The heir Luca Pertusati decided to sell the book collection belonging to the deceased, consisting of more than 24,000 volumes, which mostly fell within a sphere of historical-erudite and literary interests, purchased by the State Congregation as a gift to Archduke Ferdinand, third son of Empress Maria Theresa and Francis I and future governor of Lombardy.
In 1770 Maria Theresa, considering the lack in Milan “of a library open for common use by those wishing to cultivate their intellect more deeply, and acquire new knowledge,” decided to dedicate the Pertusati Library for public use, suitably expanded, after a suitable seat was found near the city center.
Such a seat became available only in 1773, after the dissolution of the Society of Jesus which allowed the State to acquire the palace of the Jesuit College of Brera, built on the area of the 13th-century convent of the Humiliati. The medieval Latin term “Braida,” later evolved into the form “Brera,” named the Library, which thus took the current name of Braidense. The actual public opening took place only in 1786.
The suppression of the Society of Jesus also made available to the State the book holdings of the Braidense College and the Jesuit houses of San Fedele and San Girolamo which, together with the Pertusati collection, formed the fundamental core of the Library.
In 1778 the collection of the physician Albrecht von Haller of Bern, rich in valuable scientific texts, was purchased. To this were added the collections of Count Firmian, Cardinal Angelo Maria Durini, and Colonel Baschiera. Subsequently, holdings from ancient cloistered libraries were absorbed. The duplicates of the Imperial Library of Vienna were also allocated to the Braidense.
From the Napoleonic era, we remember the acquisitions of the important Library of the College of Jurisconsults and that of the Scaccerni family of Ferrara, rich in Greek and Latin classics. To continuously increase the collections from the origins, compulsory deposit of works published in the State of Milan was provided for at the Brera Library.
In 1802 the Braidense was granted the status of “national.” During the 19th century, other collections further enriched the Braidense heritage (volumes donated by Ermes Visconti, collection of the Royal Numismatic Cabinet, Mortara Bodoni collection, Lattes collection of Jewish cultural works, part of the manuscripts and prints collected by Carlo Morbio, the Vieusseux miscellany, and the library of Cesare Correnti).
In 1891 the Corniani Algarotti dramatic collection was purchased and in 1895 the De Capitani D’Arzago legacy was added. The special Manzoni collection was donated by Pietro Brambilla in 1885 and is continuously expanded (manuscripts, Manzoni memorabilia, correspondence, various books annotated by Manzoni, almost all editions of Manzoni’s works, and Manzoni criticism studies).
Among the collections acquired in the 20th century are the Novati Library, the liturgical library of the Dukes of Parma, the chess collection, the Castiglioni collection, and the Sommariva photographic collection.
