_Notes FROM HISTORY There are records of Vic from the 4th century B.C., when under the name of Ausa it was the centre of the Iberian tribe of the Ausetans. Later, under Roman occupation, it became a city forced to pay tribute. A sign of its importance was the fact that it became a borough and also that the temple was built there in the 2nd century at the highest point of the city. During the rule of the Visigoths, Ausa became a see. Then after the Saracen invasion, the city was destroyed in 826 in Aisó's rebellion against the supporters of the Franks. The repopulation of the plain of Vic and the creation of the county of Osona by Count Guifré el Pilós in 878, meant that the ancient Ausa was rebuilt, of which only the walls of the Roman Temple were left standing which had been used to build the castle. The new settlement adopted the name of Vicus Ausonae, which means suburb of Ausona, from where the name of Vic was derived. As the town was restored so was its see and the Cathedral was built in the lower part. In 1038, Bishop Oliba consecrated the Romanesque Cathedral of which today the crypt and the bell-tower are still remaining. The privatisation of public power peculiar to the medieval period meant that the city of Vic was divided into two parts, the first which was initially under the sway of the bishop which he handed over to the King in 1316 and the other under the sway of the lords of the castle: the Montcadas. This division strongly influenced the life of the town which grew up around the Cathedral, the Castle and the Market Place and was surrounded by a wall with towers, reconstructed in the 14th century. In 1450, King Alfons el Magnànim bought the Montcadas' part of the city from them and thus united it. The acute problems of the early Middle Ages, the fights between different factions, of whom the most notable were the “nyerros” and the “cadells” and the wars with France, stunted the growth of the city. The defeat of the supporters of the Arch-duke of Austria in the War of Succession in 1714 caused further chaos for Vic, which had taken his side from the beginning. The economic and demographic revival of the 18th century enabled the city to grow and favoured the appearance of important workshops of sculpture and architecture and permitted the building of numerous secular and religious buildings including that of the present day cathedral. During the 19th century the effects of the French War and the Carline Wars added to the economic crisis and led several industries to move to the basin of the river Ter. However, the town recovered, thanks to among other things the boost that was given it from building and from the railway line which linked Vic to Barcelona in 1875. In this period, a great cultural revival was given with the opening of the Seminary, which followed in the tradition of the former Cathedral school in the medieval period and the University of Literature in the 17th century. Amongst the many students of the Seminary are names such as Jaume Balmes, Saint Antoni M. Claret and Jacint Verdaguer. Drawn together in associations such as the Literary Circle or the “Esbart de Vic”, they and many others through their works helped Vic to have a prestigious role in the literary and political renaissance of the country. After the interruption that the Civil War and the Post-war period caused in the middle of the 20th century, the city has regained the influence it has traditionally held within the context of Catalonia. General information: Oficina de Turisme de Vic Carrer de la Ciutat, 4. 08500 Vic, Barcelona Tel. +34 93 886 20 91 Fax: +34 93 889 26 37 e-mail: turisme@ajvic.net http://www.victurisme.com