The Spanish government is to begin the process of stripping Catalonia of some of its powers.
It's three weeks since the area held a controversial referendum - which was ruled illegal by the supreme court.
Spanish Prime Minister Mariano Rajoy says he'll dismiss the leaders of the Catalan government and call an early election:
He announced the unprecedented measures after a crisis meeting of his cabinet.
Under his plans, the powers of Catalan officials would be transferred to the Spanish government, but he stressed he did not want to use the powers to rule Catalonia directly.
The PM pointed out that Madrid needed to "restore order" in the face of a secession attempt backed by Catalan officials.
Mr Rajoy said he was concerned about the financial impact if Catalonia broke away, stressing the latest figures on the economy were "worrying".
