Soule (region)
Soule ( Basque Zuberoa or Xiberoa ; Xiberua in the local dialect) is the smallest of the seven historical provinces of the Basque Country or the three former provinces in its French part. It currently has no official status as a political or administrative unit; their territory is part of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department .
population
The Soule region has around 15,000 inhabitants and an area of approx. 785 km², its historic capital is Mauléon-Licharre (Basque: Maule or Maule-Lextarre ). The inhabitants are called Souletins (French) and Zuberotarrak (Basque). The largest towns are Mauléon-Licharre (approx. 3,000), Chéraute (approx. 1,000), Viodos-Abense-de-Bas (approx. 750) and Barcus (approx. 650).
economy
The economic activities are concentrated on agriculture (pasture farming and cheese production). Among the typical regional crafts is the production of espadrilles .
history
For several hundred years, the Soule region belonged to the Roman province of Gallia Aquitania founded by Emperor Augustus . In 1023 the vice-county of Soule was installed by Sancho VI, Duke of Gascony; this lasted until 1261, when the last Viscount ceded the area to Edward I of England . In the Hundred Years War (1337-1453) the area was under English rule; this ended in 1449 when Gaston IV , the Count of Foix, recaptured the area for the French crown. After that, the sparsely populated former province of Soule only stepped out of the shadows of history once, namely during the so-called Matalas uprising (1661).
Attractions
The single-nave church buildings of the 16th and 17th centuries with a trinitaire clocher are typical of the Soule area . The typical disk-shaped gravestones of the Basque Country ( hilarri ) can still be found in many cemeteries .
literature
- Jean-Marie Régnier: Histoire de la Soule. Hitzak, 1991 ISBN 978-2-9081-3205-2
Web links
- Soule tourist information office (French)