Built in 1640 by rebels against Felipe IV, the star-shape pentagon has been stormed several times, most famously in 1705 by Lord Peterborough for Archduke Carlos of Austria. In 1808, during the Peninsular War, it was seized by the French under General Dufresne. During an 1842 civil disturbance, Barcelona was bombed from its heights by a Spanish artillery battery. During the 1939-75 Franco regime, the castle was notorious as a dungeon for political prisoners. Executions were carried out in the gardens with frequency. Catalonian President Lluís Companys was shot by firing squad here in 1940. The moat has lush green gardens, with one side given over to an archery range, while the terraces have sweeping views over the city and the Mediterranean. The fortress houses, for the moment, the Museu Militar. Plans are in the works to convert the castle, which the Spanish government has formally returned to Catalunya, into a museum dedicated to peace.
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