Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
Decline & Fall
The region, which had retained some autonomy in the running of its own affairs, was dealt
a crushing blow when it supported the wrong side in the War of the Spanish Succession
(1702-14). Barcelona, under the auspices of British-backed archduke Charles of Austria,
fell after a stubborn siege on 11 September 1714 (now celebrated as National Catalan Day)
to the forces of Bourbon king Philip V, who established a unitary Castilian state. Barcelona
now faced a long backlash as the new king banned the writing and teaching of Catalan,
swept away the remnants of local legal systems and tore down a whole district of medieval
Barcelona in order to construct an immense fort (on the site of the present-day Parc de la
Ciutadella), whose sole purpose was to watch over Barcelona's troublemakers.
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