Rajadell is a municipality in the province of Barcelona and autonomous community of Catalonia, Spain.
Rajadell is located in the middle valley of the Rajadell stream, right tributary of the Cardener river. Much of the area is full of forest (pines, oaks, oaks) or covered in scrub and has already recovered from the great fire of 1980.
The town has grown up around the remains of the old castle of Rajadell and the old parish church of Sant Iscle, on top of a hill on the right bank of the stream. In modern times, the population has moved near the railway station from Barcelona to Lleida, in the Casetes district.
It also includes a large part of the old demarcation of Vallformosa and the suffragania of Sant Amanç.
Main attractions
Two sepulchral balmas are known as archaeological remains corresponding to the prehistoric period: the Balma dels Moros (near Cal Vilaseca and Cal Comallonga) and the Balma de mas Bosch (next to the old road from Manresa to Rajadell). This type of burial is what was practiced during the period from the Neolithic to the Bronze Age.
The gothic castle was built in the medieval Kingdom of Aragon. The castle is first mentioned in 961 A.D, though some sources describe it as a being first mentioned in 1063. The castle was initially built by the noble Rajadell family during the early centuries of the Reconquista. The castle remained in the hands of the Rajadells for centuries, and was badly damaged when the family joined an unsuccessful revolt against John II of Aragon, before being sold in the 16th century.
After the 16th century, the castle was intermittently owned by a number of noble families; by the 19th century it was still in private hands. During the Spanish Civil War, the castle was occupied and used as a base by Catalonian revolutionaries. The Spanish government declared it a heritage site in 1988.
How to get to?
From Barcelona 1 hr (80.0 km) via C-58 and C-16
From Madrid 5 hr 54 min (564 km) via A-2
Main information
Area: 45 sq km
Population: 545
Coordinates: 41° 43′ 45″ N, 1° 42′ 20″ E
Language: Spanish, Catalan
Currency: Euro
Visa: Schengen
Time: Central European UTC +1
See here Catalan travel guide
