Monza (Lombardy)

Monza is a city and comune on the River Lambro, a tributary of the Po in the Lombardy region. Monza is best known for its Grand Prix motor racing circuit, the Autodromo Nazionale Monza, which hosts the Formula One Italian Grand Prix. In the course of its history Monza withstood thirty-two sieges, but the Porta d'Agrate is all that remains of its original walls and fortifications. Nearby is the nunnery in which the Nun of Monza was enclosed in Manzoni's "I Promessi Sposi". The city center also includes the following buildings: the Romanesque-Gothic style Cathedral of Saint John, the Santa Maria in Strada, a medieval church with a rich terra-cotta façade, the Arengario, the 14th-century palace of the civic commune, and the Royal Villa, surrounded by the large Monza Park, one of the largest enclosed parks in Europe.