Little is certain about the beginnings of Gessate: some sources trace the village to a Gaulish tribe, the Gesati, who settled between the Adda and the Lambro. It resurfaces as Glassiate in two parchments of 848 and as Glaxiate in 957, in a document that also names a castle built by Germanic feudal lords: two quarters of the town are still called Castellazzo and Cittadella.
The castle later became a monastery, first of the monks of San Simpliciano in Milan and then of the Benedictines of Chiaravalle, who brought new farming and irrigation methods. The town's arms hold both memories: a red castle with three towers and a golden serpent swallowing a child, the emblem of the Visconti, who held the fief of Melzo that Gessate belonged to. Angelo Motta, who created the modern Milanese panettone, came from the hamlet of Villa Fornaci.
Risotto alla Milanese
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Next up: Saint Maurus the Abbot, a patron deeply felt in the neighbouring towns, Friday 15 January
Nearest airport: Milano Linate, 17 km away
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📅 Every year, on 15 January
Gessate celebrates Saint Maurus the Abbot on 15 January, with the relics displayed for the faithful's veneration in the parish church of Santi Pietro e Paolo. The feast, deeply felt in neighbouring towns too, has drawn worshippers since the previous century.
Straight-line distances from the town centre. Tap a point to open its page.
The closest destinations covered by our editors, with straight-line distance.
Outside Gessate, but an easy day trip away.
