PICTURED: Celebrations and protests as Catalonia declares independence from Spain

LONDON — Spaniards took to the streets on Friday night and into Saturday morning to either celebrate or protest Catalonia's declaration of independence.

Catalan's regional parliament voted to leave Spain on Friday, leading to celebrations in the capital of Barcelona and protests in the unionist heartlands of Madrid.

The Spanish government fired the regional government in response and has enacted direct rule, leaving the region's future in doubt.

Scroll down to see pictures of what's going on across Spain and to understand the background of the constitutional crisis:

Catalan is a northeastern region of Spain, home to 2.75 million people. The region's capital is Barcelona and Catalan is one of the most economically important regions to Spain.

The region has its own language and unique culture and was largely autonomous prior to the Spanish Civil War in the 1930s. The region regained some autonomy in 1975 but many in the region have long felt it deserved full independence.

Tensions have flared in the post-financial crisis era, with many Catalonians feeling they unfairly subsidised the rest of the country.

See the rest of the story at Business Insider