L'Espluga de Francolí

Surrounded by the Francolí River and the Prades mountains is Espluga de Francolí, a town in the Conca de Barberà region located in the interior of the province of Tarragona.

Its name comes from the Latin “ spelunca ” which means cave. It has complete significance since in 1853, the Font Major cave was discovered in this territory. This cave has been classified as a "large cavity", exceeding 3,590 meters of galleries. In addition, an underground river runs through it that comes out through the main fountain. This source is considered the source of the Francolí River. Also, since the cave was discovered, an archaeological site was found that justifies the presence of man in it.

The town has several museums and visitable spaces such as the Cuevas de l'Espluga, where you can take a guided tour inside these cavities; the Tierra Museum, to learn about the past, present and future of the rural world, the Fassina Balanyà, an old brandy factory and the Templera and Hospitalera Route through the old town of the town.

Also, highlight the old hospital of the order of Sant Joan. This was created by the Knights Hospitaller between the 15th and 16th centuries.

Going into history, it is said that in 1837 the remains of the Catalan kings were hidden under the stairs of the old church of Sant Miquel, as they had been desecrated in the Monastery of Poblet. This was burned down during the third Carlist wars in 1873.

The proximity of the Poblet monastery and the fact that it is of great importance has led to the incorporation of various services to the population to complement it. However, traditionally the economy of this municipality was based on agriculture.

Regarding the natural environment of this town we can see that, on the one hand, the forest (south) predominates and on the other the mountains, fields and streams predominate. In the middle of this panorama is hidden the hermitage of the Holy Trinity.

Attractions

The Caves of l'Espluga, The extensive Cova runs through the subsoil of the current nucleus of l'Espluga de Francolí. The speleological explorations that began in 1956 have made it possible to explore and survey 3,600 meters of galleries to date, making it one of the longest caves in the world formed in conglomerate rock.

The archaeological finds inside these cavities demonstrate their occupation since the Paleolithic and throughout history. The last discovery was on October 30, 2019, when a team from IPHES (Catalan Institute of Paleoecology and Social Evolution) found a Paleolithic sanctuary made up of more than 300 engravings, the oldest from more than 36,000 years ago.

This sanctuary becomes the oldest discovered to date in Catalonia, making this date a reference in the history of Catalan archaeology. However, visits are currently not allowed in this space, but you can understand and see images through an audiovisual.

Visits to Les Coves are always guided and a tour is taken through the different stages of prehistory in which human presence has been evident and the geological formation of the cavity is explained.

The Tierra Museum, with more than 5,000 square meters, the Tierra Museum is one of the leading ethnological museums in the country. It has an extensive permanent exhibition that allows you to learn what life was like in the rural world in Catalonia - and by extension, in the Mediterranean - before the industrial revolution, what it is like today and what it could be like in the future. In addition, it has a large ethnobotanical garden that becomes a magnificent recreational and educational space dedicated to the preservation of ancestral knowledge about plants and garden products.

The Museum acts as a cultural center, with a wide program of activities for all audiences and temporary exhibitions, and organizing major events.

The Modernist Winery was designed by Lluís Domènech i Montaner and built by his son Pere Domènech i Roura, in 1913. Due to its majesty, it is known as the “Cathedral of Wine”. Which cannot be visited right now.

Fassina Balanyà de la Espluga de Francolí was a family industry that was dedicated to the productive process of obtaining alcohol from the grape breeze. The factory, which dates back to the mid-19th century, was in operation until the 1950s and was closed due to various circumstances, one of which was the need for a major renovation that the owners could not undertake.

The old alcohol factory - factory of the breeze, the workers said - reopened its doors this year, 2009, with a very different function. It is one of the 25 industrial museums of the System of the National Museum of Science and Technology of Catalonia, where the operation of the fassina is shown during the years of the post-Spanish civil war and where the visitor can learn about the production processes to obtain alcohol and their derivatives from the breeze, the tools they used and the society of the people who participated. You can also capture the importance of this activity during the industrial revolution in Catalonia, which allowed an accelerated development of the industrial fabric.

Routes. From the Espluga de Francolí you can take different hiking routes through the Prades mountains, one of which takes us to the Santísima Trinidad, a place of leisure and recreation.

Gastronomy. We cannot forget the delicious sweets of Espluga, the famous carquiñoles, the fans and the wafers. Also be sure to try the Siurana DOP Oil or its Conca de Barberà DO wines.

OTHER VISITABLE POSITIONS

The Masías and the international Brigades

The memory space. Since 2022, the memory space of Les Masies and the International Brigades, located in the building of the L'Espluga Hostel by Francolí Xanascat, is part of the Network of Memory Spaces of the Democratic Memorial, under the ownership of the City Council of L'Espluga. Espluga de Francolí. The building can be visited and in the patio there are several panels installed in exhibition format about the farewell to the International Brigades and the period of the Civil War in Les Masies, a pedagogical tool promoted by the Los Monasterios del Cister Learning Camp.

On the outside of the building is the mural dedicated to the International Brigades, the work of graphic artist Roc BlackBlock. A mural that is part of the Murs de Bitàcola project. A collective memory initiative, which through mural art, illustrates episodes from the history of the International Brigades around the world. This is an initiative that links street art with historical heritage, as a pedagogical and visual tool that brings closer, makes visible and enhances the episodes of each community's memory.

A proposal that presents the reproduction of one of the images of the farewell of the International Brigades in Les Masies, by photographer Robert Capa, a large-format intervention that shows a group of brigade members.

Address:

Hostel L'Espluga de Francolí Xanascat Les Masies, s/n, road TV-7007 43440 L'Espluga de Francolí La Conca de Barberà, Tarragona

Visiting hours and other reference information:

The L'Espluga Hostel in Francolí Xanascat is open all year round, from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m.

Old church of Espluga de Francolí

The old church of Sant Miquel is a work from the beginning of the Gothic period, with notable Cistercian influences both in the structure and in the scarce and austere decorative elements: in this sense, it is worth noting the geographical proximity of the Cistercian monasteries of Poblet, Santes Cruces and Vallbona de les Monges.

In 1837 the remains of the Kings of the Crown of Aragon were hidden, buried in the Poblet Monastery, which had remained abandoned two years earlier during the revolutionary outbreak and the exclaustration of the monks.

In 1923 the church was declared a historical and artistic monument of the state and a Cultural Asset of National Interest. And in 1997, to mark the 700th anniversary of its construction, the bell tower was restored. Currently, you can climb freely to access the tower, headquarters of different confrontations and war sieges. Through an exhibition space you can learn about the history of the building, hear the ringing of historic bells and see the town from one of the main streets of the town.

Free visits with ascent to the bell tower on Saturdays, Sundays and holidays from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Guided tours on request at 616 620 006.