During the fourteenth century, the Carmelite
fathers erected a Church on the highest hill
of the town, the Puig Mercadal, the Gothic
temple, El Carme. With the financial support
of Alfonso the Benign, the works began in 1322
under the direction of Berenguer de Montagut.
The church was 75 metres long, 22 wide and
36 high. The construction of the baroque
altarpiece of the high altar in the seventeenth
century brought together artists such as the
painter Pere Cuquet.
The convent and cloister were renovated in the
neoclassical style in the eighteenth century.
After the secularisation of the Carmelites,
in 1835 the convent was turned into a school.
In 1849 it was converted into military barracks,
a function that it would keep until 1965. It was
demolished during the Civil War and during the
demolition work, some ceramics, decorated
in green and manganese, were discovered.
They can currently be admired in the Regional
Museum of Manresa. Several capitals and
keystones are also on display in the Manresa
1522 Exhibition: Ignatius’ city. In 1990 it was
made into the Youth Hostel it still is today.
According to tradition, it was one of the sites
where Ignatius worshipped.
The mysterious light
According to local tradition, on the 21st
February 1345, a ray of light came down
from Montserrat and illuminated the Church
of El Carme. This fact was used to bring
an end to the dispute which had arisen
between the City and Bishop of Vic following
the construction of the Sequia Canal.
This canal, which had been necessary to
alleviate the severe drought that Manresa
was undergoing, had to pass through lands
belonging to the Bishop of Vic, who was not
keen on the idea. After the appearance of
the mysterious light, the Bishop retracted
and allowed the construction work to
resume. People in Manresa continue
celebrating this legendary episode with a big
popular festival and a spectacular medieval
fair, the Hoe Fair, which takes place during
the weekend following the 21st February.
