The 4th Piedmontese Division under general Enrico Cialdini took position between Palestro and the road to Robbio, with the 10th Infantry Regiment on his left, the 9th Regiment defending Cascina San Pietro, and the 3rd Zouaves Regiment on his right flank, on an island in the river known as Sesietta.
In the Middle Ages the village belonged to the abbey of Santa Croce di Mortara, and in 1387 it became a fief of the lords of Robbio.