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Barcelona City Break

Barcelona Weekend Break: History/ Recommended Reading

Potted history:

Barcelona started life as a Carthaginian settlement in 230BC, but it wasn't long before the city was under Roman control as part of the province of Hispania . Things got off to a bumpy start, and by the end of the first millennia AD history had seen Barcinona successively in the hands of the Visigoths, the Moors and the Franks.

y now the Spanish decided that it was their turn to have a go, and the Counts of Barcelona wrestled power from Charlemagne to declare independence. Today's Catalan drives for autonomy can be traced to this period. Independence was relatively short lived and Barcelona was absorbed into the Christian Aragon kingdom in 1136. By way of compensation King Alfonso I poured money into the thriving port and Barcelona enjoyed peaceful prosperity until the mid fifteenth century when House of Aragon united itself with the House of Castile (effectively putting the brakes ­on the city's economic development).

Spanish history throughout the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries is dominated by an ongoing war with France . Unfortunately Barcelona backed the wrong horse and by allying themselves with France they not only lost the city, but nearly destroyed it in the process. The turn of the ­eighteenth century saw yet more misery for the beleaguered city as they once again turned against the crown (this time the Bourbon King Philip V)and lost their bid for freedom.

Denied regional freedom the city turned to trade and expanded its commerce to the Americas and across Europe . With industrialization the city began to boom and with it a radical working class who weren't happy with the Madrid based monarchy.

Having barely had time to recover from the devastating effects of WWI, General Franco's 1936 revolt sparked the Spanish Civil War and the city became a republican stronghold. Barcelona was one of the last cities to fall to the fascists and as a result suffered heavy bomb damage.

The Civil War left a legacy of distrust of the Spanish government, and while the city was placed under great economic strain regionalism continued to flourish. In 1992 the city was thrown an economic lifeline in the guise of the Olympic Games, which marked the beginning of the city's current renaissance.

About town:

Barcelona is compact enough to be explored on foot, with the exception of a handful of attractions, notably; the Sagrada Família (catch the Metro to Sagrada Família station) and Parc Güell (Lesseps Metro followed by endless steps, or bus no: 24 direct). Bus and Metro services in Barcelona are good and tickets (bought in books of 10 or 50) can be used on both. Barcelona 's cable cars offer several white-knuckle rides if you've got the stomach for it.

Handy numbers:

Central Tourist Office: Plaça de Catalunya (underground offices): Tel: 90 630 12 82
Airport enquiries: Tel: 93 298 38 38
Rail enquiries ( RENFE) Tel: 902 240202
Emergencies (police/ambulance): 113

Take five:

Barcelona by Robert Hughes: amusing and subjective look at the city through the eyes of the renowned art critic.

The Thief's Journal by Jean Genet: autobiographical antics in early 20 th century Barcelona.

Homage to Catalonia by George Orwell: Orwell's time during the Spanish Civil War.

Homage to Barcelona by Clom Toíbín: insightful look at the city undergoing its facelift during the 1980s.

Gaudí Guide by Xavier Güell: essential reading on Catalonia 's architectural giant.

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