The complex of Villa Erba, in its present form, formed the main part of the property annexed to the Convent of Santa Maria Assunta of Cernobbio, which was run by the nuns of the Cluniac Benedictine order.

The first description of the convent dates back to the latter part of the fifteenth century and is contained in the records of the pastoral visit conducted by the Bishop of Como, Feliciano Ninguarda, between 1589 and 1593. According to these records, the estate then housed 25 nuns, who organised a convent boarding-school and administered the agricultural lands.

In 1784, by order of the Austrian Government, the Convent of Santa Maria Assunta of Cernobbio was dissolved and the estate was destined to be absorbed into the “Church fund”, administered by the Supply Council of Milan.

Following its expropriation, the property was split up, and the main group of buildings, composed of the church, oratory and convent, was purchased in 1816, by Countess Vittoria Peluso, widow of the Count of Paderno, the former owner of the Villa d’Este. This purchase marked the final transformation of the estate into an aristocratic residence: the manor house was made out of the building of the convent, while the surrounding land was turned into an English garden. Upon the death of the countess the Villa passed to her grandchildren, one of whom, Giuseppa Peluso, whose married name was Cima, bought out the shares of the other joint-owners. In 1834 she ceded the entire complex to her husband, whose son Cesare duly succeeded to the property.

In 1882 the property was bought by Anna Brivio and the aristocrat Commendatore Luigi Erba, brother and heir to Carlo Erba, the founder of the Milanese pharmaceutical company of the same name. Between 1898 and 1901 they decided to build a new villa on the lakeside, more sumptuous than the extant Villa Nuova, to reflect the family's social and economic status. The Erba family often stayed in Cernobbio, receiving illustrious guests, artists and personalities from the political and industrial world. Musical evenings, concerts and parties enlivened the atmosphere of the villa during the early years of the century.

When the couple died, the property passed to their daughter Carla, who married Duke Giuseppe Visconti in Cernobbio. During the summer months the family, enlarged by the birth of seven children – one of whom was to become the famous film director Luchino Visconti -spent most of their holidays there, and when Lady Carla and her husband separated, the family's stays at Villa Erba became gradually longer. Lady Carla died in 1939. During the war the villa was requisitioned by the Billeting Commissariat for use as German headquarters; during the post-war period, after being divided among the Visconti brothers, it began to spring to life again by the revival of the tradition of receptions, balls and concerts. Luchino decided to return to Villa Erba when, after falling ill at the height of his career, he was forced to undergo a period of rehabilitation. It was here that he completed the editing of his film “Ludwig”. He died four years later.

In 1986, the Visconti heirs sold the nineteen-century villa, together with most of the surrounding land, to a public consortium which purchased it with the intention of turning it into the present-day exhibition and conference centre.