Orthez (; ; , ) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, and region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France.

It lies 40 km NW of Pau on the Southern railway to Bayonne. The town also encompasses the small village of Sainte-Suzanne, an independent commune until 1973; residents of the town are called either Orthéziens or Sainte-Suzannais.

Geography

Orthez straddles the westward-flowing Gave de Pau, with most of the town proper having developed on the right bank. Several residential developments and an industrial park are located on the left bank, in addition to Sainte-Suzanne, an associated village entity within the town. A partially artificial lake called 'Lac de l'y grec' (usually just spelled 'Lac de l'Y' i.e. 'Y Lake') () has a pleasant, scenic walking trail. Orthez station has rail connections to Tarbes, Pau, Bordeaux and Bayonne.

History

During the 12th century, Orthez was the capital of Béarn, after Morlaàs and before Pau, which is still the prefectural administrative capital. At the end of the 12th century, Orthez passed from the possession of the viscounts of Dax to that of the viscounts of Bearn, whose chief place of residence it became in the 13th century. Froissart records the splendour of the court of Orthez under Gaston Phoebus in the latter half of the 14th century.

Jeanne d'Albret founded a Calvinist university in the town and Theodore Beza taught there for some time. An envoy sent in 1569 by Charles IX to revive the Catholic faith had to stand a siege in the battle of Orthez; the city was eventually taken by assault by the Protestant/Huguenot captain, Gabriel, count of Montgomery. In 1684 Nicholas Foucault, intendant under Louis XIV, was more successful, as the inhabitants, ostensibly at least, renounced Protestantism. It is nevertheless still a strong tradition in the town. and INSEE (1968-2023)

|1793 |3679

|1821 |6802

|1846 |7184

|1872 |6526

|1901 |6365

|1926 |5952

|1946 |6450

|1962 |8413

|1968 |10002

|1975 |10855

|1982 |10922

|1990 |10159

|1999 |10121

|2007 |10338

|2012 |10859

|2017 |10449

|2023 |10881

Sights

The Gave de Pau is crossed in Orthez by a 14th-century bridge, which has four arches and is surmounted at its centre by a tower. Several old houses, and a church of the 12th, 14th and 15th centuries are of some interest. The most notable building is the Tour Moncade (), a pentagonal tower of the 13th century, once the keep of a castle of the viscounts of Béarn, and now used as a meteorological observatory. A building of the 17th century is all that remains of the old Calvinist university (see below). The town hall is a newer building containing the library.

Locale

See also

  • Communes of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department

References

  • Mairie of Orthez