Milan was founded by the Celts from the culture of Golasecca.
The Romans conquered the settlement and renamed it Mediolanum.
Milan was declared the capital of the Western Roman Empire by Emperor Diocletian in 286 AD.
The Edict of Milan – an agreement to treat Christians benevolently within the Roman Empire. It gave Christianity a legal status, but did not make it the official religion of the Roman Empire.
The city evolves into a free commune extending its influence over most of Lombardy.
The Visconti family ruled Milan for 170 years, from 1277 to 1447. Gian Galeazzo Visconti created the Duchy of Milan as a state of the Holy Roman Empire on 1 May 1395.
The construction of Milan’s Duomo and Castello (Sforzesco) started in 1386.
Milan was conquered by Francesco Sforza in 1450. The following period of rapid growth made Milan the biggest and richest city in Italy. The Sforza family’s rule transformed Milan into one of the leading cities of the Italian Renaissance.
The Great Plague of Milan killed an estimated 60,000 people out of a population of 130,000.
Napoleon declared Milan the capital of the Cisalpine Republic, and later the capital of the Kingdom of Italy. Austria regained control of the city in 1815, at the end of Napoleon’s occupation.
Major event of the Revolutionary Year started on 18 March 1848. Five days street fighting forced Austrians to retain Milan city.
Benito Mussolini founded the Italian Fighting Fascists on 23 March 1919 in Piazza San Sepolcro.
The international success of such Milanese houses as Armani, Versace and Dolce & Gabbana made Milan one of the world’s fashion capitals.
Expo 2015 – a universal exposition hosted by Milan encouraged development of infrastructure and turned Milan into modern and business-oriented city.