Bassillon-Vauzé (; oc, Bassilhon e Bausèr) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

of the

Pyrénées-Atlantiques Pyrénées-Atlantiques (; Gascon Occitan: ''Pirenèus Atlantics''; eu, Pirinio Atlantiarrak or ) is a department in the southwest corner of France and of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Named after the Pyrenees mountain range and the Atlant ...

department in the

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by ...

region of south-western

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...

Geography

Bassillon-Vauzé is located some 25 km north-east of Pau and 8 km west of Maubourguet. The eastern border of the commune is also the departmental border with Hautes-Pyrénées. Access to the commune is by the D68 from Vidouze in the east which changes to the D148 at the departmental border and continues through the south of the commune west to join the D943 south-west of the commune. The D205 comes from

Corbère-Abères Corbère-Abères (; oc, Corbèras e Avera) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. See also *Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department The following is a list of the 546 communes of the Pyré ...

in the north which passes through the commune and continues south to join the D148 in the south of the commune. The commune is mostly farmland with some forest in the west. The Larcis river and the ''Lac de Bassillon'', which is formed by a dam on the Larcis, form the eastern border of the commune. The ''Ruisseau du Boscq'' forms the western border of the commune as it flows north into the lake formed by the ''Retenue de Lembeye-Corbères'' dam.

Places and Hamlets

* Bassillon * Camescasse * Canton * Les Garrus * Grabette * Lasplaces * Marela * Maury * Millo * Le Moutha * Pachera * Pouey * Routgé * Toubarthe * Vauzé

Toponymy

Michel Grosclaude said that ''Bassillon'' comes from the

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

name ''Bassilius'' with the suffix ''-onem'', giving "Domain of Bassius". The origin of ''Vauzé'' is undetermined. The following table details the origins of the commune name and other names in the commune. Sources: *Grosclaude: ''Toponymic Dictionary of communes, Béarn'', 2006 Michel Grosclaude, ''Toponymic Dictionary of communes, Béarn'', Edicions reclams & Édition Cairn - 2006, 416 pages, *

Raymond Raymond is a male given name. It was borrowed into English from French (older French spellings were Reimund and Raimund, whereas the modern English and French spellings are identical). It originated as the Germanic ᚱᚨᚷᛁᚾᛗᚢᚾᛞ ( ...

:''
''Topographic Dictionary of the Department of Basses-Pyrenees''
1863, on the page numbers indicated in the table. ''Topographic Dictionary of the Department of Basses-Pyrenees''
Paul Raymond, Imprimerie nationale, 1863, Digitised from Lyon Public Library 15 June 2011 *Cassini: 1750 Cassini Map *Cassini1: 1790 Cassini Map Origins: *Census: Census of BéarnManuscript from the 14th century - Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques *Reformation: Reformation of BéarnManuscript from the 16th to 18th centuries - Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques *Denombrement: Denombremont of CandauManuscripts from the 17th and 18th centuries in the Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques

History

Paul Raymond noted on page 23 of his 1863 dictionary that in 1385 Bassillon had 7

fires Fire is the rapid oxidation of a material (the fuel) in the exothermic chemical process of combustion, releasing heat, light, and various reaction products. At a certain point in the combustion reaction, called the ignition point, flames are pr ...

and depended on the bailiwick of

Lembeye Lembeye (; oc, Lenveja) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. See also *Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department The following is a list of the 546 communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques ...

. On page 173 he mentioned that Vauzé had a

lay abbey Lay may refer to: Places *Lay Range, a subrange of mountains in British Columbia, Canada *Lay, Loire, a French commune * Lay (river), France * Lay, Iran, a village *Lay, Kansas, United States, an unincorporated community People * Lay (surname) ...

, vassal of the Viscount of Vauzé, and that the Barony of Vauzé was created in 1641 under the

Viscounts of Béarn The viscounts of Béarn (Basque: ''Bearno'', Gascon: ''Bearn'' or ''Biarn'') were the rulers of the viscounty of Béarn, located in the Pyrenees mountains and in the plain at their feet, in southwest France. Along with the three Basque province ...

which included Peyrelongue-Abos and Vauzé. The former communes of ''Bassillon'' and ''Vauzé'' were merged in 1833.

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

Inter-communality

The commune is part of four inter-communal structures: * the Communauté de communes du Nord-Est Béarn * the SIVU for roads in the canton of Lembeye * the Energy association of Pyrénées-Atlantiques * the inter-communal association for the supply of drinking water of Vic-Bilh Montanérès

Demography

In 2017 the commune had 66 inhabitants. Monument aux morts de Bassillon-Vauzé

Economy

The commune is located in the

appellation d'origine contrôlée An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical bou ...

(AOC) zone of ''Pacherenc-du-vic-bilh'' white wine.

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

The commune has a number of buildings and sites that are registered as historical monuments: *The Maison Laïus Farmhouse (1765)Ministry of Culture, Mérimée *Houses and Farms (18th-19th century) *A Fountain (1833) *A Fortified Complex (Prehistoric)

Religious heritage

The commune has several religious buildings and sites that are registered as historical monuments: *A Presbytery (1853) *The Parish Church of Saint Girons at Bassillon (1783) The Church contains several items that are registered as historical objects: **2 Statues (19th century) **A Pulpit (18th century) **2

Stoup A holy water font or stoup is a vessel containing holy water which is generally placed near the entrance of a church. It is often placed at the base of a crucifix or religious representation. It is used in the Catholic Church, Anglican Churches ...

s (18th century) **A Stoup (18th century) ** Stained glass windows (19th century) *The Parish Church of Saint-Barthélémy at Vauzé (1773) The Church contains several items that are registered as historical objects: **A Stations of the Cross (19th century) **4

Altar An altar is a table or platform for the presentation of religious offerings, for sacrifices, or for other ritualistic purposes. Altars are found at shrines, temples, churches, and other places of worship. They are used particularly in paga ...

Candlestick A candlestick is a device used to hold a candle in place. Candlesticks have a cup or a spike ("pricket") or both to keep the candle in place. Candlesticks are less frequently called "candleholders". Before the proliferation of electricity, candl ...

s (18th century) **A

(18th century)Ministry of Culture, Palissy