Siege of Barcelona (1713-1714): The Fall of Catalan Liberties

The siege of Barcelona lasted from July 1713 to September 1714 and was the last major action of the War of the Spanish Succession in Spain. Abandoned by its allies, the Catalan capital held out against the armies of Philip V until a final assault on 11 September 1714. Its fall led to the abolition of Catalonia’s own institutions, and the date is now commemorated as Catalonia’s National Day, the Diada.

Background

When the War of the Spanish Succession broke out, most of Castile supported Philip V, the Bourbon grandson of Louis XIV. In 1705–1706, however, Catalonia, Valencia and Aragon declared for the Habsburg claimant, the Archduke Charles, who made Barcelona his capital as “Charles III”. Many Catalans believed he would better respect their constitutions, the laws and institutions that limited royal power in the Crown of Aragon.

The situation changed after 1711, when Charles became Holy Roman Emperor and left Spain. Britain made peace with France, and under the Convention of L’Hospitalet in June 1713 imperial troops agreed to evacuate Catalonia. The Treaty of Utrecht confirmed Philip V as king and offered the Catalans only an amnesty, not the restoration of their constitutions.

The decision to resist

In early July 1713 the Junta de Braços, an assembly of the three estates of Catalonia meeting in Barcelona, voted to continue the war. Supporters argued that surrender would mean the loss of Catalonia’s liberties; opponents warned that resistance was hopeless.

The city organised its defence around the Coronela, a militia of the guilds, and regular troops who had stayed behind. Command was given to General Antonio de Villarroel, an experienced professional soldier. Outside the walls, Catalan irregulars, known as miquelets, harassed the Bourbon forces in the countryside.

The siege

Bourbon troops under the Duke of Pópuli began the blockade on 25 July 1713. Lacking enough men and artillery for a full assault, they could not take the city, and fighting in rural Catalonia continued through the winter.

After the Treaty of Rastatt in March 1714 ended the war between France and the Emperor, Louis XIV sent large French reinforcements. In July 1714 the Duke of Berwick, a Marshal of France, took command of a combined army of around 40,000 men. Trenches were opened in July, and heavy bombardments damaged much of the city.

After breaches had been opened in the walls, Berwick ordered a general assault before dawn on 11 September 1714. The defenders fought street by street, and Villarroel and the conseller en cap, Rafael Casanova, were both wounded; Casanova was hit while carrying the banner of Saint Eulalia, the city’s patron saint. By the afternoon the city’s leaders sought terms, and Barcelona capitulated over the following days. Estimates of casualties on both sides vary widely.

Consequences

The fall of Barcelona ended organised Catalan resistance; Mallorca submitted in 1715. Philip V’s Nueva Planta (New Plan) decree for Catalonia, dated 16 January 1716, abolished its parliament, government and much of its separate public law, although Catalan civil law survived. Earlier decrees had already done the same in Aragon and Valencia.

The universities of Catalonia were moved to Cervera, and Castilian replaced Catalan in many official uses. In Barcelona, a large part of the Ribera district was demolished to build the Ciutadella, a fortress intended to control the city. Villarroel and other leaders were imprisoned, while Casanova was later amnestied and practised law.

Legacy

In the nineteenth century, the Catalan cultural and political revival turned 11 September into a day of remembrance, and in 1980 the restored Parliament of Catalonia made it the region’s official National Day. Each year people lay flowers at the monument to Rafael Casanova in Barcelona.

Historians stress that the war was fought over the Spanish succession and the defence of Catalonia’s traditional constitutions, not for independence in the modern sense. The siege nonetheless remains central to Catalan identity and to modern debates about Catalonia’s place in Spain.

Timeline

• 1705, October: Barcelona falls to the Allies and becomes the capital of the Habsburg claimant.
• 1711, September: Archduke Charles leaves Barcelona to take up the imperial crown.
• 1713, 22 June: The Convention of L’Hospitalet provides for the evacuation of imperial troops.
• 1713, 6–9 July: The Junta de Braços votes to continue resistance.
• 1713, 25 July: The Bourbon blockade of Barcelona begins.
• 1714, July: The Duke of Berwick takes command; regular siege operations begin.
• 1714, 11 September: The final assault breaks into the city.
• 1716, 16 January: The Nueva Planta decree abolishes Catalonia’s institutions.

Why it matters

The siege of Barcelona ended the War of the Spanish Succession in Spain and marked the end of the composite monarchy in which the Crown of Aragon kept its own laws. It helped create a more centralised Spanish state and gave Catalonia a powerful date of remembrance that still shapes its politics today.