The world's first TV series was "shot" near Milan

But you won't find it on Netflix

What was the first TV series ever to appear in our country? Without delving into some of the best-known series from the most famous online blockbusters, the answer is more curious than you might think and comes from a distant place, very far away.

With a run of 2 years, Alessandro Manzoni's 'The Betrothed' (I Promessi Sposi) was the first fiction to keep thousands of enthusiasts glued to the screen (or, more precisely, to the newspapers). In fact, Manzoni's work, classified as a 'Quarantana' (because it was published in 1840), was released weekly and not in its entirety, becoming the most followed serialized series of the time. While Renzo and Lucia are products of the author's imagination, others have their real counterparts, starting from Cardinal Borromeo (the archbishop of Milan), the famous Nun of Monza who would be based on the figure of Marianna de Leyva, who was forced to take vows at 16 and had a relationship with a scion of a noble family from Bergamo, to Don Rodrigo, who would be the Venetian noble Paolo Orgiano, and the Unnamed, who, even though he was unnamed, some see him in Francesco Bernardino Visconti.

Another plus of the novel is that it has real and tangible places in the Milanese hinterland as a backdrop, making the reader identify with familiar places: escaping from the Milanese Lazaretto where the plague-stricken were crowded in 1630 and going outside the city, it is possible to find iconic places that we too could find just a few steps away.

How about starting, for example, from Lecco, the city of romantics: a fascinating city located on the shores of Lake Como, it represents the main setting for the beginning of the love story between Renzo and Lucia and a place that saw Manzoni in his childhood and adolescence, which also has a museum dedicated to him in the city. Lecco offers a myriad of attractions, including the suggestive Piazza Cermenati, where the lives of the protagonists intersect. Here, Renzo and Lucia meet for the first time, and their love story comes to life. Walking through the streets of Lecco, you can admire the historical buildings where the author lived, in Largo Caleotto, and the squares that inspired Manzoni in creating his characters. The beauty of the lakeside, with its breathtaking view and romantic charm, transports us into a timeless atmosphere.

Continuing along the course of the Adda River, we reach Pescarenico, an authentic and fascinating dive into the past where everything seems to have remained as it was in the times of the novel. This picturesque district of Lecco offers us an authentic experience: the cobblestone streets, colorful houses, and narrow alleys immerse us in the authentic atmosphere of the era described by Manzoni, and they hide the convent of the Capuchin Friars of Fra Cristoforo, who organized the escape of the two young people: Renzo had him return to Milan, while Lucia with her mother left with a ship in the night to take refuge under the Castle of the Unnamed. Right at the point where they embarked, there is a plaque that reports the moment when Lucia tearfully says goodbye to the beloved mountains, in the famous Farewell to the Mountains.

It's not the only 'testimony of passage' of the characters from 'The Betrothed' because in Olate, a district of Lecco, you can read, in front of a rustic house on Via Caldone, a plaque that says: Presumed home of Lucia Mondella. The street leads to a small church, the Saints Valente and Valeria, and would be the Chapel where Don Abbondio was supposed to celebrate the marriage of the two lovers. Today, it is a neoclassical building with a pebble square, on a street that goes up to a hill that is presumed to be the one on which Don Rodrigo's palace stood. Arriving in the Germandeo neighborhood, today corresponding to the chapel on Via Croce, along a country lane, you can also find a small tabernacle that commemorates the point where Don Abbondio met the two tough guys, who told him the famous phrase 'This marriage is not to be done!'

In short, like on a real movie set, exploring the Milanese hinterland and especially the edges of Lake Como will be like reliving the exploits of some of the most iconic characters in Italian literature, combining the sweet beauty of nature with history and culture.

Edilfar Rent loves culture and, above all, moving with the right car: we wait for you at our location in Milan at Via Giuseppe Parini 3, near Repubblica metro, to find the car that suits you based on your needs!"