Saint-Palais (Pyrénées-Atlantiques)

Saint-Palais ; Donapaleutar
region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Arrondissement	Bayonne
Canton	Pays de Bidache, Amikuze et Ostibarre (main town)
Community association	Pays Basque
Coordinates	43 ° 20 ′ N , 1 ° 2 ′ W Coordinates: 43 ° 20 ′ N , 1 ° 2 ′ W
height	52-263 m
surface	7.44 km 2
Residents	1,838 (January 1, 2017)
Population density	247 inhabitants / km 2
Post Code	64120
INSEE code	64493
Website	www.saint-palais.fr
	; View of Saint-Palais

Saint-Palais ( Basque Donapaleutar ) is a French municipality with 1838 inhabitants (at January 1, 2017) in the department of Pyrénées-Atlantiques in the region Nouvelle-Aquitaine . It was the capital of the canton of the same name until its dissolution in 2015 , and since then it has been the capital of the canton of Pays de Bidache, Amikuze et Ostibarre .

An alternative route of the GR 65 long-distance hiking trail leads through the village , which largely follows the historical course of the French Way of St. James, Via Podiensis .

Geography and traffic

Saint-Palais is located at the foot of the Pyrenees , in the extreme southwest of France, on the Bidouze River , a tributary of the Adour and belongs to the French Basque Country . The next town is Orthez , which can be reached in a north-easterly direction via the route D933 , D23 after about 34 kilometers of road. The closest major French cities are Toulouse (202 km) in the east and Bordeaux (171 km) in the north.

The nearest international airport is the Aéroport International de Biarritz-Anglet-Bayonne , which can be reached in a north-westerly direction after around 62 kilometers by road. The nearest train station is in Saint-Jean-Pied-de-Port . The nearest train stations with connections to the TGV network of the SNCF are Bayonne and Dax , where there are bus connections. Saint-Palais is connected to the French motorway network via the A64 Briscous (on the Atlantic Ocean, near the Spanish border) - Toulouse . The next motorway connection to the A64 is Urt (4).

history

The name Saint-Palais is traced back to San Palay. It is said to commemorate the boy Pelayo, who was martyred in Córdoba in 926 . The city was probably founded in the early 13th century by the King of Navarre and developed mainly through the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela . In 1351, Charles II of Navarre approved the construction of a mint, which remained in operation until 1672. During the civil war in Navarre, the Spanish part of Navarre, with the capital Pamplona , was conquered by the troops of Ferdinand II in 1512 and finally annexed to the Kingdom of Castile in 1515 . The smaller part of the country north of the Pyrenees remained officially sovereign until 1589. In it, Saint-Palais performed administrative tasks. In 1524 the Supreme Court of Navarre was established in Saint-Palais and in 1639 it was replaced by the seat of the Navarre Sénéchaussée administrative unit . The development of Saint-Palais, which was shaped by the pilgrimage, finally ended in November 1784 with the edict of Louis XVI. ending the work of the hospices in Arros , Ostabat and Saint-Palais.

During the French Revolution , on March 4, 1790, the historic provinces of Béarn , Labourd , Soule and the part of the Kingdom of Navarre ( Lower Navarre , French: Basse-Navarre ) that belonged to France became the new Basses-Pyrénées department (today's Département Pyrénées-Atlantiques). It consists of 6 districts : Mauléon , Oloron , Orthez , Pau , Saint-Palais and Ustaritz . In 1795, Saint-Palais became the capital of the department before finally relinquishing this function to Pau in 1796.

Number of inhabitants
(source:)
year	1793	1831	1861	1886	1896	1926	1954	1982	1990	1999	2006	2017
Residents	730	1,354	1,579	1.963	1,949	1,744	1,745	2,076	2,055	1,701	1,874	1,838
From 1962 official figures excluding residents with a second residence

Way of St. James ( Via Podiensis )

At the beginning of the pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela , Saint-Palais did not yet exist. There was only Garris, about 3 kilometers northwest on the old Roman road Bordeaux - Astorga . Later there were at least five pilgrim hostels and hospices in Saint-Palais. There was also the chapel of St. Nicholas. In the hamlet of Harambeltz, which today belongs to Ostabat-Asme , there was the St. Nicholas monastery with a hospice.

Today there is a pilgrims' hostel (French: Gîte d'étape ) in the former Franciscan monastery. There are also hotels, private rooms (French: Chambre d'hôtes ), as well as a campsite and a tourist information office. The rest of the Way of St. James leads at the hamlet of Hiriburia, at the “Stele of Gibraltar”, back to the main route of the GR 65. According to Jacob's research, the stele marks the place where the historical paths from Tours , the Via Turonensis , from Vézelay , the Via Lemovicensis , and the Via Podiensis unite. “Gibraltar” has nothing in common with the Mediterranean access of the same name , but is derived from the Basque word Chibaltarem for meeting point.

Culture and economy

The force basque festival takes place at the end of August . Here the participants compete in the national sports of the Basques.

The Museum Basse Navarre is housed in the town hall. It shows objects from the medieval pilgrimage as well as furniture, sculptures and disk-shaped Basque steles.

Bridge over the Bidouze with a view of the old mill royal de Béhotéguy

The Saint-Paul church is of medieval origin. From 1524 it was home to the Supreme Court of Navarre and later it was the seat of the Sénéchaussée de Navarre . Between 1790 and 1955 the building housed various administrative facilities.

The Sainte-Marie-Madeleine church from 1866 was restored in 1986 and is still in use.

Around 3% of the population of the Arrondissement de Bayonne work in agriculture and around 30% in the service sector , many of them in tourism. With the Sokorri Clinic, Saint-Palais has a regional health center. In agriculture, animal husbandry, corn cultivation and cheese production are the main focuses.

Town twinning

Sangüesa - Spain ( Navarre Province ), since 1993

Personalities

Pierre Cazaux (* 1984), French racing cyclist

literature

Bettina Forst: French Way of St. James. From Le Puy-en-Velay to Roncesvalles. All stages - with variants and height profiles (= Rother hiking guide ). Bergverlag Rother, Munich (recte: Ottobrunn) 2007, ISBN 978-3-7633-4350-8 .

Bert Teklenborg: Cycling along the Camino de Santiago. From the Rhine to the western end of Europe. (Cycling guide, route planner). 3rd, revised edition. Publishing House Tyrolia, Innsbruck 2007, ISBN 978-3-7022-2626-8 .