I risvolti sonanti della diplomazia a Milano nel Settecento: spari di cannoni, concerti di campane e solenni Te Deum

Military victories and the stipulation of peace treaties in the society of the ancien regime were sealed by the singing of a Te Deum of thanksgiving to God in recognition of his intervention in history. The contribution examines the Te Deums and Masses pro gratiae actionem celebrated in 18th-century Milan through unpublished archival documents, reviews in the periodical press, and excerpts from the Diario milanese of the priest don Giovanni Battista Borrani. Eighteenth-century Milanese society experienced solemn liturgies in thanksgiving as a moment of self-representation in which all social classes were gathered and participated in common prayer in the same church. These city liturgies justifi ed the deployment of extraordinary forces: the music of the Te Deums was composed by the maestri di cappella of the Duomo or by the best church musicians working in the city; the performance of the Te Deum was entrusted to extraordinarily large vocal and instrumental ensembles.