Palazzo Cagnola

Palazzo Cagnola stands at the corner of Via Cusani and Via Rovello in Milan, presenting a neoclassical architectural landmark. Giuseppe Cagnola commissioned the palace, and Pietro Pestagalli designed its reconstruction. The completed building brings several houses together as one façade with formal proportions and a strongly ordered street presence. Fluted pilasters divide the façade into regular intervals. Their Bramantesque capitals rise from the ground floor across the noble and upper floors, linking the elevations vertically. The main entrances open beneath balconies supported by lion-shaped brackets. Windows on the noble floor include small loggias and balustrades, adding depth to the otherwise disciplined classical composition. The palace served the Austrian Chancellery during Milan’s uprisings. Radetzky used the building as headquarters before retreating to Castello Sforzesco during the Five Days of Milan. Guido Cagnola’s art collection later moved to Villa Gazzada. The palace connects Milanese architecture with episodes of civic and political history associated with its use.