History tells us that here there was once a King of Aragon who was called Martin de Humane. This king loved books and stories, and in the place where you are now, he had a castle built with such beautiful views that they called it Bella Vista or Bellesguard, which means Beautiful View.
read more
History tells us that here there was once a King of Aragon who was called Martin de Humane. This king loved books and stories, and in the place where you are now, he had a castle built with such beautiful views that they called it Bella Vista or Bellesguard, which means Beautiful View.
Five hundred years later, galloping between the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, there were only some remains of that castle of which Antoni Gaudí was going to take advantage of to build one of his first buildings in Barcelona. On request of María Sagués Molins, widow of the industrialist Jaume Figures, he projected here, on the outskirts of the city, a house inspired by the Gothic style and with a particular aspect of a medieval fortress that seems to want to reach the sky.
But historical or not, the Bellesguard tower has, above all, Gaudi´s mark, the one of a young Gaudí who had not yet achieve his most famous works but showed a very strong personality. The Neo-Gothic style would still accompany him in designing the Sagrada Familia, but the styles and labels as we know, do not mean much when it comes to the genius of Reus.
The Bellesguard tower is a unique work, in which Antoni used technical resources that would later be used in works such as the Güell Park or La Pedrera. If you look inside the attic, you will see how he managed to chain brick arches in a catenary way with amazing mastery. The only thing, to see them you will have to pay for your entry. It happens that the Bellesguard Tower is still a property as private as the medieval palace that was there before, but it deserves a visit even if its fame is not as big as that of the Casa Batllo or the Casa Milá
Do not forget to look at all the details. It is Gaudí, so have your eyes wide open and pay attention to the brick, the mosaics, the wrought iron shapes and the fantasy that the good Antoni spilt in each and all of his works.
And if you feel like taking your imagination a little way back, think that the fortress that preceded the wonder you see here today, served as a den, in the seventeenth century, of a legendary Catalan bandit. His name was Serrallonga, he assaulted Royal carriages and became so popular that there are songs, novels and even an opera in his honour.
