Castellers de Vilafranca facts for kids

First torre de nou amb folre carregada in history, Castellers de Vilafranca

First tres de deu amb folre i manilles carregat in history, Castellers de Vilafranca

First quatre de nou sense folre by Castellers de Vilafranca

First pilar de vuit amb folre i manilles carregat in the 20th century, Castellers de Vilafranca

The Castellers de Vilafranca are a special group from Catalonia, Spain. Their main goal is to build amazing human towers, called castells. These towers are a cultural and sporting tradition. People work together to climb on each other's shoulders, forming tall, impressive structures.

History of the Castellers de Vilafranca

Quatre de nou amb folre i l'agulla, Castellers de Vilafranca

First torre de nou amb folre i manilles descarregada of Castellers de Vilafranca

The Castellers de Vilafranca group started in September 1948. A person named Oriol Rossell founded it. People in Vilafranca del Penedès were very interested in building human towers. This tradition has been around since the 1700s, growing from a dance called "Ball de Valencians."

The group began by building towers that were seven levels high. They also made friends with other casteller groups. Oriol Rossell was the first cap de colla (leader or technical manager) from 1948 to 1952. Ramon Sala took over from 1953 to 1955. The group first wore rose-colored shirts, then changed to red.

In 1957, the group reorganized and chose green shirts, which they still wear today. From 1957 to 1968, they mostly built seven-level towers. Their highest achievement was the cinc de set. Between 1969 and 1974, they started building eight-level towers. These included the torre de set, quatre de vuit, tres de vuit, pilar de sis, and the torre de vuit amb folre.

In 1972, the group won the Human Towers Competition in Tarragona. This big competition happens every two years.

New Ways of Working (1975-1994)

In 1975, the group changed how it was run. Instead of just one leader, a team started managing the tower-building. In 1981, they decided that members would no longer be paid. This change caused some members to leave.

From 1975 to 1982, they often built eight-level towers. In 1985, they built their first cinc de vuit. In 1987, they achieved the first tres and quatre de nou amb folre (meaning the tower was built but collapsed during the take-down). By 1989, they successfully built and took down the first tres de nou amb folre. In 1990, they did the same with the quatre de nou amb folre. Carles Domènech was the cap de colla during this time, from 1975 to 1994.

Record-Breaking Towers (1995-2004)

Between 1995 and 2004, the Castellers de Vilafranca reached new heights. They successfully built and took down many difficult towers. These included the torre de nou amb folre i manilles, pilar de set amb folre, and pilar de vuit amb folre i manilles. They also built the quatre de vuit amb l’agulla and the quatre de nou amb folre i l’agulla, which was a first in human tower history.

They even built the cinc de nou amb folre. In an amazing feat, they built the tres and quatre de nou amb folre at the same time. This was the first and only time this has happened in human tower history. They also built some very difficult towers that were completed but then collapsed during the take-down. These included the torre de vuit, quatre de nou, and the tres de deu amb folre i manilles, which was another first.

The group won the Tarragona Human Towers Competition many times: in 1996, 1998, 2002, 2004, 2006, 2008, 2010, and 2012. In 2005, the Castellers de Vilafranca built the torre de nou amb folre. This is considered one of the hardest towers ever built by any group.

Francesc Moreno "Melilla" was the cap de colla from 1995 to 2003. Lluís Esclassans led from 2004 to 2007. David Miret became the new cap de colla in December 2007. By 2010, the Castellers de Vilafranca had about 400 active members.

Amazing Castells They've Built

The Castellers de Vilafranca have built many incredible human towers throughout their history. Here is a list of some of their most important achievements. "Descarregat" means the tower was built and taken down successfully. "Carregat" means the tower was built, but it collapsed while being taken down.

Cal Figarot: The Group's Home

Yard of Cal Figarot, Castellers de Vilafranca headquarters

Cal Figarot is where the Castellers de Vilafranca group meets and practices. It's a beautiful building with a neogothic style, built in the late 1800s. The group bought it in 1983. Later, in 1998, they bought a building next door. Both buildings were fixed up. The new building has a large open space, about 600 square meters. This big space is perfect for their training sessions.

Castellers de Vilafranca Around the World

Quatre de vuit in Santiago de Chile, Castellers de Vilafranca

Quatre de vuit in Vatican City, Castellers de Vilafranca

The Castellers de Vilafranca have traveled to many countries to show off their human towers. They have performed in places like France, Italy, Germany, the Netherlands, Belgium, Denmark, Chile, India, and even New York City!

In 1988, they performed in Italy to celebrate 1,000 years of Catalonia. They also performed at the Universal Exposition Seville'92 in 1992. In 2010, they were in Brussels, Belgium, to support the idea of human towers becoming a UNESCO World Heritage. The Castellers de Vilafranca also performed at the opening ceremony of the Olympic Games in Barcelona in 1992.

The group has also toured a lot in the Països Catalans. These are areas where Catalan is traditionally spoken.

• They performed six times in Perpignan, France (1970, 1977, 1982, 1989, 1997, 1998). They also visited other towns in Northern Catalonia.
• They visited Andorra four times, performing in different cities there.
• They had two tours in the Valencia Region of Spain. They performed in cities like Alcoi, Benidorm, and Alicante.
• They toured Palma, Majorca, in 1980 and Manacor, Menorca, in 2001.
• They also visited Alghero, Italy, in 1978.

Images for kids

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  First quatre de vuit carregat by the Castellers de Vilafranca, 12/10/1969

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  First tres de nou descarregat by the Castellers de Vilafranca, 30/08/1989

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  First pilar de vuit descarregat in history, Castellers de Vilafranca, 28/09/1997

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  First torre de vuit sense folre carregada in history, Castellers de Vilafranca, 1/11/1999

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  First pilar de vuit amb folre i manilles descarregat in Barcelona, Castellers de Vilafranca, 25/09/2005

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  First torre de vuit amb folre and pilar de set amb folre descarregats simultaneously in history, Castellers de Vilafranca, 31/08/2006

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  Tres de deu amb folre i manilles by the Castellers de Vilafranca

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  Torre de set in Pisa, Castellers de Vilafranca, 1988

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  Torre de set in Paris, Castellers de Vilafranca, 1993

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  Pilar de sis in Copenhaguen, Castellers de Vilafranca, 1996

See also

In Spanish: Castellers de Vilafranca para niños