Busto Arsizio
Encyclopedia
Busto Arsizio is a city
and comune
in the region of Lombardy
, in northern Italy
, 25 km north of Milan
in the province of Varese
.
The economy of Busto Arsizio is mainly based on industry and commerce.
ic heritage, recent studies seem to show that the "bustocchi"'s ancestors were Ligurians, called ‘wild’ by Pliny
, ‘marauders and robbers’ by Livy
and ‘unshaven and hairy’ by Pompeius Tragus. They were good at working iron and much sought after as mercenary soldiers. A very remote Ligurian influence is perceptible in the local dialect, Bustocco, slightly different from other Western Lombard
varieties, according to local expert Luigi Giavini, author of a vocabulary.
Traditionally these first inhabitants used to set fire to woods made of old and young oaks and black hornbeams, which at that time, covered the whole Padan Plain. This slash-and-burn practice, known as "debbio" in Italian
, aimed to create fields where grapevines or cereals such as foxtail, millet and rye were grown, or just to create open spaces where stone huts with thatched roofs were built.
By doing this they created a bustum (burnt, in Latin), that is a new settlement which, in order to be distinguished from the other nearby settlements, was assigned a name: arsicium (again "burnt", or better "arid") for Busto Arsizio, whose name is actually a tautology
; carulfì for nearby Busto Garolfo
, cava for Busto Cava, later Buscate
.
The slow increase in population was helped without doubt by the Insubres
, a Gaul
ish tribe who had arrived in successive waves by crossing the Alps about 500 years before Christ. It is said that they defeated the Etruscans, who by then controlled the area, leaving some geographical names behind (Arno creek -not to be confused with Florence's river - Castronno
, Caronno, Biandronno
, etc.)
Busto Arsizio's site was not chosen randomly: in fact, the settlement was created on an area on the route from Milan
to Lake Maggiore
(called "Milan’s road", an alternative route to the existent Sempione), part of which, before the creation of the Naviglio Grande
, made
use of the navigational water of the Ticino river
.
However, nothing is sure about Busto Arsizio's past till the 10th century, when the town is first hinted at in documents, already with its present name: loco Busti qui dicitur Arsizio. A part of the powerful Contado of the Seprio, in 1176 its citizens are likely to have taken part (on both sides) to the famous Battle of Legnano
, actually fought between Busto's frazione
of Borsano and nearby Villa Cortese
, when Frederick Barbarossa was defeated by the Communal militia of the Lombard League
. From the 13th century the town became renowned for its production of textiles. Even its feudalization
in later centuries under several lords, vassals of the masters of Milan
, did not stop its slow but constant growth; nor did the plague
, which hit hard in 1630, traditionally being stopped by the Virgin Mary after the bustocchi, always a pious Catholic
flock, prayed for respite from the deadly epidemic.
By the half of the 19th century modern industry began to take over strongly: in a few decades Busto Arsizio became the so-called "Manchester
of Italy
". In 1864, while the "bustocco" Eugenio Tosi was the Archbishop of Milan
, it was granted city
privileges by king Victor Emmanuel II of Italy. The city kept on growing for more than a century, absorbing the nearby Comuni of Borsano and Sacconago in 1927 on a major administrative reform implemented by the Fascist
regime, and was only marginally damaged even by World War II
(a single Allied
airdropped bomb is said to have hit the train station). This respite was given, actually, by the fact that the town hosted the important Allied liaison mission with the partisans, the Chrysler mission, led by Lt. Aldo Icardi, later famous for his involvement in the Holohan Murder Case
. During the conflict Busto Arsizio was a major industrial center of war production, and the occupying Germans
moved there the Italian national radio. The Italian resistance movement
resorted preferably to strike
s and sabotage
than to overt guerrilla, since those willing to fight mostly took to the Ossola
mountains, but strengthened in time, suffering grievous losses to arrests, tortures and deportation to the Nazi lager system. The names of Mauthausen-Gusen
and Flossenburg
concentration and extermination camps are sadly known to the bustocchi, as dozens of their fellow citizens died there. When, on 25 April 1945, the partisans
took over, Busto Arsizio thus gave voice to the first free radio
channel in northern Italy since the advent of Fascism
.
After the war, the city turned in time increasingly on the right of the political spectrum, as its bigger industries in the Sixties and Seventies decayed, to be replaced by many familiar small enterprises and a new service-based economy. Today the town represents a major stronghold for both Forza Italia
and Lega Nord right-wing political parties.
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The most important buildings of the city are the churches. In Busto Arsizio there are several of them, built in the last millennium. Many of them are reconstructions of former churches.
period, indeed the only remaining, is the shrine
of Santa Maria di Piazza ("Saint Mary of the Square"), also called shrine of the Beata Vergine dell'Aiuto ("Blessed Virgin of the Help"). The building stends in the city centre. It was built between 1515 and 1522. The village of Crespi d'Adda
, built up for Cristoforo Benigno Crespi
, is home to a smaller version of the shrine.
, in the city center, was built between 1609 and 1635, but the bell tower
is older (between 1400 and 1418). The façade, finished in 1701 by Domenico Valmagini, has many statues and decorations. In the interior are numerous of paintings by Daniele Crespi
, a celebrated painter born at Busto Arsizio, such as Cristo morto con San Domenico. The square in front of this church was built over the ancient cemetery.
fortification. The present church was built by the architect Francesco Maria Ricchino
. In the church there are some relic
s, the most important of which is the body of San Felice Martire.
and dedicated to Saint Roch, invoked against the plague, it was rebuilt from 1706 to 1713 thanks to offerings made by the lawyer Carlo Visconti. Inside the church there are frescos by Salvatore and Francesco Maria Bianchi (1731) and Biagio Bellotti.
The patron saints of the city are Saint John the Baptist
and Saint Michael Archangel
, whose feasts are traditionally celebrated on 24 June and 29 September.
In recent times the town council has given also civic relevance to celebrations that up to now were almost completely of a religious kind. During winter it is an established tradition since time immemorial the burning of the Giöbia (alternative spelling: Giöeubia), a (usually) female puppet, symbolizing the "chasing" out of winter and its troubles, and on a more sinister note, the change from a matriarchal to a patriarchal society in ancient times. Time ago each family prepared its simple puppet to be burnt, and then its ashes were dispersed to fertilize the fields as good omen. Now the celebration is more organized and publicly supported, but still heartily felt by the populace.
, an Italian pop
star was born in Busto Arsizio. One of the best Italian violinist, Uto Ughi
was born and is living in the city.
m.jpg)
Busto Arsizio is the host for the Federazione Italiana Sport Croquet, the lawns being located at the "Cascina del Lupo" Sporting Centre just outside the town.
Pro Patria Calcio
football club plays in Busto Arsizio (at the Carlo Speroni Stadium
).
Pro Patria Bustese Atletica is the athletic
society.
Yamamay Busto Arsizio Volley is the main volleyball
society of the city and plays in the first national division.
One of the most important athletes of Busto Arsizio is Umberto Pelizzari
, born on August 28, 1965, widely considered among the best freedivers
of all times. Other important athletes are the former twirling
world champion Chiara Stefanazzi, the former soccer
players Carlo Reguzzoni
, Antonio Azimonti
, Aldo Marelli
and Egidio Calloni
and the soccer player Michele Ferri
.
with:
Domodossola
, Italy Epinay-sur-Seine
, France
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
and comune
Comune
In Italy, the comune is the basic administrative division, and may be properly approximated in casual speech by the English word township or municipality.-Importance and function:...
in the region of Lombardy
Lombardy
Lombardy is one of the 20 regions of Italy. The capital is Milan. One-sixth of Italy's population lives in Lombardy and about one fifth of Italy's GDP is produced in this region, making it the most populous and richest region in the country and one of the richest in the whole of Europe...
, in northern Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
, 25 km north of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
in the province of Varese
Province of Varese
The Province of Varese is a province in the Lombardy region of Italy. Its capital is the city of Varese but its largest city is Busto Arsizio....
.
The economy of Busto Arsizio is mainly based on industry and commerce.
History
Despite repeated claims by Lega Nord and her local allies about a CeltCelt
The Celts were a diverse group of tribal societies in Iron Age and Roman-era Europe who spoke Celtic languages.The earliest archaeological culture commonly accepted as Celtic, or rather Proto-Celtic, was the central European Hallstatt culture , named for the rich grave finds in Hallstatt, Austria....
ic heritage, recent studies seem to show that the "bustocchi"'s ancestors were Ligurians, called ‘wild’ by Pliny
Pliny the Elder
Gaius Plinius Secundus , better known as Pliny the Elder, was a Roman author, naturalist, and natural philosopher, as well as naval and army commander of the early Roman Empire, and personal friend of the emperor Vespasian...
, ‘marauders and robbers’ by Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
and ‘unshaven and hairy’ by Pompeius Tragus. They were good at working iron and much sought after as mercenary soldiers. A very remote Ligurian influence is perceptible in the local dialect, Bustocco, slightly different from other Western Lombard
Western Lombard
Western Lombard is a Romance language spoken in Italy, in the Lombard provinces of Milan, Monza, Varese, Como, Lecco, Sondrio, a small part of Cremona , Lodi and Pavia, and the Piedmont provinces of Novara, Verbano-Cusio-Ossola and a small part of Vercelli , and Switzerland...
varieties, according to local expert Luigi Giavini, author of a vocabulary.
Traditionally these first inhabitants used to set fire to woods made of old and young oaks and black hornbeams, which at that time, covered the whole Padan Plain. This slash-and-burn practice, known as "debbio" in Italian
Italian language
Italian is a Romance language spoken mainly in Europe: Italy, Switzerland, San Marino, Vatican City, by minorities in Malta, Monaco, Croatia, Slovenia, France, Libya, Eritrea, and Somalia, and by immigrant communities in the Americas and Australia...
, aimed to create fields where grapevines or cereals such as foxtail, millet and rye were grown, or just to create open spaces where stone huts with thatched roofs were built.
By doing this they created a bustum (burnt, in Latin), that is a new settlement which, in order to be distinguished from the other nearby settlements, was assigned a name: arsicium (again "burnt", or better "arid") for Busto Arsizio, whose name is actually a tautology
Tautology (rhetoric)
Tautology is an unnecessary or unessential repetition of meaning, using different and dissimilar words that effectively say the same thing...
; carulfì for nearby Busto Garolfo
Busto Garolfo
Busto Garolfo is a comune in the Province of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 25 km northwest of Milan.-External links:*...
, cava for Busto Cava, later Buscate
Buscate
Buscate is a comune in the Province of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 30 km northwest of Milan. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 4,416 and an area of 7.9 km²....
.
The slow increase in population was helped without doubt by the Insubres
Insubres
The Insubres were a Gaulish population settled in Insubria, in what is now Lombardy . They were the founders of Milan . Though ethnically Celtic at the time of Roman conquest , they were most likely the result of the fusion of pre-existing Ligurian, Celtic and "Italic" population strata with Gaulish...
, a Gaul
Gaul
Gaul was a region of Western Europe during the Iron Age and Roman era, encompassing present day France, Luxembourg and Belgium, most of Switzerland, the western part of Northern Italy, as well as the parts of the Netherlands and Germany on the left bank of the Rhine. The Gauls were the speakers of...
ish tribe who had arrived in successive waves by crossing the Alps about 500 years before Christ. It is said that they defeated the Etruscans, who by then controlled the area, leaving some geographical names behind (Arno creek -not to be confused with Florence's river - Castronno
Castronno
Castronno is a comune in the Province of Varese in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 40 km northwest of Milan and about 10 km southwest of Varese....
, Caronno, Biandronno
Biandronno
Biandronno is a town and comune located in the province of Varese, in the Lombardy region of northern Italy....
, etc.)
Busto Arsizio's site was not chosen randomly: in fact, the settlement was created on an area on the route from Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
to Lake Maggiore
Lake Maggiore
Lake Maggiore is a large lake located on the south side of the Alps. It is the second largest of Italy and largest of southern Switzerland. Lake Maggiore is the most westerly of the three great prealpine lakes of Italy, it extends for about 70 km between Locarno and Arona.The climate is mild...
(called "Milan’s road", an alternative route to the existent Sempione), part of which, before the creation of the Naviglio Grande
Naviglio Grande
The Naviglio Grande is a canal in Lombardy, northern Italy, joining the Ticino river near Tornavento to the Porta Ticinese dock, also known as the Darsena, in Milan. It drops 34 m over 49.9 km. It varies in width from 22 m to 50 m from Tornavento to Abbiategrasso, dropping to 15 m between there...
, made
use of the navigational water of the Ticino river
Ticino River
The river Ticino is a left-bank tributary of the Po River. It has given its name to the Swiss canton through which its upper portion flows.-The course:...
.
However, nothing is sure about Busto Arsizio's past till the 10th century, when the town is first hinted at in documents, already with its present name: loco Busti qui dicitur Arsizio. A part of the powerful Contado of the Seprio, in 1176 its citizens are likely to have taken part (on both sides) to the famous Battle of Legnano
Battle of Legnano
The Battle of Legnano was fought on May 29, 1176, between the forces of the Holy Roman Empire, led by Emperor Frederick Barbarossa, and the Lombard League.-The Lombard League:...
, actually fought between Busto's frazione
Frazione
A frazione , in Italy, is the name given in administrative law to a type of territorial subdivision of a comune; for other administrative divisions, see municipio, circoscrizione, quartiere...
of Borsano and nearby Villa Cortese
Villa Cortese
Villa Cortese is a comune in the Province of Milan in the Italian region Lombardy, located about 25 km northwest of Milan.-External links:*...
, when Frederick Barbarossa was defeated by the Communal militia of the Lombard League
Lombard League
The Lombard League was an alliance formed around 1167, which at its apex included most of the cities of northern Italy , including, among others, Crema, Cremona, Mantua, Piacenza, Bergamo, Brescia, Milan, Genoa, Bologna, Padua, Modena, Reggio Emilia, Treviso, Venice, Vercelli, Vicenza, Verona,...
. From the 13th century the town became renowned for its production of textiles. Even its feudalization
Feudalism
Feudalism was a set of legal and military customs in medieval Europe that flourished between the 9th and 15th centuries, which, broadly defined, was a system for ordering society around relationships derived from the holding of land in exchange for service or labour.Although derived from the...
in later centuries under several lords, vassals of the masters of Milan
Milan
Milan is the second-largest city in Italy and the capital city of the region of Lombardy and of the province of Milan. The city proper has a population of about 1.3 million, while its urban area, roughly coinciding with its administrative province and the bordering Province of Monza and Brianza ,...
, did not stop its slow but constant growth; nor did the plague
Bubonic plague
Plague is a deadly infectious disease that is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis, named after the French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. Primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas, the disease is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death...
, which hit hard in 1630, traditionally being stopped by the Virgin Mary after the bustocchi, always a pious Catholic
Catholic
The word catholic comes from the Greek phrase , meaning "on the whole," "according to the whole" or "in general", and is a combination of the Greek words meaning "about" and meaning "whole"...
flock, prayed for respite from the deadly epidemic.
By the half of the 19th century modern industry began to take over strongly: in a few decades Busto Arsizio became the so-called "Manchester
Manchester
Manchester is a city and metropolitan borough in Greater Manchester, England. According to the Office for National Statistics, the 2010 mid-year population estimate for Manchester was 498,800. Manchester lies within one of the UK's largest metropolitan areas, the metropolitan county of Greater...
of Italy
Italy
Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and...
". In 1864, while the "bustocco" Eugenio Tosi was the Archbishop of Milan
Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Milan
The Archdiocese of Milan is a metropolitan see of the Catholic Church in Italy. It has long maintained its own rite: the Ambrosian rite. It is led by the Archbishop of Milan who serves as metropolitan to the dioceses of Bergamo, Brescia, Como, Crema, Cremona, Lodi, Mantova, Pavia, and Vigevano.The...
, it was granted city
City
A city is a relatively large and permanent settlement. Although there is no agreement on how a city is distinguished from a town within general English language meanings, many cities have a particular administrative, legal, or historical status based on local law.For example, in the U.S...
privileges by king Victor Emmanuel II of Italy. The city kept on growing for more than a century, absorbing the nearby Comuni of Borsano and Sacconago in 1927 on a major administrative reform implemented by the Fascist
Kingdom of Italy (1861–1946)
The Kingdom of Italy was a state forged in 1861 by the unification of Italy under the influence of the Kingdom of Sardinia, which was its legal predecessor state...
regime, and was only marginally damaged even by World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
(a single Allied
Allies
In everyday English usage, allies are people, groups, or nations that have joined together in an association for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out between them...
airdropped bomb is said to have hit the train station). This respite was given, actually, by the fact that the town hosted the important Allied liaison mission with the partisans, the Chrysler mission, led by Lt. Aldo Icardi, later famous for his involvement in the Holohan Murder Case
The Holohan Murder Case
The Holohan Murder Case concerned the death of OSS Major William Holohan in Italy during the Second World War.In September 1944, the U.S. Army's Office of Strategic Services dispatched teams of specially-trained soldiers into enemy-occupied territory to organize resistance movements. In Europe,...
. During the conflict Busto Arsizio was a major industrial center of war production, and the occupying Germans
Nazi Germany
Nazi Germany , also known as the Third Reich , but officially called German Reich from 1933 to 1943 and Greater German Reich from 26 June 1943 onward, is the name commonly used to refer to the state of Germany from 1933 to 1945, when it was a totalitarian dictatorship ruled by...
moved there the Italian national radio. The Italian resistance movement
Italian resistance movement
The Italian resistance is the umbrella term for the various partisan forces formed by pro-Allied Italians during World War II...
resorted preferably to strike
Strike action
Strike action, also called labour strike, on strike, greve , or simply strike, is a work stoppage caused by the mass refusal of employees to work. A strike usually takes place in response to employee grievances. Strikes became important during the industrial revolution, when mass labour became...
s and sabotage
Sabotage
Sabotage is a deliberate action aimed at weakening another entity through subversion, obstruction, disruption, or destruction. In a workplace setting, sabotage is the conscious withdrawal of efficiency generally directed at causing some change in workplace conditions. One who engages in sabotage is...
than to overt guerrilla, since those willing to fight mostly took to the Ossola
Ossola
The Ossola is an area of Italy situated to the north of Lago Maggiore. It lies within the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola. Its principal river is the Toce, and its most important town Domodossola....
mountains, but strengthened in time, suffering grievous losses to arrests, tortures and deportation to the Nazi lager system. The names of Mauthausen-Gusen
Mauthausen-Gusen concentration camp
Mauthausen Concentration Camp grew to become a large group of Nazi concentration camps that was built around the villages of Mauthausen and Gusen in Upper Austria, roughly east of the city of Linz.Initially a single camp at Mauthausen, it expanded over time and by the summer of 1940, the...
and Flossenburg
Flossenbürg concentration camp
Konzentrationslager Flossenbürg was a Nazi concentration camp built in May 1938 by the Schutzstaffel Economic-Administrative Main Office at Flossenbürg, in the Oberpfalz region of Bavaria, Germany, near the border with Czechoslovakia. Until its liberation in April 1945, more than 96,000 prisoners...
concentration and extermination camps are sadly known to the bustocchi, as dozens of their fellow citizens died there. When, on 25 April 1945, the partisans
Italian resistance movement
The Italian resistance is the umbrella term for the various partisan forces formed by pro-Allied Italians during World War II...
took over, Busto Arsizio thus gave voice to the first free radio
Radio
Radio is the transmission of signals through free space by modulation of electromagnetic waves with frequencies below those of visible light. Electromagnetic radiation travels by means of oscillating electromagnetic fields that pass through the air and the vacuum of space...
channel in northern Italy since the advent of Fascism
Fascism
Fascism is a radical authoritarian nationalist political ideology. Fascists seek to rejuvenate their nation based on commitment to the national community as an organic entity, in which individuals are bound together in national identity by suprapersonal connections of ancestry, culture, and blood...
.
After the war, the city turned in time increasingly on the right of the political spectrum, as its bigger industries in the Sixties and Seventies decayed, to be replaced by many familiar small enterprises and a new service-based economy. Today the town represents a major stronghold for both Forza Italia
Forza Italia
Forza Italia was a liberal-conservative, Christian democratic, and liberal political party in Italy, with a large social democratic minority, that was led by Silvio Berlusconi, four times Prime Minister of Italy....
and Lega Nord right-wing political parties.
Demographics
Busto Arsizio has a high immigrant population owing to both its economy and location.Main sights
Shrine of Santa Maria di Piazza
The most remarkable building of the RenaissanceRenaissance
The Renaissance was a cultural movement that spanned roughly the 14th to the 17th century, beginning in Italy in the Late Middle Ages and later spreading to the rest of Europe. The term is also used more loosely to refer to the historical era, but since the changes of the Renaissance were not...
period, indeed the only remaining, is the shrine
Shrine
A shrine is a holy or sacred place, which is dedicated to a specific deity, ancestor, hero, martyr, saint, daemon or similar figure of awe and respect, at which they are venerated or worshipped. Shrines often contain idols, relics, or other such objects associated with the figure being venerated....
of Santa Maria di Piazza ("Saint Mary of the Square"), also called shrine of the Beata Vergine dell'Aiuto ("Blessed Virgin of the Help"). The building stends in the city centre. It was built between 1515 and 1522. The village of Crespi d'Adda
Crespi d'Adda
Crespi d'Adda is a historical settlement in Capriate San Gervasio, Lombardy, northern Italy. It is an outstanding example of the 19th and early 20th-century "company towns" built in Europe and North America by enlightened industrialists to meet the workers' needs...
, built up for Cristoforo Benigno Crespi
Cristoforo Benigno Crespi
Cristoforo Benigno Crespi was an Italian entrepreneur. In 1897 a cotton textile industry was created in the province of Milan and his factory and its worker village, called Crespi d’Adda was built on the left bank of the river Adda between the towns of Capriate San Gervasio and Canonica d’Adda...
, is home to a smaller version of the shrine.
Saint John the Baptist's church
The church of Saint John the BaptistJohn the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
, in the city center, was built between 1609 and 1635, but the bell tower
Bell tower
A bell tower is a tower which contains one or more bells, or which is designed to hold bells, even if it has none. In the European tradition, such a tower most commonly serves as part of a church and contains church bells. When attached to a city hall or other civic building, especially in...
is older (between 1400 and 1418). The façade, finished in 1701 by Domenico Valmagini, has many statues and decorations. In the interior are numerous of paintings by Daniele Crespi
Daniele Crespi
Daniele Crespi was an Italian painter of the Baroque era. He was born in Busto Arsizio, and active mostly in the Milan of Federico Borromeo....
, a celebrated painter born at Busto Arsizio, such as Cristo morto con San Domenico. The square in front of this church was built over the ancient cemetery.
Saint Michael Archangel's church
The third biggest church in the city is the Church of Saint Michael Archangel (San Michele Arcangelo). Its bell tower, built in the 10th century, is the oldest building in Busto Arsizio; originally it was part of a LombardLombards
The Lombards , also referred to as Longobards, were a Germanic tribe of Scandinavian origin, who from 568 to 774 ruled a Kingdom in Italy...
fortification. The present church was built by the architect Francesco Maria Ricchino
Francesco Maria Ricchino
Francesco Maria Ricchino may refer to two architects:*Francesco Ricchino Renaissance architect, painter, & poet from Rovato*Francesco Maria Richini Baroque architect from Milan...
. In the church there are some relic
Relic
In religion, a relic is a part of the body of a saint or a venerated person, or else another type of ancient religious object, carefully preserved for purposes of veneration or as a tangible memorial...
s, the most important of which is the body of San Felice Martire.
Saint Roch's church
Built up after the 1485 bubonic plagueBubonic plague
Plague is a deadly infectious disease that is caused by the enterobacteria Yersinia pestis, named after the French-Swiss bacteriologist Alexandre Yersin. Primarily carried by rodents and spread to humans via fleas, the disease is notorious throughout history, due to the unrivaled scale of death...
and dedicated to Saint Roch, invoked against the plague, it was rebuilt from 1706 to 1713 thanks to offerings made by the lawyer Carlo Visconti. Inside the church there are frescos by Salvatore and Francesco Maria Bianchi (1731) and Biagio Bellotti.
Traditional festivals
John the Baptist
John the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
and Saint Michael Archangel
Michael (archangel)
Michael , Micha'el or Mîkhā'ēl; , Mikhaḗl; or Míchaël; , Mīkhā'īl) is an archangel in Jewish, Christian, and Islamic teachings. Roman Catholics, Anglicans, and Lutherans refer to him as Saint Michael the Archangel and also simply as Saint Michael...
, whose feasts are traditionally celebrated on 24 June and 29 September.
In recent times the town council has given also civic relevance to celebrations that up to now were almost completely of a religious kind. During winter it is an established tradition since time immemorial the burning of the Giöbia (alternative spelling: Giöeubia), a (usually) female puppet, symbolizing the "chasing" out of winter and its troubles, and on a more sinister note, the change from a matriarchal to a patriarchal society in ancient times. Time ago each family prepared its simple puppet to be burnt, and then its ashes were dispersed to fertilize the fields as good omen. Now the celebration is more organized and publicly supported, but still heartily felt by the populace.
Music
MinaMina (singer)
Anna Maria Quaini, Grand Officer , known as Mina, is an Italian pop singer. She was a staple of Italian television variety shows and a dominant figure in Italian pop music from the mid-1960s to mid-1970s known for her three-octave vocal range, the agility of her soprano voice, and her image as an...
, an Italian pop
Italian popular music
The expression Italian Popular Music refers to the musical output which is not usually considered Academic or Classical Music but rather have its roots in the popular traditions, and it may be defined in two ways: it can either be defined in terms of the current geographical location of the Italian...
star was born in Busto Arsizio. One of the best Italian violinist, Uto Ughi
Uto Ughi
Diodato "Uto" Ughi is an Italian violinist and conductor. He was the music director of l'Orchestra dell'Accademia Nazionale di Santa Cecilia from 1992-1997...
was born and is living in the city.
Sport
Pro Patria Calcio
Pro Patria Calcio
Aurora Pro Patria 1919 is an Italian association football club, based in Busto Arsizio, Lombardy. They currently play in Lega Pro Seconda Divisione.In Latin, Pro Patria translate to "For the Fatherland"....
football club plays in Busto Arsizio (at the Carlo Speroni Stadium
Stadio Carlo Speroni
Stadio Carlo Speroni is a multi-use stadium in Busto Arsizio, Italy. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home ground of Pro Patria. The stadium holds 3,990.-References:...
).
Pro Patria Bustese Atletica is the athletic
Sport
A Sport is all forms of physical activity which, through casual or organised participation, aim to use, maintain or improve physical fitness and provide entertainment to participants. Sport may be competitive, where a winner or winners can be identified by objective means, and may require a degree...
society.
Yamamay Busto Arsizio Volley is the main volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
society of the city and plays in the first national division.
One of the most important athletes of Busto Arsizio is Umberto Pelizzari
Umberto Pelizzari
Umberto Pelizzari is an Italian freediver, widely considered among the best of all times. Of his era, he is the sole to have established world records in all the then existing disciplines of freediving.- Early life :...
, born on August 28, 1965, widely considered among the best freedivers
Free-diving
Freediving is any of various aquatic activities that share the practice of breath-hold underwater diving. Examples include breathhold spear fishing, freedive photography, apnea competitions and, to a degree, snorkeling...
of all times. Other important athletes are the former twirling
Twirling
Twirling is any of several art forms, hobbies, or sport and recreational activities accomplished by spinning or rotating the twirled object either for exercise, or in a rhythmic, or otherwise artful manner. Though the origin of twirling is impossible to ascertain, twirling enjoyed a steady growth...
world champion Chiara Stefanazzi, the former soccer
Football (soccer)
Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a sport played between two teams of eleven players with a spherical ball...
players Carlo Reguzzoni
Carlo Reguzzoni
Carlo Reguzzoni was an Italian football player.Reguzzoni was born in Busto Arsizio, Lombardy.He was an attacking midfielder playing mainly for Bologna in the 1930s and 1940s, scoring 143 goals in 377 games for the club. He also played for Pro Patria. In total, he scored 155 goals in 401...
, Antonio Azimonti
Antonio Azimonti
Antonio Azimonti is a retired Italian footballer.He played for 8 seasons in the Serie A for Aurora Pro Patria 1919, A.S. Roma and Udinese Calcio....
, Aldo Marelli
Aldo Marelli
Aldo Marelli dead June, 8th, 2010 in Villa Cortese was an Italian professional football player.Aldo Marelli has been an eclectic defender of Pro Patria during the 40'...
and Egidio Calloni
Egidio Calloni
Egidio Calloni is an Italian former football striker, best known for his stint at AC Milan....
and the soccer player Michele Ferri
Michele Ferri
Michele Ferri is an Italian association football defender currently contracted with Atalanta Bergamo.-Career:He grew up within the A.C. Milan youth system, but never played a full senior game for the rossoneri, instead being sent on loan to several lower league teams, namely Cesena and Triestina...
.
Twin towns — Sister cities
Busto Arsizio is twinnedTown twinning
Twin towns and sister cities are two of many terms used to describe the cooperative agreements between towns, cities, and even counties in geographically and politically distinct areas to promote cultural and commercial ties.- Terminology :...
with:
Domodossola
Domodossola
Domodossola is a city and comune in the Province of Verbano-Cusio-Ossola, in the region of Piedmont, northern Italy...
, Italy Epinay-sur-Seine
Épinay-sur-Seine
-Transport:Épinay-sur-Seine is served by Épinay-sur-Seine station on Paris RER line C.It is also served by Épinay – Villetaneuse station on the Transilien Paris – Nord suburban rail line....
, France