Palazzo del Podestà

The year 1227 is only the first milestone in the very long life of the Palazzo. The building suffered several fires, and indeed at the beginning of the fifteenth century the building was in very bad conditions. In 1430, Gian Francesco Gonzaga (1395-1444), Marquis of Mantua from 1433, had already asked for the opinion of illustrious fellow citizens on the need to restore such important and ancient buildings. However, it was his son, the great Ludovico (1412-1478), who decided to take drastic action, designing the new look of the city: in addition to giving orders to begin the famous reconstruction of the church of Sant'Andrea, a reconstruction that was based on a project by Leon Battista Alberti, Ludovico had a great many streets paved in the old town, and radically changed what remained of the palace. Luca Fancelli (1430-1502), a Tuscan pupil of Brunelleschi, was placed in charge of the complex reconstruction, which deeply modified what at the time was known as the Palace of Virgil.