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(anc. ''Addua'') is a river in North
Italy , tributary of the
Po . It rises in the
Alps near the border with
Switzerland and flows through
Lake Como . The Adda joins the Po a few km upstream of
Cremona . It is 313 kilometres (196 miles) long.
Towns along the river Adda are
Bormio ,
Sondrio ,
Bellagio and
Lecco (both on
Lake Como ),
Lodi .
The Adda's true source is in some small lakes near the head of the Fragile glen, but its volume is increased by the union with several smaller streams, near the town of
Bormio , at the Raetian Alps. Thence it flows first southwest, then due west, through the fertile
Valtellina , passing
Tirano , where the Poschiavino falls in on the right, and Sondrio, where is the junction with the Mallero, right. It falls into the Lake of
Como , at its northern end, and mainly forms that lake. On issuing from its southeastern or Lecco arm, it crosses the plain of Lombardy, and finally, after a course of about 240 km (150 mi), joins the
Po , 13 km (8 mi) above
Cremona .
The lower course of the Adda was formerly the border between the
Republic Of Venice and the
Duchy Of Milan ; and on its banks several important battles have been fought, notably that of
Lodi , where
Napoleon defeated the Austrians in the year
1796 .
