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Andorra la Vella is the capital of the Principality of Andorra, and is located high in the east Pyrenees between France and Spain It is also the name of the parish that surrounds it The town of Santa Coloma is located in the province
The principal industry is tourism, although the country also earns foreign income from being a tax-haven Furniture and brandies are local products
The site of Andorra la Vella has been settled since prior to the Christian era - notably by the Andosin tribe from the late Neolithic The state is one of the Marca Hispanica created and protected by Charlemagne in the Eighth Century as a buffer from the Moorish settlers in the Iberian Peninsula
The settlement has been the principal city of Andorra since 1278 when the French and the Episcopal co-princes agreed to joint suzerainty Andorra La Vella's old town - the Barri Antic - includes streets and buildings dating from this time
Its most notable building is the Casa de la Vall - constructed in the early sixteenth century - which has been the state's parliamentary house since 1707 Andorra la Vella was, during this period, the capital of a largely isolated and feudal state, which retained its independence due to this principle of co-sovereignty This isolation also means that the city's history is poorly documented
Well into the twentieth century, the area around Andorra La Vella remained largely forgotten; indeed the state was not part of the Treaty of Versailles, simply because it was not noticed After political turmoil in the 1930's and an attempted coup by King Boris I, an informal democracy developed
In 1993, the country's first constitution formalised this parliamentary democracy with executive, legislative, and judicial branches located in Andorra la Vella
During this period, Andorra also developed as both a tax haven, resulting in the construction of modern banking offices in Andorra La Vella The city also developed its skiing facilities, to the extent that Andorra la Vella was Andorra's applicant city for the XXI Olympic Winter Games, the 2010 Winter Olympics However, Andorra la Vella was not selected by the IOC as candidate city, following the evaluation report of an IOC commission It also hosted both the 1991 and 2005 Games of the Small States of Europe
The city's old town is characterized by old stone streets and houses The central Església de Sant Esteve church is part of the area that guidebooks often label as a picturesque part of the city This was built in a Romanesque style in the Eleventh Century As mentioned earlier, the old town also includes the country's historic parliament building Probably the oldest building in the city is another church, dating from the Ninth Century, of Santa Coloma
The city is the country's cultural centre, with the Government Exhibition Hall acting as a main theatre and museum The piazza outside the parliament building is also the location of a number of events, and the town hosts a music festival every winter |
Pas de la Casa - Grau Roig
Andorra la Vella