In 1475 duke Galeazzo Maria Sforza, hopelessly in love with the very young Lucia Marliani, made her a present of the fief of Melzo. Before her, tradition tells of Agnese Pasta, said to have led a revolt of women against the Venetian soldiers: more likely a protest against hunger and abuse.
The Tuesday market has been held since 1513 and is still there; the Palm fair has passed four hundred editions. The town made silk, then electric accumulators in a factory that arrived in 1907, then cheese: Galbani and Invernizzi took root here, and milk has remained the family trade. There are 18,203 residents.
Risotto alla Milanese
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Next up: Saints Alexander and Margaret, patrons of the centuries-old Fiera delle Palme, Monday 22 March
Nearest airport: Milano Linate, 13 km away
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📅 Every year, on the Monday after Palm Sunday, with the Fiera delle Palme since 1553
Melzo celebrates Saints Alexander of Bergamo and Margaret of Antioch on the Monday after Palm Sunday; in 1553 the Trivulzio family, feudal lords of the town, asked the authorities to establish the Fiera delle Palme, still today a historic event on the weekend before Easter.
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 Melzo, but an easy day trip away.
