History of Barcelona

Prominent early settlers to Barcelona appeared as early as the sixth century B.C. Laietans settled this Iberian town. During the Second Punic War, the Carthaginians took the city refounded by Amilcar Barca, father of Hannibal.

In fact, the name of “Barcelona” derives from the traditions of the Carthaginian Barca. After the Romans defeated the people of the town, they took it over and named it as Faventia Colonia Julia Augusta Paterna Barcino in 218 BC
With the arrival of the Visigoths in the 5th century, Barcelona became the capital of the Hispanic territories for a few years. In the eighth century it was conquered by Al-Hurra, but returned as a Christian territory under Louis the Pious of the Carolingian Empire in 801 under the Spanish March. During this time, Muslims assailants relentlessly attacked Barcelona and 985 troops of Almanzor almost destroyed the entire city.

After the destruction of that time, Borrell II began reconstruction, leaving the region thriving. During this period the city highlighted between Catalonia and the whole domain of the Crown of Aragon, and was left where many troops and resources to the company taking new possessions. The city flourished and would become a major Mediterranean power in the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The city was the main center of a monarchy, and grew to be a commercial highlight as swell.

The city began to decline from the fifteenth century lasting through several centuries to follow. The tensions arising from the dynastic union with Castile, which began with the marriage of Ferdinand II of Aragon and Isabel of Castilla, reached its peak with the War of the Reapers from 1640-1651. Later the War of Spanish Succession (1706-1714) brought the disappearance of the institutions of Catalonia but also heralded the economic resurgence of the city thanks to integration with the rest of the newly formed country (Spain), and trade with America.

The economic recovery that started in the late eighteenth century and industrialization in the nineteenth century led to Barcelona’s rise in the political, economic and cultural front of the Renaissance of textile trade between Spain and Cuba. This was a time of crisis in the cotton textile industry, and Catalonian industrialization flourished while other parts of the country languished in the industry’s crisis. The city could tear down its walls, during this period of growth, and in 1897 it was annexed to six neighboring municipalities. The annexation enabled it to grow and plan for urban and industrial development led by the expansion plan of Ildefonso Cerda.

Barcelona was home to two world fairs in 1888 and 1929.  The early twentieth century emphasized both economic growth (especially from the First World War) and the proliferation of new ideologies accepted by large sections of population, especially the working class.. However, the crisis that hit hard from the start of the Spanish Civil War halted economic development for a decade. Despite defending the Republic, the city was the focus of rebellions and internal bickering among political parties and the government could not control the Republic. The city was bombed several times and Franco’s troops advanced on the city in late January 1939.

Dictatorship delegated the power of the city, promoting uncontrolled development to face a growing industrialization and immigration Peninsula (especially the south), with the emergence of new working-class districts. After the death of Francisco Franco and the advent of democracy, the city returned to new developments and cultural projects, and together with the organizational and financial support throughout Spain faced the challenges of organizing the Olympic Games in 1992 among other events.