports on the old parish Church of Beata Vergine Assunta date back to 1750, the year of its expansion. The temple, in the
Baroque The Baroque (, ; ) is a style of architecture, music, dance, painting, sculpture, poetry, and other arts that flourished in Europe from the early 17th century until the 1750s. In the territories of the Spanish and Portuguese empires including t ...
style, had a single aisle that was complemented by side chapels. The
apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an ''exedra''. In ...
was boasted of
fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...
es. The facade had a simple invoice, and was decorated with lesene. On the left of the facade was the
bell tower A bell tower is a tower that contains one or more bells, or that is designed to hold bells even if it has none. Such a tower commonly serves as part of a Christian church, and will contain church bells, but there are also many secular bell tower ...
, while on the right was the oratory of Saint Louis. The former parishioner finished his religious duties in October 1934. It was deconsecrated by archbishop's decree on 24 February 1936 and was sold by the parish on 9 January 1948. It was demolished in 1974. ''Madonna di Baldeur''
chapel A chapel is a Christian place of prayer and worship that is usually relatively small. The term has several meanings. Firstly, smaller spaces inside a church that have their own altar are often called chapels; the Lady chapel is a common ty ...
was built in the area where the dead of the plague of 1630 were buried. Inside was visible the image of Our Lady with the Child. Every year a procession was made from San Giorgio to the chapel in commemoration of the dead from the plague, and a party followed the ceremony. It was demolished in 1986 for the construction of a road.


Civil architecture

In San Giorgio su Legnano there are some buildings of historical interest. The oldest, among those owned by the municipality, is the former
town hall In local government, a city hall, town hall, civic centre (in the UK or Australia), guildhall, or a municipal building (in the Philippines), is the chief administrative building of a city, town, or other municipality. It usually houses ...
of San Giorgio su Legnano. Born as a home of elementary schools and municipal offices and situated in ''via Gerli'', it was inaugurated in 1892. It also housed classrooms until 1929, when the new schools were inaugurated. He served as a town hall until 1992. The building that houses the ''Circolo familiare'' was built in the early 20th century having a commercial function. Since 1936 he has been doing social activities. Another notable property is the kindergarten, which opened on 15 July 1909. There are several works designed by the famous architect Of sangiorgese Gino Maggioni in his home country. More specifically, they are the ''Monumento ai caduti'' (en. "monument to the fallen": opened in 1921), the cemetery (1928) and elementary schools (1929). Since 1992, the school plexus designed by Gino Maggioni has been used as a municipal seat. There are also three noble
villa A villa is a type of house that was originally an ancient Roman upper class country house. Since its origins in the Roman villa, the idea and function of a villa have evolved considerably. After the fall of the Roman Republic, villas became s ...
s in the municipality, namely Villa Parravicini,
Palazzo Lucini Arborio Mella A palace is a grand residence, especially a royal residence, or the home of a head of state or some other high-ranking dignitary, such as a bishop or archbishop. The word is derived from the Latin name palātium, for Palatine Hill in Rome which ...
and Villa Bizzozzero. The ''Villa Parravicini'' has undergone several changes over the centuries that have radically modificated the appearance. This building already existed in 1584 and was home to a nobleman owned by Ludovico Crivelli. In a document dated 1655 we can read: In English this text means: "Noble house placed in the said place of the ''Cassina di San Giorgio'' with different places on earth and doves doi, porches, stable, polar, court, common well. The villa has an
English landscape garden The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (french: Jardin à l'anglaise, it, Giardino all'inglese, german: Englischer Landschaftsgarten, pt, Jardim inglês, es, Jardín inglés), is a sty ...
, which covers about 9,300 square meters. Originally, the green area had a larger extent. Orio Vergani denoundes the house, calling it: In English this text means: "a villa that has characteristics of simplicity and austerity typical of the manor houses of the area". The ''Palazzo Lucini Arborio Mella'', whose date of construction is unknown, in the early 18th century belonged to Count Francesco Lucini, who was at that time the largest landowner of the municipality. The portal and a wrought-iron
balcony A balcony (from it, balcone, "scaffold") is a platform projecting from the wall of a building, supported by columns or console brackets, and enclosed with a balustrade, usually above the ground floor. Types The traditional Maltese balcony is ...
on the low front of the old house are valuable. Later it passed to the accounts Arborio Mella and was renovated during the 18th century, as evidenced by the vault of the great salon
fresco Fresco (plural ''frescos'' or ''frescoes'') is a technique of mural painting executed upon freshly laid ("wet") lime plaster. Water is used as the vehicle for the dry-powder pigment to merge with the plaster, and with the setting of the plaste ...
ed in 1750 by
Biagio Bellotti Biagio Maria Bellotti (Busto Arsizio Busto Arsizio (; lmo, label= Bustocco, Büsti Grandi) is an Italian city and '' comune'' in the south-easternmost part of the Province of Varese, in the region of Lombardy, in Northern Italy, north of ...
. The Mella accounts decided to sell the building in 1922. The historic
garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...
of the palace was created in the 19th century and sold to the
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
for the construction of the new parish church. The building was divided into several properties. A portion of this building was the first seat of the town hall of the municipality of San Giorgio su Legnano (from 1924 to 1929). Today part of the building, owned by the municipality, houses a nursery. In the centre of San Giorgio su Legnano you can still see also the ''Villa Bizzozzero'', house owned by Carlo Bizzozero, one of the largest owners of rural and real estate of San Giorgio of the 18th century. This villa had a garden, overlooking ''piazza Mazzini''.


Natural areas

Villa Parravicini has an
English landscape garden The English landscape garden, also called English landscape park or simply the English garden (french: Jardin à l'anglaise, it, Giardino all'inglese, german: Englischer Landschaftsgarten, pt, Jardim inglês, es, Jardín inglés), is a sty ...
, which covers about 9,300 square meters and includes more than 30 species of
tree In botany, a tree is a perennial plant with an elongated stem, or trunk, usually supporting branches and leaves. In some usages, the definition of a tree may be narrower, including only woody plants with secondary growth, plants that are ...
s and more than 15 species of
shrubs A shrub (often also called a bush) is a small-to-medium-sized perennial woody plant. Unlike herbaceous plants, shrubs have persistent woody stems above the ground. Shrubs can be either deciduous or evergreen. They are distinguished from trees ...
. Built in the mid-19th century, it is bound by the superintendence of environmental and architectural goods along with the manor house with their respective rustics as "natural beauty" (by ministerial decree of 25 June 1958). Originally it had a larger extension and also included an area now occupied by modern
cottage A cottage, during Feudalism in England, England's feudal period, was the holding by a cottager (known as a Cotter (farmer), cotter or ''bordar'') of a small house with enough garden to feed a family and in return for the cottage, the cottager ...
s. The ''Parco Parravicini'' is throughout the
Legnanese Bustocco and Legnanese (natively and ) are two dialects of Western Lombard, spoken respectively in the cities of Busto Arsizio ( Province of Varese) and Legnano (Province of Milan), Lombardy. Although there is little evidence of Ligurian settl ...
the only area that has the particular botanical features that have led to its protection. In the municipality there is another notable area, the park of
Campaccio The Campaccio is an annual cross country running competition which takes place in early January in San Giorgio su Legnano, Italy. Organised by the ''Unione Sportiva Sangiorgese'' (Sangiorgese Sports Association), the event attracts participation fr ...
, where the eponymous cross-country race is run.


Demographics


Ethnic groups

As of December 31, 2016, foreign nationals living in the municipality of San Giorgio su Legnano (ISTAT data) acombined 596. The most represented nationalities were: #
Albania Albania ( ; sq, Shqipëri or ), or , also or . officially the Republic of Albania ( sq, Republika e Shqipërisë), is a country in Southeastern Europe. It is located on the Adriatic and Ionian Seas within the Mediterranean Sea and shares ...
, 108 #
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Senegal Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
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Religion

The patron saint is
Saint George Saint George (Greek: Γεώργιος (Geórgios), Latin: Georgius, Arabic: القديس جرجس; died 23 April 303), also George of Lydda, was a Christian who is venerated as a saint in Christianity. According to tradition he was a soldier ...
. The majority of the population is
Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
. The immigration of EU and non-EU citizens has led to the establishment of large
Orthodox Orthodox, Orthodoxy, or Orthodoxism may refer to: Religion * Orthodoxy, adherence to accepted norms, more specifically adherence to creeds, especially within Christianity and Judaism, but also less commonly in non-Abrahamic religions like Neo-pa ...
,
Muslims Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
and
Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
minorities. There is one Catholic
parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...
in the municipality that belong to the
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milan The Archdiocese of Milan ( it, Arcidiocesi di Milano; la, Archidioecesis Mediolanensis) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or archdiocese of the Catholic Church in Italy which covers the areas of Milan, Monza, Lecco and Varese. It has lo ...
, the ''Parrocchia Beata Vergine Assunta''.


Transportation

San Giorgio su Legnano is lined by the provincial road N° 12, which is the most important road infrastructure present in the municipality. The intercity transport of San Giorgio su Legnano is carried out with scheduled services operated by ''Movibus''.


Economy

Agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
has been San Giorgio's main livelihood for centuries. With the advent of industrialization, in this role, it gave way to manufacturing activities. In the 21st century it is not an important activity for the economy of San Giorgio su Legnano; it is carried out in a limited part of the municipality, south of the town, which is still free from construction and infrastructure. The first ''Sangiorgese'' industries arose in the second half of the 19th century. From the beginning of the 20th century, the municipality was involved in a process of
industrialization Industrialisation ( alternatively spelled industrialization) is the period of social and economic change that transforms a human group from an agrarian society into an industrial society. This involves an extensive re-organisation of an econo ...
. The companies operating in San Giorgio su Legnano in this historical context were mainly
textiles Textile is an umbrella term that includes various fiber-based materials, including fibers, yarns, filaments, threads, different fabric types, etc. At first, the word "textiles" only referred to woven fabrics. However, weaving is not the ...
and
mechanic A mechanic is an artisan, skilled tradesperson, or technician who uses tools to build, maintain, or repair machinery, especially cars. Duties Most mechanics specialize in a particular field, such as auto body mechanics, air conditioning and r ...
s. The ''sangiorgese'' industries reached the height of development in the 1950s and 1960s, after which there was a period of constant involution. This crisis, which led to the partial
deindustrialization Deindustrialization is a process of social and economic change caused by the removal or reduction of industrial capacity or activity in a country or region, especially of heavy industry or manufacturing industry. There are different interpre ...
of San Giorgio su Legnano, continued in the following decades compromising the industrial fabric, employment and, more generally, the economic system of the municipality. Many companies went
bankrupt Bankruptcy is a legal process through which people or other entities who cannot repay debts to creditors may seek relief from some or all of their debts. In most jurisdictions, bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debt ...
, mainly in the textile industry, and many others experienced downsizing. This partial deindustrialization of the ''sangiorgese'' territory continues into the 21st century.


Culture


Languages and literature

Around Legnano it's spoken Legnanese dialect,
dialect The term dialect (from Latin , , from the Ancient Greek word , 'discourse', from , 'through' and , 'I speak') can refer to either of two distinctly different types of Linguistics, linguistic phenomena: One usage refers to a variety (linguisti ...
of the
Lombard language Lombard (native name: ,Classical Milanese orthography, and . , Ticinese orthography. Modern Western orthography. or ,Eastern unified orthography. depending on the orthography; pronunciation: ) is a language, belonging to the Gallo-Italic family ...
(belonging to the
western branch Western may refer to: Places *Western, Nebraska, a village in the US * Western, New York, a town in the US * Western Creek, Tasmania, a locality in Australia * Western Junction, Tasmania, a locality in Australia *Western world, countries that ...
), spoken by about 30% of the population of the area where it is spread. Like all Western Lombard dialects, legnanese is a
Romance language The Romance languages, sometimes referred to as Latin languages or Neo-Latin languages, are the various modern languages that evolved from Vulgar Latin. They are the only extant subgroup of the Italic languages in the Indo-European languages, I ...
derived from
Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...
with a
Celtic Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages **Proto-Celtic language * Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...
substrate and
longobard The Lombards () or Langobards ( la, Langobardi) were a Germanic people who ruled most of the Italian Peninsula from 568 to 774. The medieval Lombard historian Paul the Deacon wrote in the ''History of the Lombards'' (written between 787 and ...
superstratum In linguistics, a stratum (Latin for "layer") or strate is a language that influences or is influenced by another through contact. A substratum or substrate is a language that has lower power or prestige than another, while a superstratum or sup ...
. In Legnanese dialect there are those who find traces of the languages of the peoples prior to the Latinization of the region, in particular the ancient Ligurian, although the data on the actual influence of this linguistic substrate are few and of varying interpretation. The linguistic influence of the Celts on the local speakers of Altomilanese was conspicuous, so much so that even today the dialect of Legnano is classified as "
Gallo-Italic The Gallo-Italic, Gallo-Italian, Gallo-Cisalpine or simply Cisalpine languages constitute the majority of the Romance languages of northern Italy. They are Piedmontese, Lombard, Emilian, Ligurian, and Romagnol. Although most publications def ...
". However, it was the Roman domination, which supplanted the Celtic one, that shaped the local idiom spoken in Legnanese, so much so that the
lexicon A lexicon is the vocabulary of a language or branch of knowledge (such as nautical or medical). In linguistics, a lexicon is a language's inventory of lexemes. The word ''lexicon'' derives from Koine Greek language, Greek word (), neuter of () ...
and
grammar In linguistics, the grammar of a natural language is its set of structure, structural constraints on speakers' or writers' composition of clause (linguistics), clauses, phrases, and words. The term can also refer to the study of such constraint ...
of this dialect is of Romance derivation.


Sport

The Unione Sportiva Sangiorgese s a multi-sports company founded in 1922 that deals with
athletics Athletics may refer to: Sports * Sport of athletics, a collection of sporting events that involve competitive running, jumping, throwing, and walking ** Track and field, a sub-category of the above sport * Athletics (physical culture), competi ...
,
volleyball Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules. It has been a part of the official program of the Summ ...
,
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
,
skiing Skiing is the use of skis to glide on snow. Variations of purpose include basic transport, a recreational activity, or a competitive winter sport. Many types of competitive skiing events are recognized by the International Olympic Committee (IO ...
and
hiking Hiking is a long, vigorous walk, usually on trails or footpaths in the countryside. Walking for pleasure developed in Europe during the eighteenth century.AMATO, JOSEPH A. "Mind over Foot: Romantic Walking and Rambling." In ''On Foot: A Histor ...
. The basketball team played in the Serie B championship. The company organizes the cross-country race called
Campaccio The Campaccio is an annual cross country running competition which takes place in early January in San Giorgio su Legnano, Italy. Organised by the ''Unione Sportiva Sangiorgese'' (Sangiorgese Sports Association), the event attracts participation fr ...
, an international event born in 1957 that takes place on a course of about 12 km. The name of the race comes from ''campasc'', which in the Legnanese dialect means "uncultivated field". In fact, in the first editions, the route of the race winded through the nearby roads of the agricultural area of the municipality: later it was moved to a public park, the ''Parco del Campaccio''. The Campaccio is attended by internationally renowned athletes, including
Olympic Olympic or Olympics may refer to Sports Competitions * Olympic Games, international multi-sport event held since 1896 ** Summer Olympic Games ** Winter Olympic Games * Ancient Olympic Games, ancient multi-sport event held in Olympia, Greece b ...
and world champions: it is therefore one of the most important events of its kind in Italy and is included in the international ''Cross Country Permit'' circuit of the
European Athletic Association The European Athletic Association (more commonly known as European Athletics) is the governing body for Sport of athletics, athletics in Europe. It is one of the six Area Associations of the world's athletics governing body World Athletics. Europe ...
. San Giorgio su Legnano hosted the 2006 European Cross Country Championships, organized by the Unione Sportiva Sangiorgese on 10 December. The men's title was won by Mohamed Farah and the women's title by Tetyana Holovchenko. In this edition of the championship, the races for athletes under 23 were introduced for the first time.


Education

In San Giorgio su Legnano there are four public school plexuses: a first grade secondary school, a primary school and a kindergarten.


Citations


References

* * * * * *


External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:San Giorgio Su Legnano