How was Santa Maria delle Grazie connected to the Sforza family?

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Bramante, Donato — Donato Bramante Donato Bramante.

The church of Santa Maria delle Grazie was connected to the Sforza family through its role as their intended burial mausoleum. Beginning in 1492, the church underwent a comprehensive reconstruction project that included the addition of a new tribuna (chancel), which was designed to serve this funerary purpose for the family. While the specific responsibility for the design cannot be definitively proven, it is widely believed that the concept for this tribuna originated with the architect Donato Bramante, who enjoyed the favor of both Ludovico Sforza and his brother, Cardinal Ascanio Sforza, during his time in Milan.1