Guimerà (Spanish: ''Guimerá'') is a municipality and village in the

comarca A ''comarca'' (, or , or ) is a traditional region or local administrative division found in Portugal, Spain and some of their former colonies, like Brazil, Nicaragua, and Panama. The term is derived from the term ''marca'', meaning a "march, ...

Urgell Modern-day Urgell (), also known as ''Baix Urgell'' (''baix'' meaning "lower", by contrast with Alt Urgell "Higher Urgell"), is a ''comarca'' (county) in Catalonia, Spain, forming only a borderland portion of the region historically known as Ur ...

in the province of Lleida in

Catalonia Catalonia (; ca, Catalunya ; Aranese Occitan: ''Catalonha'' ; es, Cataluña ) is an autonomous community of Spain, designated as a '' nationality'' by its Statute of Autonomy. Most of the territory (except the Val d'Aran) lies on the nort ...

, Spain. The village, the only settlement in the municipality, is situated on the banks of the Corb river. The main part of the village is built up a hillside on the north bank of the river. The population in 2011 was 320.

History

Guimerà's development originated in the push by Christian forces from the north to recover the Iberian peninsula from Islam. It is believed the village is named after a

Visigothic The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is kno ...

person named something like ''Wigmar'', who may have founded the settlement. Its big castle with a high watchtower indicates its strategic importance. Guimerà's first mention in extant records was in the year 1038, in a legal deed regarding its castle. The town grew downhill from the castle towards the river, and eventually spread to the other bank. Guimerà's population reached a peak of 1606 in 1857, but, in common with the general population decline in the surrounding area, has steadily decreased to 320 in 2011. A large number of the buildings in the village are now

holiday home A holiday cottage, holiday home, vacation home, or vacation property is accommodation used for holiday vacations, corporate travel, and temporary housing often for less than 30 days. Such properties are typically small homes, such as cottage ...

Economy

The main economic activity of Guimerà municipality is

dry farming Dryland farming and dry farming encompass specific agricultural techniques for the non-irrigated cultivation of crops. Dryland farming is associated with drylands, areas characterized by a cool wet season (which charges the soil with virtuall ...

(non-irrigated), principally

barley Barley (''Hordeum vulgare''), a member of the grass family, is a major cereal grain grown in temperate climates globally. It was one of the first cultivated grains, particularly in Eurasia as early as 10,000 years ago. Globally 70% of barley p ...

and other cereals, but also olives, almonds and

grape A grape is a fruit, botanically a berry, of the deciduous woody vines of the flowering plant genus '' Vitis''. Grapes are a non- climacteric type of fruit, generally occurring in clusters. The cultivation of grapes began perhaps 8,000 years a ...

s. A local agricultural cooperative produces olive oil under the Garrigues

appellation An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boun ...

, and

wine Wine is an alcoholic drink typically made from fermented grapes. Yeast consumes the sugar in the grapes and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Different varieties of grapes and strains of yeasts are m ...

under the Costers del Segre appellation.

Tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tours. The World Tourism Organization defines tourism mor ...

also plays a significant role.

Main sights

Guimerà is noted for its well-preserved mediaeval layout and

limestone Limestone ( calcium carbonate ) is a type of carbonate sedimentary rock which is the main source of the material lime. It is composed mostly of the minerals calcite and aragonite, which are different crystal forms of . Limestone forms whe ...

buildings, which are densely clustered together on the hillside, linked by narrow streets, stairways, and tunnels. Much of the town wall and several of its gates still remain. The castle, in a commanding position overlooking the village, dates from the 11th century. It was largely destroyed during a battle of the

First Carlist War The First Carlist War was a civil war in Spain from 1833 to 1840, the first of three Carlist Wars. It was fought between two factions over the succession to the throne and the nature of the Spanish monarchy: the conservative and devolutionist ...

in 1835. Since 1984, large parts of the castle have undergone restoration. The castle's restored

watchtower A watchtower or watch tower is a type of fortification used in many parts of the world. It differs from a regular tower in that its primary use is military and from a turret in that it is usually a freestanding structure. Its main purpose is to ...

is now open to the public. Santa Maria de Guimerà

The parish church of St. Mary, a large building beside the castle, dating from the 14th century, is the most notable extant building. Historically, it contained an elaborate in the early 15th century, but this artwork is now found in the Espicopal Museum of

Vic Vic (; es, Vic or Pancracio Celdrán (2004). Diccionario de topónimos españoles y sus gentilicios (5ª edición). Madrid: Espasa Calpe. p. 843. ISBN 978-84-670-3054-9. «Vic o Vich (viquense, vigitano, vigatán, ausense, ausetano, ausonense): ...

. In 1940 a new altarpiece was created by the architect

Josep Maria Jujol José María Jujol Gibert (16 September 1879 – 1 May 1949) was a Spanish architect. Jujol's wide field of activity ranged from furniture designs and painting, to architecture. He worked with Antoni Gaudí on many of his most famous works. ...

. Located 2 km west of the village stands the religious sanctuary of La Bovera, dating from the 13th century, which is still in active use. The ruined

convent A convent is a community of monks, nuns, religious brothers or, sisters or priests. Alternatively, ''convent'' means the building used by the community. The word is particularly used in the Catholic Church, Lutheran churches, and the Anglic ...

of Vallsanta is located 1.5 km west of Guimerà village, close to La Bovera. It was founded by Cistercian nuns who moved from their previous site at La Bovera in the 13th century. It was abandoned around the year 1600. It contains a variety of architectural styles from the Romanesque and

Gothic Gothic or Gothics may refer to: People and languages *Goths or Gothic people, the ethnonym of a group of East Germanic tribes **Gothic language, an extinct East Germanic language spoken by the Goths **Crimean Gothic, the Gothic language spoken b ...

periods. In 1975, the Spanish Government registered the historic centre of Guimerà as a protected national monument, followed by its castle in 1988. The list of architectural heritage monuments maintained by the Generalitat of Catalonia (government) contains 24 structures in Guimerà village and municipality.

Culture

Guimerà's mediaeval main square contains the town's

museum A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make thes ...

, which houses many local artifacts from the times of the pre-Roman

Iberians The Iberians ( la, Hibērī, from el, Ἴβηρες, ''Iberes'') were an ancient people settled in the eastern and southern coasts of the Iberian peninsula, at least from the 6th century BC. They are described in Greek and Roman sources (amo ...

, the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post- Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings around the Mediter ...

, and mediaeval times. The village's major annual festival is that of its

patron saint A patron saint, patroness saint, patron hallow or heavenly protector is a saint who in Catholicism, Anglicanism, or Eastern Orthodoxy is regarded as the heavenly advocate of a nation, place, craft, activity, class, clan, family, or perso ...

, St. Sebastian, on the weekend nearest to 20 January, his feast day. Since 1994, the annual mediaeval fair held in August has attracted many visitors.

Transportation

Guimerà is the biggest and westernmost settlement on the 23-km-long L-241/T-241/T-224 road which follows the Corb river from

Santa Coloma de Queralt Santa Coloma de Queralt is a municipality in the ''comarca'' of the Conca de Barberà in Catalonia, Spain. It is situated in the north-east of the ''comarca'' about from the city of Tarragona. The town is linked to the rest of the ''comarca'' a ...

to the

Tàrrega Tàrrega is a town and municipality located in the Urgell comarca, Province of Lleida, Catalonia. According to the 2020 census ( Statistical Institute of Catalonia), the town has a population of 17,445. The village has a Mediterranean climate wi ...

Montblanc highway. The

spa resort A destination spa or health resort is a resort centered on a spa, such as a mineral spa. Historically, many such spas were developed at the location of natural hot springs or mineral springs; in the era before modern biochemical knowledge and ...

Vallfogona de Riucorb Vallfogona de Riucorb () is a municipality and village in the ''comarca'' of the Conca de Barberà in central Catalonia, Spain. It is situated in the Comalats range in the north of the ''comarca'', with the Cap de Cans rising to 759 m. Vallfo ...

is 5 km to the east. The road is served by a twice-daily bus service between

Barcelona Barcelona ( , , ) is a city on the coast of northeastern Spain. It is the capital and largest city of the autonomous community of Catalonia, as well as the second most populous municipality of Spain. With a population of 1.6 million within ci ...

and its terminus at Guimerà, and a daily service between Vallfogona and Tàrrega. Tàrrega, 15 km away, is the closest town, railway station, and motorway access.

References and notes

External links

* * http://www.guimera.info - Extensive historic and cultural site about Guimerà
A hidden gem in Lleida province – The Castle of Guimerà

Government data pages
{{DEFAULTSORT:Guimera Municipalities in Urgell Populated places in Urgell