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, ...
Aspet - Chapelle de Miègecoste et la tour du Chucaou.jpg, Chapel of Miègecoste and the medieval tower of Chucaou
Aspet - Eglise saint Martin.jpg, Saint Martin's church
Aspet - Fontaine d'Aspet - 06.jpg, The fountain (
monument historique
''Monument historique'' () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which National Heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a coll ...
).
View from Ray Atkins' house, near Aspet, France.jpg, View from artist Ray Atkins' house
Geography
Located in the middle of the Pyrenees mountain chain, within the ancient region of
Comminges
The Comminges (; Occitan/ Gascon: ''Comenge'') is an ancient region of southern France in the foothills of the Pyrenees, corresponding closely to the arrondissement of Saint-Gaudens in the department of Haute-Garonne. This natural region is norma ...
, Aspet sits 15 km south to Saint-Gaudens and at the foot of the Cagire ( in Altitude).
Toponymy
According to some, the name Aspet comes from the Basque language where ''azpeta'' means ''at the cliff's foot''. The only issue is that there are no cliffs to be seen in Aspet as the landscape is mainly made of rolling hills.
The first document stating the existence of the town was found in 1068 and states its name as « ''Spel'' » or « Espel ».
History
The exact date of the creation of the Seigneurie (lordship) d'Aspet is not known. The first lord able to be named is Ramon-At(hon) ruling there around 1068.
Names of several lords who took part in the Crusades have also been found such as Arnaud II, who left with Philippe-Auguste from Genoa in 1190.
At the beginning of the 15th century, the Coarraze family takes the lead of the territory. Raymond-Arnaud II de Coarraze fought with Joan of Arc during the
Siege of Orléans
The siege of Orléans (12 October 1428 – 8 May 1429) was the watershed of the Hundred Years' War between France and England. The siege took place at the pinnacle of English power during the later stages of the war. The city held strategic and ...
. The last representative of the Coarraze name was dame Catherine, who supposedly commissioned the fountain we can still admire on the town's main square. She died in 1492, leaving the leadership to the County of Foix which had Henri III de Navarre as last baron, the soon to be king Henri IV of France. Under his reign, Aspet and its surroundings became part of the royal territories. Thus, in the main street of Aspet (Grand-rue), which leads to the church, are to be found the remains of the Royal Judges House.