In January 1887, Gaudí was called to Astorga by Mgr Joan Baptista Grau i Vallespinós, who had just seen the bishop palace burn. Dr. Grau provisionally established his residence in the diocesan seminary and not having an architect in the diocese, he asked to Gaudí. Were born in Reus, had been addressed during construction of the chapel of Jesus and Mary in Tarragona and through the Catalanista association and participating in the cultural life of Barcelona. Gaudí was grateful to his countryman for having agreed to it. He wrote him on February 8, 1887, to express his gratitude and warning that it was very busy with the Sagrada Família and the Güell home and could not travel to Astorga just to finish the home of his rich admirer. He sent a letter containing a questionnaire to find information essential to the project. Engaged in correspondence, the prelate told, for example, that artificial stone was used in Astorga, which Gaudí replied that was for buildings with very negligible importance, and the stone without any word was worth more or the brick masonry imitation, or tried cold Astorga and heating needs. Gaudí always learned from experience, and in the house of his friend Eusebi Güell "woke up one morning congested all individuals in his family, and his stepfather Don Antonio Lopez, cost a few hours on return itself", because heating system was not complemented by a ventilation system. The architect, who for the first condition of a building was located in harmony with the natural and urban surroundings, requested photographs of the nearby cathedral and the main buildings of the city. Gaudí took a few months in the project of the Episcopal Palace of Astorga. In July 1887 sent it by post and Dr. Grau was quick to send a telegram: "Love it. Congratulations. I wait letter.” The identification between Reus naturals in the adventure launched was total. The budget amounted to 150,000 pesetas. Under the law, it should pay to the Government of S. M., and was therefore required the approval of the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, which was a long pending. The Academy decided to pass the draft report on November 14, 1887. Nominated as reporter to the Marquis of Cubas, the author of the Almudena Cathedral in Madrid, who, given their limited technical and artistic taste reprehensible, he was clearly the least suited to understand the technical revolution and the artistic genius of the young architect Gaudí. Thus, the report of the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, delivered on February 24, 1888, is made with a biased view, very poor, who disapproved of the project by Gaudí weakness decks, carpentry forgetfulness, narrowness in the pit, deficiencies in the vaults of the basement, narrow staircases, errors in calculating the budget, etc.. Curiously, it does seem reasonable fees proposed, taking into account that the architect lives in a distant city. Gaudí modified his project and in January 1889, the Marquis of Cubas, as rapporteur of the Real Academia de Bellas Artes de San Fernando, made additional comments. Required to put more measures against fire and lightning rods on the deck central widen the gap and make a drawing of detail of the mechanical strength, extend the stairs, and remove the roundabouts inter columns angle and said that the vaults of the basement are not stable. Gaudí said enough already with the four conductors of the towers, there was no need to extend or pits or the staircase, in any case replace the railing of a stone by iron, which could remove some of the columns and the roundabouts basement vault was perfectly stable. The Academy responded by demanding a drawing decks, widen the gap and stairs, removing inter columns and reforming the vaults of the basement to make them stable. I'll be that the calculations of Gaudí were wrong! Therefore, the Academy agreed to return for the second time the project to its author to make the changes to be sent. Gaudí was very upset, in a special way, and hoped to do so in writing to Dr. Grau. But the indefatigable prelate went for help to don Pio Gullón, then Governor of the Bank of Spain and natural of Astorga. The chief, after long and painstaking efforts in the ministries, sent in February 1889 an enthusiastic telegram to Astorga announcing the final approval by the State of the project and its financing. In late April, Gaudí had the opinion of the Academy, and friendship with Dr. Grau, made slight modifications to his project and send it again. By contrast, in Astorga emerged bureaucratic problems with the auction of the contract that the optimism and tenacity of Dr. Grau lapsed. Anton Gaudí decided to travel to Astorga in June. Dr. Grau stayed with him at the seminar. The architect was a major disappointment: Astorga was in no way the city he could have imagined from the letters of the bishop and the entire country was plunged into a patent underdevelopment. Moreover, in the collective imagination of a certain deep Spain, Catalans were equivalent to the Jews: a despicable race that embodied the counter of Spanish as the love of money or the love of work, and particularly with his tongue infiltrated into all the springs of the homeland –the Catholic nation-, to destroy it from within. Even he witnessed a very difficult exchange of views between Bishop Grau and his vicar, and the hostility of the town. Openly, they criticized the high requirements that would implement the project. Moreover, Dr. Grau showed Gaudí a project that had made a priest fan architecture, post classic influence, based on horizontal and vertical. The bishop requested the opinion to the architect, who said the parallel much abounded, and that if these lines were to be studied in geometry, were also a gymnastic apparatus, used to make plates. Finally, was determined the bishop patron festivity, June 24, 1889, to the solemn ceremony of the first stone. Gaudí was more than two months. Walking in the walls, meditating under the arches of the cathedral, walking around, capturing the vast wasteland dry, isolated by mountains. And he decided to redo the drawings. "It must be -said to the prelate- reform, since everything must be reflected in the mansion that V. I. spiritually governs." In his room of the Seminar, made new plans, incorporating all of these impressions obtained on site. And he virtually toured all dioceses, seeking granite quarries, sand, lime, gypsum, slate, wood, pottery, bricks, blacksmiths, and so on. He wanted the work of the palace to contribute to the lifting of the country, and chose the materials for which only had to bring a minimum from Catalonia.