Palio di Legnano

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Palio di Legnano
Also called	Il Palio
Observed by	Legnano, Lombardy, Italy
Type	Historical
Significance	To commemorate the battle of Legnano (29 May 1176)
Celebrations	Medieval pageant for the streets of Legnano; horse race between the eight contrade legnanesi at the Stadio Giovanni Mari
Observances	Vigil of Aribert's cross; solemn Mass officiated on the Carroccio; religious investiture of the captains of the Contrade legnanesi; blessing of horses and jockeys taking part in the horse race
Date	Last Sunday in May
2023 date	May 28  (2023-05-28)
2024 date	May 26  (2024-05-26)
2025 date	May 25  (2025-05-25)
2026 date	May 31  (2026-05-31)
Frequency	Annual
First time	1935
Related to	Regional feast of Lombardy; feast of saints Sisinnio, Martirio and Alessandro

The Palio di Legnano (Italian pronunciation: [ˈpaːljo di leɲˈɲaːno]; known locally simply as Il Palio) is a traditional event generally held on the last Sunday of May in the City of Legnano, Italy, to recall the Battle of Legnano held on 29 May 1176 by the Lombard League and the Holy Roman Empire of Frederick Barbarossa.^[1] This Palio is composed by a medieval pageant and a horse race. Until 2005 the whole event was named Sagra del Carroccio.^[2]

Legnano is subdivided into eight contrade, each of which takes part both in the medieval pageant and in the horse race held at the stadio Giovanni Mari. This is considered one of the most important non-competitive events of this type in Italy. In 2003 the historic pageant was shown at the Columbus Day in New York City.^[3]

A lot of Palio-centric events take place in Legnano during May and July, such as the choral exhibition La Fabbrica del Canto '(The factory of singing)' born in 1992 from an idea of the musical association Jubilate.^[4] In 2015, institutions made 29 May a holiday for the whole of Lombardy.^[5]