TL;DR: The history of Sagrada Familia Barcelona Spain starts in 1882 with a modest neo-Gothic design and becomes one of architecture’s most extraordinary stories once Antoni Gaudí takes over in 1883. Construction has run continuously, with one major interruption during the Civil War, for over 140 years.
The history of Sagrada Familia Barcelona Spain stretches across three centuries, five architects, a devastating fire, a civil war, and a project that should by any rational measure have been abandoned decades ago. It was not abandoned. Understanding why gives you a completely different relationship with the building when you visit it. This page traces the key events from the 1870s to the present day.
What is the history of Sagrada Familia Barcelona Spain in brief?
The project originated with the Asociación de Devotos de San José, a Catholic lay organization that wanted to build an expiatory church in Barcelona. Josep Maria Bocabella, the association’s founder, purchased land in the Eixample in 1881.
The first architect was Francisco de Paula del Villar, who designed a conventional neo-Gothic crypt. He resigned in 1883 after a dispute with the building committee. Antoni Gaudí, then 31 years old, took over that year and transformed the entire project.
Gaudí worked on the Sagrada Familia for 43 years, until his death in a tram accident in 1926. He gave up all other commissions after 1914 to devote himself entirely to the building. He died insolvent and was buried in the crypt he had built under the basilica floor.
Who was Antoni Gaudí?
Antoni Gaudí i Cornet was born in Reus, Catalonia, in 1852. He studied architecture in Barcelona and graduated in 1878. His early career included residential commissions that already showed his idiosyncratic approach to structural form and decoration.
Gaudí was a devout Catholic and a committed Catalan nationalist. He saw the Sagrada Familia not as a commission but as a vocation. His design departed from historical European cathedral models at almost every point: the plan has three facades (Nativity, Passion, Glory) rather than the conventional two; the interior columns branch like trees rather than standing as vertical supports; the facades are dense with naturalistic imagery rather than stylized decoration.
He worked from physical models hung upside down from the ceiling of his workshop, using gravity to find the optimal structural form for the arches. These catenary models were then flipped and photographed, forming the basis for the actual construction drawings.
Gaudí is buried in the crypt of the Sagrada Familia. In 2003, the Vatican opened the cause for his beatification. If that process concludes successfully, he would become a saint.
Construction under Gaudí from 1882
The foundation stone was laid on 19 March 1882, the feast of Saint Joseph. Del Villar’s design was for a conventional Gothic Revival crypt, intended as the basement of a larger church to be built above it.
When Gaudí took over, he continued del Villar’s crypt work but began to redesign everything above it. The crypt was completed in 1889. Gaudí then worked on the apse (the curved end of the building) before turning to the Nativity facade, the section he would spend most of his career on.
The Nativity facade, facing east, was Gaudí’s direct creation. He oversaw its design and construction in detail. The four towers above it were not complete at his death, but two were near completion.
What happened after Gaudí died in 1926?
Gaudí was struck by a tram on the Gran Via on 7 June 1926. He was not carrying identification and was initially taken for a beggar. He died three days later and was buried in the crypt of the Sagrada Familia.
Construction continued under his assistant, Domènec Sugrañes, who worked from Gaudí’s surviving models. The building was still recognizably following Gaudí’s vision, with ongoing work on the Nativity facade towers.
In July 1936, at the outbreak of the Spanish Civil War, anarchist groups broke into the Sagrada Familia workshop and set fire to it. Gaudí’s original plaster models, drawings, and documents were destroyed or severely damaged. What survived were fragments of models and a set of photographs.
How did the Spanish Civil War affect the building?
The fire of 1936 was the most consequential single event in the history of Sagrada Familia Barcelona Spain after Gaudí’s death. The loss of the workshop materials meant that the detailed record of Gaudí’s intentions for the unbuilt portions of the building was largely gone.
Construction halted during the Civil War and did not resume until the 1950s, when a group of architects and supporters began the painstaking work of reconstructing Gaudí’s plans from photographs, surviving fragments, written accounts, and structural principles derived from his known methods.
The reconstruction effort took decades. Critics have argued that the post-war construction represents interpretations of Gaudí’s vision rather than the vision itself, and that the building as currently being completed differs in significant ways from what Gaudí would have built. The debate continues.
Does the history of Sagrada Familia Barcelona Spain affect what you see today?
Directly, yes. The building you visit is a layered historical artifact.
The crypt (accessible from the museum) is del Villar’s and early Gaudí’s work from the 1880s and 1890s. It is the oldest part of the building and looks quite different from the spaces above it.
The Nativity facade (east side) and the structures adjacent to it are the sections Gaudí directly supervised. These have the most complex naturalistic decoration and the densest symbolism.
The Passion facade (west side) was built from the 1950s onward to designs by sculptor Josep Maria Subirachs, who intentionally used an angular, harsh style to contrast with the Nativity side. It is later, different in character, and represents a distinct artistic interpretation.
The interior nave, completed in the 2000s, was built to the reconstructed designs but uses modern engineering methods. The columns are structurally different from anything built in Gaudí’s lifetime; the geometry is his but the materials are contemporary.
Remaining construction and expected completion
The central tower, the four Evangelist towers, and the Glory facade are the primary remaining work. The central tower of Jesus Christ at 172.5 metres is under active construction and is the most visible sign of ongoing building when you visit.
The Patronat has targeted 2026, the centenary of Gaudí’s death, for the major structural elements. Full decorative completion of the Glory facade is expected to extend beyond that date.
How to see the history during your visit
The Gaudí museum in the basement (included with all entry tickets) holds surviving model fragments, photographs of the 1936 fire aftermath, and reconstruction documentation. It is one of the best resources for understanding the difference between what Gaudí built and what has been built since.
The crypt is open to visitors and contains Gaudí’s tomb. A small dedication marks the spot. Access is through a staircase near the apse, signposted from the main nave.
The audioguide app explains the historical context at each point of interest. The guided tour typically covers the Civil War fire and its consequences as part of the construction history section.