Castillet, Medieval fortification and city gate in Perpignan, France
The Castillet is a red-brick gate and fortress in Perpignan, made of a long lower wall and a taller cylindrical tower set back on the right. Both are crowned with crenellated parapets on brick corbels; the tower ends in a rounded dome with a cross, and an arched gateway opens at the base of the left section. The Grand Castillet measures 31 metres long, with parapets 20 metres above ground and walls 3.50 metres thick at the base.
The Grand Castillet was built around 1368 by master builder Guillaume Gatard on the orders of Infante John of Aragon, replacing the Vernet gate and including a drawbridge that no longer exists. After Louis XI's brief occupation of Roussillon, it became a state prison with barred windows. In 1542 Charles V added a polygonal bastion, and in 1904 the ramparts were demolished but the Castillet was spared.
The Castillet now houses the Casa Pairal Museum, which displays objects and documents showing local traditions and the history of Northern Catalonia. Visitors can experience how people in this region have lived and what they valued through these collections.
The monument is accessible from Tuesday to Sunday, with 142 steps leading to the observation platform at the top. The stairs are steep but the view from the roof over the city makes the climb worthwhile.
In 1948 the municipal librarian Louis Xaragai noticed a stone-framed window in the Small Castillet wall, left of the Virgin's statue, that had been walled shut; masons opened it to reveal the space behind. The concave Gothic niche holding the Virgin today dates from 1864, replacing an earlier setting after the chapel of Nostra Dona del Pont was demolished in 1542.
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