Alessandro Manzoni celebrated with President Mattarella at Casa Manzoni
Casa Manzoni, restored by Intesa Sanpaolo, hosted a ceremony attended by President of the Republic Sergio Mattarella during his visit to Milan to mark the 150th anniversary of Alessandro Manzoni's death, celebrated on 22 May 2023.
In his long life, the author of I Promessi Sposi (The Betrothed) had many homes, but the only one that may truly be considered his own is the one located in Via Morone 1 in Milan (“Casa Manzoni”), where he lived with his family from 1813 until his death in 1873.
Casa Manzoni has a special relationship with Intesa Sanpaolo: donated in 1937 by Fondazione Cariplo to the Municipality of Milan with the requirement that it be the headquarters of the Centro Nazionale di Studi Manzoniani (National Centre for Manzoni Studies), in 2015, with support from Intesa Sanpaolo, it underwent a full restoration of all its rooms to their original splendour that made Casa Manzoni an even more lively cultural centre open to scholars and citizens.
Giovanni Bazoli, President Emeritus of Intesa Sanpaolo and Honorary President of the Fondazione Centro Nazionale Studi Manzoniani, gave a speech on the relevance of Manzoni's reflections during President Mattarella's visit. Here is an excerpt:
"This revival of interest in Manzoni after a long period of relative quiet is an entirely recent development. It was driven by the dramatic pandemic. Once again, as in Manzoni's 17th century, Milan was on the front lines of suffering, hard hit by an invisible enemy. It is therefore in the Italy wounded by Covid that Manzoni has been rediscovered by many 'ordinary readers' as forming their heritage."
Giovanni Bazoli, President Emeritus of Intesa Sanpaolo and Honorary President of the Fondazione Centro Nazionale Studi Manzoniani
The restoration and renovation of Alessandro Manzoni's historic home in the centre of Milan, supported by Intesa Sanpaolo, involved several aspects:
- the renovation of the building
- the set-up of the Manzoni Museum, redesigned according to a new scientific approach based on cutting edge theories of museum design and layout.
- the reorganisation and selection of existing materials (works of art, furniture and volumes) according to a new exhibition structure
Among the reasons why Alessandro Manzoni chose this home were its location in the centre of the city and its proximity to his friends Federico Confalonieri and Silvio Pellico in Via Monte di Pietà, Porta and Verri in Via Monte Napoleone and Vincenzo Monti in Via Brera. Just a few steps away were the Ambrosiana Library, the Braidense Library, the Numismatics Library directed by his friend Gaetano Cattaneo, and the libraries of Santa Margherita and the Contrada dei Servi: a central location that allowed him to meet both his scholarly and social needs.
Today, thanks to the restoration supported by Intesa Sanpaolo, the writer's home is a living place, constantly visited by people of all ages and many young students.
Photo credits: Nino De Angelis /Archivio Storico Intesa Sanpaolo
Last updated 30 May 2023 at 16:52:01
