Roses

Roses is a municipality in the comarca of the Alt Empordà, located on the Costa Brava, in Catalonia, Spain. It is situated on the coast at the northern end of the Gulf of Roses, and is an important fishing port and tourist centre. The C-260 road links the town with Figueres.

The origins of Roses (Greek: Rhode) are disputed. A popular theory holds it was founded in the 8th century BC by Greek colonists from Rhodes. It seems more probable, however, that it was founded in the 5th century BC by Greeks from Massalia (Marseilles), perhaps with an admixture of colonists from neighbouring Emporion (today Empúries). Remains of the Greek settlement can still be seen. Remains from the Roman period go back to the 2nd century BC and continue well into Christian times with a paleochristian church and necropolis. After the collapse of Roman power the town seems to have been abandoned, but a fortified settlement from the Visigothic period has been excavated on the nearby Puig Rom.

Fortification (Citadel of Roses)

In the first decades of the 16th century Roses suffered repeatedly from attacks by privateers from North Africa. To counter this threat, Charles V ordered the construction of extensive fortifications in 1543. In spite of these precautions, a naval squadron led by the Turkish admiral Barbarossa attacked and plundered the town some months later. After substantial revisions, the fortifications were completed in 1553, under Charles's son Philip II. The entire medieval town was now enclosed by a bastioned pentagonal wall. The defensive system was supplemented by the Castell de la Trinitat, some 2.5 km to the east. The town received a permanent military garrison, which changed its character profoundly. To minimise friction between the citizenry and the soldiers, barracks were constructed, but this did not prevent a gradual movement of part of the population outside the walls, where the modern town of Roses now is.

Over the last decades important excavations have been carried out inside the walls of the Ciutadella. This concerns not only the Greek and Roman remains, but also part of the medieval city and its walls. In the 1990s extensive restoration work was carried out on the walls of the Ciutadella, and in 2004 a museum was opened inside it. A somewhat controversial restoration of the Castell de Trinitat was formally completed in 2010.

Castle of the Trinitat

Castell de la Trinitat is located on the Gulf of Roses, Alt Empordà comarca, Province of Girona, Catalonia, Spain. Along with the Ciutadella de Roses, it provided defenses for the town of Roses.

The name comes from a chapel built in 1508, which was destroyed, along with a defense tower that stood in the area, when the castle was built, ordered by Emperor Charles V (Carlos I) in 1543.Work began on January 2, 1544 and the castle was completed in mid 1551 under the Spanish engineer Luis Pizano. It was defended for twelve days by Royal Navy sailors and marines under the command of Captain Thomas, Lord Cochrane, supported by Catalan militia and regulars in 1808 and the damage inflicted by the besieging French and Italian artillery was compounded by an immense explosion of gunpowder barrels from Cochrane's frigate Imperieuse, laid by him to deny the investing French control of the sea approaches to the Bay of Rosas. It was built in the shape of a five-pointed star for defence purposes. The construction is about 18-20 metres high, with thick walls, and designed to house a garrison of about 350 men.

The Castell de la Trinitat was declared a Bien de Interés Cultural landmark in 1988. Derelict for nearly 200 years, it underwent restoration amounting to about 2 million euros between 2002 and 2010, and a museum was established at the site. It reopened to the public on 26 September 2010.