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Heritage classified

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Origin and history

The Royal Castle of Collioure, located in the Pyrénées-Orientales, finds its origins on a site occupied since Antiquity by Greeks, Carthaginians, Romans, Wisigoths and Omayyades. In the 7th century, a fortified village was built there, replaced in the 13th century by a medieval castle first mentioned in 1207. The latter, built on the earlier remains, became a royal residence for the Counts of Roussillon and then the kings of Majorca, which grew between the thirteenth and fourteenth centuries. The city, then named Caucoliberis, is a strategic port for the Mediterranean trade, linked to Elne (Illiberis).

In the 13th century, the castle was integrated into the kingdom of Majorca after the inheritance of James I of Aragon. The kings of Majorca, threatened by Aragon, reinforced his defenses: James II destroyed houses in 1280 to expand fortifications. In 1344, Peter IV of Aragon seized Collioure with the support of Philip VI of France, putting an end to the kingdom of Majorca. The castle, transformed into a fortress, saw its medieval walls strengthened in the 15th to 16th centuries under the Habsburgs of Spain, with works led by Francisco Ramiro López and Joan Botista Palia.

The citadel passed under French control in 1642 after a siege leading to the Spanish surrender. In the 17th century, Vauban and the engineer Saint-Hilaire modernized the defences: elevation of the ramparts, creation of bastions and half a moon (1690), at the cost of the destruction of 130 houses and the medieval church. The castle, classified as a historic monument in 1922, served as a prison during the Retirada (1939) and under the German occupation (1942–1945). Archaeological excavations in 2012 revealed ancient and medieval remains.

Today owned by the Conseil départemental des Pyrénées-Orientales, the castle welcomes the public and cultural events. Its architecture superimposed seven centuries of modifications, from the Visigothic foundations to the Vauban buildings, illustrating its evolution from a royal residence to a strategic military citadel. The site still dominates the port of Collioure, symbol of its maritime past and conflict between Mediterranean kingdoms.

The castle is also linked to historical figures such as Pope Benedict XIII, who resided there in 1408 and 1415, or Alphonse V of Aragon, who built a barbacan in 1454. Its role in the Franco-Spanish conflicts, particularly during the crusade d'Aragon (1284) or the Thirty Years' War, makes it a key witness to geopolitical tensions in Roussillon. The archaeological remains discovered (movable objects, structures) enrich the understanding of its continuing occupation since ancient times.

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