Hidden within the vast cork-oak forest of the Serra de l’Albera, just a few kilometres from the French border, Castell de Requesens feels like a castle from a fairy tale — largely because what visitors see today is a neo-Gothic reconstruction built over the medieval original.
The first castle on this site dates to the 9th century, built by Frankish lords to guard the eastern passes of the Pyrenees. It passed through several noble families before coming to the House of Requesens, one of the most illustrious lineages in Catalan history. Lluís de Requesens, the famous 16th-century admiral and governor of the Spanish Netherlands, was a descendant of this family.
The medieval castle fell into ruin over the 17th and 18th centuries. In the 1880s it was purchased by the Marquis of Robert, who commissioned a romantic neo-Gothic reconstruction in the style fashionable across Europe at the time. The current silhouette — with its pointed towers and crenellated walls — dates from this period, though it incorporates genuine medieval masonry within.
Today the castle is managed by the Diputació de Girona and sits within a protected natural space famous for its ancient cork-oak woodland, megalithic monuments (there are several dolmens nearby), and rich birdlife. The combination of wild forest, prehistoric stones, and fairy-tale castle makes Requesens one of the most atmospheric destinations in the Costa Brava hinterland.