Medieval Born and Sutadella Park

This walking tour takes place in the ancient areas of Born and Ribera, located near the port of Barcelona. Once it was lively seaside neighborhoods, where the movers, weavers, laundromats, merchants, sailors, innkeepers, ladies of easy behavior and travelers who were waiting for sailing to distant countries peacefully coexisted. Life was boiling in the streets of port Barcelona. Until now, the names of many streets remind of the professions of local artisans.
But at the beginning of the 18th century, the dynasty of Spanish kings changed, which provoked a long and hard war. Its last epic was the famous siege of Barcelona, which lasted 13 months, after which the Ribera quarter turned into an impregnable citadel, and the whole of Barcelona became a military fortress for many years.

The selfless defense of the city, the tragic defeat of Barcelona, the triumphant entrance of the Bourbons (the current ruling dynasty) and the subsequent repression of the culture of Catalonia will be the subject of our excursion.

The events of 300 years ago are in many ways the cause and explanation of current political events. After this tour, you will understand why the Catalans are so actively fighting for secession from Spain, and why Barcelona does not like the Spanish king.

We will walk through the original streets of the Born quarter and through the most beautiful park of Barcelona - Ciutadela (former Citadel), where the first international exhibition of Barcelona, which marked the beginning of the era of Modernism, was held. You will see the building of the Parliament of Catalonia, the Arc de Triomphe, monuments dedicated to the figures of Catalan culture, the monumental fountain, learn interesting details of these attractions. I will tell you about the terrible secrets of the Citadel and about the modern life of the old quarter of Born. We will visit the center dedicated to the sad pages of Catalan history, visit the most magnificent church in Barcelona and see the memorial complex located on the site of an ancient cemetery.

Today’s Born is a labyrinth of narrow streets where old bars and original cafes, fashion boutiques and art museums abound, and where the lively atmosphere of a large port city still persists.

Entrance to some buildings is paid (free for the guide), but on the spot you can already decide whether you want to enter or we will limit ourselves to an inspection from the outside. I accompany the walk with interesting photos that illustrate the history of this quarter of Barcelona.