While Medieval Milan underwent a period of decline, San Lorenzo maintained a leading role in the city's liturgy: as the highest place in Milan it came to represent the Mount of Olives and on Palm Sunday the bishop blessed the palms and led the procession that from there to the now-demolished Basilica of Santa Tecla.

The eleventh and twelfth centuries were marked by numerous disasters: fires, in particular, the terrible “fire of the Stork”, that in 1071 devoured the basilica, devastating the internal decorations, and earthquakes, that undermined the stability of the complex, making new restorations necessary between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries.
Towards the middle of the eleventh century, the open space behind the basilica, called Vetra, was used as the place of executions: this practice continued until 1840 and was reported, among others, by Alessandro Manzoni in the history of the infamous column.
By 1167, with the construction of the medieval walls, the basilica was to be found within the city, at the new Porta Ticinese (Ticinese gate).
While Medieval Milan underwent a period of decline, San Lorenzo maintained a leading role in the city's liturgy: as the highest place in Milan it came to represent the Mount of Olives and on Palm Sunday the bishop blessed the palms and led the procession that from there to the now-demolished Basilica of Santa Tecla.
The eleventh and twelfth centuries were marked by numerous disasters: fires, in particular, the terrible “fire of the Stork”, that in 1071 devoured the basilica, devastating the internal decorations, and earthquakes, that undermined the stability of the complex, making new restorations necessary between the twelfth and thirteenth centuries. Towards the middle of the eleventh century, the open space behind the basilica, called Vetra, was used as the place of executions: this practice continued until 1840 and was reported, among others, by Alessandro Manzoni in the history of the infamous column. By 1167, with the construction of the medieval walls, the basilica was to be found within the city, at the new Porta Ticinese (Ticinese gate).
Basilica of San Lorenzo, Milan