The castle of Paracolls is a fortress dating from the very beginning of the medieval period, during the 11th century, on the territory of Molitg-les-bains, at the top of a rocky spur, south of the village. It was quite usual to choose these not very accessible places, to improve the defence system of the region, here in the Molitg valley.
It is the seat of the powerful family of the same name that reigned in the 12th and 13th centuries.
A bit of history...
From the beginning of the Carolingian era in Roussillon, when the region was taken from the Saracens in 811, it was necessary to protect the migrant populations from the successive attacks that were still taking place.
The successors of the Paracolls family still occupied it until the 13th century, when it was abandoned in favour of the town of Molitg, which was more accessible, closer to the population and above all more modern and therefore more defensible.
Nowadays it is in a state of ruins, but some parts of the walls are still standing. These are essentially corners of the old wall that were made, at the time, of cut stones, the rest of the wall being made of rough stones. There is also a building still standing, apparently the chevet of the castle church.
On approaching it, the walker will find many remains of smaller walls, giving an idea of the relatively modest size of the building, as well as a cistern, an indispensable element for the survival of the garrison on such a high point.
The site is the starting point for the legend of the Château de Paracolls, a legend that is very well known in the region and which was included in the France 3 television film "Murder in Collioure".
It is also likely that it was in Paracolls that the Catalan troubadour Béranger was born, "educated, courteous and valiant, but not very wealthy".
Castle of Paracolls
66500 Molitg-les-Bains
http://www.molitg.com/patrimoine/forteresse-de-paracolls
