Besalú

Besalú municipality
Besalú - bridge over the Fluvià river and the townscape
coat of arms	Map of Spain
Basic data
Autonomous Community :	Catalonia
Province :	Girona
Comarca :	Garrotxa
Coordinates	42 ° 12 ′  N , 2 ° 42 ′  E Coordinates: 42 ° 12 ′  N , 2 ° 42 ′  E
Height :	151  msnm
Area :	4.92 km²
Residents :	2,492 (Jan 1, 2019)
Population density :	506.5 inhabitants / km²
Postal code :	17850
Municipality number  ( INE ):	17019
administration
Official language :	Castilian , Catalan
Website :	Besalú

Besalú is a medieval town in the province of Girona in the autonomous region of Catalonia . Besalú is the capital of the Comarca Garrotxa . The place has been recognized as a cultural asset ( Bien de Interés Cultural ) in the conjunto histórico-artístico category since 1966 .

location

Besalú is located on a rocky hill on the north bank of the Río Fluvià at the foot of the Spanish Pyrenees about 33 kilometers (driving distance) northwest of Girona or about 25 kilometers southwest of Figueres at an altitude of about 150 meters above sea level. d. M.

Population development

year	1842	1900	1950	1970	1991	2011
Residents	1,828	1,350	1,219	1,798	2,098	2,417

Due to the phylloxera crisis in viticulture and the increasing mechanization of agriculture , the number of inhabitants fell significantly in the second half of the 19th and first half of the 20th century; since the 1960s there has been a resurgence due to increasing tourism .

economy

In the past, the inhabitants lived mainly as a self-sufficiency from agriculture, which also included growing wine and keeping cattle. In addition, the fortified place served as an artisanal and mercantile center of several villages and hamlets in the area, in which lime and gypsum have been mined since early modern times . The place is now of great tourist importance.

history

The strategically important place seems to have been settled in ancient times. In the 10th century was the castle ( castell ), developed at whose feet the city. Besalú was the capital of an independent county since the end of the 9th century, but in 1111 it became part of the county of Barcelona . Besalú was a stop on the pilgrimage route through Catalonia to Santiago de Compostela ; a hospital ( Casa Cornellà ) was created. A not insignificant Jewish community also existed here.

Worth seeing

Besalu Bridge

• The former capital of the county of the same name represents a medieval-historical-artistic whole - one of the best preserved in all of Catalonia. The town center is a listed building. Well-known buildings are the church of Sant Vicenç from the 10th century, the monastery church of Sant Pere de Besalú and the church of the Hospital de Sant Julià , both from the 12th century, as well as the Romanesque house Casa de Cornellà . The important Gothic house of the Reil Curia dates from the 13th to 14th centuries .
• The mikvah in the synagogue complex is the only surviving Jewish ritual bath on the Iberian Peninsula .
• Particularly striking is the bridge of Besalú built in the 14th century , the 105-meter-long Pont Vell ('Old Bridge') over the Río Fluvià, secured by towers .
• The Museu de Miniatures i Microminiatures de Besalú , opened in 2007, shows a wide range of small works of art from many cultures around the world.

Personalities

• Abbot Oliba (971-1046), the spiritual 'father of Catalonia', was born here.
• Ramon Vidal de Besalú , a trobador , was born here in 1196 (?).

literature

• Odilo Engels : Besalú . In: Lexicon of the Middle Ages (LexMA). Volume 1, Artemis & Winkler, Munich / Zurich 1980, ISBN 3-7608-8901-8 , Sp. 2051 f.

Web links

Commons : Besalú  - collection of images, videos and audio files

• Besalú, list of important structures - photos + info (catalan)

Individual evidence

1. ↑ Cifras oficiales de población resultantes de la revisión del Padrón municipal a 1 de enero . Population statistics from the Instituto Nacional de Estadística (population update).