Ruta del Cister

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The monasteries of Poblet , Santes Creus and Vallbona on the Ruta del Cister

The Ruta del Cister ( Catalan , "Route of the Cistercians") is a tourist region in the triangle of the cities of Barcelona , Tarragona and Lleida in Catalonia . It is characterized by the country's three large Cistercian monasteries from the 12th century: Santes Creus , Vallbona de les Monges and Santa Maria de Poblet . A long-distance hiking trail connects the three monasteries.

Royal monasteries

Santa Maria de Poblet
Santes Creus
Santa Maria de Vallbona de les Monges

The area occupied by the Moors in the 8th century was recaptured by the Counts of Barcelona in the 10th century and the region, which had been almost depopulated for several centuries, was subsequently settled by people from the county of Barcelona . In the first half of the 12th century, under Count Ramon Berenguer IV, the three monasteries were built almost simultaneously as a sign of triumph and stone thanksgiving for the expulsion of the Muslim Arabs. Until the end of the Catalan-Aragonese kingdom , the monasteries remained royal tombs.

Poblet

Santa Maria de Poblet was founded in 1151 by Raimund Berengar IV of Barcelona. It developed into an outstanding cultural center of the time. The library was of particular importance . Poblet is the largest and most magnificent royal monastery in Spain, as well as the most extensive and best-preserved Cistercian monastery in the West. The most important buildings date from the 12th to 15th centuries. It is still inhabited by monks and has been a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 1991 .

Santes Creus

Santes Creus was built at the current location in 1158 after the monks had moved twice and soon flourished. The first Gothic-inspired cloister in Spain has extremely imaginative capitals. The dormitory , 48.5 meters long and ten meters wide, is also of particular importance . The monastery has not been inhabited since 1835.

Vallbona de les Monges

Santa Maria de Vallbona developed from a hermitage that was attested as early as 1157 . In 1175 it became a Cistercian nunnery and received the highest attention from the Catalan-Aragonese royal family. The abbesses mostly came from the nobility. The monastery is still inhabited today.

Tombs of the kings of the Catalan-Aragonese kingdom

  • The royal tombs in Santa Maria de Poblet

  • Tomb of Violante of Aragón in Santa Maria de Vallbona

trail

Signpost on the GR 175

The hiking trail was created in 1998 to make the extensive cultural heritage in the Comarques Alt Camp , Urgell and Conca de Barberà accessible to tourists. Including a few variants for bicycle and motorized tourism, it forms the backbone for opening up the diverse offers in the entire region.

The trail is marked as GR-175 and runs for 104 km

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