Alghero city
by BeChar
Alghero probably gets its name from the abundance of seaweed in its waters.
It's a small city (40 000 inhab.) with a historical centre.
The Catalan influence dating back from the XIVth century is still to be seen in the architecture, street names and language (half of the population speaks Catalan).
Palazzo De Ferrera in Placa Civica
by gildapaolina
This building dates from XV century. It's a rare piece of civil gothic architecture and still keeps single and double lancet windows, and a portal in local sandstone.
First owners were De Ferrera merchants, a rich catalan family; but some years later palace was sold to Albis family, then to Arcayne.
Making a stopover in Alghero with his 40 ships, after Algeri battle in 1541, Emperor Carlos V lived in this building during winter months; it seems that Emperor, coming forward one of the windows, referred to people in the crowded place (most of them had helped him during the battle) saying 'Estode todos caballeros' (be all gentlemen).