Wilfred the Hairy
During the reign of Charles the Bald, Besalú was attached to the counties of Urgel and Cerdanya. In 871, Wilfred the Hairy and his kin began the encastellation of Besalú by constructing a forward castle at Castellaris. Wilfred later separated it and made his brother Radulf its count and it became one of the last "de facto" independent Catalan counties.