On September 11, 1714 the Seige of Barcelona, a 14-month attempt to take the city of Barcelona durin...
On September 11, 1714 the Seige of Barcelona, a 14-month attempt to take the city of Barcelona durin...
Today is September 11th. Besides being a memorable day in the United States for the terrorist attacks commited nine years ago, it is a national holiday in Catalunya.
By Elizabeth Hanchett
On September 11, 1714 the Seige of Barcelona, a 14-month attempt to take the city of Barcelona during the War of Spanish Succession, ended. The French Bourbons finally broke through into the city, and because of the resistance, in 1716 Catalunya lost its self-rule rights via the “Decretos de la Nueva Planta”.
In 1980, September 11 was declared a national holiday by the Catalan Parliament in 1980, and Article 8.1 in the Autonomy Statute of 2006 states: “Catalonia, defined as a nationality in the first article, has as national symbols the flag, holiday and anthem.” In Article 8.3, it is established: “Catalonia’s festival is the Day of September 11.”
It is celebrated by various political parties leaving flowers at the monuments of Rafael Casanova (lawyer and one of the members of the Consell de Cent in Barcelona) and Josep Moragues in various towns and cities across Catalunya. At the Fossar de les Moreres independence groups also leave flowers, as many of those who died in the seige are buried at that location. People also hang the senyera, the Catalan national flag as well as the estelada, a variation of the Catalan flag, from their balconies and Els Segadors, the Catalan anthem, is sung. Since 2003 major festivities have been held at the Parc de la Ciutadella with concerts and other special events.
It is a bittersweet holiday, a holiday that commemorates the ending of a brutal seige on an important city, but also the loss of rights and identity, as the Consell de Cent and the Corts were abolished as part of the Decretos de la Nueva Planta. It is a holiday for remembering the strength of the people who stood strong, who will also never forget the loss of their rights.
This is one of the reasons why Barça’s loss today is being taken with a grain of salt, with many Catalans “joking” that it was done on purpose to truly commemorate that September 11 in 1714.
(Source: itsasertzera, via matchcentre)
