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In this episode of 80 Days: An Exploration Podcast we’ll be talking about Montserrat in Catalonia, Spain, a spectacular mountain range not far from Barcelona. Montserrat was “Montserrat” literally means “serrated mountain” in Catalan, and the name accurately describes its bizarre and unique aspect with a multitude of jagged rock formations that are visible from a great distance. This spot is best known today for the Benedictine Monastery Santa Maria de Montserrat, located about 45 km northwest of Barcelona, and the the statue of the Virgin Mary within that lends its name to the monastery, which has its own unique story to tell. Montserrat has been of significance for centuries, bearing witness to Catalan and Spanish history from its lofty mount and even becoming entwined in some of the most decisive conflicts to have swept across the Iberian Peninsula since the Monastery was founded in 1025, including the Napeolonic wars and the brutal fighting pre and post the Spanish Civil War. In terms of poulation, there are less than 100 monks who make their permanent home here, but up to two million tourists flock here each year to scale the mountain and take in the history and legacy of the monastery, including quite recently, two of the co-hosts of this episode.

Your hosts, as always, are Luke Kelly @thelukejkelly in Dublin, Ireland and Joe Byrne @anbeirneach in Dublin, Ireland, joined in this epiosde by John Killeen in Hastings, UK. Our theme music and other stings come from Thomas O’Boyle @thatthomasfella.

Some further reading material is provided below:

The official Montserrat website has plenty of useful info on this place.
More info on the geology and formation of the Giants of Montserrat
The monastery’s website also has some extensive early history.
Another official website is that of the Escolania Choir, based at Montserrat.
ForeverBarcelona asks — Who is the Black Madonna Our Lady of Montserrat?
Want to know more about those hermits? Hermitary.com (who knew?) has you covered.
The story of the drummer boy is detailed (in Spanish and Catalan) on the Barcelona Unviersity website.
You can also learn more about the Peninsular War here at the National Army Museum.
Learn more about the rise of Franco on the Real Dictators podcast.
For more on the failure of catalanist opposition to Franco see this paper.
A historical video of the relogious ceremonies at Montserrat is here on archive.org
Also on archive.org — the first visit by a Pope to Montserrat, as well as his homily.

Music includes:

Virolai, the Catalan Anthemm performed by Escolania de Montserrat

Thanks to all our patrons who support the show. We really appreciate your continued backing of us. If you want to join them, more information is available at www.patreon.com/80dayspodcast

S03E02 San Marino Audio

In this episode we’ll be talking about the Most Serene Republic of San Marino, the world’s oldest constitutional republic, and a country that is, in itself, a historical oddity. Similarly to other European microstates, such as Monaco, Liechtenstein and Andorra it’s a relic of a time when borders were formed based on the area that a cannon could reach from a city’s walls. Founded on the slopes of Mount Titano in 301 AD, this tiny republic has seen the rest of Europe consolidate around it, surviving attacks by other self-governing Italian city-states, the Napoleonic Wars, the unification of Italy, and two world wars. Today, it’s borders are entirely enclosed by Italy, making it one of only three countries in the world to be enclosed by another nation.

It is the smallest independent state in Europe after Vatican City and Monaco and, until the independence of Nauru (1968), was the smallest republic in the world, at just 61 square kilometre (23.6 square miles). Tourism dominates the economy of modern day San Marino. which plays host to more than three million visitors every year, while the republic is home to just over 30,000 people.

Your hosts, as always, are Luke Kelly @thelukejkelly in Hong Kong, Mark Boyle @markboyle86 in the UK, and Joe Byrne @anbeirneach in Switzerland . (Theme music by Thomas O’Boyle @thatthomasfella)

Here are a few things you may want to read/watch more about:

Of general interest: “Two Quaint Republics, Andorra and San Marino” by Virginia W. Johnson (1913); Video Profile of the country by Rick Steeves shows great footage of the mountain; “The Republic of San Marino“, p. 285 onwards, The Month vol. 26, 1876; Summary of the history ‘from Saint to State’;
There are a few versions of the various stories of how the man San Marino came to this place: some examples online include SanMarinoSite.com, Catholic Saints, and the story about the bears can be found here.
Listen to the excellent episode of “In Our Time with Melvyn Bragg” all about the history of Constantine the Great and how Rome went from persecuting to promoting Christianity almost overnight.
The monk Eugippius’ biography of St Severus, including one of the earliest written references to San Marino‘s community at Monte Titano
What are Captains Regent?
The occupation of Cardinal Guilio Alberoni
An article on Hidden Europe about Gaspard Monge‘s diplomatic mission to San Marino on behalf of General Napoleon Bonaparte, who was camped nearby
If you’d like to know more about the use of the Roman fasces symbol and how it was co-opted by fascists, this page about its role in various flags around the world might be of interest
Newreel footage from the Fatti di Rovereta coup d’etat is here, and a 1957 article in Life magazine describes it.
Video of crossbow competitions in costume, and performances of the Federazione Balestrieri Sammarinesi in San Marino and in a Shanghai Tourism Expo
Some thoughts from Reddit about San Marino’s soccer prowess...

Music you heard was from the following sources:

2010 Mediaeval Festival in San Marino
Street musicians in San Marino
Little Tony and His Brothers “O Che Tipo Rock” (1960); the rock star was a Sammiranese citizen
“Puzzle pieces” by Lee Rosevere, used under Creative Commons 4.0 License (by attribution)

A massive thanks to all of our patrons on Patreon who are supporting season 3. If you’d like to join them and see what rewards are available for supporters, and get a peek behind the curtain check out www.patreon.com/80dayspodcast. We really appreciate every penny!