Cardona (Barcelona)

Cardona municipality
Basic data
Autonomous Community :	Catalonia
Province :	Barcelona
Comarca :	Bages
Coordinates	41 ° 55 ' N , 1 ° 41' E Coordinates: 41 ° 55 ' N , 1 ° 41' E
Height :	507 msnm
Area :	66.70 km²
Residents :	4,636 (Jan 1, 2019)
Population density :	69.51 inhabitants / km²
Municipality number ( INE ):	08047
administration
Official language :	Castilian , Catalan
Mayor :	Josep Maria Sala i Esteban
Website :	www.cardona.cat
Location of the municipality

Cardona is a municipality in the province of Barcelona and is located in the countryside of the Comarca Bages in the autonomous region of Catalonia around 32 km northwest of Manresa

Cardona, view of the old town

In the Parador of Cardona

history

From 798 to the end of the 16th century, Cardona was considered one of the most important places for the social and historical development of Catalonia. Many factors such as the location of the fortress, salt deposits and the strategic road connections were decisive for the history of the city.

In the charter drawn up by Comte Borrell II of April 23, 986 , the name of the city is mentioned for the first time in relation to the salt deposits in the municipality. The population not only got the mining rights for la Vall Salina , the valley of the salt, but Cardona got the market and town rights. Since salt was of great importance as a preservative for food in the Middle Ages, unusual measures were taken to protect the area and the salt mines by military means and the fortress Castell de Cardona was expanded.

In the 10th century, when the aristocratic family Folc de Gardona established their residence in the castle Castell de Cardona , this had not only a financial but also a political significance for the following generations of Cardona. As an influential member of the royal family of Spain and their dominance in Catalonia, with 30 villas, 21 castles, 272 lands and four seaports as well as the jurisdiction over an area of 6% of Catalonia, the counts were also the driving forces behind the life of the castle and thus of great importance for the further development of the salt city. The population grew significantly during this time.

The nobles were the town's merchants, artisans and drapers. This era lasted until the 16th century when the Compte's family settled in Barcelona and Arbeca and Seville. Cardona Castle was the last stronghold of resistance against the occupation of Catalonia by the troops of the Castilian Felipe V in 1714.

After that the castle became a barracks and the city lost its importance. The simple artisanal and agricultural areas that were connected with salt mining remained. During the 19th and 20th centuries, the city's social and economic activities increased again. With the emergence of industry from 1929 to 1991 (textiles and the exploitation of potash mines) Cardona regained importance.

la Vall Salina , valley of the salt

Attractions

See: List of cultural monuments in Cardona

People from the early days

Joan Ramon Folc I de Cardona (1375-1441), Comte de Cardona.
Joan Ramon Folc II de Cardona (1400–1471), Comte de Cardona.
Jaume de Cardona i de Gandia (1405–1466), President de la Generalitat de Catalunya ,
Pere de Cardona , Archbishop of Tarragona (1515–1530), Viceroy of Catalonia
Lluís de Cardona , Duque de Soma

Residents

Founding years	1497	1515	1553	1717	1787	1857	1877	1887
Residents	205	199	244	1720	2512	4660	4354	3708
(Source: Enciclopèdia Catalana)

The following figures from the municipality include the residents of the city of Cardona as well as the residents of the La Coromnia district.

Number of inhabitants
(source: INE )
year	1900	1910	1920	1930	1940	1950	1960	1970	1981	1990	1992	1994	1996	1998	2000	2002	2004	2006	2008
Residents	3,855	4,002	4.139	4,820	6,474	6,591	7,885	7.006	6,561	6,647	6,387	6.227	5,882	5,720	5,567	5,399	5,272	5,226	5,176

literature

Bibliografia: Història de la Generalitat de Catalunya i els seus Presidents Barcelona: Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2003. ISBN 84-412-0884-0

Individual evidence

↑ 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).

Web links

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

Plana oficial de Cardona Catalan
Parc de la muntanya de sal Catalan
El Parc Cultural de la Muntanya de Sal de Cardona Catalan

[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).