France · 15th century
The Fort de Salses (also called Forteresse de Salses) is a Catalan fortress in the commune of Salses-le-Château, situated in the French département of Pyrénées-Orientales. It is clearly visible from the A9 autoroute as well as the train line between Perpignan and Narbonne and it is possible to visit from the motorway rest area and the local train station.
Built by the Crown of Aragon at the end of the 15th century, the fortress guarded the former frontier between Principality of Catalonia and the Kingdom of France. Its layout and architecture, innovative for the time, present a rare example of the transition between medieval castle and the fortresses of the modern period.
The fort was captured by the French in 1642, and remained French after the Treaty of the Pyrenees.
Fort de Salses is listed as a monument historique by the French Ministry of Culture, and is operated by the Centre des monuments nationaux. The fortress receives 100,000 visitors a year.
During the Spanish Civil War, the fort was used as a refuge.
Text adapted from “Fort de Salses” on Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0.
Fort de Salses ranks #1,461 of 9,079 worldwide in the atlas's castle fame ranking, and #113 of the 793 mapped in France. Founded 1497, it is older than 44% of the atlas's dated landmarks — one of 554 atlas entries founded in the 15th century. Its Wikipedia articles were opened 4,336 times in the last 60 days, more than 84% of the atlas. 5 more atlas landmarks stand within 25 km. The nearest day-trip guide is Perpignan, 16 km away. It is stop 12 of 18 on the Cathar castle route, Carcassonne to Foix. See how France compares in the castle statistics.
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