Timeline

Heritage classified

Key figures

Origin and history

Fort Saint-Elme found its origins in the eighth century with a guard tower erected by the Moors on a ridge line dominant Collioure and Port-Vendres. This strategic point, integrated into a network of communication by smoke signals with the towers of the Massane and Madeloc, was rebuilt between 1276 and 1344 by the kings of Mallorca, including Jacques II, to monitor the Mediterranean coasts. The tower, originally designed to alert populations via fires (dry wood at night, green wood at daytime), was strengthened in the 14th century by Peter IV of Aragon after the conquest of the region.

Between 1538 and 1552, Emperor Charles Quint had the tower transformed into a six-redent star fortress, designed by the Italian architect Benedetto of Ravenna to resist modern artillery. This project was part of the defensive strategy of the Roussillon, then Spanish territory, to protect Perpignan, Collioure and Port Vendres. The inclined walls and the 360° firing pitch reflected the military innovations of the Renaissance. After the French took Collioure in 1642, Vauban added ditches and counterscarps in the 1680s to adapt the structure to contemporary siege techniques.

During the French Revolution, the fort played a key role during the Roussillon War. In 1793 his commander, the Dufour battalion leader, betrayed the Republican troops by refusing to open the doors to them, causing Collioure to surrender to the Spaniards. Reappointed in 1794 by General Dugommier (assisted by Bonaparte), he was renamed Fort-du-Rocher and later served as a military store. Demilitarized in 1903, it was classified as a historical monument in 1927 and partially restored before building a medieval and Renaissance weapons museum from 2008 to 2023.

The architecture of the fort combines Moorish elements (initial tower), Spanish (star plan of Benedetto de Ravenne) and French (changes of Vauban). Its walls, thick up to 8 metres, housed dormitories, a prison, powder and flour shops, and a defensive system designed to withstand prolonged seats. The terrace offered a strategic panorama of the Mediterranean, used later by Cassini II for geodetic landmarks in 1701. Occupied by Kriegsmarine during World War II, the fort suffered damage before its final restoration in the 21st century.

The name Saint Elma could come from several patron saints of the sailors: Erasmus of Formia (Italian martyr of the fourth century), Peter Gonzales (Spanish sanct of the thirteenth century), or a deformation of Sanctus Ermus, a Lebanese saint of the fourth century. This name, linked to the meteorological phenomenon of the Saint Elme lights (lights on the masts of the ships), was common on the Mediterranean coasts. The tower also served as a maritime landmark after being bleached around 1780 to guide the ships to Port-Vendres.

Future

Since 2008, it has housed a museum with collections of medieval and renaissance weapons, temporary exhibitions and a panorama of the region on the terrace.

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