The Naviglio di Bereguardo is one of the manmade canals,
originally used for internal navigation, which were excavated
between the Late Middle Ages and 1800s in the Milan area.
Started in 1420, most of it was built between 1457 and 1470,
commissioned by Francesco I Sforza, Duke of Milan. It separates
from the Naviglio Grande at Abbiategrasso and heads south,
reaching Bereguardo at the Ticino Rive. Ships which from the Po,
sailed up the first part of the Ticino, and wanted to reach
Milan, had to be transferred over land to this canal, and then
sailed up the Naviglio Grande to reach the city. Use of the
canal started to decline in the 1800s, when Naviglio Pavese was
completed, which, thanks to an elaborate system of locks,
directly connects Milan with the Ticino, a short distance from
where it flows into the Po. It currently operates as an
irrigation canal.