Located almost in the geographic centre of Catalonia, Manresa has always played a crucial role in central Catalonia. Even though it's located in the Bages Plain, the city's neighbourhoods are spread out over several hills. And on one of these hills (with the telling name of Puigmercadal), you can find the former monastery of Carmelite friars, today Manresa Xanascat hostel.

History

Manresa peaked back in the fourteenth century, a ‘great century’ of economic, demographic and urban growth. Many civil works were built then, including the New Bridge and the Sèquia de Manresa mediaeval canal, as well as Gothic-style religious buildings like the cathedral and many churches, convents and monasteries. 

Within this expansion, in 1306 the city council asked the Carmelite friars to move to the current capital of Bages. They took two years to decide and then had their monastery built on Puigmercadal hill. Construction was finally completed in 1311, when they moved into the monastery. But the architectural complex also included Carme church, built in 1322 by Berenguer Montagut,1 and a cloister which was still being worked on in 1346. Carme monastery has always been closely associated with the life and history of the city, so much so that Manresa has a festival dedicated to a miracle that supposedly happened in 1345 in Carme church: the Festival of the Mysterious Light.2 

During the War of the Spanish Succession in the eighteenth century, Manresa was occupied by the Bourbon army, which set fire to the city. Later, the monastery's Gothic cloister was torn down and a neoclassical one was constructed in its place using the building materials of its former version. 

In fact, the friars remained at Carme until early in the second third of the nineteenth century, when - because of the stark tensions stemming from the First Carlist War or the Seven Years’ War - religious communities all over Catalonia left the country right before the famous burning of the convents in 1835. Shortly thereafter, the building came to be owned by the Manresa City Council, which made it into a school for children. 

In 1936, with the Civil War, the church that was part of the complex was once again torn down, although it was later rebuilt. The fact that it has been torn down and rebuilt several times means that the church is currently an amalgam of different architectural trends and styles, combined in a very special way. In fact, after the Civil War, Franco's troops even used it as their barracks until it was given back to the City Council in 1965. 
After that, the Carme monastery was used as a municipal warehouse and for other services. Finally, by 1990, the former monastery needed major remodelling because the ravages of history had left it in poor condition. Within this complex, only the monastery was turned into the Carme Youth Hostel, which also serves as a student residence. 

1. Architect of the Manresa cathedral, Barcelona’s Santa Maria del Mar and the cathedral of Mallorca. 
2. Tradition has it that on 21 February 1345, a strange light coming from Montserrat could be seen that entered Carme church, while at the same time the church bells started tolling on their own. This miracle was needed so that the bishop of Vic could authorise construction of the canal in order to palliate the effects of the terrible drought.

Architecture

The building within the Carme monastery has been given an extensive facelift to house the hostel. This renovation tore down one of the wings and a floor added above it, which were seriously deteriorated. Likewise, a new wing was built, which houses the auditorium. The structure of the facilities is characterised by its L-shape, with very thick walls and simple openings. It also features a tower, from which you can catch glimpses of Montserrat and the Pyrenees. 

In 1995, the partial changes to the building meant that part of the facility could be used as a student residence.