Lilla

Location
Lilla is a small hamlet of Montblanc, located to the southeast of the town at an altitude of 483 metres, at the foot of the Serra Carbonària. The settlement lies below the coll de Lilla, a natural pass linking Valls and Montblanc, and marks the boundary with the Alt Camp region.

History
The origins of Lilla date back to the Andalusi period, when a castle was built by Muslims to defend and control the coll de Lilla (mountain pass), a key route between Lleida and Tarragona. The earliest written reference to the site dates from 978, under the name al-daliya, aliya or alilla, Arabic terms meaning “high place”.

By the early 11th century, around 1011, the fortress had already been taken by Christian forces, although repopulation did not begin until the mid-12th century, during the settlement of the so-called Catalunya Nova. In medieval times, Lilla was a royal village and formed part of the municipal district, bailiwick and parish of Montblanc.

During the 17th century, half of the tithes were paid to the Church of Tarragona, while the other half went to the university and castellan of Montblanc. In the 19th century, Lilla became an independent municipality and, in 1850, incorporated Prenafeta as an outlying hamlet. This status lasted until 1878, when Lilla was permanently annexed to Montblanc.

Highlights
The most significant heritage site is the parish church of Sant Joan Baptista, of Romanesque origin, although it was rebuilt and enlarged in the 18th century, which gives it its present appearance.

Also noteworthy is the chapel of Sant Fructuós, inaugurated and blessed in 1996. The apse houses an image of the saint created by the Vilaverd-based artist Joan Rosich Andreu.

Finally, mention should be made of the former school and union building of Lilla that it preserves a dated lintel from 1610 bearing the inscription “misser Antoni Magrinyà”.