Alet-les-Bains (; ''Alet'' in

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language Occitan (; o ...

, formerly spelt ''Aleth'') is a commune in the

Aude Aude (; ) is a Departments of France, department in Southern France, located in the Occitania (administrative region), Occitanie Regions of France, region and named after the river Aude (river), Aude. The departmental council also calls it "Ca ...

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

in the

Occitanie Occitanie may refer to: *Occitania, a region in southern France called ''Occitanie'' in French *Occitania (administrative region) Occitania ( ; french: Occitanie ; oc, Occitània ; ca, Occitània ) is the southernmost administrative region of ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

in southern France.

Geography

Alet-les-Bains is located near a

hot springs A hot spring, hydrothermal spring, or geothermal spring is a spring produced by the emergence of geothermally heated groundwater onto the surface of the Earth. The groundwater is heated either by shallow bodies of magma (molten rock) or by circ ...

in the south of France. The village is roughly one and a half hours from the sea and one hour from a winter sports centre. To each side of the village, the mountains come to a height of 750 metres above sea level. Access to the

SNCF The Société nationale des chemins de fer français (; abbreviated as SNCF ; French for "National society of French railroads") is France's national state-owned railway company. Founded in 1938, it operates the country's national rail traffi ...

(French National Railway Company) can be found at the Alet-les-Bains train station.

History

The origins of the abbey of Alet-les-Bains are unknown other than that of a priory in the eighth century. It was likely founded by Béra, viscount of Razés. By the twelfth century, it had much influence and many pilgrims. In 1318, the abbey became a bishopric in order to continue the fight against the Cathars; as it stayed until the

French revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

. The diocese had eighty

Parish A parish is a territorial entity in many Christian denominations, constituting a division within a diocese. A parish is under the pastoral care and clerical jurisdiction of a priest, often termed a parish priest, who might be assisted by one or m ...

es and spanned from

Formiguères Formiguères (; ca, Formiguera) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France. Its inhabitants are called ''Formiguérois''. Geography Formiguères is located in the canton of Les Pyrénées catalanes and in the ar ...

Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet (; Languedocien: ''Sant Pau de Fenolhet'') is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France. Geography Saint-Paul-de-Fenouillet is located in the canton of La Vallée de l'Agly and in the arrondi ...

. A wall, with four gates, built in the twelfth century to protect the abbey can still be seen today. In the sixteenth century, during the wars of religion, the

Huguenots The Huguenots ( , also , ) were a Religious denomination, religious group of French people, French Protestants who held to the Reformed, or Calvinist, tradition of Protestantism. The term, which may be derived from the name of a Swiss politica ...

burnt and destroyed the abbey. In the seventeenth century,

Nicolas Pavillon Nicolas Pavillon (1597 at Paris – 1677 at Alet) was a French bishop of Alet and Jansenist. His attitude against Pope Alexander VII won him the admiration of Port-Royal. Alet became the "Mecca" of the Jansenists. His nephew was the writer Étienn ...

, bishop of

Alet The Alet is a river in southwestern France. The river is a right tributary of the Salat. The total length is from its source in the Ariège department in the Pyrenees to where it empties into the Salat, near Seix. The Alet is part of the Garon ...

who stood up against the government of

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Vers ...

; could have found the means to repair the abbey, but did not feel that given the poverty of the people in his diocese, it would be acceptable. He did, however, build a bridge that spans

, in 1662 and gave an improved system of irrigation, as well as a seminar. The thirty-fifth and last bishop of Alet, Charles de la Cropte de Chanterac, who opened the "Grande route" (Big road) Limoux-Quillan, also built a new portion of the bishopric, which he attached to the oldest part of the bishopric, which dates from the twelfth century and is now preserved. By climbing a flight of stairs, one would come to the first floor where one can see the beautiful and large synod hall as well as the library. The bishopric and its three hectares of gardens span a large portion of the old abbey. By the separation of church and state, the bishopric became the property of the persons who lived in his estates, which were dispersed around the region. The buildings were used until the beginning of this century. In the 21st century many British people moved to Alet.BBC News https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-europe-46329850

Administration

The current mayor is Ghislaine Tafforeau, who entered office in 2014 and was re-elected in 2020. The previous mayor, Jean-Denis Alandry, had been in office since 2001.

Population

Sights

* Abbey and cathedral of the seventh century. *Medieval, fortified castle. *Hotels of the twelfth and fourteenth centuries. *Source of thermally heated water, discovered by the Romans over two thousand years ago. *Thermal spa.

Economy

The water of Alet-les-Bains is one of the oldest sold mineral waters in France, first bottled over 120 years ago, it is one of the largest sources in France. The village is very lively and possesses a casino, a thermal spa, several hotels, and several boutiques. There is one shop, which is a grocery store and a cafe serving breakfast and hot lunches.

Events and festivals

There are several festivals throughout the year: la Fête des Remparts in July organised by Animalet; the Association des Artistes Aletois organises a three-day music series "Alet en Concert" the first weekend in June and a week-long art exhibition "Expressions" mid-August; and the Festival Nostradamus an Aleth on the second Saturday in September organised by the Association Nostradamus en Aleth.

Personalities

was the bishop of Alet in the seventeenth century. *

Roger Peyrefitte Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", "honour") and ', ' ( ...

1907 - 2000, author.