Bigues i Riells

Bigues i Riells is a Catalan city in the province of Barcelona, in northeastern Spain. It is located in the comarca of Vallès Oriental.

Location

Bigues i Riells is located about 30 kilometers north of Barcelona, ​​in the valley of Tenes.

History

The settlement area was part of the Barony of Montbui and in 1857 with the merger of Bigues, Riells del Fai and Sant Mateu de Montbui an independent municipality. The first church was mentioned in 1059. The present church of Sant Pere comes from in 1737.

Policy

The municipal election in 2007 resulted in the following distribution of seats in the local council:

Economy and Transport

A large part of the municipal area consists of hilly pine forests and pastures. The economic life is essentially characterized by agriculture. Is grown mainly cereals, wine and olives. In addition, sheep and cattle is operated. In the city there is a large slaughterhouse and medium-sized food and textile industry.

Culture and sights

This former Benedictine monastery of Sant Miquel del Fai is like an eagle's nest on a rocky slope. Built into a cave monastery church is the largest underground church in Spain.

The monastery was founded in the year 1000 by Gombau de Besoraden, the then Lord of Montbui. In order to secure the continued existence of the monastery after his death, he merged the Catalan monastery and the monastery of Saint -Victor in Marseille.

The community always consisted of a few, usually five or six monks. 1567, the monastery was dissolved and converted into a sanctuary, which was maintained by the surrounding villages. Today it is privately owned.