Merate

Sister cities

• Kappeln
• Buzançais

History

The name Melatum appeared for the first time in the 4th century; it may be derived from the Greek for black/gloomy/dark because of the presence of woods, or from the Italian for apple (mela): an important fruit from the region. During the fighting between the Torriani and the Visconti families for the supremacy of Milan, Merate (in particular the castle) suffered considerable damage. It recovered during the 17th century after being decimated by the plague; finally becoming one of the richest towns of the region, after Lecco. At the beginning of the 16th century an academic institute was constructed: at the end of the 18th century the young writer/poet Alessandro Manzoni studied at this school, and after his death the school took on his name. After the unification of Italy Merate grew as an industrial centre with the development of the banking and textile industries. At the end of the 19th century, it became one of the first Italian towns to have electricity, gas and piped drinking water. The interwar period saw considerable development of the mechanical and textile industries. In 1926 the astronomical observatory was constructed, and in the same year the municipality was enlarged, incorporating many neighbouring communities. Industry continued to increase after the Second World War. The population passed to 9,000 inhabitants in 1951, and is 14,000 today. Merate received the honorary title of city with a presidential decree in 1991.