5/21/2023 0 Comments The house on the borderland![]() ![]() When the Principality of Catalonia, which for centuries had straddled both sides of the Pyrenees, came under the rule of Spanish monarchs, so did its lands to the north. As part of this, the Franco-Spanish War ran on from 1635 to 1659. ![]() Yet, the history of this border owes as much to war and diplomacy as it does to geology.Ĭlose to 400 years ago, Central Europe was caught up in a decades-long conflict that would come to be known as the Thirty Years’ War. ![]() Welcome to Llívia, a little patch of Spain stranded in France and one of Europe’s oldest enclaves.Īt first glance, the present-day border between France and Spain seems to be defined by obvious natural features, with the imposing Pyrenees mountain range – including several peaks that top 10,000 feet – forming a clear divide between the neighboring countries. The view from the castle is so magnificent that it’s easy to understand why warring empires didn’t want to concede this gentle green valley, tucked between the snow-capped peaks of the Catalan Pyrenees.Īlthough it’s hard to tell from this vantage point just why this piece of land was once the last missing piece in a geopolitical puzzle of continental proportions. ![]()
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