Torre Branca is an iron panoramic tower located in Parco Sempione

Parco Sempione

Parco Sempione is a large city park in Milan, Italy. Established in 1888, it has an overall area of 386,000 m², and it is located in the historic centre of the city, inside the Zone 1 administrative division. It owes its name to Corso Sempione, a major thoroughfare of Milan, dating back to the...

, the main city park 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 ,...

, 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...

. It is 108.6 m high, which makes it the fourth highest structure in Milan after Palazzo Lombardia

Palazzo Lombardia

Palazzo Lombardia is a skyscraper in Milan, Italy, designed to be the Lombardy regional government's new seat.It is currently the tallest building in Italy....

 (161 m), the Pirelli Tower

Pirelli Tower

The Pirelli Tower , is a skyscraper in Milan, Italy.-History:...

 (127.1 m) and the Breda Tower

Torre Breda

Breda Tower is a skyscraper in Milan, Italy. The building is tall and has 30 floors. It was built in 1954 on a design by architect Luigi Mattioni. The eight floors of the lower body are devoted exclusively to offices, while the rest of the building houses residential apartments...

 (116 m). The top of the tower is a popular panoramic point; on a clear day, the view may encompass the Milan cityline as well as the Alps

Alps

The Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....

, the Apennines

Apennine mountains

The Apennines or Apennine Mountains or Greek oros but just as often used alone as a noun. The ancient Greeks and Romans typically but not always used "mountain" in the singular to mean one or a range; thus, "the Apennine mountain" refers to the entire chain and is translated "the Apennine...

, and part of the Po Valley

Po Valley

The Po Valley, Po Plain, Plain of the Po, or Padan Plain is a major geographical feature of Italy. It extends approximately in an east-west direction, with an area of 46,000 km² including its Venetic extension not actually related to the Po River basin; it runs from the Western Alps to the...

.

The tower was designed by architect Gio Ponti

Giò Ponti

Gio Ponti was one of the most important Italian architects, industrial designers, furniture designers, artists, and publishers of the twentieth century.-Early life:...

 and inaugurated in 1933, in the Fascist

Italian Fascism

Italian Fascism also known as Fascism with a capital "F" refers to the original fascist ideology in Italy. This ideology is associated with the National Fascist Party which under Benito Mussolini ruled the Kingdom of Italy from 1922 until 1943, the Republican Fascist Party which ruled the Italian...

 era; it was originally named "Torre Littoria" after fascio littorio, i.e., the fasces

Fasces

Fasces are a bundle of wooden sticks with an axe blade emerging from the center, which is an image that traditionally symbolizes summary power and jurisdiction, and/or "strength through unity"...

. After 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...

 it was renamed "Torre del Parco" ("park tower"). In 1972, access to the top of the tower was closed as the structure needed restoring. It was restructured in 2002 by the Branca

Branca

Branca is a feminine given name. It means "white" in Portuguese .-People with the surname:*Angelo Branca , Canadian judge*Ascanio Branca , Italian politician and Minister of Finance...

liquor company, and thus renamed Torre Branca. Since 2002 it is again open to the public.