Parque de la Ciudadela Barcelona

Parque de la Ciudadela (in Catalan Parc de la Ciutadella) was for many years the only park in the city of Barcelona. It was built in the former grounds of the fortress of the city (hence the name Citadel), the image of Paris Luxembourg park.

It is located in the district of Ciutat Vella in the triangle between the station France, the Arc de Triomphe and the Olympic Village, among Pujades ride, ride Picasso and Wellington Street. It has an area of 17.42 hectares, not counting the Barcelona Zoo.

The park is located in the former Arsenal of the Citadel, site of the current Parliament of Catalonia.

Origins
Map of Barcelona from 1806 to Citadel integrated inside the walls.

It occupies the site of the citadel built by Philip V to dominate the city after the War of Spanish Succession, in the eighteenth century.

On September 11^th 1714, after a siege of more than 13 months, Barcelona fell under the army of King Philip V, who to keep the city under a firm control, built this citadel or fortress, the largest in Europe by then, in a star shape.

The citadel was part of a joint military which fully dominated the city.   Next to the Citadel itself, the Castle of Montjuic was built, the mountain overlooking Barcelona from homonymous height. The construction of the citadel was entrusted to the military engineer Flemish Joris Van Prosper Verboom between 1716 and 1718.

Its construction was necessary to overthrow the Barrio de la Ribera, which would not be transferred to Barcelona until three decades later. 1200 houses were demolished, and the convent of St. Augustine and Santa Clara was diverted to Comtal Rec. In total some 4,500 people were evicted, not given compensation and were abandoned to their fate.

Demolition of the Citadel

It became a hated symbol of the central government by the people of Barcelona, the Supervisory Board had it overthrown in 1841.  However, two years later, during the regency of Maria Cristina de Borbon, it was restored before being completely destroyed. General Prim decreed that was his donation to the city.

Finally, thanks to the Revolution of 1868, the citadel was demolished, starting with the demolition of the tower of San Juan, the military prison located in the main square of the Citadel.

Of the original fort there is now only the chapel (now Castrense Parish), the governor’s palace (now an institute of secondary education, Verdaguer IES) and the arsenal, the current seat of the Parliament of Catalonia.

The Universal Exposition of 1888
Cascade Parc de la Ciutadella

At the Universal Exhibition of 1888, the mayor commissioned Francesc Rius i Taulet’s urbanization of Josep Fontsere Park on the grounds that the citadel was overthrown.

Fontsere in collaboration with the young Antoni Gaudi, spoke of the proposed Cascade Monumental, one of the key areas of the park. Gaudi did the water project and designed an artificial cave beneath the waterfall. The monument stands out for its profusion of sculpture, at which several of the best sculptors of the time, highlights the group of sculptures made of wrought iron.  These sculptors include the quadriga of the Aurora, of Rossend Nobas and The Birth of Venus by Venanci Vallmitjana.  The pediment is the work of Francesc Pages i Serratosa. Other sculptures are Anfítrite, Josep gamot, Neptune and Leda, Manel Fuxa and Dana, Joan Flotats. Also, Rafael Atche conducted four valves which expel water through the mouth at the bottom of the monument.

Park

Currently, the Park of the Citadel is one of the largest in Barcelona. Within its walls is the Barcelona Zoo and various buildings that survived from the ancient fortress (the chapel, the governor’s palace and the arsenal) and Expo 1888 (shade, Hivernaculo Museum and Museum of Geology Zoology).

The park stands out with its large garden, with extensive woods and walking, as well as the lake and waterfall. The lake is one of the nerve centers of the park, with several large islands and a profusion of exotic plants and aquatic animals, you can navigate it with rowing boat.

Next to the waterfall is the romantic garden, with a wide variety of plant species. In the old square there is an oval pond with the famous sculpture Descendimiento, by Josep Llimona. Various sculptures along the park are, the Monument to General Prim, de Lluis Puiggener work (1887).  This was torn down and melted during the Civil War and recreated again in 1940 by Frederic Mares, Monument Bonaventura Carles Aribau, Manel Fuxa (1884), the Monument to Walt Disney of Tortras Nuria (1969), the Mammoth, Miquel Dalmau, etc.