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34-519: The town's importance was greater in the early Middle Ages, as capital of the county of Besalú , whose territory was roughly the same size as the current comarca of Garrotxa but sometime extended as far as Corbières, Aude , in France. Wilfred the Hairy , credited with the unification of Catalonia , was Count of Besalú. The town was also the birthplace of Raimon Vidal , a medieval troubadour . Besalú

68-452: A county with its own dynasty. The county changed from “L’Empordà” to “El Ripollès”. In the year 1111, Besalú lost its independence, for historical reasons in favor of the county of Barcelona. Centuries later, Besalú started a decadent period, worsened by the redemptions, wars with the French and carlists. In 1966, Besalú was declared a site of historical and artistic importance. The monument

102-531: A subordinate countship to Miro, but when Miro became Bishop of Girona in 971, Besalú was reattached to Cerdanya. In 988, Oliba entered Montecassino and left Besalú — along with Vallespir , Fenouillèdes , and Peyrepertuse — to Bernard Tallaferro . He annexed Ripoll in 1002. He inaugurated an independent line of rulers in Besalú and thus diminished the power of his dynasty. Pope Benedict VIII established diocese in Besalú for Bernard's benefit, but it

136-482: A system of aprisiones was established in Besalú, largely held by native Goths and immigrant Gascons . During the reign of Charles the Bald , Besalú was attached to the counties of Urgel and Cerdanya . In 871, Wilfred the Hairy and his kin began the encastellation of Besalú by constructing a forward castle at Castellaris . Wilfred later separated it and made his brother Radulf its count and it became one of

170-460: Is circled by the ancient wall from the c. XII-XIV. Unfortunately only parts of the original walls still exist. The urban configuration of the site is almost identical to the original layout. Without a doubt, the Medieval bridge is the emblem of the town, of an angular design with seven uneven arcs and two towers. The part of the town nearest to the bridge there are many narrow streets that belong to

204-486: Is not raining anywhere."). Winter temperatures hover around freezing; in August, temperatures average 27.7 °C (about 80 °F). Thermal inversions are relatively common; Alta Garrotxa and Puigsacalm, particularly, have more of a mountain climate, with snowfall figuring more prominently. Vegetation varies with the climate. Alta Garrotxa and the east part of the comarca have typically Mediterranean climate and vegetation;

238-681: The Gibert mill. A third group of volcanoes lies in the Llémena river valley and the stream of Adri. The field became active about 700,000 years ago, with the last eruption occurring 11,500 years ago. There appear to have been old eruptions around Olot , because one can find basalt boulders from the Pliocene era in the valley of the Fluvià. In 1982, the Generalitat de Catalunya declared

272-773: The Ordinatio Imperii of 817, Louis the Pious made it a part of Aquitaine and ruled it directly along with the other maritime counties of the Marca: Roussillon , Girona , Barcelona , and Empúries . Besalú, along with Barcelona and Girona were placed under Count Bera , a Visigoth . Under Louis the Pious Gothia saw a reinvigorated monasticism spread first in Pallars and then eastward into Roussillon, Empúries, and Besalú. Under Louis and his successors,

306-429: The dioceses of Vic , Girona , and Elne . In 1017, Pope Benedict conceded to Bernard Tallaferro the right to establish a diocese of his own. Ignoring the proposals of Joan de les Abadesses and Sant Pau de Fenollet, Bernard founded it in Besalú itself. The first bishop was his own son Wilfred, abbot of Sant Joan de les Abadesses. On Bernard's death in 1020, the bishops of Girona and Vic reclaimed their ancient rights over

340-603: The Local Government “Ajuntament” dating from c. XVII, the Royal Curia “Cúria Reial”, dating from c. XIV, and the "Casa Tallaferro". The street “Tallaferro” leads to the entrance to the Castle precinct. Inside the precinct there remains one of the towers from the ancient County Castle, and the apse of Saint Mary “Santa Maria” that dates from c. XI. Along with the street “Portalet” these are the remains which best retain

374-602: The ancient Jewish quarter. It is in this area where you will find the Miqvé , the purification bath, which date from c. XII, and demonstrate the presence of an important Jewish community. It is the only Romanesque mikvah still remaining in Spain. The street from the medieval bridge leads to the Town Square “Plaça Major”, a square whose arcades date from c. XVI, and used to be the centre of the medieval town. Important buildings are

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408-493: The comarques of Ripollès , Osona , Selva , Gironès , Pla de l'Estany , Alt Empordà , and Vallespir . It includes the upper basin of the River Fluvià and the headwaters of the rivers Muga , Amer and Llémena . From both the human point of view and that of physical geography, the comarca has a clear division into two subcomarques. Extending north from the valley of the Fluvià, is Alta Garrotxa (Upper Garrotxa), while

442-551: The form of coins, its only evidence being documentary. Between 1020 and 1111, three different kinds of silver coin were minted in Besalú. The engravings of Besalú in the eleventh century have been considered some of the best exemplars of the Romanesque style . In 1066, William II died and Besalú was co-ruled by his brother, Bernard II and his son, Bernard III . In 1100, the moderate and stable Bernard II died and Bernard III began to reign on his own. He had little support from

476-539: The heir of Bernard if he died without children. At the time Bernard was fifty years of age (older than his father-in-law) and Jimena a mere child of seven or eight. It was not unlikely that Bernard would die before the marriage could legally be consummated. The aging and ineffectual Count of Besalú showed no desire to govern and readily allowed his new father-in-law to fill the vacuum left by the death of Bernard II. In 1111, Bernard died and Barcelona inherited Besalú. This led to conflict with Bernard William of Cerdanya , who

510-500: The last de facto independent Catalan counties . Sometime between 913 and 920, Radulf died and Miro the Younger , Count of Cerdanya , took over Besalú, even though it should have gone to Sunyer II , Count of Barcelona and Girona . When Miro died in 927, his counties were ruled indivisibly by his widow Ava as regent for his two sons, Sunifred II and Wilfred II . When the two reached their majority, Sunifred governed Cerdanya and

544-400: The latter half of the tenth century, the power and authority of the counts of Besalú and Cerdanya increased. In 957, Besalú was rocked by the rebellion of a faction of the noblesse backing the sons of the deceased count Radulf. Wilfred was assassinated and Sunifred annexed the property of the rebels and took over the county. In 965, Sunifred passed all his counties on to Oliba, who gave Besalú as

578-510: The local nobility and Raymond Berengar III of Barcelona took the opportunity to augment his influence in the region. At the turn of the 12th century, Besalú extended as across the Pyrenees as far as Corbières. It dominated and patronised the monasteries of Sant Joan de les Abadesses , Saint-Michel-de-Cuxa , and Lagrasse . It encompassed the castles of Tautavel , Vingrau , Queribus , Aguilar , and Peyrepertuse, which were refortified in

612-653: The medieval appearance, along with panoramic views of the Roman Bridge. Leading up from the main street “Carrer Major”, there are the “Casa Romà” (c. XIV) and the parish church of Saint Vincent “Sant Vicenç” dating from c. XI-XII which has very sculpturesque doors and windows. Near to the main Town Square, there is the “Prat de Sant Pere”, wide and spacious which used to be the Cemetery of the Benedictine monastery of Saint Peter “Sant Pere”. Today there only remains

646-504: The parishes of Besalú. Wilfred, lacking a political protector, retired to his monastery and the diocese of Besalú was abolished. Garrotxa Garrotxa ( Catalan pronunciation: [ɡəˈrɔtʃə] ) is a comarca (county) in the Girona region , Catalonia , Spain . Its population in 2016 was 55,999, more than half of them in the capital city of Olot . It is roughly equivalent to the historical County of Besalú . Garrotxa borders

680-532: The plain and hillsides of Olot. A field of lava covers most of the plain (some 25 km²), and lava flows continue down the valley of the Fluvià to Sant Jaume de Llierca . Another important sector is in the tectonic valley of the River Ser , at the foot of the fault scarp of the Corb and Finestres ranges, with the volcanoes of Santa Margarida and Croscat. Lava flowed down the valley, past Sallent de Santa Pau to

714-404: The presence and memory of the royal fisc in Besalú. Wilfred even going to the court of Louis IV in order to solicit a privilege of immunity to the monastery of Sant Pere de Camprodon which he and his brother had jointly founded as their legacy. Wilfred also received a portion of the property which the viscount Unifred had treacherously taken from Ermengol of Osona by a precept of Louis's. In

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748-526: The remains of a medieval synagogue , located in the lower town near the river. Besalú also hosts the Museum of miniatures created by jeweler and art collector Lluís Carreras. The name Besalú is derived from the Latin Bisuldunum, meaning a fort on a mountain between two rivers. It is also the historical capital of the county of “La Garrotxa”. One key date is the year 894, when Besalú was converted to

782-465: The rest has a sub-Mediterranean climate, tending toward an Atlantic climate in the most humid areas. In the western part of the comarca , the land around Olot and Santa Pau contains some 40 well-preserved volcanic cones at Croscat , important flows of basaltic lava , and the volcano of Santa Margarida . This zone is protected within the 120.07 km² Parc Natural de la Zona Volcànica de la Garrotxa . The populated areas are mostly located on

816-519: The service sectors. Agricultural land has been shrinking, but Garrotxa remains the leading producer of maize . The livestock sector is actually expanding, especially pigs and cattle . Industry, centered on Olot, Sant Joan les Fonts , and Besalú , has been generally on the rise since 1940. The most important industries are textiles, especially knitwear, the processing of locally grown food, and metallurgy. Behind these come papermaking, chemistry, and plastics. Arts and crafts are traditional also, being

850-533: The southern part is sometimes called the comarca of Olot, after the capital city. The Fluvià flows toward the Mediterranean , and has a relatively small flow of water (1.07 m³/s at Olot). The high humidity of Garrotxa contrasts with that of the neighboring comarques. Annual rainfall is over 1000 mm (about 40 inches). It is said that "Si no plou a Olot, no plou enlloc" ("if it's not raining in Olot, it

884-691: The thirteenth century by Louis IX of France as forming his southern border with the Crown of Aragon by the Treaty of Corbeil (1259). The rest of Besalú was a part of the Principality of Catalonia within the Crown. In 1107, Bernard III married Jimena, Raymond Berengar's daughter. In the marriage pact, Raymond Berengar ceded Ausona and the Diocese of Vic with all their castles. In return, Barcelona became

918-564: The three-nave church and one apse, dating from the c. XI. Also there is the small chapel of Saint James “Sant Jaume” (c. XII) and the “Casa Cornellà” (Llaudes) dating from c. XII and which has a patio with three galleries. Behind the monastery there is the church of the hospital of Saint Julian “Sant Julià”, with one nave and no apse, dating from c. XII, and an outstanding entrance portal. County of Besal%C3%BA The County of Besalú ( Catalan : Comtat de Besalú , IPA: [kumˈtad də βəzəˈlu] ; Latin : Comitatus Bisuldunensis )

952-607: The younger Wilfred Besalú under the suzerainty of his older brother. The brothers, and their younger brothers Oliba Cabreta and Miro Bonfill , acted consonantly throughout their lives. In 943 Sunyer of Barcelona attacked Besalú and Ripoll and Sunifred came to Wilfred's aid. The brother also retained their ties to the French crown , though they often carried the title marchio , probably without royal sanction but perhaps as an honour from Carolingian times. Oliba received royal lands and rights in Besalú from Rudolph in 929, indicating

986-477: The zone comprising the valleys of the Fluvià and Ser and the upper part of the valleys of Aiguavella and Sant Iscle to be Natural Places of National Interest. They also declared most of the volcanic cones and the Fageda d'en Jordà ( beech woods rooted in lava) to be Integral Geobotanical Reserves. 9.4% of the population are engaged in agriculture and primary production, 59.4% in industry and energy, and 31.2% in

1020-483: Was designated as a historical national property ("conjunt històric-artístic") in 1966. The town's most significant feature is its 12th-century Romanesque bridge over the Fluvià river, which features a gateway at its midpoint. The church of Sant Pere was consecrated in 1003. The town features arcaded streets and squares and also a restored mikveh , a ritual Jewish bath dating from the eleventh or twelfth century, as well as

1054-712: Was finally and irrevocably annexed to the County of Barcelona . Besalú was reconquered from the Moors by 785. It was originally a pagus of the County of Girona in the Marca Hispanica . The original pagus comprised the territories of Garrotxa and those neighbouring Montgrony and Setcases in the comarca of Ripollès as far as Agullana and Figueres (in Alt Empordà ) and Banyoles in Pla de l'Estany . In

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1088-427: Was one of the landlocked medieval Catalan counties near the Mediterranean coastline. It was roughly coterminous with the modern comarca of Garrotxa and at various times extended as far north as Corbières, Aude , now in France. Its capital was the village of Besalú . Throughout most of its history it was attached to one of the other more powerful counties, but it experienced a century of independence before it

1122-511: Was short-lived. The last quarter of the 10th century and first quarter of the 11th witnessed very little war in southern France and Catalonia, some of the only instances occurring between Oliba Cabreta and the Counts of Carcassonne . In this period as well, Carolingian courts and Gothic law were still in effect in Besalú, as late as 1031. Between 969 and 1020, the county of Besalú minted its own money, though this currency has not been preserved in

1156-552: Was the feudal suzerain of Besalú. The problem was solved by the cession of Vallespir, Fenolledès, Peyrepertuse, and Castellnou to Cerdanya for compensation. Some of the most important monasteries in Catalonia were located in Besalú: Sant Joan de les Abadesses , Santa María de Ripoll , Bañolas , Camprodón , and Sant Pau de Fenollet . There was not, however, a bishop in Besalú. Rather, the abbacies were dependent on

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