Ancient power
Classified as a Unesco World Heritage Site, the archaeological complex of Tarraco is one of the most beautiful examples of architecture combining monumentalism and engineering science in the service of power. Capital of the province of Hispania Cittadora, Tarraco was the object of much attention, especially in terms of urban planning. Thanks to the establishment of artificial terraces, the urban layout was adapted to the topography. The Romans also imagined a division of spaces determined by their functions. The three terraces, located high up, were used for religious and political representation, administration and leisure. The importance of Tarraco is reflected in the choice of materials, starting with the superb and richly decorated marble. Most of the materials were imported at the time and it is assumed that many of the artists and craftsmen themselves came from Rome. As a strategic point, the city had to have fortifications worthy of its status. Made up of ashlars arranged on irregular cyclopean blocks juxtaposed without mortar, these walls represent one of the oldest examples of military engineering in the peninsula. Hydraulic engineering was another area in which the Romans excelled, as evidenced by the remains of the system of pipes connecting the city to the impressive Les Ferreres Aqueduct with its double line of arches stretching 217 meters long. A monumentalism that can be found in the leisure architecture of which Tarraco has two magnificent examples: its circus of 325 m long and 115 m wide with its arches in the facade and its impressive access doors; and its Roman amphitheater
of elliptical plan with its vaults and monumental arches... one of the only amphitheaters in all of Hispania! The Romans used architecture as a tool of power and domination, so it is not surprising that they wanted to impose this power everywhere, especially along the main communication routes. TheRoman triumphal arch of Bera, made of ashlar, with its 8 grooved pilasters surmounted by Corinthian capitals, was an obligatory passage for all those taking the Via Augusta linking Rome to Cadiz. In Altafulla, you can also discover the Tower of Scipio, an amazing Roman tomb with a square plan composed of 3 superimposed sections of decreasing size and decorated with high and low reliefs. At the time, it was common to erect these impressive funerary towers along the communication routes. Less monumental but just as sumptuous, the villas bear witness to the Roman art of living, between luxury and voluptuousness. The Roman Villa dels Munts impresses by its rooms paved with polychrome mosaics, its walls painted with frescoes and its astonishing hydraulic system composed of cisterns and thermal baths. The Villa-Mausoleum of Centcelles is a marvelous example of Roman architecture influenced by a nascent Christian art borrowing from the codes of a sumptuous Byzantine art, as shown by the golden tesserae of the mosaics of the mausoleum drawing pagan and Christian scenes on its impressive dome. Not far from Tarraco, an early Christian necropolis was also discovered, highlighting a particular type of burial consisting of a small structure of tiles called tegula arranged in a triangle and covering the deceased. The beginnings of Christian art can also be seen in the remains of the Visigothic basilica, located in the heart of the Roman amphitheater, whose three vessels and horseshoe-shaped apse can still be seen.Medieval Splendors
Much more than simple monasteries, the buildings of the "Cistercian triangle" are authentic fortresses of faith, symbols of the Reconquest of the Christian Kings over the Moors. Surrounded by a defensive wall, the Monestir de Poblet is divided into 3 enclosures that are accessed through gates flanked by towers and equipped with loopholes and machicolations, including the superb Golden Gate and Royal Gate. The fortifications of the3rd
enclosure are the most impressive... judge rather: 608 m long, 11 m high, 2 m wide and 13 towers. It is in the shelter of these masterpieces of military engineering that an architecture mixing the sobriety of the Romanesque and the flamboyance of the Gothic with the spiritual and formal purity of the Cistercian style is displayed. Among the oldest buildings of the monastery, the chapter house is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful witnesses of this mixture of influences. See its 4 octagonal columns supporting 9 palm vaults, a motif very present in Cistercian architecture. With its perfect balance of dimensions and the purity of forms such as those of its cruciform pillars, the church of Santa Maria is a masterpiece of Cistercian sobriety, while its octagonal lantern tower plays with the codes of the Gothic style. In addition to being a true spiritual fortress, the monastery was also a royal palace, as the Palace of King Martin clearly shows, which has all the attributes of the Gothic style, from the ogival windows to the tri-lobed arches.Another masterpiece not to be missed is the Monastery of Santes Creus. There is a sumptuous chapter house with palm arches, a beautiful Gothic cloister with arches and bays with chiseled motifs, a church with a beautiful rose window with delicate 13th century stained glass, and a royal palace with a courtyard richly decorated with carved groups. This astonishing Romanesque-Gothic mixture can also be seen in another key medieval building: the Cathedral of Tarragona
. The great characteristics of religious buildings of the time are found there: Latin cross plan, separation into 3 vessels with an imposing central nave, octagonal lantern tower at the crossing of the transept. Tympanums and bas-reliefs bear the mark of Master Jaume Cascalls, one of the greatest artists of Catalan Gothic. See the finesse, expressiveness and dynamism that emerge from his sculptures. Tortosa also preserves superb medieval witnesses, such as the Episcopal Palace with its large patio, its projecting staircase and its galleries of lancet arches with stylized columns... typical elements of Catalan Gothic that can be found in the beautiful Palau Despuig. The Middle Ages can also be seen in the urban planning of the many villages in the region, with their picturesque maze of narrow streets and vaulted passages lined with stately homes with large gothic windows or more modest houses, serving squares and plazas and often leading to a castle. Montblanc has managed to preserve its incredible 1.5 km long, 6 m high ramparts with 32 square crenellated towers protecting superb buildings, such as thechurch of Sant Miquel with its beautiful coffered ceiling and the Casa Alenya, an authentic Gothic palace with three-lobed windows. Its beautiful multi-story houses clinging to the steep mountain slope and forming a kind of skyline have earned Falset the nickname of the "New York of Priorat". The narrow streets of Miravet lead to the ruins of the Templar castle with its watchtower and many secret passages.Renaissance and Baroque
After an astonishing medieval effervescence, Catalonia lost momentum in the 16th and 17th centuries, which explains why the Renaissance and Baroque had only a limited influence in the region.. this did not prevent the construction of superb buildings, such as the Royal Colleges of Tortosa, created by Charles V in 1564, a sublime Renaissance complex that includes the College of Sant Lluis, with its portal designed as a triumphal arch and its beautiful patio with three levels of harmonious arches, and the College of Sant Jordi i Sant Domenec, with its triumphal arch façade with Doric columns. Prades, known as the "red city" because of its red stone, has a magnificent Renaissance spherical fountain. The Baroque style can be seen in the richly decorated chapels of Tarragona Cathedral and on the façade of the Cathedral of Santa Maria de Tortosa. See how the latter is punctuated by pilasters with capitals with plant motifs, curved columns and flamboyant reliefs. Inside, don't miss the Nostra Senyora de la Cinta Chapel, which is decorated with jasper, marble and paintings.
From Neoclassical to Modernism
In the second half of the 18th century, Charles III set himself a challenge: to build a great port on the Ebro delta. For the occasion, the king decided to build a city all to his glory called Sant Carles, on the very site of a fishing village called Rapita. This was the birth of Sant Carles de la Rapita, where the king undertook the construction of great neoclassical buildings such as the Glorieta and the Iglesia Nova... but the end of his reign also marked the end of this gigantic project, which remained unfinished. The 18th century was also marked by the construction of bourgeois palaces that borrowed their decorative wealth from the abundant rococo, such as the Palau Bofarull in Reus. Already present in the 18th century, the tradition of grand theaters continued in the 19th century, mixing classical lines, such as the Teatre Principal in Valls, and eclectic finery, such as the very neo-baroque Teatre Fortuny in Reus. An eclecticism that can be found in the Samà Park in Cambrils, a surprising architectural ensemble that includes a colonial-style mansion (a tribute to the Sama family, who made their fortune in Cuba) and a park punctuated by grottoes, artificial lakes and other unusual gazebos.
But the 19th century was marked by an industrial prosperity that profoundly changed the face of the cities, like Tarragona. It was at this time that the fortifications were dismantled to allow for the expansion of the city, which was given a new residential area with a geometric plan centered around the Rambla Nova. This expansion plan was designed by Josep Maria Pujol i de Barbera, who also designed a large number of villas along the Rambla Nova, all of which were representative of a trend that was to revolutionize the region: Modernism, the Iberian Art Nouveau. Promoting the idea of a total work of art, Modernism was organic and functional, full of curves and dynamism, mixing Gothic, Moorish or Renaissance motifs with formal innovations, and making extensive use of brick, stone, steel, glass and ceramics. Some of the greatest representatives of Modernism have left their mark in Reus. This is the case of Pere Caselles i Tarrats, to whom we owe the Casa Laguna with its ceramic-covered façade or the Casa Munné with its astonishing corner structure made of iron and glass. Lluís Domènech i Montaner designed the Casa Navas, which looks like an Arab-Venetian palace, with its bow window and finely chiseled friezes and columns, and above all thePere Mata Institute, a symbol of architecture designed to improve patients' living conditions, whose "Pavilion of the Illustrious" with its beautiful mosaics and elegant stained glass windows can be visited.
Modernism also flourished in the seaside resorts of the time, such as Salou, which houses the superb Villa Bonet, designed by Domènec Sugranyes i Gras, disciple of the famous Antoni Gaudí. With its sundial, ceramic fish and neo-Gothic lettering, its facade is an astonishing mix of genres.
After the phylloxera crisis, large producers and small wine growers decided to join forces and imagine agricultural cooperatives combining economic and sustainable constructions and rural engineering to optimize productivity. Proud of this unprecedented initiative, the cooperatives wanted to create places that were functional, but above all, admired by all. To do so, they called upon the architects of Modernism who invented "wine cathedrals", stone and brick buildings with neo-Gothic facades and elaborate gables housing huge naves punctuated by clever sets of vaults and arches, with each opening designed to regulate temperature and light; the spaces were designed to facilitate the work of the farm workers. Among the most beautiful are: the Cooperativa Agrícola de Nulles designed by Cesar Martinell, a disciple of Gaudí, who also designed El Pinell de Brai and the Cooperativa Agrícola Falset-Marça; the Celler-Museu del Vi near Poblet, designed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner; and the Espluga de Francoli designed by Pere Domenech i Roura. Although most of these buildings are clearly neo-Gothic, some of them also bear the mark of a nascent noucentisme, a current linked to Catalan nationalism and which advocates a Mediterranean classical idealism... a fashion that developed strongly at the time of the restoration campaigns of the ancient heritage of Tarragona.Between past and future
As elsewhere in Spain, the Franco dictatorship was a period of artistic and architectural stagnation and projects were rare. Poble Nou del Delta, a small hamlet of low white houses all identical and streets lined with palm trees, was created in 1957 by the Franco government to house the "settlers" in charge of developing rice cultivation in the Terres de l'Ebre. The village was originally called Villafranco del Delta. The end of the 1950s was also marked by the appearance of a rationalist modernism with clear, straight lines and geometric rigor. The Civil Government building in Tarragona, designed by Alejandro de la Sota, is a perfect example. The year 1968 marked the beginning of the Barri Gaudí in Reus. This pharaonic project was the first large-scale urban design experiment by the famous architect Ricardo Bofill. The objective was to reduce the demographic pressure on the city center and to create quality and economical housing. The project consists of 500 residential units concentrated in 8-story towers, each floor with 12 apartments and organized around open-air patios or vestibules. The towers are interconnected by pedestrian terraces and elevated streets. Made of concrete covered with a red brick envelope, this geometric labyrinth does not go unnoticed! If beautiful contemporary villas mixing clear concrete volumes and traditional dry stone structures are being built, especially in the vicinity of Tarragona, the region focuses on the restoration of its rich heritage, and the development of its vernacular treasures, such as the barraca, these traditional houses with reed roofs populating the rice fields. To discover them, a visit to the Terres de l'Ebre Natural Park is a must!
