Sabadell (Catalan pronunciation:[səβəˈðeʎ]) is a city and municipality inCatalonia,Spain. It is in the south of thecomarca ofVallès Occidental, where it is one of the two capitals, the other beingTerrassa. It is located on theRiver Ripoll, 20 km (12 mi) north ofBarcelona, 190 m (620 ft) above sea level.
Sabadell pioneered theIndustrial Revolution inCatalonia with itstextile mills, together with its archrival Terrassa. Thus, in the mid-19th century, it became the most important wool city in Spain, being nicknamed the "CatalanManchester". Today many mills from that period can still be seen, with most of them having been refurbished as residential buildings or other services. Nowadays, Sabadell is basically a commercial and industrial city; there are no significant agricultural activities.
A railroad line crosses the city (theRodalies Barcelona line from Barcelona toLleida) and another one terminates in the city (theFGC line from Barcelona to Sabadell via Sant Cugat del Vallès).
In Roman times, a little village calledArragone existed near where the church of La Salut now stands. This grew into the town calledArraona orArrahona in theMiddle 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 the town, devoted especially towoolen clothing. The woolen industry grew over the next centuries, and in 1800 the town's population was about 2000 people.
The 19th century brought two important developments to the town: in 1856 the railway 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 woolen clothing in Spain, and these clothes achieved worldwide fame.
Themodernisme movement (related toArt Nouveau) had an important influence in the architecture of the city in the early 20th century and distinctive buildings such as themodernista Hotel Suís (1902), Despatx Lluch (1908), and the Caixa d'Estalvis de Sabadell (1915), as well as the Torre de l'Aigua (1918) and theMercat Central (1930), were built during the first half of the century.
In the early 20th century, Sabadell, withTerrassa, was the textile city par excellence, being the driving force of a territory poor in natural resources. The population was multiplied by eight, its industry boosted, particularly textiles and metals, and its economy was modernized in the service sector. Due to this industrial activity, Sabadell received massive waves of immigration in the 1950s, 1960s and early 1970s leading to uncontrolled urban expansion and the creation of some new neighborhoods such as Ca n'Oriac and Torre-Romeu.
There has always been since those days a rivalry between Terrassa and Sabadell, because both of them wanted to be capitals of the Vallés Occidental, as both were pretty relevant while this rise textile industry. Nowadays, still there are some popular sayings: "Sabadell mala pell" (Sabadell bad skin) and "Terrassa mala raça" (Terrassa bad race).[4]
The growth of industry and population favored the emergence of an importantworkers' movement, andCatalanist, socialist and anarchist parties were very influential up until the upheavals of theSpanish Civil War (1936–39). The victory of the Fascist faction in the war was a step backwards for the city, but in the fifties industry recovered and grew once more. Industries needed workers, and many people came fromAndalusia,Murcia,Extremadura,Castile and other parts ofSpain to work in the textile and the metal industry. Again, a new workers' and Catalanist movement emerged, this time againstFrancisco Franco's regime and with the support of theRoman Catholic Church.
Sabadell was the host of some sessions of theAssemblea de Catalunya, a multi-party organization that brought together communists, socialists, Catalan nationalists, Catholics and others against the Franco regime. The1973 oil crisis and Franco's death in 1975 meant an important change inSpain and, of course, in Sabadell. The economic crisis compelled the city to diversify its economic activities. New commercial and leisure areas (theEix Macià) appeared next to the traditional industries, leading to important economic development for the city. AnETAcar bombing in 1990killed sixpolice officers.
The city covers an area of 37.79 km2 (14.59 sq mi) and its population density is 5,337.57/km2 (13,824.2/sq mi) as of 2007. The altitude is 200 metres (660 ft).[5]
During the1992 Barcelona Olympic Games, Sabadell was one of the cities where the football competition took place. The matches were played in the Nova Creu Alta stadium, which is also home to the main football club in town:Centre d'Esports Sabadell. This local team, currently in theSegunda División, has played 14 seasons in thePrimera División (First Division), once in theUEFA Cup and has even reached the final of theCopa del Rey.
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