La catedral de la Santa Creu i Santa Eulàlia és la seu de l'arquebisbat de Barcelona i una de les construccions més antigues de la ciutat. La catedral es va començar a construir el 1298 per ordre del rei Jaume II al mateix lloc on hi havia hagut una catedral romànica i prèviament una de paleocristiana. El claustre es va acabar el 1448, però la façana, que també es va projectar al segle XV, no es va arribar mai a edificar. No va ser fins al 1887 que l’industrial Manuel Girona es va oferir a sufragar l’obra seguint aquell projecte original. Poc temps després s’hi van afegir les torres i el cimbori (1906-1913), coronat per una imatge de Santa Helena, de qui la família Girona n’era molt devota.
La catedral respon a la planta típica de les esglésies gòtiques, en forma de creu amb tres naus, girola i transsepte. Té nou capelles amb grans vitralls i un fals trifori des d'on es poden veure les claus de volta a una distància d'uns tres metres. La catedral té cinc portes d’accés; la més antiga de les quals, la de Sant Iu, és de 1298 i va ser durant 500 anys l’entrada principal del temple. Són especialment remarcables l’altar de marbre, consagrat el 1337 i sostingut per dos capitells del segle VI de la catedral paleocristiana, i el cor, començat el 1390. El cadirat és un dels conjunts escultòrics més notables del gòtic a Catalunya, i entre 1517 i 1518 Joan de Borgonya hi va pintar els escuts dels cavallers de l’ordre del Toisó d’Or, que es va reunir a Barcelona el 1519 per ordre de l’emperador Carles V.
El claustre és un dels elements més visitats de la catedral. Construït entre els segles XIV i XV, s’hi accedeix des de l’exterior des de dues portes, la de la Pietat i la de Santa Eulàlia, i des de l’interior per una porta romànica, l’origen de la qual es troba possiblement en la catedral anterior. És de planta quadrangular amb un jardí amb palmeres, magnòlies, un taronger i un brollador. Les tretze oques que hi viuen recorden Santa Eulàlia, que tenia tretze anys quan va ser martiritzada.
A la catedral de Barcelona hi ha les tombes, els altars i o les advocacions marianes de més de 140 sants, però els més importants són tres santes, Santa Helena, que es troba al cimbori; Santa Llúcia, a qui està dedicada la capella romànica; i Santa Eulàlia, la co-patrona de Barcelona, la tomba de la qual es troba a la magnífica cripta gòtica. També les 21 campanes de la catedral tenen nom de dona; una d’elles, l’Honorata, va passar a la història perquè va repicar per cridar a la rebel·lió de la ciutadania diverses vegades. La campana va ser malmesa durant un dels bombardejos del setge de 1714; el rei Felip V la va fer fondre com a represàlia per la revolta.
The Cathedral of the Holy Cross and Saint Eulalia (Catalan: Catedral de la Santa Creu i Santa Eulàlia), also known as Barcelona Cathedral, is the Gothic cathedral and seat of the Archbishop of Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain.[2] The cathedral was constructed from the thirteenth to fifteenth centuries, with the principal work done in the fourteenth century. The cloister, which encloses the Well of the Geese (Font de les Oques), was completed in 1448.[3] In the late nineteenth century, the neo-Gothic façade was constructed over the nondescript exterior that was common to Catalan churches.[4]
Its form is pseudo-basilica, vaulted over five aisles, the outer two divided into chapels. The transept is truncated. The east end is a chevet of nine radiating chapels connected by an ambulatory. The high altar is raised, allowing a clear view into the crypt.
The cathedral is dedicated to Eulalia of Barcelona, co-patron saint of Barcelona, a young virgin who, according to Catholic tradition, suffered martyrdom during Roman times in the city. One story says that she was exposed naked in the public square and a miraculous snowfall in mid-spring covered her nudity. The enraged Romans put her into a barrel with knives stuck into it and rolled it down a street (according to tradition, the one now called Baixada de Santa Eulàlia). The body of Saint Eulalia is entombed in the cathedral's crypt.
The choir stalls retain the coats-of-arms of the knights of the Order of the Golden Fleece. In his first trip into Spain, Charles, the future Holy Roman Emperor, selected Barcelona as the site of a chapter of his Order. The king had arrived for his investiture as Count of Barcelona, and the city, as a Mediterranean port, offered the closest communication with other far-flung Habsburg dominions, while the large proportions of the cathedral would accommodate required grand ceremonies. In 1518 the Order's herald, Thomas Isaac, and its treasurer, Jean Micault, were commissioned to prepare the sanctuary for the first sitting of the chapter in 1519. Juan de Borgonya executed the painted decoration of the sanctuary.
The side Chapel of the Holy Sacrament and of the Holy Christ of Lepanto contains a cross said to date from the time of the Battle of Lepanto (1571).[5]
In addition to Saints Eulàlia and Olegarius, the cathedral contains the tombs of Saint Raymond of Penyafort, Count Ramon Berenguer I and his third wife Almodis de la Marche, and bishops Berenguer de Palou II, Salvador Casañas y Pagés, and Arnau de Gurb, who is buried in the Chapel of Santa Llúcia, which he had constructed.
The cathedral has a secluded Gothic cloister where 13 white geese are kept, the number explained by the assertion that Eulalia was 13 when she was martyred.[5]
History
Parts of an early Christian and Visigothic episcopal complex including the baptistery (fourth century), a basilical hall (fifth century), a cross shaped church (sixth-seventh century) and bishop's palace (sixth-seventh century) are displayed in Barcelona City History Museum archaeological underground. Reportedly, this Visigothic chapel was dedicated to Saint James, and was the proprietary church of the Viscounts of Barcelona.[6] However, in a document from the Second Council of Barcelona in 599, it states that the cathedral was dedicated to the Holy Cross.[3] This church was severely damaged by al-Mansur (Almanzor) during his attack on Barcelona in 985.
In 1046, Count Ramon Berenguer I and his wife Almodis, together with Bishop Guislabert, began construction of a Romanesque cathedral at the site; it was consecrated in November 1058.[3] The cathedral was constructed over the crypt of the former church. It has been reported that a Viscount of Barcelona, Mir Geribert, sold the site to Bishop Guislebert in 1058,[6] though however, this date does not coincide with the reported start of construction.
The present Gothic cathedral was begun on the foundations of the previous churches on 1 May 1298; James II the Just was King of Aragon at the time, and Bernat Pelegri was Bishop of Barcelona. The church was built from the east end towards the west end, with a simple west façade completed in 1417. The cloister was completed in 1448, making the total duration of construction 150 years. In the late nineteenth century, Miguel Girona i Agrafel offered to complete the neo-Gothic façade and central tower as inspired by the original fifteenth-century design prepared by master Carlí and rearranged and drawn by the architect Josep O. Mestres. This work was completed in 1913 by Girona's children.[3]