SABADELL

'Sabadell' is one of the largest cities in the province of Barcelona, Spain. It is in the south of the ''comarca'' of Vallès Occidental, on the River Ripoll, 20 km north-west of Barcelona.
Sabadell is located 190 metres above sea level. It is the capital of the ''comarca'', sharing this title with the city of Terrassa. Sabadell is basically a commercial and industrial city: there are no significant agricultural activities.
Sabadell is an important communications point. Two motorways run beside the city: C-58 (from Barcelona to Manresa) and A-7 (from France and Girona to Tarragona, Valencia and Andalusia), and some roads link Sabadell with nearby cities and towns: Terrassa, Sant Quirze del Vallès, Castellar del Vallès, Granollers, Barberà del Vallès, Cerdanyola del Vallès, Barcelona, Sant Cugat del Vallès, Rubí, Sentmenat and Molins de Rei. A railroad line crosses the city (the RENFE line from Barcelona to Lleida) and another one terminates in the city (the FGC line from Barcelona to Sabadell by Sant Cugat del Vallès). Sabadell has an airport.

Contents

History

Famous people from Sabadell

Demography

Sports

Art

References

See also

External links

History

In Roman times a little village called ''Arragone'' existed near where the church of La Salut is now placed. This grew into the town called ''Arraona'' or ''Arrahona'' in the Middle Ages. Another little village was built just on the other side of the river. This second village, called Sabadell, located on a plain, began to grow and its population was about 600 people (152 houses) in 1378. Sabadell was enclosed by a wall, but due to population growth in the 16th century, some houses were built outside the wall. At that time the first textile industries appeared in town, dedicated especially to wool clothing. This industry increased over the next centuries, and in 1800 the town population was about 2000 people. The 19th century brought two important developments to the town: in 1856 the railroad arrived, and in 1877 the town was dubbed a "city". In the 1897 census the population of the city was 23,044 people. The city had become the most important producer of wool clothing in Spain, and these clothes achieved worldwide fame.

The ''modernisme'' movement (related to Art Nouveau) had an important influence in the architecture of the city in the early 1900s. The growth of industry and population favored the emergence of an important workers movement, and catalanist, socialist and anarchist parties were very influential up until the upheavals of the Spanish Civil War (1936-39). The victory of the fascist faction in the war was a step backwards for the city, but in the fifties the industry was recovered and increased. Industries needed working hands, and many people came from Andalusia, Murcia, Extremadura, Castile and other parts of Spain to work in the textile and metal industry. Again, a new workers and catalanist movement emerged, this time against Francisco Franco's regime and with the support of the Roman Catholic Church. Sabadell was the host of some sessions of the Assemblea de Catalunya, a multi-party organization that joined communists, socialists, Catalan nationalists, Catholics and others against the Franco regime. The 1973 oil crisis and Franco's death in 1975 meant an important change in Spain and, of course, in Sabadell. The economic crisis compelled the city to diversify its economic activities. New commercial and leisure areas (the ''Eix Macià'') appeared next to the traditional industries, leading to important economic development for the city.

Famous people from Sabadell

#Francesc Trabal: Catalan-language journalist, avantgarde writer and humorist.
#Joan Oliver: Catalan-language poet and playwright, also known as Pere Quart.
#Oleguer Presas: football player.
#Marc Gené: F1 driver.
#David Meca: professional swimmer.
#Sergio Dalma: pop singer.
#Ferran Casablancas: textile businessman and father of John Casablancas, creator of Elite Model Management, whose son is Julian Casablancas, vocals of The Strokes.
#Dani Pedrosa: three times motorcycle Grand Prix world champion.
#Roger García Junyent: football player.
#Óscar García Junyent: ex-football player.
#Aschwin Wildeboer: swimmer.
#Olaf Wildeboer: swimmer.
#Miguel Ángel Lozano: football player.
#Moisés Hurtado: football plyer.

Demography

Sports

During the Olympic Games of Barcelona in 1992, Sabadell was the city where part of the football competition was played.
The most important club of the city is Centre d'Esports Sabadell.

Art

There are some historic and artistic buildings in the city. The little church of 'Sant Nicolau' (11th century) is a remainder of the town of ''Arraona''. The 'Casa Duran' is a traditional rural house (16th century) placed in the middle of the city. There are some beautiful modernist buildings, like the ''Hotel Suís'' (Swiss Hotel, 1902), the ''Caixa d'Estalvis'' (1915), the ''Torre de l'Aigua'' (a nice water tower, 1918) and the ''Mercat Central'' (Central Market, 1930).

References

★ Panareda Clopés, Josep Maria; Rios Calvet, Jaume; Rabella Vives, Josep Maria (1989). ''Guia de Catalunya'', Barcelona:Caixa de Catalunya. ISBN 84-87135-01-3 (Spanish). ISBN 84-87135-02-1 (Catalan).

See also

★ Sabadell Metro

★ List of municipalities in Barcelona

External links

The ''Ajuntament'' (Town Hall) web site is http://www.sabadell.cat/eng/Homeeng/
Some important institutions of the city are:
Informació Sabadell www.infosabadell.blogspot.com
- Sabadell Internet television www.sabadell.tv
- Aeroport de Sabadell (Sabadell airport)

- Agrupació Astronòmica de Sabadell (Astronomy Association, http://www.astrosabadell.org )

- Banc de Sabadell (http://www.grupobancosabadell.com/en)

- Caixa d'Estalvis de Sabadell (http://web.caixasabadell.com )

- Centre d'Esports Sabadell (Football Team, http://www.cesabadell.org )

- Club Natació Sabadell (Swimming Club, http://www.nataciosabadell.cat/ )

- Ràdio Sabadell 94.6 fm (http://www.radiosabadell.cat)