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MILAN 533 elegant shops, and a magnificent bazaar {gal- leria di Cristofero). Milan has been the seat of an archbishop since the time of the last Ro- man emperors. The fortifications, consisting of a bastioned wall and other works, form an irregular polygon, and are not strong enough to withstand a siege. In the inland trade, the commercial activity is greater than that of any other city in Italy. The principal articles of commerce are silk, grain, rice, and cheese. The manufactures of silk goods, ribbons, felt and silk hats, turners' work, cutlery, and por- celain are important. Ancient Milan (Medio- lanum) was the chief place of the Insubres in Cisalpine Gaul, and for a long time the capital of that province. It fell into the hands of the Romans about 222 B. C. Under the empire it advanced rapidly in prosperity and in polit- ical and intellectual importance. It became the central point from which the high roads of northern Italy radiated ; its admirable position midway between the Alps and the Po made it the natural capital, and it was the imperial residence of Maximian and some of his suc- cessors for the greater part of the 4th century. By his edict issued at Milan in 313 Constantino granted tolerance to the Christians. St. Am- brose was bishop of Milan more than 22 years, till his death in 397, and his personal influence made his metropolitan see paramount in Chris- tendom. Several councils were held there in the 4th century, and several others in later times. In 452 the city was plundered by At- tila. It next became the capital of the Gothic kings, and was recovered by Belisarius in 537, but retaken by the Goths in 539, and almost entirely destroyed and nearly depopulated. In 569 it was occupied by the Lombards, and in 774 it came into the possession of Charlemagne. Several of his successors assumed either at Mi- lan or at Pavia the iron crown. After the coro- nation of Otho I. in 961 Milan formed part of the German empire, and its governors were appointed by the emperors. The city was be- sieged by Conrad II. in the early part of the llth century, on account of the attempt of Archbishop Heribert and others against the im- perial authority. In the 12th century, wher Milan was the most wealthy, populous, and in- fluential city in Lombardy, it became the princi- pal opponent of the German emperors, and was twice besieged by Frederick Barbarossa (in Au- gust and September, 1158, and again from May, 1161, to March, 1162) ; and after the second siege it was almost entirely destroyed. Recovering from the effects of this calamity, it was declared a free city after the victory of the Lombard league at Legnano in 1176 ; and although pledg- ing itself by the treaty of Constance (1183) to recognize the German emperors as chief feu- datories and magistrates, it was permitted to withhold from them the revenues of the im- mense municipal domains. The efforts of the citizens to liberalize their institutions were thwarted by the conflict between the Guelphs and Ghibellines, the political influence being divided between the family Delia Torre, the representatives of the former, and the Viscon- ti, of the latter party. The Delia Torre were successful in monopolizing the office of po- destd or chief magistrate from 1237 to 1311, when a revolt against the emperor Henry VII. brought the Visconti into power. Matteo Visconti and his successors extended the pow- er of Milan over almost all parts of Lom- bardy, and in 1395 it became the capital of the duchy of Milan, the first duke being Gio- vanni Galeazzo Visconti. After the extinction of the male line of the Visconti family (1447), Francesco Sforza, the husband of an illegiti- mate daughter of the last of the Visconti, se- cured the duchy for himself and his descen- dants. The claim of France upon Milan, de- rived from intermarriage with the Visconti, was taken up by Louis XII. (1499), and more strongly by Francis I., who was opposed by the emperor Charles V. ; and the duchy was alternately in the hands of the French and of Sforza until Francis was obliged to relinquish his pretensions by the treaty of Madrid (1526). Francesco Sforza II. having received Milan in fief from Charles V., it reverted to that em- peror after the extinction of the male line of the Sforzas (1535) ; he gave it to his son Phil- ip II., and it remained in the power of Spain for nearly two centuries. From the end of the 14th to that of the 16th century Milan was celebrated for its manufactures of arms and armor. The city was equally renowned for the elegance and tastefulness of its finery, and became so noted as a leader of fashions in Europe that the English word milliner origi- nated from Milaner, an importer of fashion- able articles from Milan. In 1576 the city was desolated by the plague. At the close of the war of Spanish succession the duchy was .allotted to Austria (1714), and constituted to- gether with Mantua the Austrian portion of Lombardy. After the invasion of the French in 1796 it became part successively of the Cis- alpine republic (1797), of the Italian republic (1802), and of the kingdom of Italy (1805). In 1814 it became a province of Austria and part of the Lombardo-Venetian kingdom. Soon after the French revolution of 1848 Milan be- came the scene of disturbances ; and after the departure of the viceroy, Archduke Regnier, a violent insurrection broke out, in conse- quence of which Gen. Radetzky, commander of the citadel, was compelled to evacuate the city, which was occupied by the Piedmontese, who established a provisional government. After the defeat of Charles Albert at Custozza (July 25) the republicans of Milan overthrew the provisional government ; but on Aug. 5 the city was compelled to submit to Radetzky, who entered it with 50,000 men, and kept it in a state of siege till December. The dis- turbances of March, 1849, and the rising of Feb. 6, 1853, were speedily suppressed. _ The rule of Austria was brought to a close in 1859 by the French and Sardinian armies; and the