Cistercian monasteries: Poblet and Santa Cruz.
The Royal Monastery of Santa Maria de Poblet (monastery Santa Maria de Poblet) or simply the Poblet monastery is one of the wonders of Cistercian architecture in Spain, the most famous and greatest monastery of the Cistercian triangle. It was a royal monastery and the richest of the monasteries, which was practically an independent principality. In the 19th century, the monastery was destroyed, looted, and remained in ruins for a long time. The abandoned Poblet inspired the young Antoni Gaudí and two of his companions and taught them a lot. The boys dreamed of restoring this symbol of Catalan spirituality and conceived a grand project for the restoration of the monastery. Of course, the friends had neither the strength nor the money to bring it to life. But for Gaudí, it was his first architectural laboratory, and it is believed that the stones of Poblet became the foundation for the outstanding creations of the Catalan genius.
The Monastery of Santa Cruz (Holy Cross), founded in the 12th century, today does not serve its original purpose (it was closed in the mid-19th century). In Santa Cruz are buried famous Catalan figures: Queen Margarita de Prades, King Jaume II, and King Pedro II.
