Struggle for Catalonia

In 2012 on Catalonia’s National Day, the Diada, an enormous crowd calling for Catalan independence took over the heart of Barcelona. On the back of this show of force, Catalonia’s governing politicians turned secessionist claims into a new headache for a Madrid government only just recovering from the near-meltdown of Spain’s financial system. Five years on, the separatist challenge has neither come to fruition, nor faded away. The Struggle for Catalonia looks at how and why Catalan separatism reached the top of Spain’s political agenda, as well as its connection to the broader European malaise generated by flawed political responses to financial and other crises. Through extensive travel and reporting, as well as dozens of interviews with leading Catalan personalities, Raphael Minder gives a cultural history of the region, showing how the reshaping of Catalan identity is being played out everywhere, from football clubs to the world of haute cuisine.