Village
Batea is a wine-growing town in the district of the Terra Alta, in Tarragona, with several castles and boundary towers. Located on the border with Aragon, in the Catalan Central Depression, its municipal area extends over valleys and mountains and along the banks of the river Algars, which rises in the Tortosa-Beceite mountains and flows into the Matarraña before reaching the Ebro; it is declared a Partial Nature Reserve. The oldest remains found in the municipality, on the hill of Moro del Borrasquer and at the Tossal de la Teuleria, date back to the Epipalaeolithic and Neolithic, between 9000 and 5500 BC. Its economy revolves around vine growing, along with olive trees, some centuries old, and almond trees, and wine production, mostly covered by the Terra Alta designation of origin.
Monument
Rectangular-plan tower, much altered by popular renovations, whose late Gothic-style window from the 16th century, on the west façade, is its most notable feature, together with a round-arched doorway bearing a coat of arms at the rear. According to tradition, it belonged to the castellan of Amposta, master of the Order of the Hospital, from whom it takes its popular name, although later documents, from the 17th century, also link it to Juan de Heredia, who litigated over its possession with the Hospitallers of Saint John. In 1781 it was recorded as a storehouse or tithe depot. It suffered the disorders of the Reapers' War and the plundering of the troops of the Marquis of Hinojosa. Today it is divided into four parts belonging to as many families.
Monument
15th-century tower or fortified house, rectangular in plan, located at the eastern edge of the present urban centre of Batea, which according to tradition provided lodging for King Martí l'Humà and his retinue. It is declared Bien Cultural de Interés Nacional (Spain's highest level of heritage protection). It preserves in elevation its enclosing perimeter walls, with repairs and modifications made after the initial construction; the main façade, facing west, is made of large ashlars, and on a side door the date 1445 can be seen carved. The rest of the building has become integrated into later constructions of the village.
Monument
The remains of the Templar castle of Algars stand next to the river of the same name, about seven kilometres west of Batea, reduced today to a heap of stones. The territories of Batea, Algars and Pinyeres formed, together with the castle of Almudéfer, the Templar sub-commandery of Algars, included in the donation that Ramon Berenguer IV made to the Temple in 1153. The order was slow to repopulate it due to lack of manpower, and in 1181 Alfonso the Troubadour granted Batea and Algars to people unconnected with the Temple, disregarding his father's donation; the order protested and the monarch again recognized its rights. In 1205 a settlement charter was granted to Batea, and in 1216 the Templar rights were confirmed. In 2025 an excavation brought to light fragments of Iberian stelae engraved with spears, an unprecedented find in this area of the Ebro.
Monument
Termenat castle that gives its name to Batea, documented since 1153 when Ramon Berenguer IV donated to the Templars the territory of Miravet that included it, a donation ratified in 1182; the Temple granted Batea a settlement charter in 1205 and a second one in 1244.
Monument
Fortified house in the hamlet of Pinyeres, in the municipality of Batea, probably originating in the 13th century or early 14th, when the Templars settled in the place, perhaps making use of an earlier building; together with Algars it formed part of the bailiwick of Miravet when the Hospitallers inherited the Templar estate in 1317, a forerunner of the future castellany of Amposta. It is a rectangular building with a gabled roof that accommodates the slope of the ground, with few openings, some of them arrow slits, and an oven next to the main door, added at a later time. Inside, the old entrance is preserved, a voussoired round arch topped by a relief with an ogee arch and a Maltese cross, and under the stairs a large circular ashlar cistern.
Monument
The hermitage of Batea is that of el Portal, dedicated to the Mare de Déu del Portal; according to local tradition, during the Guerra dels Segadors (1642) the residents took refuge there when attacked by the troops of commander Hinojosa, whom the Virgin is said to have blinded, causing his soldiers to flee.
Curiosity
The oil of Terra Alta is an extra virgin olive oil protected by a protected designation of origin, produced in the comarca of Terra Alta and in several municipalities of the Ribera d'Ebre, including Batea. It is obtained mainly from the empeltre variety, with a small share of arbequina, morruda and farga, giving a clear, yellowish oil of light to medium intensity, sweetish, somewhat bitter and pungent, with notes of almond and green walnut, more fruity at the start of the harvest. It has a maximum acidity of 0.5 degrees. Oil production in the comarca is old, although it was not the main crop until the modern era: it is estimated that in 1787 Batea produced about 350,000 litres, and by around 1900 olive groves already accounted for 28% of the area's crops.
Monument
Historic fountain in the town centre of Batea.
Historical milestone
The town was resettled in 1205 under the rule of the Order of the Temple, which administered these lands from the commandery of Miravet. The charter fixed the colonists' rights and the street layout of the old quarter.