The current palace was built after the fire that affected it in 1285. The Viscounts of Rocabertí decided to move part of the palace located outside the walls. Towards the 14th century, the construction of the Gothic palace began, of which a few vestiges still remain as it has been restored several times. Most of the renovations were carried out in the 16th - 17th centuries. The interior was rebuilt in the 18th century and, from 1875, the last counts of Peralada commissioned a project to remodel it to the French architect, Grant. The neo-medieval interventions, the garden, designed in 1877 by François Duvilliers, and the path to the lands belonging to the Carme Convent (which had passed into the hands of the counts after the confiscation of 1835) all correspond to this period. The palace and convent were acquired in 1923 by the Barcelona financier, Damià Mateu, who turned them into a private residence and museum. His successors have converted part of the palace into a museum and a casino.
The photograph by Josep Maria Cañellas, taken in 1888 and included in the Rubaudonadeu Collection, shows us the façade of the Peralada Castle. On the one hand, it highlights the solidity of the enclosure with its openings in the body of each of the towers, which are fully protected by wrought iron. On the other hand, it is a castle that has undergone several modifications, rebuilds and extensions over the centuries. This is evident from some constructions and additions that are attached to its central body, as well as the entire landscaped area which surrounds it. The Rubaudonadeu Collection is preserved in the Fages de Climent Library in Figueres.
Literary Text
El Llobregat esmenta els Tallaferro,
Hugs i Dalmaus. Pensa: “El país no ha mort!
L’imant incert, ¿ha retrobat el nord?”
A Peralada arriba per conhort
un senyor nou vestit amb or i ferro.
[...]
Novell Palau del Vidre! De Cotlliure
fins a Salou, no hi ha redós més bell:
mig monestir, mig casa, mig castell.
Beat aquell qui passa el clos cancell
de l’alta nau, sojorn de l’art d’escriure.
Palau del llibre, avar tresor relicte
del manuscrit que no llegeix ningú,
de quan va anar a la guerra el brau Mambrú...
Fitant el temps, dorm el secret segur
de l’epigrama acerb, d’amics vindicta.
Dins TRENA DE SET AIGÜES, de Carles Fages de Climent
Location
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Castillo de Peralada, C. Sant Joan, s/n, Perelada, Provincia de Gerona 17491, España
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