Towers

Directions: The tower is one of the stops along the SL®-C 19 route that begins in L’Estartit.

Directions: The tower is one of the stops along the route beginning in Torroella de Montgrí.

The Norfeu Tower (Torre Norfeu), the lone structure standing on the mountain between the coves Cala Pelosa and Cala Joncols some ten kilometres from Roses, was built between 1598 and 1599 as part of the chain of watchtowers spread along the coast between Roses and Cadaqués to protect the locals from pirates.

Originally, the tower had two floors and a battlement protected by a serrated parapet. It was 7.5 m tall and contained a wooden staircase used by its garrison to move between floors and embrasures to open fire on the enemy. The ground floor of the tower was equipped with a water reservoir.

Most structures of this kind that were built away from residential areas slowly unravel and deteriorate, unable to resist nature’s claim or visitors seeking construction material to steal. As evidenced by the archives of the parish church of Cadaqués, it didn’t take long for the tower of Norfeu to meet its demise—a hit by lightning in the 17th century rendered it unusable.

The climb towards the tower Norfeu begins from the point with the coordinates 42.247698, 3.247532, found on the highway Carretera de Montjoi leading out of Roses.

The Norfeu Tower (Torre Norfeu) stands 174 metres above the coves Cala Calitjàs and Cala Jóncols. It’s not part of Spain’s cultural heritage list, even though of course it gets mentioned in architectural monument catalogues and is labelled as a “monument of local interest”.

It’s a shame; the history of the Norfeu Tower is full of curiosities—it is one of the dozens of lookout towers built in the Costa Brava between the 15th and 16th centuries that, unlike its counterparts, has plenty of stories to tell.

Usually, this type of fortification tower was built by local municipalities or even private citizens, so most of the construction, occupation and decommission flew under the radar of historical archives. Not the Norfeu Tower: the royal decree by King Felipe III, dated June 30, 1599, specifically orders the establishment, staffing and arming of a lookout tower on the Cape of Norfeu. The explicit goal was to prevent Arab pirates from collecting drinking water from the springs in the area of Calitjàs and Jóncols coves, of which there are three—Norfeu, Floris and Canadell. Italian architect Hyeronimo Marahi was named head of the project and paid from the royal coffers directly.

None of the original blueprints have survived to this day, but we have records of schematic drawings and detailed descriptions put together by the engineer Agustín de Alberti.

Where the modern-day ruins of Torre Norfeu now stand, once was a two-storey tower with a circular base and a roof battlement. The ground floor housed a 50 cubic litre water tank with a round opening in its lid to facilitate drawing. Rainwater collected on the roof and drained into the tank through tiled pipes. The water tank and the remnants of the water collection system survived to this day.

The entrance to the tower was on the second floor, accessible only by a retractable ladder. The second floor is divided into four rooms, each with its own loophole. The battlement access ladder was right by the entrance door. The parapet of the battlement was equipped with machicolations, or floor openings, on three sides to make it easier to throw stones or pour boiling water over attackers. The eastern side of the battlement contained a semispherical arch to temper the force of the local strong wind Tramuntana. The total height of the tower from the ground to the highest point of the battlement was 7.5 metres.