The family, destined to assume a position of very high prestige in the Milanese area and in Italy, appeared to exist already at the end of the X century. Probably it was one of the families of the "capitanei" provided with a feud by the archbishop Landolfo. Alreay in the XII century the Visconti were divided in different branches; the first well-known member of the historic Visconti branch, wich got seigniory of Milan, was Umberto, who died in 1248.