The story of this place
Rebuilt from 1450 by Francesco Sforza on the ruins of an earlier Visconti castle, the Castello Sforzesco became the seat of the dukes of Milan and one of Europe's largest citadels. During the reign of Ludovico 'il Moro' Sforza in the 1480s–90s, both Leonardo da Vinci—who decorated the Sala delle Asse with painted trees—and the architect Bramante served the court, making Milan a Renaissance capital. Sacked by the French and Spanish and later used as barracks, the castle now houses Milan's civic museums. Its greatest treasure is Michelangelo's unfinished 'Rondanini Pietà,' the sculpture he was still reworking days before his death in 1564—a raw, haunting farewell from the master.