Logbook · 8 places

What to see and do in Bassella

What to see and do in Bassella (Alt Urgell, Lleida): 8 places across monuments, nature, activities and curiosities, with a photo and a Google Maps location.

1 Villages · 6 Monuments · 1 Activities

How far each place is from the centre of Bassella

Towns near Bassella

What to see in Tiurana 4.5 km · 2 places
What to see in Peramola 6.2 km · 5 places
What to see in Oliana 7 km · 6 places
What to see in Castellar de la Ribera 10 km · 5 places
What to see in Vilanova de l'Aguda 11 km · 1 place
What to see in la Baronia de Rialb 12 km · 4 places
What to see in Pinell de Solsonès 12 km · 4 places
What to see in Ponts 13 km · 7 places

Spain › Catalonia › Lleida › Alt Urgell › Bassella

What to see and do in Bassella

Bassella
Village
Bassella is a municipality in the south of the Alt Urgell, in the province of Lleida, with a notable number of termenat castles and old towers, and 216 inhabitants. Already documented in 1084 as a fief of the Bassella family, it was the municipality most affected by the construction of the Rialb reservoir: its old settlement, known as Castellnou de Bassella, disappeared under the water when the reservoir began to fill in 1999, and its residents scattered towards Oliana, Ponts and Solsona. The parish church, dedicated to the Virgen de la Asunción and known as la Garrola, is of Romanesque origin, remodelled in the Baroque period; at La Clua another 12th-century Romanesque church is preserved, dedicated to San Sebastián. Since 2002, Bassella has housed a motorcycle museum with more than a hundred pieces.
Castle of la Clua
Monument
Castle of vernacular architecture datable to around the 13th century with possible earlier precedents, built under a natural rock overhang; it preserves a wall 100 cm thick and 8.5 m long with three interior levels, though voussoirs and jambs of the original round-arched entrance have disappeared. It belonged to the Meià family and passed through the Cerverus and Rocaspana families; in 1312 James II incorporated it into the Crown, in the 17th century it was half habitable, and it ended up in the hands of the Gomes family.
Castle of Altés
Monument
Romanesque castle documented since 968 ("castro autes") and again in 1118, with well-cut ashlars adapted to the natural rock; it preserves west- and south-facing walls between 3 and 7 m high, though much of the material was reused in later buildings. The neighboring church of Sant Pere d'Altés is completely in ruins. Controlled by the Miró family in the 11th-12th centuries, it passed to the Josa family from the 13th to the 18th century, in dispute with the Peramola family. A Bien Cultural de Interés Nacional (Catalonia's top heritage-protection category) (521-MH).
Castellnou de Bassella
Monument
Castellnou de Bassella was a village in the municipal district of Bassella (Alt Urgell), located next to the old road from Ponts to Oliana, on the left bank of the River Segre. It formed a joint municipality with Aguilar de Bassella and la Clua d'Aguilar in the 19th century; the churches of Bassella, Guardiola and Mirambell were dependent on its parish church, dedicated to Sant Simeó. The village, whose population was 44 people in 1996, was gradually evacuated and its houses demolished: today it lies submerged beneath the waters of the Rialb reservoir, which began flooding the area when the gates were closed in 1999. That same year the remains of the medieval necropolis were exhumed and moved along with a dolmen known locally as the Dolmen del Perotillo.
Castle of Aguilar (Alt Urgell)
Monument
Romanesque castle documented since 1084 (some sources cite 1043), with a circular tower of reddish stone and a walled precinct with a central street linking dwellings; today it preserves several walls and the tower, while the neighboring Romanesque church of Sant Sadurní has almost completely collapsed. Having lost its military function, it became a civilian settlement; in 1653 Louis XIV granted the title of marquis of Aguilar to Josep de Margarit i de Biure. It should not be confused with the castles of the same name in l'Aude (France) or Aguilar de Segarra (Bages).
Towers of Ogern
Monument
Two towers in the settlement of Ogern, in the municipality of Bassella (Alt Urgell): the Ca l'Isidro tower and the Cal Ganyet tower, remnants of an old fortification and now converted into a dwelling and a defence tower. They are rectangular towers with machicolations, from the 15th-16th centuries, integrated into the urban centre. The site is documented since 1094, when Ermessendis, widow of the lord of Abella Castle, bequeathed by will the 'kastrum de Ugerno' to her son Gerbert Miró; the will was sworn on the altar of Sant Salvador d'Ogern, which suggests that the castle was then a family residence. In 1259 King James the Conqueror spent a few days there, and in 1559 Joan de Josa i de Cardona styled himself lord of Ogern.
Bassella Main Festival
Activity
The fiesta mayor of Bassella is celebrated in a town that has, since 2002, been home to the first motorcycle museum of the Països Catalans, with close to two hundred machines, including the OSSA 250 Monocasc of Santiago Herrero.
Museum of la Moto de Bassella
Monument
Opened in February 2002 by Estanis Soler from the collection of motorcycles restored by his father, the collector Màrius Soler, it was the first museum in the Catalan Countries devoted solely to the motorcycle, and it is recognized as one of the best of its kind in Europe. The building was constructed with materials salvaged from the old houses of the village of Bassella, which disappeared beneath the waters of the Rialb reservoir in the year 2000. It brings together nearly two hundred machines from every era and specialty, among them the OSSA 250 Monocasc that Santiago Herrero was riding when he suffered his fatal accident at the Isle of Man Tourist Trophy in 1970, and a 1957 Sanglas with sidecar, the RACC's first road-assistance vehicle.