Azzone Visconti

Azzone Visconti links his name to Lecco or perhaps we should say that Lecco is strongly linked to his figure, in fact during his decade as the Lord of Milan (1329-1339) in 1336 Azzone Visconti made Lecco an important fortress: he made built the bridge on the Adda river where nowadays you can walk on and the walls that enclosed the castle or the current old town.
Today Lecco offers its historical richness of the past with what remains to be seen: the town walls, the Viscontea Tower, the turret  mast where the bell tower of Basilica of San Nicolò was erected in the late nineteenth century.
A system of fortifications which provided access to the castle through three ports: Milan gateway, the current vicolo Tower, adjacent to the Viscontea Tower, Vianova gateway, actual beginning of Via Bovara, and St. Stephen’s Gateway under the Basilica of St. Nicolò.
Another evident sign of Azzone Visconti’s government and the Lordship of Milan until 1395 is the coat of arms depicting a snake with a human in its mouth. The marble logo is walled on the tower of the Palace of Fears (Palazzo delle Paure), on the side overlooking Piazza XX Settembre.

Articolo aggiornato il 4 October 2023 da eccoLecco