In 1401 the Council of One Hundred, the former government of Barcelona, decided to build the Hospitalde la Santa Creu merging and centralizing six hospitals in the city. The complex, designed by Guillem d'Abriell, was planned on a grand scale in the form of four two-story wings surrounding a central patio. The east wing, north wing and the west wing were built. In spite of the elapsed time they all have the same layout: ground floor covered with curved vaults that are very low with brick plates and upper floor with a double-sloped wooden beam on lightly pointed diaphragm arches. In front of the three wings the galleries of the cloister were arranged, with rib vault. During the 16th and early 17th centuries, one of the four wings was demolished, two more wings were added and another court was built adjacent to the first, and this still retains the monumental stairs that now give access to the Biblioteca de Catalunya. In 1703, Antoni Viladomat, one of the most significant Catalan painters of the Baroque period painted the chapel of Saint Paul. In 1763, in front of the Casa de Convalescència, the College of Surgeons was built, by Ventura Rodríguez. By the end of the 19th century, the hospital had become outdated because of the growth of the city and advances that had been made in medicine and hygiene, so it was moved to a new site at the Hospital de Sant Pau, built between 1902 and 1930. A month before the hospital was closed down in 1926, Antoni Gaudí died here three days after he was hit by a tram. In 1926 the building was purchased by the City Council, who began restoring it. It now houses the Biblioteca de Catalunya, the Institut d'Estudis Catalans, the Escola Massana art school and two public libraries run by the Diputació de Barcelona. On June 3, 1931 it was declared a Monument of National Historic and Artistic Interest.
Architecture
The oldest part of the Hospital de la Santa Creu is an impressive example of Catalan civil-Gothic architecture. The interior boasts several large vaulted halls. Also of note is the cross vaulted Galeria del pati, which borders the inner garden, and the arched entrance to the library at the patio, built in the sixteenth century.
