El Molar, Priorat

El Molar is a municipality in the comarca of Priorat, Tarragona Province, Catalonia, Spain.

Most of the local economy is based on vineyards, as well as almond and olive tree plantations.

History

There are remainders of two ancient villages, the oldest from the 6th or 7th century, within the El Molar municipal term.

The present village dates from the 13th century, after the area had been reconquered from the saracens. During medieval times the town was part of the Barony of Entença. According to an 1156 document by which Ramon Berenguer IV ceded the territory to the Poblet Monastery, El Molar was linked to neighboring Garcia town. This situation ended in the 19th century.

El Molar was bombed by Condor Legion planes during the Spanish Civil War. An abandoned galena mine nearby was used as a field hospital during the Battle of the Ebro.

Monuments

The 18th century local church is dedicated to Saint Roch (Sant Roc).

References

Tarragona

Tarragona (English /ˌtɑːrəˈɡoʊnə/, Catalan: [tərəˈɣonə], Spanish: [taraˈɣona]; Phoenician: טַרְקוֹן, Tarqon; Latin: Tarraco) is a port city located in the north-east of Spain on the Mediterranean Sea. It is the capital of the Tarragona province, and part of the Tarragonès county and Catalonia region. Geographically, it is bordered on the north by the province of Barcelona and the province of Lleida. The city has a population of 132,199 (2014).

History

One Catalan legend holds that it was named for Tarraho, eldest son of Tubal in c. 2407 BC; another (derived from Strabo and Megasthenes) attributes the name to 'Tearcon the Ethiopian', a 7th-century BC pharaoh who supposedly campaigned in Spain. The real founding date of Tarragona is unknown.

The city may have begun as an Iberic town called Kesse or Kosse, named for the Iberic tribe of the region, the Cossetans, though the identification of Tarragona with Kesse is not certain.Smith suggests that the city was probably founded by the Phoenicians, who called it Tarchon, which, according to Samuel Bochart, means a citadel. This name was probably derived from its situation on a high rock, between 75–90 m (250–300 ft) above the sea; whence we find it characterised as arce potens Tarraco. It was seated on the river Sulcis or Tulcis (modern Francolí), on a bay of the Mare Internum (Mediterranean), between the Pyrenees and the river Iberus (modern Ebro).Livy mentions a portus Tarraconis; and according to Eratosthenes it had a naval station or roads (Ναύσταθμον); but Artemidorus says with more probability that it had none, and scarcely even an anchoring place; and Strabo himself calls it ἀλίμενος. This better reflects its present condition; for though a mole was constructed in the 15th century with the materials of the ancient amphitheatre, and another subsequently by an Englishman named John Smith, it still affords but little protection for shipping.

Tarragona (disambiguation)

Tarragona may refer to:

Places

Sport

Other uses

Tarragona (DO)

Tarragona is a Spanish Denominación de Origen (DO) (Denominació d’Origen in Catalan) for wines located in the province of Tarragona (Catalonia, Spain) and covers three distinct areas: the Camp de Tarragona, a part of the Priorat comarca (district) and a part of the Ribera d'Ebre comarca (district). Over 70% of the production is white grapes most of which are used to make Cava.

History

Tarragona has been renowned for its sweet red wines since the times of the ancient Romans, when it was exported to Rome. The area under vines expanded constantly over the centuries to the point that in 1900 over 50% of the province was covered by vineyards. It was badly affected by the outbreak of the phylloxera plague at that time. In 1932 the wines from the area were given a form of legal protection, and in 1976 it acquired DO status.

Geography

The vineyards are located along the coast and extend inland towards the border with the province of Lleida. There are two official sub-zones: Camp de Tarragona is the largest one containing 70% of the vines and extending around the north and east of Tarragona in a radius of 30 km, at an altitude of abround 200 m above sea level. The second sub-zone, Ribera d’Ebre, is located to the south and west of Tarragona. The vines here are on small plateaus on the banks of the River Ebro at an altitude of between 100 m to 400 m above sea level.