Albera de Requesens Route

The Bunkers of Masarac are military constructions built by the Francoist organization called "Servicio Militar de Construcción" (Military Construction Service). These fortifications belong to the extensive network of bunkers and machine gun nests, built between 1940-45, which stretches all along the lands near the border and the northern coast of Empordà.

The DO Empordà is a historic wine appellation that produces wines touched by the Tramuntana wind, which gives them personality by concentrating the sugars and aromas of the grapes. Garnatxa (Grenache) and Carinyena (Carignan) are the jewels of the DO, with a great varietal richness, as it produces all varieties of Garnatxa and Carinyena – black, white, and red. The range of wines includes reds, whites, rosés, sweet, and sparkling wines.

The place and the church of Cantallops are mentioned in 844 in a precept granted in favor of the monastery of Sant Quirze de Colera, which states that the monks of this cenoby had populated the territory and built the church of Sant Esteve (of Cantalupis). The place belonged to the county of Peralada.

The oldest document mentioning Requesens Castle dates back to June 30, 859, a time when the single county of Empúries-Rosselló still existed. The Requesens valley is located between the Via Augusta and the Via Domitia, two of the most important passes in the eastern Pyrenees: Perthus and Banyuls. Its location is significant if we delve into the history and the various events that occurred in this zone. In 1893, the master builder from Figueres, Alexandre Comalat, took charge of the works, which finished in 1899. Tomàs de Rocabertí, the viscount who had initiated the reconstruction of Requesens, died before the castle could be inaugurated, leaving his sister as the heiress to the viscounty. For this reason, a year later, when the restoration was complete, it was Adelaida de Rocabertí, the new viscountess, who celebrated the castle's opening festivities. Unfortunately, Adelaida died mysteriously less than a month after the inauguration.