Medieval
Move into the old centre of the city following medieval footsteps. Discover the medieval urban street layout as an example of the lay-out of walled cities; visit La Seu de Manresa, one of the greatest examples of Catalan Gothic, and Carrer de Balç, a semi-subterranean porticoed street preserving all its medieval atmosphere.
Carrer del Balç
A narrow alley covered by the porches of the houses, which fully preserves its medieval feel. It is almost an subterranean route (as indicated by the name, "under a precipice"). Visitors can get close to the most ancestral Manresa via a labyrinth of doorways, cellars and basements.
La Seu
The collegiate basilica of Santa Maria is one of the most notable examples of Catalan Gothic. It was built between the 14th and 15th centuries under the direction of Berenguer de Montagut (who also designed the church of Santa Maria del Mar in Barcelona). The general austerity of the building, a characteristic trait of Mediterranean Gothic, should be noted, together with the exceptional width of the nave, contrasting with the side chapels, which are lower and much narrower. The main front is from the beginning of the 20th century, designed by Alexandre Soler i March. Inside are preserved interesting examples of art, including a set of medieval altarpieces, particularly the one of the Holy Spirit, by Pere Serra, considered one of the best examples of Catalan Gothic painting. It is also possible to visit the crypt, the cloister, the museum and the remains of the old Roman portico beneath the building.
Porch and window in Carrer d'en Botí
House with a medieval tradition preserving a Gothic double window. Carrer del Botí comes out under the porch of a house in a little square in Carrer de Sant Miquel. A simple, popular corner giving an idea of what the Gothic city must have been like.
Church of Carme
Old Gothic church rebuilt after the Civil War. It stands on Puig Mercadal hill, the highest in the medieval city. This is the building where the miracle of the Light is said to have happened. Tradition says that on 21 February 1345, when the works on the Sèquia had been stopped because the bishop did not allow it to pass over his lands, something miraculous happened: a beam of light from Montserrat lit up the inside of the church of Carme. The bells started ringing without anyone touching them. It seems that the miracle served to make the bishop see his mistake, and he finally let the Manresans have their way.
Carme wall
The Carme wall closed off the stretch between Puig Mercadal and the convent of the Dominican friars, following the line of the modern Carrer Muralla del Carme. It formed part of the new circuit of walls built in the 14th century, known as the new wall or lower wall. This stretch of wall included a tower, called Saint Mark's Tower. In 1859, this stretch of wall was affected by the collapse of the stretch that protected Puig Mercadal and underwent considerable reconstruction, eliminating the remains of the towers and putting the line of façades of new houses at the level of the current line of Carrer Muralla del Carme. The medieval wall must have been on the line the pavement, with an exterior walkway and ditch. The ditch was covered in 1859 to open up a tree-lined walk.
Pont Vell
The old bridge is one of the characteristic elements of the city's façade of monuments. It was built in the 12th-13th century. The central part was demolished during the Civil War. It was rebuilt between 1960 and 1962. It was at the Pont Vell that the road leading to Montserrat via Castellgalí began. This was the one along which Saint Ignatius of Loyola arrived in Manresa.
Chapel of Sant Marc
Gothic building from the 15th century. The bell wall is later. It is a simple chapel that began with the grant of land to some hermits from Montserrat and later belonged to the tanners' guild. The arms of Manresa can still be seen carved at the top of the door jambs.
Sant Andreu Hospital
Hospital of medieval origin, with a church from the 14th-18th centuries. The building still preserves some Gothic remains inside the old church. The Renaissance window decoration can be seen on the façade looking outside on to the square.
Puigmercadal and Portal del Carme wall (Pl. Europa)
This wall formed part of the 12th century wall circuit and surrounded Puigmercadal hill. This name comes from the location of the medieval market at its feet. In this wall sector was the fortified tower of L’Àliga – Lapídea in the documents, which means "made of stone". In 1308, the Town Council gave land on the Puig to the Carmelites to build a convent. In 1840, with the seizure of church land, it passed into military use. This all mean a great transformation of the hill.
At the end of Carrer del Carme is the Portal del Carme, which had a circular tower and made an angle of 90 degrees with respect to the wall, according to 19th century maps.
Sobrerroca Gatehouse Tower (C/Sobrerroca)
Of all the defensive towers on the city walls, Sobrerroca tower is the only one that has remained standing down to our time.
The tower must originally have been built in the 12th century and it formed part of the second circuit of walls that closed off the city, but it was strengthened in around 1370, together with the other old towers and walls in the city.
This tower was accompanied by a twin tower, located on the other side of the street. The towers were linked by an arcade at the top, forming a gateway protecting the entrance to the city in this sector. In 1464, a drawbridge is documented, which must have allowed passage over the ditch. From its gates ran the road that led from Manresa to Vic.
When the 19th century arrived, the Sobrerroca gatehouse tower had been included in houses that had been built around it and it was rediscovered in around 1970, when the house that had been hiding it was demolished.
En Jaffa wall
The last stretch of wall in the eastern sector of Puig Cardener was known as the Mur d'en Jaffa, as it ran behind the house of the Jaffa family, which occupied the site of what is now the courthouse. This was an important Manresa family, with a long tradition of service on the city council. This stretch of 12th century wall was reconstructed in 1380 using the stones from the stretch of wall that used to run from Sant Miquel to Puig Cardener, which was being dismantled. It is now one of the oldest preserved stretches of the wall and, inside, it maintains the space that possibly corresponds to the wall's internal corridor.
