Following the Peace of Lodi treaty in 1453 that was signed between the Duchy of Milan and the Venetian Republic, Francesco Sforza commissioned his natural son Tristano to build a tower in order to defend the border along the River Oglio between Soncino and Pumenengo, as stipulated in the treaty. Known as Tristan’s Tower, it was erected on the territories belonging to the Barbò Counts, who had been the feudal lords of the area since 1070, in contraposition to Roccafranca, located on the Venetian side of the river. On the same site, a hundred years later, Adalberto Marchese Pallavicino, whose prosperity was linked to the construction of the canal bearing his name which irrigated the plains of Cremona, decided to build a magnificent residence for himself so that he“…would no longer need to follow in the wake of ungrateful princes…” and also to create a “… place of leisure and serenity for himself and his friends”. The words of his motto ‘SIBI ET AMICIS’ can still be observed, carved into a frieze on the stone situated above the porticoes of the façade. The Palazzo subsequently became the home of the Barbò Counts, and the family are still in proud possession of the residence today.
