Basilica di San Carlo al Corso

Basilica di San Carlo al Corso stands in the heart of Milan as a neoclassical church inspired by Rome’s Pantheon. Carlo Amati designed it, and Filippo Pizzagalli completed construction between 1814 and 1847. The building replaced the medieval church of Santa Maria dei Servi. Its construction gave thanks for the end of a cholera epidemic and honoured San Carlo Borromeo.

Thirty-six massive Corinthian columns of Baveno granite form the front portico beneath a triangular pediment. Two angels hold the cross above it. A vast dome rises from a cylinder of semi-columns, windows, and niches, with angelic caryatids around its lantern. Behind the church, Milan’s tallest bell tower reaches 72 metres.

Inside, a circular hall measuring 32.2 metres across is surrounded by red-granite columns and chapel-filled exedras. Pompeo Marchesi’s wooden crucifix and a marble relief of San Carlo Borromeo draw attention among the decoration. The tomb of Blessed Giovannangelo Porro adds another layer of devotion, while the Servites continue religious and cultural work here.