Village
Martorell is a town in the Baix Llobregat, in the province of Barcelona, located at the confluence of the Llobregat and Anoia rivers, 34 kilometres from the Catalan capital. It has 29,175 inhabitants (INE 2025) and is known for the Pont del Diable and the castle of Rosanes, both in the district of la Vila, the historic core of the town. The municipality is divided into a southern zone, with the districts of la Mina, Pont del Diable, Rosanes and Portal d'Anoia, and an upper zone with districts such as El Pla or Can Cases. Its relief marks the transition between the Litoral mountain range and the flat depression of the Vallès-Penedès. It is also an important communications hub: the AP-7 and A-2 motorways, the R4 and R8 Cercanías commuter lines, and the Madrid-Barcelona AVE high-speed line all pass through the municipality.
Monument
A bridge over the Llobregat river at the entrance to Martorell, on the boundary with Castellbisbal, formerly called the bridge of Sant Bartomeu. Of Roman origin, it formed part of the Via Augusta and was built around 10 BC for the passage of ox carts, 130 metres in length; until the 14th century it was the only bridge in the lower Llobregat valley. From that period the foundations of the abutments survive, bearing carved marks of the legions that worked on it. The current bridge, with two unequal pointed-arch spans, is mostly Gothic work from the late 13th century (1283), restored in 1768 and 1933; destroyed during the Civil War, it was rebuilt in the 1950s. On the Castellbisbal side stands a Roman triumphal arch, very deteriorated despite its 1928 restoration. Both bridge and arch are declared a Bien Cultural de Interés Nacional (Catalonia's highest level of heritage protection).
Monument
The remains of the castle of Rocafort stand beside those of the monastery of Sant Genís de Rocafort, in the district of Martorell, on a hill of reddish Triassic sandstone, and are declared a Bien Cultural de Interés Nacional (Catalonia's highest level of heritage protection). The castle, documented since 1042, formed part of a line of fortresses and towers running parallel to the Anoia river -together with the castles of Subirats and Gelida- built to defend against Saracen raids and protect the monastery, founded that same year by the barons of Castellví. The community fell into decline in the 14th century, suffered severe damage in the 1448 earthquake and was secularised in 1534; of its church, the nave with a pointed barrel vault survives, along with a portal bearing the relief of a six-petalled flower.
Monument
The castle of Rosanes, or del Pairet, stands at 272 metres of altitude on the Serra de les Torretes, above Martorell, overlooking the Alt Penedès and the Baix Llobregat, and is declared a Bien Cultural de Interés Nacional (Catalonia's highest level of heritage protection). It was the head castle (castell termenat) of Martorell, whose name first appears documented in 1033 linked to this stronghold (castrum Rodanas). In 1103 Guillem Ramon de Castellvell granted it as a fief to Udalard Ramon, who enlarged the castle and adopted the name Ramon de Rodanes; under this fief, the Rosanes family had to serve the lords of Castellvell with three armed horses. The wall crowning the hill preserves its northern half well, with the remains of a buried cistern and traces of a tower at the southern end.
Monument
El Seny de les Hores, also called Torre de les Hores, is an old tower of the medieval wall of Martorell, in the Baix Llobregat region, next to the confluence of the Llobregat and Noia rivers. The clock that gives it its name was installed in the 17th century on the remains of one of the wall's towers, which might date back to the 12th-13th centuries, though this is hard to pin down. Until 1926 the tower was joined to the volta de les hores, a vault covering the passage of the street, which was demolished at that time. It is declared a Bien Cultural de Interés Nacional (Catalonia's highest level of heritage protection).
Monument
Also called the Torre Grimenella, it is a rectangular watchtower from the late Middle Ages, perhaps from the second half of the 13th century, on the Serra de les Torretes; Martorell is documented since 1033, and the barony was held by the Montcada family between 1228 and 1309, until King Martin the Humane incorporated it into the crown in 1396.
Monument
The Torreta del Clos, also called Torre del Clos, is a defensive tower of rectangular plan and massive forms located in the district of Martorell. Its origin is Roman, as indicated by ceramic remains found at its base, although it was rebuilt in 1874 on the occasion of the Third Carlist War. Beside the narrow entrance door it has a defensive sentry box, and around its whole perimeter two rows of arrow slits open up; the interior preserves the holes left by beams in the walls, and the top is plain except at the corners, where it has stepped battlements. Today it is in ruins.
Monument
A former Capuchin convent built between 1687 and 1700, occupied by the friars from 1686 until 1835, when it was sacked and burned; it later served as a barracks, as a girls' school run by the Mercedarian nuns between 1861 and 1870, and since 1945 it has housed the Vicenç Ros municipal museum.
Activity
The Festa Major of Martorell is celebrated from 14 to 16 August in honour of Santa Maria de l'Assumpta, patron saint of the town; 15 August, the feast of the Assumption, is the central day, with concerts, traditional dances and cultural events.
Historical milestone
In January 1939, during the Republican retreat, the bridges of Martorell were destroyed, including the medieval arch over the Llobregat raised on Roman foundations. The reconstruction restored its pointed profile in the nineteen sixties.
Historical milestone
The opening of the car plant in 1993 made Martorell the largest industrial centre of the Baix Llobregat and replaced the Barcelona factory of the Zona Franca. Together with Solvay and Cargill it sets the manufacturing profile of the municipality.