Milan is a millennial city which dates back to the sixth century BC, when the city was first founded by the Celts. Centuries later the Romans arrived and gave the city the name of Mediolanum. In the fifth century AD the city was besieged by the Huns. Throughout the middle ages, the renaissance and up to the present day this city has evolved and grown into what it is today; one of the most important financial centres in Europe.

The Celts, the Romans, the Huns, the Ostrogoths, the Byzantines…all have passed through this great city and left their mark. In the Middle Ages, after the fall of the Roman Empire, the city continued to flourish and be an important reference point on the peninsula. Heruli, Ostrogoths and Byzantines all contributed to the reconstruction of the city after its plundering at the hands of the Huns in the fifth century.

In the sixth century the Lombards arrived, staying put until the end of the eighth century when Charlemagne’s troops arrived and overthrew them. This was when the city began to develop in earnest. The nobility had greater power than the Church, and this was key to the economical success of the city.

Milan was once again a battle field the twelfth century with the war of conquest by Frederick I Barbarossa against the Lombard cities. Later the Visconti family held mandate over the city. Their reign in the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries coincides with the important and prosperous period of the renaissance, marked by great artists such as Leonardo Da Vinci. The Visconti period was cut short by the invasion of the French, who ruled the zone for a short period before the city passed into Spanish hands where it stayed for the next 100 years. In the eighteenth century Milan was granted to Austria in the Utrech treaty. In this period construction began on the Duomo or Cathedral of Milan, which took various centuries to complete, and is today the second largest in the world.

Thanks to the geographical location of Milan, this has always been a stopping point for the important historical figures through the ages. Napoleon Bonaparte settled here during the same period that Milan and the Lombardy region became part of Italy. In 1906 Milan was home to the Universal Expo.

Milan kicks off the twentieth century as one of the most prosperous, important cities in Europe, a city where Socialism took root, and a city which was synonymous with resistance during the Second World War and the years of fascism under Mussolini.

In the second half of the twentieth century Milan developed into an important nerve centre of Italian politics.

Today Milan is one of the most important cities in Europe from an industrial, business and political point of view. It is home to a Stock Exchange and a great number of important companies. It is also a university town, and a city which offers a great number of hotels, rental apartments of all descriptions, houses, hostels, etc, etc.