Barcelona Cathedral and the tombs of Ramon and Almodis (his wife)

You are at the heart of the Gothic Quarter, standing before a majestic cathedral where two velvet and brass coffins hang on the wall. Inside rest Count Ramon Berenguer I and Almodis de la Marche, a medieval power couple whose partnership changed this region forever. Ramon became Count at just 12 years old in 1035. In 1046, he and his wife Almodis began building a Romanesque cathedral on this very site, replacing a church destroyed by Moorish raids in 985.

The current Gothic cathedral you see was built starting in 1298 on the foundations of their earlier work. Their marriage in 1053 scandalized Europe. Both were already married to others, and the Pope excommunicated them for double bigamy. Yet Almodis became one of medieval Europe's most powerful women.

She co ruled the county and co authored the Usages around 1068, the first comprehensive legal code written for this territory. Their success bred jealousy. Ramon's son from his first marriage, Pere Ramon, feared Almodis would replace him with her own twin sons. On October 16, 1071, he murdered his stepmother. Pere was exiled for the crime. When Ramon died in 1076, the county was divided between Almodis's twins, though one later murdered his brother.