Europe -> Southern Europe -> Spain

The town of Barcelona was founded in around 230BC, most probably by the Carthaginians who had settlements in the area. The Carthaginian settlement would most likely have been based around fishing and sea trade.

There was a Carthaginian ruler at the time named Amilcar Barca, and he is thought to have lent his name to the town. The Romans replaced the Carthaginians after defeating them in the Punic Wars in the 1^st century BC, and they referred to the town as ‘Barcino’. It was not for them, however, the most important town in the region as they made Tarraco (modern day Tarragona) the capital of the province they referred to as Hispania Citerior.

The importance of Barcelona grew under Roman rule, mainly due to its growth as a naval base. By the third century AD the Romans had moved their regional capital from Tarragona to Barcelona and the town now became of great importance in the region.

The Romans, as ever, developed the town by constructing roads and villas. They also built town walls to defend against increasing invasions, parts of which can still be seen. From the fourth century though, the writing was really on the wall for the Roman Empire and raids from Frankish and German tribes became increasingly common. In 415AD the Visigoths from Eastern Germany invaded and captured the town, driving the Romans from the region. They named the town ‘Barcinona’, but moved the capital away to Toledo sparking a decline in the town’s fortunes.

300 years later the Moors were expanding their empire northwards and at the beginning of the 8^th century they took Barcelona from the Visigoths. They brought Islam to the city, but generally their reign was short and uneventful. In 801, the Franks were powerful in Europe and sought to expand their realm into Spain. Led by Louis the Pious, they defeated the Visigoths and took Barcelona, as well as much of the region, creating what is known as the ‘Marca Hispanica’(Spanish March), the frontline between the Christians from northern Europe and the Muslims from the south.

Barcelona’s position on the ‘Marca Hispania’ meant it saw a substantial amount of fighting over the subsequent years. In 985 the Moorish General Almanzor led a damaging raid on Barcelona, taking many prisoners.

At the time Barcelona was one of a number of different counties within the Frankish Carolingian Empire. The county was ruled over by the Count of Barcelona, a position appointed by the King of France until Count Wilfred the Hairy successfully set up a process of hereditary rule. His son Count Borrell II gained independence from the Carolingian king, and this is seen by many as the origins of the Catalonia region.

Ramon Berenguer IV became Count of Barcelona in the 11^th century and married Petronila of Aragon, thus inheriting the kingdom of Aragon. From then on he and his successors were rulers of the Kingdom of Aragon as well as being Count of Barcelona, although both realms remained autonomous.

These were good times for Barcelona as trade and ship-building prospered. Many new buildings were constructed, most notably the Cathedral of Barcelona which was begun by Jaime I in the 13^th century. Subsequent centuries, however, saw a number of setbacks for the city. First there was the growth of rival Mediterranean ports such as Genoa, Venice and Mallorca. In the 14^th century was the plague. Then, at the end of the 15^th century, the Crown of Aragon (incorporating the kingdom of Catalonia) was united with the Crown of Castile through the marriage of Fernando II and Isabel. This saw Barcelona’s importance decline as it was no longer the seat of the monarchy. With the discovery of America, focus was shifted away from Barcelona, to the Atlantic coast.

There was increasing discord amongst the Catalan towards their Castilian rulers. This escalated in 1640 when a revolt began in Barcelona and spread across Catalonia. The Catalan people were unhappy with the Spanish wanting their men and money for the war against France. Most rebelled and joined forces instead with Louis XIII of France in the war. The subsequent years saw Barcelona besieged and the economy destroyed. In 1652 Don Juan Jose of Austria led the successful siege on Barcelona that eventually crushed the rebellion.

The problems continued, however, and again came to the fore during the Spanish War of Succession. After Carlos II died without an heir, a battle for the Crown ensued with Catalonia backing Archduke Carlos of Austria against Felipe of Anjou. After 9 years, the war ended with the siege on Barcelona in 1714. Carlos had lost and the victorious Felipe stripped Barcelona of all its privileges, placed it under the full rule of Castile and reduced the city to provincial status. He also banned the Catalan language.

Perhaps galled by the defeat, the people of Barcelona turned their attention to industry once more. In 1778 they were permitted to trade with America and this sparked a huge turnaround for the city. Production in wine, cork, iron, and especially cotton took off and the population grew rapidly as workers flocked to the city.

Progress was slowed after the turn of the century by the Napoleonic Wars and a severe yellow fever epidemic. Things recovered, however, and the 1830s saw the Romantic Movement which sparked a renaissance in Catalan culture and language led by local poets and writers. In 1848 Spain’s first railway was built, linking Barcelona and Mataro.

The economic growth was matched by the physical growth of the city as the city limits expanded. The late 19^th century was the time of Catalonia’s most famous architect, Antoni Gaudi. Much of his work is prominent in the city today, most notably Park Guell and his great unfinished masterpiece La Sagrada Familia. However, social unrest took hold in the early 20^th century. There were tensions between the classes, and a strong anarchist movement. The years were blighted with strikes, riots and even terrorist bombs. 1909 saw a particularly destructive anarchist riot. Still, it was culturally and economically a prosperous time for Barcelona.

The Spanish Civil War devastated the country, not least Barcelona, from 1936 to 1939. Catalonia stood with the Republicans who were eventually defeated by Francisco Franco and his Nationalists. Barcelona itself fell to the Nationalists on 26^th January 1939. Defeat meant Spain fell under the dictatorship of General Franco, who saw to a total suppression of Catalan identity.

The years under Franco were hard for Barcelona. Isolation and lack of freedom hindered economic, social and cultural growth. This was compounded by mass migrations to the city from the poor areas of southern Spain, leading to overcrowding and urban planning difficulties. Things began to improve from the 1960s, however, as the economy opened up and new industries such as tourism began to grow.

Following Franco’s death in 1975 democracy returned to the country and in 1977 Catalonia became an Autonomous region. Since then Barcelona hasn’t looked back. Development has boomed, while industry and the arts have flourished. Barcelona’s weather, architecture, culture and vibrancy began to attract the tourist. The hosting of the 1992 Olympics was a major boost for Barcelona, and subsequent investment and development helped to reshape and modernise the city.

Today’s Barcelona is a thriving and vibrant metropolis and it has an energy that few other cities in the world can match. When looking back over it’s turbulent past, it is easy to label this a golden time for the city of Barcelona.