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Reino Aragonés
The regions along Spain's Mediterranean coast have played a pivotal role in the history of the country.  After the Moors overran the peninsula in the 8th century, the Frankish king, Charlemagne, established a Spanish march — the Catalan counties — as a buffer against further Muslim expansion.  Neighboring Aragon, which emerged as a separate kingdom only in the 11th century, gained control of Catalonia and Valencia over the next two centuries.  The 15th-century marriage of the "Catholic Monarchs" uniting the crowns of Castile and Aragon was one of the final steps in the reunification of Spain.

Sunrise over the Mediterranean, as seen from our hotel room

UNESCO World Heritage List Barcelona UNESCO World Heritage List

 View towards Barcelona from our hotel room
According to legend, Carthaginian general Hamilcar Barca founded Barcino around 230 BC.
The Romans renamed the town Iulia Augusta Paterna Faventia Barcino around 15 BC, capital of the district of Laietania in Hispania Tarraconensis.
Sant Jordi (St. George) slaying a dragon above the entrance to the Palau de la Generalitat They built a defensive wall after the Franks destroyed the city in 263 AD. Corner of the Plaça de Sant Jaume, once the site of the Roman forum
  The Palau de la Generalitat is seat of the Catalan regional government  
Neo-Classical facade of the Casa de la Ciutat, Barcelona's town hall

Despite its appearance, the bridge over the Carrer del Bisbe dates only from 1928

 Passing under a medieval-style bridge spanning the Carrer del Bisbe This bridge connects the Palau de la Generalitat to the Canonges House across the street The Casa de la Ciutat was built in the 14th-15th centuries

Entrance to the Palau de la Generalitat off the Carrer del Bisbe
Barcelona fell to the Visigoths in 415 AD, who initially made it their capital.
The Moors conquered the city in 713, only to lose it again to the Franks in 801.
Renaissance-style window on the Carrer del Bisbe Wilfred "the Hairy", Count of Barcelona, established the ruling Catalan dynasty. Another window around the corner
Gargoyles and palm trees are juxtaposed in the cathedral cloisters Fountain featuring Sant Jordi in the cathedral cloisters View of the twin bell towers from the cathedral cloisters
Porta de Santa Eulàlia, entrance to the cloisters Ducks rule the roost in the cloisters
Gargoyles compete for attention between the cathedral (left) and the Palau del Lloctinent Count Borrell II broke ties with his Frankish lords after the Moors sacked the city in 985. The Museu d'Història de la Ciutat is housed in a Gothic building moved here stone by stone in 1931
The cathedral was begun by Jaime II in 1298 on the site of a Visigothic church Romanesque Capella de Santa Llúcia
Shadow of the Capella de Santa Llúcia on the Casa de l'Ardiaca, the former Archdeacon's house

Laura bought a CD from these musicians, styling themselves the "Intimist Duo"

 Modernist letterbox on the Casa de l'Ardiaca, by Domènech i Montaner Wilfred's grandson also asserted the supremacy of Barcelona over the neighboring Catalan counties. Laura outside the Casa de l'Ardiaca

The Plaça del Rei takes its name from the Palau Reial Major (Aragonese royal palace)
Barcelona flourished during this period, expanding beyond the old Roman walls of the Gothic Quarter (Barri Gòtic).
After the merger of Catalonia and Aragon, Barcelona served as the seat of the Aragonese court. Plaça del Rei at night
The Museu Frederic Marès once formed part of the royal palace complex Maintaining their autonomy, the Catalans convened a representative assembly in 1218. View of a Roman column and cathedral spire from the Museu Frederic Marès
Doorway on Veguer street, near the Plaça del Rei The 14th-century Basílica de Santa Maria del Mar was built during the height of Catalan naval power Memorial to the victims of the siege of 1713-14, behind Santa Maria del Mar
Aragon became a commercial and military power in the 13th and 14th centuries. Overseas expansion in the Mediterranean brought great wealth back to Barcelona.
Outdoor cafe off the Carrer Montcada   Inside the Basílica de Santa Maria del Mar   Carrer Montcada, near a museum dedicated to Pablo Picasso
West facade of the cathedral at night Bishop's Gate in the moonlight Carrer del Bisbe after dark We took these nighttime photos in color, but thought they looked better in black & white
Fountains and monuments in the Plaça de Catalunya Many magnificent buildings survive from this era, including the cathedral and royal palace. Monument to Francesc Macià, former Generalitat president, in Catalonia Plaza
  Laura in the Plaça de Catalunya  
They say that anyone who drinks from the Font de Canaletes is destined to return to Barcelona Unfortunately, Barcelona soon suffered an economic and demographic decline. The former Reial Acadèmia de Ciències i Arts was converted into a theater in 1910
Les Rambles run along a dried-up river bed outside the city's 13th-century walls The Black Death, which first struck this port city in 1348, continued to menace Catalonia over the next four decades.
Baroque decoration on the Bethlehem Church

The Church of Santa Maria del Pi features one of the largest rose windows in the world

 The Aragonese king died without an heir in 1412, to be replaced by a junior branch of the Castilian royal family. Entrance to Sant Agusti Church, near the Rambla de Sant Josep Entrance to the Bethlehem Church, just off the Rambla dels Etudis

The former Hospital de la Santa Creu is now the library of Catalonia
Meanwhile, poor harvests and excessive taxation led the Catalan elites into open revolt against the king in 1462.
The colorful Mercat de Sant Josep is popularly known as "La Boqueria" The 1469 marriage of Fernando II to Isabel of Castile represented another political setback for Barcelona.
Gran Teatre del Liceu, opera house on the Rambla dels Caputxins

Teatre Principal, on the Rambla de Santa Monica

 The Aragonese king joined the Castilian court in Toledo, which served as capital of the unified Spanish kingdom. Antigua Casa Figueras, a modernist work on the corner of Petxina street Each part of Les Rambles, like the Rambla dels Caputxins, takes its name from buildings which once stood here

Decorative facade on the Rambla dels Caputxins
In 1493, Christopher Columbus stepped ashore in Barcelona upon returning from his first voyage to the New World.
Art Deco dragon advertising a former umbrella shop on the Plaça de la Boqueria

Ironically, his discovery meant that political and commercial activity shifted away from the Mediterranean.
Memorial dedicated to playwright and poet Frederic Soler

The Plaça Reial features lamposts by Gaudí

 Barcelona's fortunes began to recover in the 16th century, despite occasional French interference. Mosaic by native son Joan Miró in the Plaça de la Boqueria Entrance to the Museu de Cera (wax museum) off the Rambla Santa Monica

The Royal Plaza was built in the 1850s
French troops occupied the city in 1652, 1697, and again during the Peninsular War against Napoleon (1808-13).
Entrance to the Plaça Reial off the Rambla de Caputxins
Having backed the wrong candidate during the War of Spanish Succession, Barcelona suffered a 13-month siege by French and Spanish troops in 1713-14.  Afterwards, the Bourbons repressed the Catalan language and institutions.
The "La Caixa" bank on Via Laietana

The Passion Facade of Sagrada Família

Population growth during the 19th century led Barcelona to demolish its city walls in 1859.

 Palau de la Música Catalana, designed by Domènech i Montaner

Gaudí began work on Sagrada Família in 1883, and he is buried in the crypt
The city hired civil engineer Ildefons Cerdà i Sunyer to plan an extension (eixample) along the northern edge of the city.
The Cerdà plan was one of the first examples of rational urban planning in Europe, featuring an extensive grid of streets crossed by broad diagonal boulevards.
Artist Josep Maria Subirachs completed the Passion Facade in the 1980s Craig in the tree-lined Plaça de la Sagrada Família
Eight of the planned twelve bell towers have been built

Avant-garde architects developed a unique style of Art Nouveau design in Barcelona.

 The Nativity Facade is the most complete part of Gaudí's unfinished masterpiece Antoni Gaudí i Cornet, of Sagrada Família fame, was the most famous exponent of "Modernisme". Only one tower of the Nativity Facade was finished in Gaudí's lifetime
The Amatller House stands next to the Casa Batlló on the so-called Illa de la Discòrdia Casa Milà by Gaudí (1906-10) is usually called "La Pedrera" (the stone quarry) Comalat House, on the Avinguda Diagonal Gaudí's Casa Batlló (1904-06) and Casa Amatller are two modernist masterpieces on the Passeig de Gràcia
Barcelona hosted exhibitions in the Parc de la Ciutadella in 1888, and at Montjuïc in 1929.
Amatller House, designed by Puig i Cadalfach in 1898 The Casa Terrades on Avinguda Diagonal is better known as the Casa de les Punxes (house of the points) Puig i Cadalfach completed the Casa Terrades in 1905 Domènech i Montaner designed the 1879 building which houses the Fundació Tàpies art museum
The Casa Lleó Morera (1902-06) was the first residential work by Domènech i Montaner The latest Barcelona building spree came in time for the 1992 Summer Olympics. Unlike many modernist masterpieces, the Palau Güell is located just off Les Rambles
The visual contrast between the Casa Lleó Morera, Casa Amatller, and Casa Batlló gave rise to the nickname for this block: "Illa de la Discòrdia" The Palau Güell (1889) was Gaudí's first major commission in the center of the city
The Monument to Christopher Columbus, at the end of Les Rambles, was designed for the 1888 Universal Exhibition "Face of Barcelona" in the Moll de la Fusta View of the Capitanía General from Port Vell
  The Monument a Colom marks the spot where Columbus stepped ashore in 1493  
La Rambla del Mar, a footbridge to the Maremàgnum mall in the Port Vell Columbus points the way at Port Vell
Laura at the Port Olímpic     Spain's tallest skyscrapers (44 stories) mark the entrance to the Port Olímpic, built for the 1992 games
View of Port Olímpic towards Montjuïc

Practical Information

We stayed in Barcelona for four nights in February 2004.

  • Hotel: The Barcelo Atenea Mar overlooks the Mediterranean, and offers wireless internet access in the rooms & lobby
  • Restaurants: We ate some wonderful food in Barcelona, including Italian, Chinese, Chicago-style pizza, and high-class tapas
  • Transportation: While sightseeing in Barcelona, we left the car in the hotel parking garage and used the local metro.  Of course, we took the car out for our daytrip to the Catalan monasteries.
  • Miscellaneous: The Icària movie theaters in the Vila Olimpica show English-language films, such as "Master and Commander" and the final installment of the "Lord of the Rings"

For more from Catalonia, click here.
There's also more from Aragón & Valencia.

This page was first published 30 May 2004, and last updated 08 March 2005.