La Bastide-Clairence (; ) 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 ...

in 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. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Bastidots'' or ''Bastidotes''. The village is a member of the ''

Les Plus Beaux Villages de France ''Les Plus Beaux Villages de France'' (meaning “the most beautiful villages of France”) is an independent association created in 1982 for the promotion of the tourist appeal of small rural villages with a rich cultural heritage. As of Septem ...

'' ("The most beautiful villages of France") association.

Geography

La Bastide-Clairence (Pyr-Atl, Fr) mairie

La Bastide-Clairence is located in the former province of

Lower Navarre Lower Navarre ( eu, Nafarroa Beherea/Baxenabarre; Gascon/Bearnese: ''Navarra Baisha''; french: Basse-Navarre ; es, Baja Navarra) is a traditional region of the present-day French ''département'' of Pyrénées-Atlantiques. It corresponds to the ...

some 20 km east by south-east of Bayonne and 5 km north-east of

Hasparren Hasparren (; eu, Hazparne) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western France. A resident of Hasparren is known as a 'Hazpandar'. Geography Location It's a ''commune fait partie'' of the Basque Province of Labo ...

. Access to the commune is by the D10 road which branches from the D936 north of the commune and comes south to the village continuing south to join the D251 just west of Ayherre. Part of the D510 forms the western border of the commune as it goes south to join the D10 near Hasparren. The D123 goes east from the village through the length of the commune to

Amorots-Succos Amorots-Succos () is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of southwestern France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Amoroztar'' in Basque Brigitte Jobbé-Duval, ''Dictionary of placename ...

to the south-east. The D610 connects the D510 to the D10 in the commune. The commune is mostly farmland interspersed with forest. ''La Joyeuse'' stream flows from the south through the village and continues north to become the

Aran Aran m Places Azerbaijan Villages and municipalities: * Aran, Aghjabadi * Aran, Lerik * Aran, Shaki * Aran, Tovuz * Aran, Yevlakh Iran * Aran, Alborz, a village in Alborz Province * Aran, Nain, a village in Isfahan Province * Aran, K ...

which joins the Adour at

Urt Urt (; ; )AHURTI

Basque Basque may refer to: * Basques, an ethnic group of Spain and France * Basque language, their language Places * Basque Country (greater region), the homeland of the Basque people with parts in both Spain and France * Basque Country (autonomous co ...

is ''Bastida'' or ''Bastida Arberoa''Euskaltzaindia - Academy of the Basque Language
and in Gascon

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, spoken in parts o ...

is ''La Bastida Clarença''. The following table details the origins of the commune name and other names in the commune. Sources: *

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 Origins: *Camara: Titles of the Camara of ComptosTitles published by don José Yanguas y Miranda, ''Diccionario de Antiguedades del reino de Navarra'', 1840,

Pamplona Pamplona (; eu, Iruña or ), historically also known as Pampeluna in English, is the capital city of the Chartered Community of Navarre, in Spain. It is also the third-largest city in the greater Basque cultural region. Lying at near above ...

*Navarre: Titles of the Kingdom of NavarreTitles of the Kingdom of Navarre in the Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques *Duchesne: Duchesne collection volume 114Duchesne Collection, volume 99 to 114, containing the papers of Oihenart, former Imperial Librarian - Bibliothèque nationale de France *Oloron: Notaries of

Oloron Oloron-Sainte-Marie (; oc, Auloron e Senta Maria; eu, Oloroe-Donamaria) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine (before 2015: Aquitaine), southwestern France. History The town was founded by the ...

Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques *Pamplona: Titles of

Titles published by don José Yanguas y Miranda *Register: Register of the States of NavarreRegister of the States of Navarre in the Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques *Collations: Collations of the

Diocese of Bayonne The Diocese of Bayonne, Lescar, and Oloron, commonly Diocese of Bayonne, (Latin: ''Dioecesis Baionensis, Lascurrensis et Oloronensis''; French: ''Diocèse de Bayonne, Lescar et Oloron''; Basque: ''Baionako, Leskarreko eta Oloroeko elizbarrutia'') ...

Manuscripts from the 17th and 18th centuries in the Departmental Archives of Pyrénées-Atlantiques La Bastide-Clairence appears as LA BASTIDE Clerence'' on the 1750 Cassini Map and as ''LA BASTIDE'' on the 1790 version.

History

A Navarrese fortified village was founded in 1288 by ''Claire de Rabastens'' on a hillside next to the Aran river hence its Gascon name ''Bastida Clarença''. 800 refugees, mainly from Bigorre, were granted a charter in July 1312 by

Louis I of Navarre Louis X (4 October 1289 – 5 June 1316), known as the Quarrelsome (french: le Hutin), was King of France from 1314 and King of Navarre as Louis I from 1305 until his death. He emancipated serfs who could buy their freedom and readmitted Jews in ...

, the future

Louis X of France Louis X (4 October 1289 – 5 June 1316), known as the Quarrelsome (french: le Hutin), was King of France from 1314 and King of Navarre as Louis I from 1305 until his death. He emancipated serfs who could buy their freedom and readmitted Jews in ...

. The birth of the village corresponds to a need for Navarre to create a strong town in the forested frontier area. La Bastide-Clairence, as its name suggests, was a fortified town. The historian Paul Broca could still see the remains of its ancient fortress in 1875. La Bastide-Clairence slowly accumulated a population of shop-keepers from south-western France then from Spanish refugees fleeing the

Inquisition The Inquisition was a group of institutions within the Catholic Church whose aim was to combat heresy, conducting trials of suspected heretics. Studies of the records have found that the overwhelming majority of sentences consisted of penances, ...

, and also from Basque towns and villages nearby. Another version of the origin of the town exists: it was populated by settlers from diverse backgrounds including pilgrims to

Santiago de Compostela Santiago de Compostela is the capital of the autonomous community of Galicia, in northwestern Spain. The city has its origin in the shrine of Saint James the Great, now the Cathedral of Santiago de Compostela, as the destination of the Way of S ...

called the ''Francos''. By 1700 the population had reached 2,000. The inhabitants lived on the

nail Nail or Nails may refer to: In biology * Nail (anatomy), toughened protective protein-keratin (known as alpha-keratin, also found in hair) at the end of an animal digit, such as fingernail * Nail (beak), a plate of hard horny tissue at the tip ...

industry, woollen garments and knitwear, and agriculture. 12-day fairs ensured the prosperity of the town. In the 16th century the locals did not speak

, but spoke Gascon. Subsequently they gradually adopted the Basque language and customs. The town has 320 houses and mills from the 17th century. From 1575 to 1789, La Bastide-Clairence depended on the lords of Gramont. The city had a large Jewish community after the expulsion of

Portuguese Jews Spanish and Portuguese Jews, also called Western Sephardim, Iberian Jews, or Peninsular Jews, are a distinctive sub-group of Sephardic Jews who are largely descended from Jews who lived as New Christians in the Iberian Peninsula during the i ...

in the 16th and 17th centuries. Today, the Place des Arceaux and its half-timbered houses attract many art craftsmen. The houses are very typical of the region - there are two architectural types: *the

Baserri A baserri (; Spanish: ''caserío vasco''; French: ''maison basque'') is a traditional half-timbered or stone-built type of housebarn farmhouse found in the Basque Country in northern Spain and Southwestern France. The baserris, with their gently ...

style with gabled roofs with two slopes, half-timbered façade with red or green colour on overhangs, carved window mullions and lintels. *the Navarrese style with roofs of 2 or 4 sides and doors with vaulted Arches. The commune was formerly known as ''Labastide-Clairence'' and was renamed ''La Bastide-Clairence'' on 25 June 1988.

The Jewish community

There was a Jewish community for about 200 years from the early 17th century to the end of the 18th century. Refugees who came from Spain and especially Portugal, the

Sephardi Jews Sephardic (or Sephardi) Jews (, ; lad, Djudíos Sefardíes), also ''Sepharadim'' , Modern Hebrew: ''Sfaradim'', Tiberian: Səp̄āraddîm, also , ''Ye'hude Sepharad'', lit. "The Jews of Spain", es, Judíos sefardíes (or ), pt, Judeus sefa ...

, settled in Bayonne at the end of the 16th century from where they spread to the three small towns of

Peyrehorade Peyrehorade (; oc, Pèirahorada) is a commune in the Landes department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises ...

(where they were welcomed by the Lord of Aspremont),

Bidache Bidache (; ; )BIDAXUNE

, and La Bastide-Clairence which were protected by the

Duke of Gramont The title of Duke of Gramont (''duc de Gramont'') is a French dukedom and former peerage. It was created in 1648 for French Marshal Antoine III de Gramont. History The family of Gramont was a Navarrese medieval noble house and owned the chateau ...

. Often called "Portuguese", there were about 70-80 families in the commune in the 17th century. They lived in a relatively autonomous community designated by the expression "Jewish Nation" on the municipal records and had their own separate cemetery that was opened at the beginning of the 17th century. The inscriptions on the tombs, numbering 62, were found from 1962 to 1964 by Professor Gérard Nahon. The oldest tomb dates from 1620 with the most recent in 1785. On 18 of them, the date of death is expressed in the

Hebrew calendar The Hebrew calendar ( he, הַלּוּחַ הָעִבְרִי, translit=HaLuah HaIvri), also called the Jewish calendar, is a lunisolar calendar used today for Jewish religious observance, and as an official calendar of the state of Israel. ...

. From 1659 all had biblical names: Jacob, Isaac, Benjamin, Esther, Sarah, Rebecca. Among family names there are: Dacosta, Henriquez, Lopez Nunez, Depas, Alvares. The number of Jews decreased significantly in the middle of the 18th century when there were only 15 Jewish families. There remained only 6 in 1798. The cemetery belongs to the Jewish Consistory of Bayonne.

Heraldry

Administration

List of Successive Mayors

Intercommunality

The town participates in nine inter-communal associations: *the

Communauté d'agglomération du Pays Basque The communauté d'agglomération du Pays Basque ( eu, Euskal Hirigune Elkargoa), is the ''communauté d'agglomération'', an intercommunal structure, centred on the cities of Bayonne and Biarritz. It is located in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques depa ...

; *the AEP association of Arbéroue; *sanitation association of Adour-Ursuia; *the energy association of Pyrénées-Atlantiques; *the inter-communal association for the management of the Txakurrak center; *the inter-communal association for the industrial area of Ayherre; *the inter-communal association for support of Basque culture; *the joint association for studying, developing, and monitoring the SCOT of the agglomeration of Bayonne and southern Landes; *the association for the industrial area of Etxecolu at Bardos. La Bastide-Clairence is the headquarters of the sanitation association of Adour-Ursuia.

Demography

In 2017 the commune had 979 inhabitants.

Education

The commune has one private and one public primary school.

Economy

Economic activity in the commune is mainly agricultural. The commune is part of 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

Ossau-iraty Ossau-Iraty is an Occitan- Basque cheese made from sheep milk. Origin Ossau-Iraty or Esquirrou is produced in south-western France, in the Northern Basque Country and in Béarn. Its name reflects its geographical location, the Ossau Valley in B ...

Culture and heritage

Civil heritage

The old

Jeu de paume ''Jeu de paume'' (, ; originally spelled ; ), nowadays known as real tennis, (US) court tennis or (in France) ''courte paume'', is a ball-and-court game that originated in France. It was an indoor precursor of tennis played without racquets, a ...

(1842) is registered as an historical monument.

Religious heritage

The commune has two religious sites that are registered as historical monuments: * The Church of Notre-Dame de l'Assomption (1715) The church contains a Painting with frame: Virgin and child (18th century) which is registered as an historical object. * The old Jewish Cemetery (17th century) File:Labastide Clairence-011.jpg, The Church interior File:La Bastide-Clairence (Pyr-Atl, Fr) painting miracle of Saint Nicholas.jpg, Painting: Virgin and child with Saint Nicholas

Notable people linked to the commune

Joanes Leizarraga Joanes Leizarraga (1506–1601) was a 16th-century Basque priest. He is most famous for being the first to attempt the standardisation of the Basque language and for the translation of religious works into Basque, in particular the first Basque t ...

, born at

Briscous Briscous (; eu, BeskoitzeBeskoitze
New Testament The New Testament grc, Ἡ Καινὴ Διαθήκη, transl. ; la, Novum Testamentum. (NT) is the second division of the Christian biblical canon. It discusses the teachings and person of Jesus, as well as events in first-century Chri ...

into

or ''euskara''. * Salvatus I of Iharse (or Salvat Diharce) was named by Henry III of France as Bishop of Tarbes (19 January 1577 - around 1602). He came from a branch of the family from La Bastide-Clairence''Armorial of Pays basque'' or ''Compendium of notices and arms of houses, families, towns, and communities of Lower Navarre, Labourd and Soule, the Valleys of Baztan, Cinco Villas, Santesteban, Erro, Aezkoa, Urrobi, Salazar and Roncal, the towns of Irún, Fontarabie, Saint-Sébastien and of the valley ...'', Hubert Lamant-Duhart, H. Lamant, J & D, 1997, p.64 and 150. * Armand Joseph Dubernad, (1741–1799), financial trader, Freemason,

Consul general A consul is an official representative of the government of one state in the territory of another, normally acting to assist and protect the citizens of the consul's own country, as well as to facilitate trade and friendship between the people ...

of the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 ...

, deputy, mayor, and co-founder of the first Jacobin Club of

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known as Armorica during the period ...