In the town charter, issued in 986 by Count Borrell II of Barcelona, the inhabitants of the castle and municipal area were granted “always clean business, legal trade and a pure single currency”. Cardona and its castle at that time were at a strategic point on the frontier with Al-Andalus, and positioned at a crossroads that enjoyed exceptional freedoms as a centre for mining and trading salt in a western Europe that was expanding economically. The combination of these factors explain the development of this commercial burgh, which became the centre for a major market and meeting point for travellers (merchants, pilgrims, etc.) who came from the Pyrenees and from southern France.
The Cardona Medieval Centre was created in 2005 as an interpretive resource for explaining the birth and growth of the town of Cardona, following council policy on protection and promotion of the old town centre.
This centre is located directly opposite the Old Town on a square called Plaça de la Fira (Fair Square). It is an interpretative centre for the town and its history. There are a wide a range of activities for visitors, such as a guided tour of the town’s historic centre and an audiovisual presentation on “Cardona and its Lords of the Salt”.
