An agricultural and industrial center of the province of Milan, on the right hand side of the southern Lambro, Pieve Emanuele was divided by the French in 1499 between Pieve di Locati and Locati of Trivulzi. The name "Emanuele" dates back to 1862 when for the enthusiasm for the Unification of Italy led the inhabitants of the village to ask permission from the king to name their town after him, and the permission was granted.

Among the sites of interest, worth of mention:
- the Castle of Tolcinasco, built in the XVI century by the family D'Adda in the area between Mirafiore and Pieve, the only example of a castle built in an agricultural area in Lombardy. Its structure, in fact, features its original destination as a barn. Today the castle is a holiday resort with a golf course designed by Arnold Palmer to host major national and international tournaments;
- The Church of St. Alexander, whose original structure dates back to 852; between 1296 and 1308 a new church was built in Romanesque style with three naves. In 1573 the Church of St. Alexander was visited by San Carlo Borromeo, whose relics are still preserved inside the Church itself. Among the works of considerable artistic interest, subject of study by many art critics, not to miss: the painting of Sant 'Alessandro, with its theme that features the Saint represented, according to tradition, as a Roman soldier with a flag bearing a white lily.
- The springs, the fountains and the old lodgings, such as: Cascina Viquarterio, Cascina Pizzabrasa, Cascina di Sotto and Cascina di Pieve Centro (XVIII-XIX centuries).