In 1854, the suffocating medieval walls were finally demolished, leaving the city desperately needing an extension plan. In 1859, the council opened a public competition for the extension, and a well-known architect, Antoni Rovira, was awarded the position where his design closely followed the lines of the old city, now known as the Gothic quarters. In an unexpected intervention, the Spanish government overruled the decision and appointed Ildefons Cerdà, which increased the political tensions between Spain’s central and Catalan administrators. The imposed nature of Cerdà’s title would forever taint his legacy. Cerdà envisioned a radical extension, which he named Eixample, where he would prioritise the population’s health in his design. The engineer did extensive research and calculations into how much atmospheric air one person would need and what professions the population might do; he even predicted the invention of automobiles. This comprehensive research led Cerdà to his iconic grid design, which we know today. Instead of Rovira’s plan, where all roads pointed to the old city, instigating a natural hierarchy, Cerdà focused on uniting the old city with seven peripheral villages which weren’t significant at the time but now comprise the city of Barcelona.