Església de Betlem: The Rambla of the University
Why is it significant?
Stop in front of the massive stone facade at the corner of Carrer del Carme, carved all over with diamond-shaped blocks, as if the church were wearing armour. This is the Església de Betlem, the Church of Bethlehem, one of the very few baroque churches in a city that mostly skipped the baroque.
Key Facts
| Place | Església de Betlem: The Rambla of the University |
|---|---|
| Address | La Rambla 107, 08002 Barcelona, Spain |
| Geo Coordinates | 41.38290, 2.17140 |
| Part of Walk | La Rambla and El Raval: Barcelona's River of Sand, Opera Bombs and Gaudí's Last Days |
| Generated | Generated |
Stop in front of the massive stone facade at the corner of Carrer del Carme, carved all over with diamond-shaped blocks, as if the church were wearing armour. This is the Església de Betlem, the Church of Bethlehem, one of the very few baroque churches in a city that mostly skipped the baroque.
First, notice which stretch of La Rambla you are on. This is the Rambla dels Estudis, the Rambla of Studies. For centuries Barcelona's university, the Estudi General, stood on this stretch. After Barcelona fell to the Bourbon army in 1714, King Philip the Fifth closed the Catalan universities and moved higher education to the small town of Cervera, far inland. The name of the street is the only thing that stayed behind.
The church itself was built by the Jesuits between the late seventeenth and the early eighteenth century, and they wanted it to impress. Inside it once glowed with gilded altarpieces, marble and paintings, one of the richest interiors in the city. The Jesuits did not enjoy it for long: in 1767 King Charles the Third expelled the whole order from Spain, and the church passed to the diocese.
Then came July 1936. In the first days of the Civil War, the church was set on fire, and almost everything inside burned: the altarpieces, the paintings, the carvings. What you see from the outside survived because it is stone. The interior today is plain and quiet, rebuilt after the war, and the contrast between that armoured facade and the bare nave says a great deal about those years.
Before you move on, glance along the Rambla dels Estudis, once also nicknamed the Rambla of the Birds, because cages of songbirds were sold along it for generations. Now turn right into Carrer del Carme, beside the church, and then right again up Carrer dels Àngels. In a few minutes the narrow street opens onto a dazzling white square.