Villa Zanardi Landi Alberoni at Veano

In 1577 a branch of the Zanardi Landi, one of the oldest and wealthiest noble families of Piacenza, were created counts of Veano.
In due course they erected the elegant residence which in the 19th century was purchased by Count Costa, and later by the Collegio Alberoni. The College is a seminary for training priests, founded in the 18th century by Cardinal Giulio Alberoni, and the villa was used as a summer residence.
The villa is reached at the end of a long avenue of limes and mulberry trees, four kilometres in length, built up in order to give it an easier slope for carriages.
The villa has an enviable panoramic position and was built in the 18th century but has suffered repeated alterations that have changed its original appearance. The complex is surrounded by a large garden, planned by Enrico Boni, and planted with tall evergreen trees.
Among the guests who have been entertained on the estate was Marie Louise of Austria, Napoleon's wife and Duchess of Parma and Piacenza from 1814 to 1849.
During the Second World War, many Allied prisoners-of-war were held at the villa before being transferred to Germany.