Did you know that the cloisters of San Simpliciano were once occupied by the Italian Bersaglieri?
It is no secret that the part of Brera that today lies between Via dei Cavalieri di Santo Sepolcro, Piazza Paolo VI and Via Solferino was once a military zone.
In the first half of the 20th century, the Chiostri di San Simpliciano, which had been used as barracks since the end of the 18th century, were occupied by a battalion of Bersaglieri, taking the name Caserma Luciano Manara.
The name was a tribute to the Risorgimento patriot Luciano Manara, who fought for Italian independence, leading the volunteer Bersaglieri and dying in defence of the Roman Republic.
In 1927, the barracks were transferred from the state to the municipality, and this marked the beginning of the design and redevelopment of the area as we know it today.
At the end of the 1930s, the part adjacent to the basilica, with the large courtyard, the small cloister and the grand staircase, was transferred to the parish.
