Prats-de-Mollo-la-Preste
Encyclopedia
Prats-de-Mollo-la-Preste is a commune
in the Pyrénées-Orientales
department in southern France
, near the border with Spain
and the Autonomous Community of Catalonia. The name Prats-de-Mollo comes from Catalan "meadows of Molló". Molló
is a town just across the border and the Col d'Ares
. La Preste is a spa resort town that was a separate village but is now included as part of the municipality. Prats-de-Mollo-la-Preste is the capital of the eponymous canton
. It forms part of the historical comarca
of Vallespir
and is part of Northern Catalonia
.
, 13 km (8.1 mi) from the Spanish
border and the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, on the banks of the river Tech, and on the south face of the Canigou
at an elevation
of 735 meters.
in 1683 to strengthen the town's defences and keep the population under control after the Treaty of the Pyrenees
(1659) divided Catalonia
between Spain
and France
and after the revolts of the Angelets de la Terra (1667 to 1675). Its position also makes it ideal as a starting point for walking and climbing itineraries. Only a few kilometres away lies La Preste, a spa town known for its waters and treatment of urinary infections and related diseases. In the 14th century, people with leprosy used to bathe in the ’Leper’s pool’ to help to relieve their symptoms.
municipalities and Rosselló, Conflent
and part of Cerdanya
, was separated from the rest of Catalonia by the Treaty of the Pyrenees
(1659), which divided Catalonia
between Spain
and France
.
During the Spanish Civil War
it was the location of a refuge financed by the pacifist organisation War Resisters' International
and run by Professor José Brocca
.
In February, two events traditionally take place at Prats: the Festa de l'Ós (in French: Fete de l’Ours, i.e. bear festival) and Carnaval. Both are full of fascinating traditions handed down over the years. During the Bear Festival, celebrated annually at the beginning of spring, the locals dress up as bears, covering themselves with soot or coal and oil, and "attacking" the onlookers, attempting to get everyone dirty. Others dress up as hunters, playing the role of "protectors". The festival ends with the "ball de l'os (bear dance). There is a reference to this tradition in the Catalan author Joan-Lluís Lluís
' novel El dia de l'ós (The Day of the Bear).
One of the events during carnival week is the Ball de la Posta. The ’posta’ is a plank 1.5 m long and 30 cm wide, with a picture of a pretty girl at one end, representing the Virgin
, and a devil
on the other side. Dancers range themselves in couples opposite the carrier of la posta and his colleague who carries a wooden sword. The dancers advance three times, in couples, towards the armed pair. The first time they bow, the second time the lady must kiss the face on the posta, choosing devil or virgin, and the third time, she gets a smack on the bottom with the plank! In olden days, this dance was a judgement on vice and virtue!
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Pyrénées-Orientales
Pyrénées-Orientales
Pyrénées-Orientales is a department of southern France adjacent to the northern Spanish frontier and the Mediterranean Sea. It also surrounds the tiny Spanish enclave of Llívia, and thus has two distinct borders with Spain.- History :...
department in southern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, near the border with Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and the Autonomous Community of Catalonia. The name Prats-de-Mollo comes from Catalan "meadows of Molló". Molló
Molló
Molló is a town and municipality in the comarca of Ripollès in Catalonia, Spain, located in the Pyrenees, by the French border. Molló borders to the north with Prats de Molló Molló is a town and municipality in the comarca of Ripollès in Catalonia, Spain, located in the Pyrenees, by the French...
is a town just across the border and the Col d'Ares
Col d'Ares
Col d'Ares is a mountain pass in the Pyrenees on the border between France and Spain.It connects Prats-de-Mollo in France with Molló in Catalonia, Spain.-See also:* List of highest paved roads in Europe* List of mountain passes...
. La Preste is a spa resort town that was a separate village but is now included as part of the municipality. Prats-de-Mollo-la-Preste is the capital of the eponymous canton
Cantons of France
The cantons of France are territorial subdivisions of the French Republic's 342 arrondissements and 101 departments.Apart from their role as organizational units in certain aspects of the administration of public services and justice, the chief purpose of the cantons today is to serve as...
. It forms part of the historical comarca
Comarca
A comarca is a traditional region or local administrative division found in parts of Spain, Portugal, Panama, Nicaragua, and Brazil. The term is derived from the term marca, meaning a "march, mark", plus the prefix co- meaning "together, jointly".The comarca is known in Aragonese as redolada and...
of Vallespir
Vallespir
Vallespir is a historical Catalan comarca of Northern Catalonia, part of the French Département of Pyrénées-Orientales. The capital of the comarca is Ceret, and it borders Conflent, Rosselló, Alt Empordà, Garrotxa and Ripollès...
and is part of Northern Catalonia
Northern Catalonia
Northern Catalonia is a term that is sometimes used, particularly in Catalan writings, to refer to the territory ceded to France by Spain through the signing of the Treaty of the Pyrenees in 1659...
.
Geography
Prats-de-Mollo-la-Preste is located in the PyreneesPyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
, 13 km (8.1 mi) from the Spanish
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
border and the Autonomous Community of Catalonia, on the banks of the river Tech, and on the south face of the Canigou
Canigou
The Canigou is a mountain located in the Catalan Pyrenees of southern France.Due to its sharp flanks and its dramatic location close to the coast, until the 18th century the Canigou was believed to be the highest mountain in the Pyrenees.-Trekking and sightseeing:Spectacular jeep tracks on the...
at an elevation
Elevation
The elevation of a geographic location is its height above a fixed reference point, most commonly a reference geoid, a mathematical model of the Earth's sea level as an equipotential gravitational surface ....
of 735 meters.
Features
This walled town is a maze of narrow cobbled streets and mediaeval architecture. With only 1,100 inhabitants, it boasts numerous hotels, restaurants and cafés, the narrow streets forming terraces linked together by stairways and passages. A covered walkway leads directly from the town to Fort Lagarde, an impressive fort built by Marshall VaubanVauban
Sébastien Le Prestre, Seigneur de Vauban and later Marquis de Vauban , commonly referred to as Vauban, was a Marshal of France and the foremost military engineer of his age, famed for his skill in both designing fortifications and breaking through them...
in 1683 to strengthen the town's defences and keep the population under control after the Treaty of the Pyrenees
Treaty of the Pyrenees
The Treaty of the Pyrenees was signed to end the 1635 to 1659 war between France and Spain, a war that was initially a part of the wider Thirty Years' War. It was signed on Pheasant Island, a river island on the border between the two countries...
(1659) divided Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
between Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
and after the revolts of the Angelets de la Terra (1667 to 1675). Its position also makes it ideal as a starting point for walking and climbing itineraries. Only a few kilometres away lies La Preste, a spa town known for its waters and treatment of urinary infections and related diseases. In the 14th century, people with leprosy used to bathe in the ’Leper’s pool’ to help to relieve their symptoms.
History
The town, along with other VallespirVallespir
Vallespir is a historical Catalan comarca of Northern Catalonia, part of the French Département of Pyrénées-Orientales. The capital of the comarca is Ceret, and it borders Conflent, Rosselló, Alt Empordà, Garrotxa and Ripollès...
municipalities and Rosselló, Conflent
Conflent
Conflent is a historical Catalan comarca of Northern Catalonia, now part of the French Département of Pyrénées-Orientales. In the Middle Ages it comprised the County of Conflent....
and part of Cerdanya
Cerdanya
Cerdanya is a natural comarca and historical region of the eastern Pyrenees divided between France and Spain. Historically it has been one of the counties of Catalonia....
, was separated from the rest of Catalonia by the Treaty of the Pyrenees
Treaty of the Pyrenees
The Treaty of the Pyrenees was signed to end the 1635 to 1659 war between France and Spain, a war that was initially a part of the wider Thirty Years' War. It was signed on Pheasant Island, a river island on the border between the two countries...
(1659), which divided Catalonia
Catalonia
Catalonia is an autonomous community in northeastern Spain, with the official status of a "nationality" of Spain. Catalonia comprises four provinces: Barcelona, Girona, Lleida, and Tarragona. Its capital and largest city is Barcelona. Catalonia covers an area of 32,114 km² and has an...
between Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
and France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
During the Spanish Civil War
Spanish Civil War
The Spanish Civil WarAlso known as The Crusade among Nationalists, the Fourth Carlist War among Carlists, and The Rebellion or Uprising among Republicans. was a major conflict fought in Spain from 17 July 1936 to 1 April 1939...
it was the location of a refuge financed by the pacifist organisation War Resisters' International
War Resisters' International
War Resisters' International is an international anti-war organization with members and affiliates in over thirty countries. Its headquarters are in London, UK.-History:...
and run by Professor José Brocca
José Brocca
José Brocca , 1891–1950, was a pacifist and humanitarian of the Spanish Civil War, who allied himself with the Republicans but sought non-violent ways of resisting fascism....
.
Festivals and Traditions
Built on the banks of the river Tech, surrounded by mountains, Prats-de-Mollo-la-Preste was one of the most important border towns in the area, and today still boasts much evidence of its rich past, both architectural and traditional.In February, two events traditionally take place at Prats: the Festa de l'Ós (in French: Fete de l’Ours, i.e. bear festival) and Carnaval. Both are full of fascinating traditions handed down over the years. During the Bear Festival, celebrated annually at the beginning of spring, the locals dress up as bears, covering themselves with soot or coal and oil, and "attacking" the onlookers, attempting to get everyone dirty. Others dress up as hunters, playing the role of "protectors". The festival ends with the "ball de l'os (bear dance). There is a reference to this tradition in the Catalan author Joan-Lluís Lluís
Joan-Lluís Lluís
Joan-Lluís Lluís is an award-winning French Catalan writer. His works include five novels and a collection of essays entitled Conversa amb el meu gos sobre França i els francesos...
' novel El dia de l'ós (The Day of the Bear).
One of the events during carnival week is the Ball de la Posta. The ’posta’ is a plank 1.5 m long and 30 cm wide, with a picture of a pretty girl at one end, representing the Virgin
Mary (mother of Jesus)
Mary , commonly referred to as "Saint Mary", "Mother Mary", the "Virgin Mary", the "Blessed Virgin Mary", or "Mary, Mother of God", was a Jewish woman of Nazareth in Galilee...
, and a devil
Devil
The Devil is believed in many religions and cultures to be a powerful, supernatural entity that is the personification of evil and the enemy of God and humankind. The nature of the role varies greatly...
on the other side. Dancers range themselves in couples opposite the carrier of la posta and his colleague who carries a wooden sword. The dancers advance three times, in couples, towards the armed pair. The first time they bow, the second time the lady must kiss the face on the posta, choosing devil or virgin, and the third time, she gets a smack on the bottom with the plank! In olden days, this dance was a judgement on vice and virtue!