Why does this unassuming farmstead stand as a testament to Milan’s agricultural past? We are standing before Cascina Pasquala. It is a type of rural building traditional to the Po Valley. This is northern Italy. It is especially common in Lombardy. Some areas of Piedmont and Emilia-Romagna also feature it.
These buildings are also known as cascine lombarde. Cascine have been in the Po Valley since at least the 16th century. They became common in the 18th and 19th centuries. During the Napoleonic era, some religious buildings were confiscated. They were then transformed into cascine.
The term cascina dates back to the Middle Ages. It was often spelt capsina, caxina or cassina. The noun may come from Vulgar Latin capsia. Capsia means “corral” or “stockyard”. Another idea connects it to Old Italian cascio. Cascio means cheese. This clearly refers to cascine as dairy farms. Farmhouses called cassine existed as early as the 13th century. By the mid-13th century, centralized farms appeared in Lombardy. This was true around Pavia and Milan. These farms had boxes, stables, houses, mills, and tower defenses.
A typical cascina is a square-yarded farm. It is at the center of a large cultivated land. Different brick buildings line the courtyard’s perimeter. These usually include houses. There is often a main house for the farm owner or tenant. Simpler buildings housed the peasants’ families. Stables, barns, fountains, ovens, stores, mills, and dairies were also common.
Most cascine were isolated settlements. They sometimes housed as many as one hundred people. Many had public buildings. These included churches, inns, or even schools. Cascine were sometimes fortified structures. They featured defensive walls, towers, moats, and drawbridges.
Cascine are found throughout the Po Valley. Those in the High Po Valley are usually smaller. They housed 4-6 families. Those in the Low Po Valley could reach 10-15 families or more. Some housed up to 20-25 families.
Peasants in the cascine had specialized jobs. “Campari” maintained irrigation. “Bergamini” cared for cattle. “Casari” worked in the dairy. “Bifolchi” were responsible for ox-driven tillage. “Cavallanti” handled horse-driven tillage. “Contadini” were general-purpose peasants. Their main task was harvesting hay for cattle. Today, most of these terms are not used. “Contadini” now means farmers. “Bifolchi” survives as an insult similar to “boor.” Larger cascine also had carpenters, masons, blacksmiths. Other workers had jobs unrelated to agriculture.
Cascine in the Po Valley mainly produced wheat, maize, rice, barley, milk, and cheese. Arboriculture was also common. Cultivated trees included cottonwood, elm, and mulberry. Cascine near urban areas specialized in perishable vegetables. Examples are cabbage or carrot. These were profitable in urban markets.
Cascine declined economically throughout the 20th century. They lost their original function in the Po Valley. Many have been demolished or lie vacant. This is true in outlying areas of Northern Italian cities. Others have been absorbed by urban sprawl. They have been converted for different uses. These include residential buildings, schools, hotels, restaurants, and commercial areas. Major airports in Milan were built on land once occupied by cascine.
However, some old-fashioned functioning cascine still exist. They are in the Lombard and Po Valley countryside. In 2008, at least 43 cascine were still producing milk in the Province of Milan.
Many modern toponyms in Lombardy include the word cascina or cassina. These names refer to settlements that started as cascine. Examples include Cascina Gobba and Cassina Triulza in Milan. Cassina de’ Pecchi and Cassinetta di Lugagnano are other examples. Sometimes the noun cascina is omitted. The toponym preserves the cascina’s name. Examples include Aurora, Falchera, Lingotto, and Parella in Turin.
Cascina Pasquala stands as a reminder of this rich agricultural heritage. It connects us to the traditions and livelihoods of past generations. It offers a glimpse into a way of life that has shaped the landscape and culture of Lombardy.