1.
Catalan language
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Catalan is a Romance language derived from Vulgar Latin and named after the medieval Principality of Catalonia, in northeastern modern Spain and adjoining parts of France. It is the national and only language of Andorra, and a co-official language of the Spanish autonomous communities of Catalonia, the Balearic Islands. It also has status in the commune of Alghero, situated on the northwestern coast of the island of Sardinia. All these territories are often called Catalan Countries. 4% with Catalan and 47. 5% only Spanish, in order to integrate newcomers, the Generalitat de Catalunya spends part of its annual budget on the promotion of the use of Catalan in Catalonia and in other territories. Catalan evolved from Vulgar Latin in the Middle Ages around the eastern Pyrenees, during the Low Middle Ages it saw a golden age as the literary and dominant language of the Crown of Aragon, and was widely used all over the Mediterranean. The union of Aragon with the territories of Spain in 1479 marked the start of the decline of the language. In 1659 Spain ceded Northern Catalonia to France, and Catalan was banned in both states in the early 18th century, 19th-century Spain saw a Catalan literary revival, which culminated in the 1913 orthographic standardization, and the official status of the language during the Second Spanish Republic. However, the Francoist dictatorship banned the use of Catalan in schools and in the public administration, there is no parallel in Europe for such a large, bilingual, non-state speech community. Catalan dialects are relatively uniform, and are mutually intelligible and they are divided into two blocks, Eastern and Western, differing mostly in pronunciation. The terms Catalan and Valencian are two varieties of the same language, there are two institutions regulating the two standard varieties, the Institute of Catalan Studies in Catalonia and the Valencian Academy of the Language in the Valencian Community. Catalan shares many traits with its neighboring Romance languages, thus, the similarities are naturally most notable with eastern Occitan. Nouns have two genders, and two numbers, pronouns additionally can have a neuter gender, and some are also inflected for case and politeness, and can be combined in very complex ways. Verbs are split in several paradigms and are inflected for person, number, tense, aspect, mood, in terms of pronunciation, Catalan has many words ending in a wide variety of consonants and some consonant clusters, in contrast with many other Romance languages. The word Catalan derives from the territory of Catalonia, itself of disputed etymology, in English, the term referring to a person first appears in the mid 14th century as Catelaner, followed in the 15th century as Catellain. It is attested a language name since at least 1652, Catalan can be pronounced as /ˈkætəlæn/, /kætəˈlæn/ or /ˈkætələn/. The endonym is pronounced /kə. təˈɫa/ in the Eastern Catalan dialects, in the Valencian Community, the term valencià is frequently used instead. The names Catalan and Valencian are two names for the same language, see also status of Valencian below. By the 9th century, Catalan had evolved from Vulgar Latin on both sides of the end of the Pyrenees, as well as the territories of the Roman province of Hispania Tarraconensis to the south
2.
Barcelona
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Founded as a Roman city, in the Middle Ages Barcelona became the capital of the County of Barcelona. Barcelona has a cultural heritage and is today an important cultural centre. Particularly renowned are the works of Antoni Gaudí and Lluís Domènech i Montaner. The headquarters of the Union for the Mediterranean is located in Barcelona, the city is known for hosting the 1992 Summer Olympics as well as world-class conferences and expositions and also many international sport tournaments. It is a cultural and economic centre in southwestern Europe, 24th in the world. In 2008 it was the fourth most economically powerful city by GDP in the European Union, in 2012 Barcelona had a GDP of $170 billion, it is leading Spain in both employment rate and GDP per capita change. In 2009 the city was ranked Europes third and one of the worlds most successful as a city brand, since 2011 Barcelona has been a leading smart city in Europe. During the Middle Ages, the city was known as Barchinona, Barçalona, Barchelonaa. Internationally, Barcelonas name is abbreviated to Barça. However, this refers only to FC Barcelona, the football club. The common abbreviated form used by locals is Barna, another common abbreviation is BCN, which is also the IATA airport code of the Barcelona-El Prat Airport. The city is referred to as the Ciutat Comtal in Catalan. The origin of the earliest settlement at the site of present-day Barcelona is unclear, the ruins of an early settlement have been excavated in the El Raval neighbourhood, including different tombs and dwellings dating to earlier than 5000 BC. The founding of Barcelona is the subject of two different legends, the first attributes the founding of the city to the mythological Hercules. In about 15 BC, the Romans redrew the town as a castrum centred on the Mons Taber, under the Romans, it was a colony with the surname of Faventia, or, in full, Colonia Faventia Julia Augusta Pia Barcino or Colonia Julia Augusta Faventia Paterna Barcino. It enjoyed immunity from imperial burdens, the city minted its own coins, some from the era of Galba survive. Some remaining fragments of the Roman walls have incorporated into the cathedral. The cathedral, also known as the Basilica La Seu, is said to have founded in 343
3.
Catalonia
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Catalonia is an autonomous community of Spain, located on the northeastern extremity of the Iberian Peninsula. It is designated as a nationality by its Statute of Autonomy, Catalonia consists of four provinces, Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. The capital and largest city is Barcelona, the second-most populated municipality in Spain, Catalonia comprises most of the territory of the former Principality of Catalonia. It is bordered by France and Andorra to the north, the Mediterranean Sea to the east, the official languages are Catalan, Spanish, and the Aranese dialect of Occitan. The eastern counties of these marches were united under the rule of the Frankish vassal the Count of Barcelona, in the later Middle Ages Catalan literature flourished. Between 1469 and 1516, the King of Aragon and the Queen of Castile married and ruled their kingdoms together, retaining all their distinct institutions, Courts, and constitutions. During the Franco-Spanish War, Catalonia revolted against a large and burdensome presence of the Royal army in its territory, within a brief period France took full control of Catalonia, at a high economic cost for Catalonia, until it was largely reconquered by the Spanish army. In the nineteenth century, Catalonia was severely affected by the Napoleonic, in the second half of the century Catalonia experienced industrialisation. As wealth from the industrial expansion grew, Catalonia saw a cultural renaissance coupled with incipient nationalism while several workers movements appeared. In 1914, the four Catalan provinces formed a Commonwealth, and with the return of democracy during the Second Spanish Republic, after the Spanish Civil War, the Francoist dictatorship enacted repressive measures, abolishing Catalan institutions and banning the official use of the Catalan language again. Since the Spanish transition to democracy, Catalonia has regained some political and cultural autonomy and is now one of the most economically dynamic communities of Spain, the origin of the name Catalunya is subject to diverse interpretations because of a lack of evidence. During the Middle Ages, Byzantine chroniclers claimed that Catalania derives from the medley of Goths with Alans. Other less plausible theories suggest, Catalunya derives from the land of castles, having evolved from the term castlà or castlan. This theory therefore suggests that the names Catalunya and Castile have a common root, the source is of Celtic origin, meaning chiefs of battle. Although the area is not known to have been occupied by Celts, the Lacetani, an Iberian tribe that lived in the area and whose name, due to the Roman influence, could have evolved by metathesis to Katelans and then Catalans. In English, Catalonia is pronounced /kætəˈloʊniə/, the native name, Catalunya, is pronounced in Central Catalan, the most widely spoken variety whose pronunciation is considered standard. The Spanish name is Cataluña, and the Aranese name is Catalonha, the first known human settlements in what is now Catalonia were at the beginning of the Middle Palaeolithic. From the next era, the Epipaleolithic or Mesolithic, important remains survive
4.
Spain
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By population, Spain is the sixth largest in Europe and the fifth in the European Union. Spains capital and largest city is Madrid, other urban areas include Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Bilbao. Modern humans first arrived in the Iberian Peninsula around 35,000 years ago, in the Middle Ages, the area was conquered by Germanic tribes and later by the Moors. Spain is a democracy organised in the form of a government under a constitutional monarchy. It is a power and a major developed country with the worlds fourteenth largest economy by nominal GDP. Jesús Luis Cunchillos argues that the root of the span is the Phoenician word spy. Therefore, i-spn-ya would mean the land where metals are forged, two 15th-century Spanish Jewish scholars, Don Isaac Abravanel and Solomon ibn Verga, gave an explanation now considered folkloric. Both men wrote in two different published works that the first Jews to reach Spain were brought by ship by Phiros who was confederate with the king of Babylon when he laid siege to Jerusalem. This man was a Grecian by birth, but who had given a kingdom in Spain. He became related by marriage to Espan, the nephew of king Heracles, Heracles later renounced his throne in preference for his native Greece, leaving his kingdom to his nephew, Espan, from whom the country of España took its name. Based upon their testimonies, this eponym would have already been in use in Spain by c.350 BCE, Iberia enters written records as a land populated largely by the Iberians, Basques and Celts. Early on its coastal areas were settled by Phoenicians who founded Western Europe´s most ancient cities Cadiz, Phoenician influence expanded as much of the Peninsula was eventually incorporated into the Carthaginian Empire, becoming a major theater of the Punic Wars against the expanding Roman Empire. After an arduous conquest, the peninsula came fully under Roman Rule, during the early Middle Ages it came under Germanic rule but later, much of it was conquered by Moorish invaders from North Africa. In a process took centuries, the small Christian kingdoms in the north gradually regained control of the peninsula. The last Moorish kingdom fell in the same year Columbus reached the Americas, a global empire began which saw Spain become the strongest kingdom in Europe, the leading world power for a century and a half, and the largest overseas empire for three centuries. Continued wars and other problems led to a diminished status. The Napoleonic invasions of Spain led to chaos, triggering independence movements that tore apart most of the empire, eventually democracy was peacefully restored in the form of a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Spain joined the European Union, experiencing a renaissance and steady economic growth
5.
Modernism
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Among the factors that shaped modernism were the development of modern industrial societies and the rapid growth of cities, followed then by reactions of horror to World War I. Modernism also rejected the certainty of Enlightenment thinking, and many modernists rejected religious belief, the poet Ezra Pounds 1934 injunction to Make it new. Was the touchstone of the approach towards what it saw as the now obsolete culture of the past. In this spirit, its innovations, like the novel, atonal and twelve-tone music, divisionist painting and abstract art. Modernism explicitly rejected the ideology of realism and makes use of the works of the past by the employment of reprise, incorporation, rewriting, recapitulation, revision, others focus on modernism as an aesthetic introspection. While J. M. W. Art critic Clement Greenberg describes the Pre-Raphaelite Brotherhood as proto-Modernists, There the proto-Modernists were, of all people, the Pre-Raphaelites actually foreshadowed Manet, with whom Modernist painting most definitely begins. They acted on a dissatisfaction with painting as practiced in their time, rationalism has also had opponents in the philosophers Søren Kierkegaard and later Friedrich Nietzsche, both of whom had significant influence on existentialism. A major 19th-century engineering achievement was The Crystal Palace, the huge cast-iron, Glass and iron were used in a similar monumental style in the construction of major railway terminals in London, such as Paddington Station and Kings Cross Station. These technological advances led to the building of structures like the Brooklyn Bridge. The latter broke all previous limitations on how tall man-made objects could be and these engineering marvels radically altered the 19th-century urban environment and the daily lives of people. Arguments arose that the values of the artist and those of society were not merely different, but that Society was antithetical to Progress, the philosopher Schopenhauer called into question the previous optimism, and his ideas had an important influence on later thinkers, including Nietzsche. Darwins theory of evolution by natural selection undermined religious certainty and the idea of human uniqueness, in particular, the notion that human beings were driven by the same impulses as lower animals proved to be difficult to reconcile with the idea of an ennobling spirituality. Karl Marx argued that there were fundamental contradictions within the capitalist system, historians, and writers in different disciplines, have suggested various dates as starting points for modernism. Everdell also thinks modernism in painting began in 1885–86 with Seurats Divisionism, the poet Baudelaires Les Fleurs du mal, and Flauberts novel Madame Bovary were both published in 1857. In the arts and letters, two important approaches developed separately in France, the first was Impressionism, a school of painting that initially focused on work done, not in studios, but outdoors. Impressionist paintings demonstrated that human beings do not see objects, the school gathered adherents despite internal divisions among its leading practitioners, and became increasingly influential. A significant event of 1863 was the Salon des Refusés, created by Emperor Napoleon III to display all of the paintings rejected by the Paris Salon. While most were in standard styles, but by artists, the work of Manet attracted tremendous attention
6.
Modernisme
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Modernisme, also known as Catalan modernism, is the historiographic denomination given to an art and literature movement. Modernisme was also a literary movement, although it was part of a general trend that emerged in Europe around the turn of the 20th century, in Catalonia the style acquired its own unique personality. Notable painters include Santiago Rusiñol, Ramon Casas, Isidre Nonell, Hermen Anglada Camarasa, Joaquim Mir, Eliseu Meifrèn, Lluïsa Vidal, notable sculptors are Josep Llimona, Eusebi Arnau and Miquel Blai. Such ideas can be seen in some of Rusiñols plays against the Spanish army, Modernistes largely rejected bourgeois values, which they thought to be the opposite of art. It is a search for a style for Catalonia drawing on Medieval. The textile factory which is now home to the Catalan national technical museum MNACTEC is an outstanding example, early 20th century architecture in Valencia was strongly influenced by Modernisme. The Central Market in Valencia, one of the largest in Europe, covers more than 8,000 square metres, over two floors, with a predominantly eclectic pre-Modernist style. Its unusual roof comprises original domes and sloping sections at different heights, while the interior seems to be lined in a range of such as iron, wood, ceramics. The beauty of the building stands out especially on account of the light enters through the roof at various points. The North Station is the railway station in Valencia, Spain located in the city centre next to the Plaza de Toros de Valencia. It was declared Good of Cultural Heritage in 1987, the Mercado de Colón is an old market located in the center of the city of Valencia, Spain. Its building was designed by architect Francisco Mora Berenguer between 1914 and 1916 and this is a clear example of Modernist architecture of the early century. It was declared a national monument and it impresses with its extraordinary facade and lavish decor. Antoni Gaudí is the architect of this movement. Other influential architects were Lluís Domènech i Montaner and Josep Puig i Cadafalch, in literature, Modernisme stood out the most in narrative. Those writers often, though not always, show influences from Russian literature of the 19th Century, in poetry, Modernisme closely follows Symbolist and Parnassian poetry, with poets frequently crossing the line between both tendencies or alternating between them. Another important strain of Modernista poetry is Joan Maragalls Paraula viva school, although poetry was very popular with the Modernistes and there were lots of poets involved in the movement, Maragall is the only Modernista poet who is still widely read today. Modernista theatre was important, as it smashed the insubstantial regional plays that were popular in 19th century Catalonia
7.
Pablo Picasso
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Pablo Ruiz y Picasso, also known as Pablo Picasso, was a Spanish painter, sculptor, printmaker, ceramicist, stage designer, poet and playwright who spent most of his adult life in France. Picasso demonstrated extraordinary artistic talent in his years, painting in a naturalistic manner through his childhood. During the first decade of the 20th century, his style changed as he experimented with different theories, techniques, Picassos work is often categorized into periods. Much of Picassos work of the late 1910s and early 1920s is in a neoclassical style and his later work often combines elements of his earlier styles. Ruiz y Picasso were included for his father and mother, respectively, born in the city of Málaga in the Andalusian region of Spain, he was the first child of Don José Ruiz y Blasco and María Picasso y López. His mother was of one quarter Italian descent, from the territory of Genoa, though baptized a Catholic, Picasso would later on become an atheist. Picassos family was of middle-class background and his father was a painter who specialized in naturalistic depictions of birds and other game. For most of his life Ruiz was a professor of art at the School of Crafts, Picasso showed a passion and a skill for drawing from an early age. According to his mother, his first words were piz, piz, a shortening of lápiz, from the age of seven, Picasso received formal artistic training from his father in figure drawing and oil painting. Ruiz was an academic artist and instructor, who believed that proper training required disciplined copying of the masters. His son became preoccupied with art to the detriment of his classwork, the family moved to A Coruña in 1891, where his father became a professor at the School of Fine Arts. On one occasion, the father found his son painting over his sketch of a pigeon. In 1895, Picasso was traumatized when his sister, Conchita. After her death, the moved to Barcelona, where Ruiz took a position at its School of Fine Arts. Picasso thrived in the city, regarding it in times of sadness or nostalgia as his true home, Ruiz persuaded the officials at the academy to allow his son to take an entrance exam for the advanced class. This process often took students a month, but Picasso completed it in a week, the student lacked discipline but made friendships that would affect him in later life. His father rented a room for him close to home so he could work alone, yet he checked up on him numerous times a day. Picassos father and uncle decided to send the young artist to Madrids Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, at age 16, Picasso set off for the first time on his own, but he disliked formal instruction and stopped attending classes soon after enrolment
8.
Ramon Casas
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Ramon Casas i Carbó was a Catalan Spanish artist. Also a graphic designer, his posters and postcards helped to define the Catalan art movement known as modernisme and his father had made a fortune in Matanzas, Cuba, his mother was from a well-off Catalan family. In 1877 he abandoned the course of schooling to study art in the studio of Joan Vicens. In 1881, still in his teens, he was a co-founder of the magazine LAvenç and that year he survived tuberculosis, and convalesced for the winter in Barcelona. Among the artists he met in this period of his life, and who influenced him, were Laureà Barrau, Santiago Rusiñol, Eugène Carrière, Pierre Puvis de Chavannes, and Ignacio Zuloaga. Casas and Rusiñol traveled through Catalonia in 1889, and collaborated on a short book Por Cataluña, with text by Rusiñol and illustrations by Casas. Returning together to Paris, they lived together at the Moulin de la Galette in Montmartre, along with painter and art critic Miquel Utrillo, Rusiñol chronicled these times in as series of articles Desde el Molino for La Vanguardia, again Casas illustrated. Casas became an associate of the Societé dartistes françaises, allowing him to two works annually at their salon without having to pass through jury competition. With this increasing activity in Catalonia, he settled more in Barcelona, the emerging modernista art world gained a center with the opening of Els Quatre Gats, a bar modeled on Le Chat Noir in Paris. His partners in the enterprise were Pere Romeu, who played host to the bar, as well as Rusiñol. Like Le Chat Noir, Els Quatre Gats attempted its own literary and artistic magazine and that was short-lived, but was soon followed by Pèl & Ploma, which would slightly outlast the bar itself, and Forma, to which Casas also contributed. He designed posters for the café, many of which depicted Romeus gaunt visage and he also executed a series of advertisements for Codorniu, a brand of cava and anisette. Over the next decade, he would design poster ads for everything from cigarette papers to the Enciclopèdia Espasa. For the 1900 Exposition Universelle in Paris, the Spanish committee chose two of Casas full-length oil portraits, an 1891 portrait of Erik Satie and an 1895 portrait of Casas sister Elisa. His 1894 Garrote Vil —a portrayal of an execution— won a prize in Munich in 1901, his work was shown not only in the major capitals of Europe. In 1902, twelve of his canvasses were installed permanently in the rotunda of the Cercle de Liceu, the exclusive private club associated with Barcelonas famous opera house. In 1903 he became a full Societaire of the Salon du Champ de Mars in Paris, which would have allowed him to exhibit there annually, in 1904, the same piece won first prize at the General Exposition in Madrid. Increasingly in demand as a portraitist, he settled again for a while in Barcelona, shortly thereafter he made the acquaintance of a young artists model named Júlia Peraire,22 years his junior
9.
Le Chat Noir
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Le Chat Noir was a nineteenth-century entertainment establishment, in the bohemian Montmartre district of Paris. It opened on 18 November 1881 at 84 Boulevard de Rochechouart by the impresario Rodolphe Salis, Le Chat Noir is thought to be the first modern cabaret, a nightclub where the patrons sat at tables and drank alcoholic beverages while being entertained by a variety show on stage. The acts were introduced by a master of ceremonies who interacted with well-known patrons at the tables and its imitators have included cabarets from St. Petersburg to Barcelona. Perhaps best known now by its iconic Théophile Steinlen poster art, in its heyday it was a nightclub that was part artist salon. From 1892 to 1895 the cabaret published a magazine with the same name, featuring literary writings, news from the cabaret and Montmartre, poetry. The cabaret began by renting the cheapest accommodations it could find and its success was assured with the wholesale arrival of a group of radical young writers and artists called Les Hydropathes, a club led by the journalist Émile Goudeau. The group claimed to be averse to water, preferring wine and their name doubled as a nod to the rabid zeal with which they advocated their sociopolitical and aesthetic agendas. Goudeau’s club met in his house on the Rive Gauche, but had become so popular that it outgrew its meeting place, Salis met Goudeau, whom he convinced to relocate the club meeting place across the river to 84 Boulevard Rochechouart. The guard supposedly was responsible for bringing in the painters and poets who arrived, while barring the infamous priests, eventually Salis tongue-in-cheek admirational piece was on a high marble fireplace, The skull of Louis XIII as a child. Le Chat Noir soon outgrew its first site, three and a half years after opening, its popularity forced it to move into larger accommodations a few doors down, in June 1885. Located at 12 Rue Victor-Masse, the new establishment was sumptuous and it was the old private mansion of the painter Alfred Stevens, who, at the request of Salis, had transformed it into a fashionable country inn with the help of the architect Maurice Isabey. On 10 June 1885, with fanfare, Salis moved to new premises at 12 Rue Victor-Masse. Very quickly, poets and singers who performed at Le Chat Noir found the best practice for their craft to be had in Paris, with exaggerated, ironic politeness, Salis most often played the role of conférencier. It was here that the Salon des Arts Incohérents, shadow plays, Salis declared that the Chat Noir is the most extraordinary cabaret in the world. You rub shoulders with the most famous men of Paris, meeting there with foreigners from every corner of the world, the last shadow play by Saliss company was staged in January 1897, after which Salis took the company on tour. Salis was talking of plans to move the cabaret to a location in Paris itself, other cabarets successfully copied and adapted the model established by the Chat Noir. In December 1899 Henri Fursy opened his Boîte à Fursy cabaret in the former Chat Noir hôtel on rue Victor-Massé. He claimed to have inherited the mantle of Salis, and said his cabaret has thanks to Fursy become once again the goal of all who climb Montmartre to hear their favorite chansonniers, Le Chat Noir on Boulevard de Clichy remained popular into the 1920s
10.
Ramon Casas and Pere Romeu on a Tandem
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Ramon Casas and Pere Romeu on a Tandem is a painting by Ramon Casas in exhibition at the National Art Museum of Catalonia in Barcelona. Casas painted Ramon Casas and Pere Romeu on a Tandem in 1897 specifically for the interior of Els Quatre Gats and it depicts Casas and Pere Romeu, one of the promoters of Els Quatre Gats, on a tandem bicycle against the Barcelona skyline. Casas is seen in profile with his pipe, while Romeu looks directly at the viewer, the original inscription on the right side of the painting, which was later cut off, read to ride a bicycle, you cant go with your back straight. The message described the attitude of the bar founders, that in order to progress, you must break with tradition. When reproductions of the two appeared in the magazine Pel & Ploma, they were referred to as The End of the 19th Century and The Beginning of the 20th Century. Ramon Casas was a Catalan artist and his posters and postcards helped define the Modernisme art movement. The emerging Modernisme art movement gained a center with the opening of Els Quatre Gats, “Four Cats” is a colloquial Catalan expression for “only a few people” and the name of Els Quatre Gats is dervived from this saying. His partners in the enterprise were Pere Romeu, as well as Santiago Rusiñol, Modernisme was a cultural movement associated with the search for Catalan national identity. It is often understood as an equivalent to a number of art movements, such as Art Nouveau, Jugendstil, Secessionism, and Liberty style. Doñate, Mercè, Mendoza, Cristina, Ramon Casas, ISBN 84-8043-077-X McCully, M. Els Quatre Gats, Art in Barcelona around 1900. Robinson, W. Falgas, J. & Lord, C. B. Barcelona and Modernity, Picasso, Gaudi, Miró, cleveland Museum of Art in Association with Yale University Press, New Haven and London. From Gaudi to Tàpies, Catalan Masters of the 20th Century, generalitat de Catalunya, Departament de Cultura. Point and Counterpoint, Ramon Casas in Paris and Barcelona 1866-1909, the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
11.
Francisco Franco
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Francisco Franco Bahamonde was a Spanish general who ruled over Spain as a military dictator for 36 years from 1939 until his death. As a conservative and a monarchist, he opposed the abolition of the monarchy, with the 1936 elections, the conservative Spanish Confederation of Autonomous Right-wing Groups lost by a narrow margin and the leftist Popular Front came to power. Intending to overthrow the republic, Franco followed other generals in attempting a coup that precipitated the Spanish Civil War. With the death of the generals, Franco quickly became his factions only leader. Leaving half a million dead, the war was won by Franco in 1939. He established a dictatorship, which he defined as a totalitarian state. Franco proclaimed himself Head of State and Government under the title El Caudillo, under Franco, Spain became a one-party state, as the various conservative and royalist factions were merged into the fascist party and other political parties were outlawed. Although Francos Spain maintained a policy of neutrality during World War II. Francos regime has been called a fascist one, Spain was isolated by the international community for nearly a decade after World War II. By the 1950s, the nature of his regime changed from being openly totalitarian, by the 1960s Spain saw incremental reforms and progressive economic development. After a 36-year rule, Franco died in 1975 and he restored the monarchy before his death, which made King Juan Carlos I his successor, who led the Spanish transition to democracy. After a referendum, a new constitution was adopted, which transformed Spain into a democracy under a constitutional monarchy. Franco was born at half past noon on December 4,1892, at 108 Calle Frutos Saavedra in Ferrol and his father was of Andalusian ancestry. His mother was María del Pilar Bahamonde y Pardo de Andrade, Francisco was to follow his father into the Navy, but as a result of the Spanish–American War the country lost much of its navy as well as most of its colonies. Not needing any more officers, the Naval Academy admitted no new entrants from 1906 to 1913, to his fathers chagrin, Francisco decided to try the Spanish Army. In 1907, he entered the Infantry Academy in Toledo, graduating in 1910 as a lieutenant, two years later, he obtained a commission to Morocco. Spanish efforts to occupy their new African protectorate provoked the protracted Rif War with native Moroccans and their tactics resulted in heavy losses among Spanish military officers, and also provided an opportunity to earn promotion through merit. It was said that officers would receive either la caja o la faja, Franco quickly gained a reputation as a good officer
12.
Enrique Granados
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Enrique Granados Campiña was a Spanish pianist and composer of classical music. His music is in a uniquely Spanish style and, as such, is representative of musical nationalism, Enrique Granados Campiña was born in Lleida, Spain, the son of Calixto Granados, a Spanish army captain, and Enriqueta Campiña. As a young man he studied piano in Barcelona, where his teachers included Francisco Jurnet, in 1887 he went to Paris to study. Bériot insisted on extreme refinement in tone production, which strongly influenced Granados’s own teaching of pedal technique and he also fostered Granadoss abilities in improvisation. Just as important were his studies with Felip Pedrell and he returned to Barcelona in 1889. His first successes were at the end of the 1890s, with the opera Maria del Carmen, in 1911 Granados premiered his suite for piano Goyescas, which became his most famous work. It is a set of six based on paintings of Francisco Goya. Such was the success of work that he was encouraged to expand it. He wrote an opera based on the subject in 1914, and it was performed for the first time in New York City on 28 January 1916, and was very well received. Shortly afterwards, he was invited to perform a recital for President Woodrow Wilson. The delay incurred by accepting the recital invitation caused him to miss his boat back to Spain, instead, he took a ship to England, where he boarded the passenger ferry SS Sussex for Dieppe, France. On the way across the English Channel, the Sussex was torpedoed by a German U-boat, in a failed attempt to save his wife Amparo, whom he saw flailing about in the water some distance away, Granados jumped out of his lifeboat and drowned. However, the broke in two parts and only one sank. Ironically, the part of the ship that contained his cabin did not sink and was towed to port, with most of the passengers, except for Granados and his wife, on board. Granados and his wife left six children, Eduard, Solita, Enrique, Víctor, Natàlia, the personal papers of Enrique Granados are preserved in, among other institutions, the National Library of Catalonia. Granados wrote piano music, chamber music, songs, zarzuelas, many of his piano compositions have been transcribed for the classical guitar, examples include Dedicatoria, Danza No. His music can be divided into three styles or periods, A romantic style including such pieces as Escenas Romanticas and Escenas Poeticas. A more typically nationalist, Spanish style including such pieces as Danzas Españolas,6 Piezas sobre cantos populares españoles, the Goya period, which includes the piano suite Goyescas, the opera Goyescas, various Tonadillas for voice and piano, and other works
13.
Ricard Opisso
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Ricard Opisso was a Spanish cartoonist, caricaturist, illustrator and painter. Biography Opisso and son Alfredo Viñas, journalist, historian and critic, comes from a family full of artists illustrated. His paternal grandfather was Opisso and Josep Roig, a journalist and director of Diari de Tarragona, father of Antonia writers also Opisso and Vine and Antoni Opisso and Vina. His maternal great-grandfather was the painter Pere Pau Mountain, his maternal grandfather Felipe Jacinto Room fabulist and his maternal uncle and his nephew was Arturo Llorens and Opisso, a writer better known under his pseudonym Arturo Llopis. Although born in Tarragona, his family moved to Barcelona when Opisso had only two years old, later he worked as an illustrator for publications such as ¡Cu-Cut. Since 1903) and LEsquella of Torratxa, signing oriented political satire, because of the dictatorship of Miguel Primo de Rivera, Opisso leaves the political satire and drawings approach the custom themes, specializing in popular scenes. His drawings from this period are characterized by motley crowds in Barcelonas popular scenarios, from this period dates his best known works for the magazine TBO dehistorieta, where he specialized in performing covers. He collaborated with other publications, as in Patufet, Pocholo. After the war, the paintings of Opisso triumphed in the galleries of Barcelona, in 1953 he received recognition from their hometown in the Fourth Art Fair Tarragona. Legacy Recently there have been exhibitions of his drawings. Opisso Museum Astoria Hotel in Barcelona is shown continuously since late 2007 on the floor a collection of more than 200 illustrations Opisso. The drawings and posters come from the collection of Jordi Clos
14.
Saint Joseph
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Christian tradition places Joseph as Jesus foster father. Some historians state that Joseph was Jesus father, some differing views are due to theological interpretations versus historical views. In both Catholic and Protestant traditions, Joseph is regarded as the saint of workers and is associated with various feast days. In popular piety, Joseph is regarded as a model for fathers and has also become patron of various dioceses and places, several notable images of Saint Joseph have been granted a Canonical coronation by a Pope. In popular religious iconography he is associated with lilies or a spikenard, with the present-day growth of Mariology, the theological field of Josephology has also grown and since the 1950s centers for studying it have been formed. According to the New Testament, Joseph was the father of James, Joses, Judas, Simon, the Pauline epistles make no reference to Jesus father, nor does the Gospel of Mark. The first appearance of Joseph is in the gospels of Matthew, consequently, all the names between David and Joseph are different. Some scholars, such as Harry A. Ironside reconcile the genealogies by viewing the Solomonic lineage in Matthew as Josephs major royal line, the epistles of Paul are generally regarded as the oldest extant Christian writings. These mention Jesus mother, but do not refer to his father, the Book of Mark, the first gospel to be written, with a date about two decades after Paul, also does not mention Jesus father. Joseph first appears in the Gospels of Matthew and Luke, both dating from around 80-90 AD, the issue of reconciling the two accounts has been the subject of debate. In Matthew, Joseph obeys the direction of an angel to marry Mary, once Herod has died, an angel tells Joseph to return, but to avoid Herods son he takes his wife and the child to Nazareth in Galilee and settles there. In Luke, Joseph already lives in Nazareth, and Jesus is born in Bethlehem because Joseph, lukes account makes no mention of angels and dreams, the Massacre of the Innocents, or of a visit to Egypt. The last time Joseph appears in person in any Gospel is in the story of the Passover visit to the Temple in Jerusalem when Jesus is 12 years old, no mention is made of him thereafter. The story emphasizes Jesus awareness of his mission, here Jesus speaks to his parents of my father, meaning God. Christian tradition represents Mary as a widow during the ministry of her son. Joseph is not mentioned as being present at the Wedding at Cana at the beginning of Jesus mission, nor at the Passion at the end. If he had been present at the Crucifixion, he would under Jewish custom have been expected to charge of Jesus body. Nor would Jesus have entrusted his mother to the care of John the Apostle if her husband had been alive, in Mark 6,3, they call Jesus Marys son instead of naming his father
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Medieval art
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The medieval art of the Western world covers a vast scope of time and place, over 1000 years of art in Europe, and at times the Middle East and North Africa. It includes major art movements and periods, national and regional art, genres, revivals, the crafts. Art historians attempt to classify medieval art into major periods and styles, in addition each region, mostly during the period in the process of becoming nations or cultures, had its own distinct artistic style, such as Anglo-Saxon art or Norse art. Medieval art in Europe grew out of the heritage of the Roman Empire. These sources were mixed with the vigorous barbarian artistic culture of Northern Europe to produce an artistic legacy. Indeed, the history of art can be seen as the history of the interplay between the elements of classical, early Christian and barbarian art. The period ended with the self-perceived Renaissance recovery of the skills and values of art. Since a revival of interest and understanding in the 19th century it has seen as a period of enormous achievement that underlies the development of later Western art. Many regions did not regain their population levels until the 17th century. The population of Europe is estimated to have reached a low point of about 18 million in 650, doubling by 1000, in 1450 it was still only 50 million. To these figures, Northern Europe, especially Britain, contributed a lower proportion than today, and Southern Europe, including France, the increase in prosperity, for those who survived, was much less affected by the Black Death. Until about the 11th century most of Europe was short of labour, with large amounts of unused land. The medieval period saw the falling away of the invasions and incursions from outside the area that characterized the first millennium. The impression may be left by the works that almost all medieval art was religious. Most churches have been rebuilt, often times, but medieval palaces and large houses have been lost at a far greater rate. The situation is similar in most of Europe, though the 14th century Palais des Papes in Avignon survives largely intact. Paper became available in the last centuries of the period, but was extremely expensive by todays standards. Art in the Middle Ages is a subject and art historians traditionally divide it in several large-scale phases, styles or periods
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Gothic architecture
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Gothic architecture is a style of architecture that flourished in Europe during the high and late medieval period. It evolved from Romanesque architecture and was succeeded by Renaissance architecture and its characteristics include the pointed arch, the ribbed vault and the flying buttress. Gothic architecture is most familiar as the architecture of many of the cathedrals, abbeys. It is also the architecture of many castles, palaces, town halls, guild halls, universities and to a less prominent extent, private dwellings, for this reason a study of Gothic architecture is largely a study of cathedrals and churches. A series of Gothic revivals began in mid-18th-century England, spread through 19th-century Europe and continued, largely for ecclesiastical and university structures, the term Gothic architecture originated as a pejorative description. Hence, François Rabelais, also of the 16th century, imagines an inscription over the door of his utopian Abbey of Thélème, Here enter no hypocrites, slipping in a slighting reference to Gotz and Ostrogotz. Authorities such as Christopher Wren lent their aid in deprecating the old medieval style, the Company disapproved of several of these new manners, which are defective and which belong for the most part to the Gothic. Gothic architecture is the architecture of the medieval period, characterised by use of the pointed arch. As an architectural style, Gothic developed primarily in ecclesiastical architecture, the greatest number of surviving Gothic buildings are churches. The Gothic style is most particularly associated with the cathedrals of Northern France. At the end of the 12th century, Europe was divided into a multitude of city states, norway came under the influence of England, while the other Scandinavian countries and Poland were influenced by trading contacts with the Hanseatic League. Angevin kings brought the Gothic tradition from France to Southern Italy, throughout Europe at this time there was a rapid growth in trade and an associated growth in towns. Germany and the Lowlands had large flourishing towns that grew in comparative peace, in trade and competition with other, or united for mutual weal. Civic building was of importance to these towns as a sign of wealth. England and France remained largely feudal and produced grand domestic architecture for their kings, dukes and bishops, the Catholic Church prevailed across Europe at this time, influencing not only faith but also wealth and power. Bishops were appointed by the lords and they often ruled as virtual princes over large estates. The early Medieval periods had seen a growth in monasticism, with several different orders being prevalent. Foremost were the Benedictines whose great abbey churches vastly outnumbered any others in France, a part of their influence was that towns developed around them and they became centers of culture, learning and commerce
17.
Art Nouveau
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Art Nouveau is an international style of art, architecture and applied art, especially the decorative arts, that was most popular between 1890 and 1910. A reaction to the art of the 19th century, it was inspired by natural forms and structures, particularly the curved lines of plants. English uses the French name Art Nouveau, according to the philosophy of the style, art should be a way of life. For many well-off Europeans, it was possible to live in an art nouveau-inspired house with art nouveau furniture, silverware, fabrics, ceramics including tableware, jewellery, cigarette cases, artists desired to combine the fine arts and applied arts, even for utilitarian objects. By 1910, Art Nouveau was already out of style and it was replaced as the dominant European architectural and decorative style first by Art Deco and then by Modernism. Art Nouveau took its name from the Maison de lArt Nouveau, in France, Art Nouveau was also sometimes called by the British term Modern Style due to its roots in the Arts and Crafts Movement, Style moderne, or Style 1900. It was also sometimes called Style Jules Verne, Le Style Métro, Art Belle Époque, in Belgium, where the architectural movement began, it was sometimes termed Style nouille or Style coup de fouet. In Britain, it was known as the Modern Style, or, because of the arts and crafts movement led by Charles Rennie Mackintosh in Glasgow, as the Glasgow style. In Italy, because of the popularity in Italy of designs from Londons Liberty & Co department store, in the United States, due to its association with Louis Comfort Tiffany, it was often called the Tiffany style. In Germany and Scandinavia, a style emerged at about the same time, it was called Jugendstil. In Catalonia the related style was known as Modernisme, in Spain as Modernismo, Arte joven, in Russia, it was called Modern, and Jugendstil, and Nieuwe Kunst in the Netherlands. Some names refer specifically to the forms that were popular with the Art Nouveau artists, Stile Floreal in France, Paling Stijl in the Netherlands. The new art movement had its roots in Britain, in the designs of William Morris. Early prototypes of the include the Red House of Morris. In France, the style combined several different tendencies, in architecture, it was influenced by the architectural theorist and historian Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, a declared enemy of the historical Beaux-Arts architectural style. For each function its material, for each material its form and this book influenced a generation of architects, including Louis Sullivan, Victor Horta, Hector Guimard, and Antoni Gaudí. The French painters Maurice Denis, Pierre Bonnard and Édouard Vuillard played an important part in integrating fine arts painting with decoration, I believe that before everything a painting must decorate, Denis wrote in 1891. The choice of subjects or scenes is nothing and it is by the value of tones, the colored surface and the harmony of lines that I can reach the spirit and wake up the emotions
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Josep Llimona i Bruguera
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Josep Llimona i Bruguera, was a Catalan sculptor. His first works were academic, but after a stay in Paris, influenced by Auguste Rodin and he was very prolific, and exhibited in Catalonia, Madrid, Paris, Brussels and Buenos Aires. Some of his work is familiar to Barcelona residents and visitors alke. He studied at the Llotja school and in the studio of the brothers Agapit and he was also a disciple of Rossend Nobas, with whom he worked for two years, and the painter Martí i Alsina, in the school of fine arts in Barcelona. This work earned Llimona the renewal of his grant for a further month, the work was shown at the Exposición Universal de Barcelona, where it won a gold medal, the highest award given by the international jury for sculpture. The original became the property of the City Council, in return for the modest amount of the grant and he also worked in the applied arts. Also, as a draughtsman, Llimona produced a number of excellent life studies. He was one of the founders, along with his brother Joan Llimona i Bruguera,1888 Frieze for the Arc de Triomf in Barcelona. 1888 Equestrian statue of Ramon Berenguer III, Count of Barcelona 1888 Eight reliefs for the monument to Christopher Columbus, museum of the Abbey of Montserrat. 1897 Saint Nicholas and the fishermen, 1903-1910 Monument to Dr. Robert in Barcelona. Museu Nacional dArt de Catalunya, Barcelona, in collaboration with Antoni Gaudí for the Abbey of Montserrat. Grand stairs of the Barcelona City Hall,1916 Monument to José María Usandizaga. 1929 Sculptural group of the Monument to the heroes of 1808, Monument a José María Usandizaga Verge del Rosari a Montserrat Adapted from the Catalan Wikipedia La Gran Enciclopèdia en català Volum XII, Barcelona, Edicions 62,2004. ISBN 84-297-5440-7 Josefina Alix Trueba Escultura Española 1900/1936 Madrid, Ediciones El Viso,1985
19.
Spanish Civil War
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Ultimately, the Nationalists won, and Franco then ruled Spain for the next 36 years, from April 1939 until his death in November 1975. Sanjurjo was killed in an accident while attempting to return from exile in Portugal. The coup was supported by units in the Spanish protectorate in Morocco, Pamplona, Burgos, Zaragoza, Valladolid, Cádiz, Córdoba. However, rebelling units in some important cities—such as Madrid, Barcelona, Valencia, Bilbao, and Málaga—did not gain control, Spain was thus left militarily and politically divided. The Nationalists and the Republican government fought for control of the country, the Nationalist forces received munitions and soldiers from Nazi Germany and Fascist Italy, while the Republican side received support from the Communist Soviet Union and leftist populist Mexico. Other countries, such as the United Kingdom and France, operated a policy of non-intervention. The Nationalists advanced from their strongholds in the south and west and they also besieged Madrid and the area to its south and west for much of the war. Those associated with the losing Republicans were persecuted by the victorious Nationalists, with the establishment of a dictatorship led by General Franco in the aftermath of the war, all right-wing parties were fused into the structure of the Franco regime. The war became notable for the passion and political division it inspired, organized purges occurred in territory captured by Francos forces to consolidate the future regime. A significant number of killings took place in areas controlled by the Republicans, the extent to which Republican authorities took part in killings in Republican territory varied. The 19th century was a turbulent time for Spain and those in favour of reforming Spains government vied for political power with conservatives, who tried to prevent reforms from taking place. Some liberals, in a tradition that had started with the Spanish Constitution of 1812, sought to limit the power of the monarchy of Spain, the reforms of 1812 did not last after King Ferdinand VII dissolved the Constitution and ended the Trienio Liberal government. Twelve successful coups were carried out between 1814 and 1874, until the 1850s, the economy of Spain was primarily based on agriculture. There was little development of an industrial or commercial class. The land-based oligarchy remained powerful, a number of people held large estates called latifundia as well as all the important government positions. In 1868 popular uprisings led to the overthrow of Queen Isabella II of the House of Bourbon, two distinct factors led to the uprisings, a series of urban riots and a liberal movement within the middle classes and the military concerned with the ultra-conservatism of the monarchy. In 1873 Isabellas replacement, King Amadeo I of the House of Savoy, abdicated owing to increasing pressure. After the restoration of the Bourbons in December 1874, Carlists and Anarchists emerged in opposition to the monarchy, alejandro Lerroux, Spanish politician and leader of the Radical Republican Party, helped bring republicanism to the fore in Catalonia, where poverty was particularly acute
20.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
21.
Landmark
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A landmark is a recognizable natural or artificial feature used for navigation, a feature that stands out from its near environment and is often visible from long distances. In modern use, the term can also be applied to structures or features. In old English the word landmearc was used to describe a set up to mark the boundaries of a kingdom, estate. 1560, this understanding of landmark was replaced by a general one. A landmark became an object in a landscape. A landmark literally meant a geographic feature used by explorers and others to find their way back or through an area. For example, the Table Mountain near Cape Town, South Africa is used as the landmark to sailors to navigate around southern tip of Africa during the Age of Exploration. Artificial structures are sometimes built to assist sailors in naval navigation. The Lighthouse of Alexandria and Colossus of Rhodes are ancient structures built to lead ships to the port, in modern usage, a landmark includes anything that is easily recognizable, such as a monument, building, or other structure. In American English it is the term used to designate places that might be of interest to tourists due to notable physical features or historical significance. Landmarks in the British English sense are often used for casual navigation and this is done in American English as well. In urban studies as well as in geography, a landmark is furthermore defined as a point of reference that helps orienting in a familiar or unfamiliar environment. Landmarks are often used in verbal route instructions and as such an object of study by linguists as well as in fields of study. Landmarks are usually classified as either natural landmarks or man-made landmarks, a variant is a seamark or daymark, a structure usually built intentionally to aid sailors navigating featureless coasts. Natural landmarks can be characteristic features, such as mountains or plateaus, examples of natural landmarks are Table Mountain in South Africa, Mount Ararat in Turkey, Uluru in Australia, Mount Fuji in Japan and Grand Canyon in the United States. Trees might also serve as landmarks, such as jubilee oaks or conifers. Some landmark trees may be nicknamed, examples being Queens Oak, church spires and mosques minarets are often very tall and visible from many miles around, thus often serve as built landmarks. Also town hall towers and belfries often have a landmark character, cultural heritage management National landmark National symbol Media related to Landmarks at Wikimedia Commons
22.
La Barceloneta, Barcelona
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La Barceloneta is a neighborhood in the Ciutat Vella district of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. The neighborhood was constructed during the 18th century for the residents of the Ribera neighborhood who had been displaced by the construction of the Ciutadella of Barcelona. The neighborhood is roughly triangular, bordered by the Mediterranean Sea, the Moll dEspanya of Port Vell, and this neighborhood even has its own flag. The neighborhood is serviced by its own stop on the Barcelona Metro and this is a good starting point for whatever itinerary there may be to adventure through La Barceloneta. The yellow line, L4, which is the line that stops at La Barceloneta, is the most popular for pickpocketing. The neighborhood can also be discovered by taking Las Gorondrinas, which leave from the front port of the Columbus monument and this way the marine strip can be discovered, but the real charm of this neighborhood is by getting lost in the side streets or alleyways. Torre Sant Sebastià is the terminus of the Port Vell Aerial Tramway, opened in 1931, La Barceloneta is known for its sandy beach and its many restaurants and nightclubs along the boardwalk. Over the past several years the quality of the sand on the beach has become a source of continued controversy, in February 2008, the World Health Organisation began an inquiry designed to ascertain whether the sand meets WHO beach health and safety guidelines. With its modernity, La Barceloneta continues to inhabit the scent of salt, for many, this is considered a luxury. La Barceloneta also attracts many cruise ships to dock, in the center of the neighborhood, there is a small museum, called Casa de la Barceloneta, which is housed in a preserved building dating back to 1761. Admission to the museum serves as an insight into the evolution of the neighborhood, the house has a stone façade with letters and number engraved that are inscriptions of the plots used in construction. La Barceloneta was practically an uninhabited zone until the mid 18th century, fishermen were the first to frequent this part of Barcelona even though the sea conditions were very precarious. In 1754, construction of the first houses began, and the neighborhood began to become filled with residents who took part in activities of the port, the neighborhood of La Barceloneta was designed by an engineer named Juan Martín Cermeño. The famous markets located in La Barceloneta were designed by the famous Catalan architect Antoni Rovira i Trias in 1873. He had a plan for the future of Barcelona architecture which won the 1859 municipal contest by city councils decree. In the present day, in the building of Palau de Mar on the Passeig de Joan de Borbó and this museum contains a permanent exhibit about the history of Catalonia up until its industrialization, the era of dictatorship, or the present day democracy. Additionally, the terrace of their cafeteria has an excellent view of the neighborhood and this neighborhood is far from lacking ancient history with its churches, like the Sant Miquel del Port located in the Barceloneta plaza. This church is located near the campus of Pompeu Fabra University
23.
Somorrostro
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Somorrostro Beach is one of the beaches in Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It is located between Hospital del Mar and Marina Street, in the far east area of the Barceloneta neighborhood, in the Ciutat Vella district. During the nineteenth century and part of the twentieth, the beach, famous dancer Carmen Amaya was born there, and Los Tarantos, a major film about flamenco starring Amaya, was filmed there in 1963. It wasnt until 1966 with a visit of Spanish dictator Francisco Franco that the slum completely disappeared, the Somorrostro name was forgotten and the beach became one of the most popular in the city. It wasnt until 2010 that Somorrostro beach got its name back
24.
Ancient synagogue (Barcelona)
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The Ancient Synagogue of Barcelona is believed to be an ancient synagogue located in the centre of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain. It has been described as one of the oldest synagogues in Europe, after many centuries of use for other purposes, the building re-opened as a synagogue and museum in 2002. No congregation prays regularly at the Sinagoga Major, but it is used for festive occasions, archaeological investigations show that the original structure of the building was built in the third or fourth century, whether this structure was the synagogue cannot be said with certainty. The building was expanded during the 13th century. Medieval Barcelona is known to have had several synagogues, and the synagogue was certainly in the immediate area. King James I visited the synagogue in 1263 at the conclusion of the Barcelona Disputation, shlomo ben Aderet served as the rabbi of the Sinagoga Major for 50 years. The Jews of Barcelona were massacred in 1391, the building was used for many purposes and its original use was forgotten. Over the centuries, additional stories were added to the building, in 1987, Jaume Riera y Sans began researching the location of the Sinagoga Major. His research was based on a reconstruction of the route followed by a tax collector that ended at the Sinagoga Major. Rieras work led Miguel Iaffa to examine the exterior of the building, Iaffa noted that the structure had been built in compliance with religious requirements that the building should face Jerusalem and that it should have two windows. In fact, the orientation of the building broke with the northwest/southeast alignment of the streets in its neighborhood. Iaffa purchased the building in 1995 when its owner put it up for sale, the Call Association of Barcelona, led by Iaffa, undertook the recovery and restoration of the synagogue. The Sinagoga Major was opened to the public in 2002, in 2003, two Canadians became the first couple to be married at the Sinagoga Major in more than 600 years. A New York attorney donated a 500-year-old sefer Torah to the synagogue in 2006, in January 2009, a right-wing extremist affiliated with the Republican Social Movement attacked the Sinagoga Major. The attacker was detained by police, oldest synagogues in the world Lazar, Marilyn. Barcelona home to one of Europes oldest shuls
25.
Arc de Triomf
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The Arc de Triomf or Arco de Triunfo in spanish, is a triumphal arch in the city of Barcelona in Catalonia, Spain. It was built, by architect Josep Vilaseca i Casanovas, as the access gate for the 1888 Barcelona World Fair. The arch crosses over the central promenade of the Passeig de Lluís Companys. It is located at the end of the promenade, facing the Passeig de Sant Joan. The arch is built in brickwork in the Neo-Mudéjar style. The front frieze contains the stone sculpture Barcelona rep les nacions by Josep Reynés, the opposite frieze contains a stone carving entitled Recompensa, a work from Josep Llimonas earliest period, representing the granting of awards to the participants in the World Exposition. The friezes along the sides of the arch include allegories of agriculture and industry by Antoni Vilanova and of trade, Arc de Triomf metro station Arc de Triomf railway station Brief description and history of Barcelonas Arc de Triomf on the official Barcelona Tourism site. The Arc de Triomf on Google Maps
26.
Avinguda Diagonal
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Avinguda Diagonal is the name of one of Barcelonas broadest and most important avenues. It cuts the city in two, diagonally from west to east, hence the name, both would meet at Plaça de les Glòries Catalanes, which Cerdà envisioned as the new city centre. Avinguda Diagonal remains to this day a much-transited avenue and many companies and hotels use it as a privileged location, the avenue starts in the Les Corts district on the western edge of the city and runs to the Sant Martí district on the eastern edge. To its west, it connects with the Lleida-Madrid highway and Ronda de Dalt in the municipality of Esplugues de Llobregat. To its east, it meets the Ronda del Litoral on the border with the municipality of Sant Adrià de Besòs and it is consistently 50 metres wide and about 11 kilometres long. The different regimes that held power in Catalonia and Spain during the 20th century sought to change the street names. It has been known under the names, Gran Via Diagonal – original name which Ildefons Cerdà. Avinguda de la Nacionalitat Catalana –1922, during Miguel Primo de Riveras dictatorship, named after King Alfonso XIII. Avinguda del Catorze dAbril –1931, Gran Vía Diagonal –1939, provisional name imposed the day after the Fascist capture of Barcelona as an attempt to eliminate references to the Republic. Avenida del Generalísimo Francisco Franco –1939, during the authoritarian regime of Francisco Franco. Avinguda Diagonal – Its current name, adopted following the restoration of democracy in 1979, however, it should be noted that the name Diagonal has always prevailed in popular usage. Ildefons Cerdàs so-called Pla Cerdà was not totally successful in transforming Barcelonas urban reality, the city council of Barcelona had previously requested the approval of Antoni Rovira i Triass alternative project instead, which had been rejected. Francesc Cambó, leader of Lliga Regionalista proposed the construction of a new palace for the then monarch Alfonso XIII in 1919, Avinguda Diagonal suffered several attacks by the Basque separatist organisation ETA in 2000. On 2 November, a car bomb exploded injuring a security officer, a few days later, on 21 November, a car used by the killers of Enerst Lluch exploded in the middle of the avenue. On 20 December a municipal officer was shot dead, four venues in the area hosted competitions for the 1992 Summer Olympics. During 2010, Diagonal reform proposals were on the headlines, as the Barcelona city council had plans to make the cross the whole avenue. A popular consultation was scheduled for May 2010 between two reform proposals, the so-called rambla or boulevard and it resulted in a big political failure for the city mayor, Jordi Hereu. There was a participation of 12% of potential voters
27.
Barcelona Cathedral
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The cathedral was constructed from the 13th to 15th centuries, with the principal work done in the 14th century. The cloister, which encloses the Well of the Geese was completed in 1448, in the late 19th century, the neo-Gothic façade was constructed over the nondescript exterior that was common to Catalan churches. The roof is notable for its gargoyles, featuring a range of animals. It is a pseudobasilica, vaulted over five aisles, the two divided into chapels. The east end is a chevet of nine radiating chapels connected by an ambulatory, the high altar is raised, allowing a clear view into the crypt. The cathedral is dedicated to Eulalia of Barcelona, co-patron saint of Barcelona, one story says that she was exposed naked in the public square and a miraculous snowfall in mid-spring covered her nudity. The enraged Romans put her into a barrel with knives stuck into it, the body of Saint Eulalia is entombed in the cathedrals crypt. The choir stalls retain the coats-of-arms of the knights of the Order of the Golden Fleece, in his first trip into Spain, Charles, the future Holy Roman Emperor, selected Barcelona as the site of a chapter of his Order. In 1518 the Orders herald, Thomas Isaac, and its treasurer, juan de Borgonya executed the painted decoration of the sanctuary. The church was named after Barcelonas patron saint Eulalia, its official name - Catedral de la Santa Creu i Santa Eulalia - is Catalan for Cathedral of the Holy Cross, the commonly used name La Seu refers to the status of the church as the seat of the diocese. The side Chapel of the Holy Sacrament and of the Holy Christ of Lepanto contains a cross said to date from the time of the Battle of Lepanto. The cathedral has a secluded Gothic cloister where 13 white geese are kept, a program of cleaning and restoration of the cathedral was carried out from 1968-72. Reportedly, this Visigothic chapel was dedicated to Saint James, and was the church of the Viscounts of Barcelona. However, in a document from the Second Council of Barcelona in 599 and this church was severely damaged by al-Mansur during his attack on Barcelona in 985. In 1046, Count Ramon Berenguer I and his wife Almodis, together with Bishop Guislabert, began construction of a Romanesque cathedral at the site, the cathedral was constructed over the crypt of the former church. It has been reported that a Viscount of Barcelona, Mir Geribert, sold the site to Bishop Guislebert in 1058, however this date does not coincide with the reported start of construction. The present Gothic cathedral was begun on the foundations of the churches on 1 May 1298, James II the Just was King of Aragon at the time. The church was built from the east end towards the west end, the cloister was completed in 1448, making the total duration of construction 150 years
28.
Barcelona Pavilion
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The Barcelona Pavilion, designed by Ludwig Mies van der Rohe, was the German Pavilion for the 1929 International Exposition in Barcelona, Spain. This building was used for the opening of the German section of the exhibition. It is an important building in the history of architecture, known for its simple form and its spectacular use of extravagant materials, such as marble, red onyx. The same features of minimalism and spectacular can be applied to the prestigious furniture specifically designed for the building, among which the iconic Barcelona chair and it has inspired many important modernist buildings, including Michael Mansers Capel Manor House in Kent. Mies was offered the commission of building in 1928 after his successful administration of the 1927 Werkbund exhibition in Stuttgart. However, Mies had severe time constraints—he had to design the Barcelona Pavilion in less than a year—and was also dealing with economic conditions. In the years following World War I, Germany started to turn around, the economy started to recover after the 1924 Dawes Plan. The Commissioner, Georg von Schnitzler said it should give voice to the spirit of a new era and this concept was carried out with the realization of the Free plan and the Floating roof. Miess response to the proposal by von Schnitzler was radical, the pavilion was to be bare, with no exhibits, leaving only the structure accompanying a single sculpture and specially-designed furniture. This lack of accommodation enabled Mies to treat the Pavilion as a continuous space, the design was predicated on an absolute distinction between structure and enclosure—a regular grid of cruciform steel columns interspersed by freely spaced planes. However, the structure was more of a style, some of these planes also acted as supports. The floor plan is very simple, the entire building rests on a plinth of travertine. A southern U-shaped enclosure, also of travertine, helps form a service annex, the floor slabs of the pavilion project out and over the pool—once again connecting inside and out. Another U-shaped wall on the side of the site also forms a smaller water basin. This is where the statue by Georg Kolbe sits, the roof plates, relatively small, are supported by the chrome-clad, cruciform columns. This gives the impression of a hovering roof, robin Evans said that the reflective columns appear to be struggling to hold the floating roof plane down, not to be bearing its weight. Mies wanted this building to become an ideal zone of tranquillity for the weary visitor, since the pavilion lacked a real exhibition space, the building itself was to become the exhibit. The pavilion was designed to block any passage through the site, rather, visitors would enter by going up a few stairs, and due to the slightly sloped site, would leave at ground level in the direction of the Poble Espanyol
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Barcelona Royal Shipyard
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The Barcelona Royal Shipyard is a shipyard and former military building of Gothic architecture placed at the Port Vell area of the Port of Barcelona. Nowadays it houses the Barcelona Maritime Museum, Construction started during the 13th century under the rule of Peter III of Aragon. During excavations in 2012 it was discovered that in the late 16th century a new building was constructed on top of the old medieval dockyard and this excavations also uncovered a Roman graveyard. The shipyards restoration was finished in early 2013, the Museum was reopened in 2014. 13th century, This period of construction started with the War of the Sicilian Vespers, in 1285, Peter III of Aragon ordered the construction of the shipyard, a rectangular fortification with no roof consisting of fortified walls and four towers, of which two still exist. The shipyard opened to the east, 14th century, This expansion comprises the period from 1328 to 1390. The city walls where expanded and included the shipyard inside the fortified city, a roof was added to prevent the degradation of the galleys stored during winter. 15th century, Construction started in 1390 and lasted until 1415, a new area, “Porxo Nou”, was added to the building. This part of the shipyard is also known as “Pere IV”, the area was meant to be a royal palace, but the idea was finally discarded. Excavation shows that only the foundations for the palace were built, 16th century, The medieval building was replaced by a new dockyard a few meters inland. The construction of the new dockyards and the inland was caused by the construction of the citys port during the 15th century. The new port had changed the currents and moved the shore inland, 17th century, In 1612, the Catalan government decided to add three naves to the building. Following the Catalan Revolt the Spanish government further amplified the shipyard both as an arsenal and a barracks, 18th century, In 1725, Two more barracks were constructed, one for cavalry and one for infantry. These barracks where torn down in 1935, the last major update came between 1742 and 1749, when the roofs of the two central naves were converted into a single nave, known as “Nau Central”. From the beginning the aim of the shipyard was to build the galleys for the Aragonese Armada, the shipyard was also a naval arsenal, which was used to store galleys and all the rigging and apparatus needed. The arsenal also produced a great deal of material, both sales and cordages for the ships and arms for the men, naval arsenals of the time, normally, had to produce and store food also. After the 1381 renovation, the building had eight naves,8. 4m high and 8. 4m wide, the naves were, approximately, 60m long, consisting of 17 columns 77 cm wide and 6 m high. Thanks to a record of the time we know that four new storage areas were built
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Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy
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The Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy is a Baroque-style basilica in Barcelona, Catalonia. It was built between 1765 and 1775, being the work of Catalan architect Josep Mas i Dordal, the dome of the church is crowned with the iconic statue of Our Lady that is visible from the seaside promenade near the drassanes. This church was the second in Barcelona to receive the title of minor basilica, the title was granted in 1918 by Pope Benedict XV, commemorating the seven hundredth anniversary of the apparition of the Virgin to St. Peter Nolasco, founder of the Order of Mercy. Www. basilicadelamerce. com Official web of Basilica of Our Lady of Mercy
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Basilica of Saint Joseph Oriol
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The Basilica of Saint Joseph Oriol is a basilica in Barcelona, Catalonia. Construction of the began in 1915, under the architect Enric Sagnier. The church was opened in 1926 although the works of the clock tower. On 15 May 1936 it received the title of minor basilica granted by Pope Pius XI and it was the fifth church of Barcelona to receive this title. The church was burned in July 1936, and was rebuilt after the end of the Spanish Civil War, the reconstruction of the temple was slow, taking about 12 years
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Basilica of the Immaculate Conception (Barcelona)
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The Basilica of the Immaculate Conception and Assumption of Our Lady is a basilica in Barcelona, Catalonia. The church originated as the Jonqueres Monastery, that was moved stone by stone when the land of the monastery was to be demolished, in 1879, a bell tower was added from the church of San Miguel which was also going to be demolished. On 20 February 2009, Pope Benedict XVI granted the title of minor basilica to the church, ramon Corts i Blay is the current Rector of the Basilica
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Bellesguard
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Bellesguard, also known as Casa Figueres, is a modernist manor house designed by Catalan architect Antoni Gaudí, which was constructed between 1900 and 1909. It is located at the Sarrià-Sant Gervasi district of Barcelona in Catalonia, the ground on which Bellesguard stands on had been the site of a country residence belonging to Martin, king of Aragon and count of Barcelona. Gaudí was assisted by Joan Rubio whilst Domènec Sugrañes i Gras created the mosaics that adorn the house. Gaudí drew inspiration for Casa Figueras from the castle that once stood on the same site. When King Aragon died without an heir in 1410, his widow, Margaret of Prades, following her death, the castle fell into decline and was passed from hand to hand over centuries until Jaume Figueres purchased the estate in 1900. When Jaume Figueres and his wife María Sagues Molíns commissioned Gaudí for the project in 1900, all that remained of the structure were a few walls. As always, Gaudí sought to blend the construction with its natural surroundings, Gaudí designed the home in a period where he himself was still developing his unique style. Gaudí was given free rein to design and construct what was intended as a home for the Jaume family. The house changed hands for years until the Guilera family purchased the home in 1944 and has continued to own it for over 70 years. The building continued to serve medical purposes following Lluis’ death in 1969 when his son, Lluís Guilera Soler, several Barcelona citizens were born in Casa Figueres until 1974 when the site of the hospital relocated to a more accessible area better suited to medical needs. From that point on, the building has served the purpose that Gaudí always intended—a private home. For the past 30 years, the Guilera family has left the gates open permitting guests to stroll the gardens, over the years, they received countless requests from visitors to explore inside the home and enjoy Gaudí’s more modernist interior detailing. Both due to the demand from visitors as well as the family’s realization that restoration was necessary. The family officially began inviting tours in September 2013, offering access to the interior accompanied by explanations of the history, Casa Figueres is constructed mainly of stone and brick. The general structure measures a square base of 15 ×15 m and is 19.5 m high, the exterior façade is more neogothic, as Gaudí intended to pay tribute to the original medieval castle that once stood at the site. As is such, Gaudí used more straight lines, seldom seen in his usual work, the iconic tower, Torre Bellesguard, juts out from a corner of a base, adding to the vertical alignment of the structure created by the straight, vertical lines in his design. Torre Bellesguard is perhaps what the building is most recognized for, displaying Gaudí’s typical cross of four arms decorated with red and yellow mosaics to mimic the Catalan flag. At the base of the one can also see what appears to be a crown wrapped around the circumference
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Casa Bonaventura Ferrer
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Casa Bonaventura Ferrer is a building located at number 113 of Paseo de Gracia in Barcelona, Spain, and rear facade at number 6 in the Riera de Sant Miquel. It is a project of the architect Pere Falqués i Urpí following a Modernisme or Art Nouveau style, since 1979 it has been listed as an historical and artistic heritage of Barcelona. The building is best known in the city as El Palauet for its extraordinary beauty, in 2010, the building was remodeled and converted into a luxury boutique hotel under the name of El Palauet. On the facade, three vertical bodies highlights the platform with sculpture carved in stone and a big hole in their basement, the wood door and iron balconies are the croan of the baroque inspired building. It is worth highlighting the work carried out by the artists. The ceilings are decorated with spectacular polychrome floral composition decorations in high relief plaster in Modernisme or Art Nouveau style, handcrafted wooden doors and sliding doors are artistically carved with decorative cups designs. List of Modernisme buildings in Barcelona Permanyer, Lluís, un passeig per la Barcelona Modernista. Interior building pictures El Palauet hotel official web page
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Casa Calvet
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Casa Calvet is a building, designed by Antoni Gaudí for a textile manufacturer which served as both a commercial property and a residence. It is located at Carrer de Casp 48, Eixample district of Barcelona and its symmetry, balance and orderly rhythm are unusual for Gaudís works. However, the curves and double gable at the top, the oriel at the entrance— almost baroque in its drama. Bulging balconies alternate with smaller, shallower balconies, mushrooms above the oriel at the center allude to the owners favorite hobby. Columns flanking the entrance are in the form of stacked bobbins— an allusion to the business of textile manufacture. Three sculpted heads at the top also allude to the owner, One is Sant Pere Màrtir Calvet i Carbonell, between 1899 and 1906, the Arts Building Annual Award awarded modernist pieces, like the Casa Calvet, the Casa Lleó Morera and the Casa Trinxet. List of Modernisme buildings in Barcelona
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