Elne
Encyclopedia
Elne is a commune
in the Pyrénées-Orientales
department in southern France
.
It lies in the former province of Roussillon
, of which it was the first capital, being later replaced by Perpignan
. Its inhabitants are still called Illibériens in reference to the city's Iberian
name, Illiberis, one that it shared with the Illiberis that became Granada, Spain
.
, in Pyrénées-Orientales
, 12 km (7.5 mi) from Perpignan
and 7 km (4.3 mi) from Argelès
.
The canton of Elne covers seven communes: Elne (chief town), Villeneuve-de-la-Raho
, Bages
, Corneilla-del-Vercol
, Montescot
, Théza
, Ortaffa
.
between the Pyrenees and the Mediterranean
. Numerous archeological researches have shown that the surrounding countryside has been occupied since Neolithic
times. Elne was an Iberian
oppidum
or fortified town. Elne is the oldest town in Roussillon
and since it is situated on the way towards the Iberian peninsula
, successive civilisations have left their traces. The first mention of Illiberis occurs in the history of Livy
(xxi.24) http://www.romansonline.com/Src_Frame.asp?DocID=Hor_Lv21_24 : it was the Iberian
city at which Hannibal pitched camp having crossed the Pyrenees in 218 BCE, where he negotiated with the assembled Gaulish chiefs his safe passage through their territories on the way to Italy. In the first century CE, however, it was no more than "a modest vestige of a hitherto great city" (Pliny
).
In the fourth century Illiberis became "Castrum Helenae" after Helen
, the mother of Constantine, whence its modern name was derived by degrees. Within its walls was assassinated Constans
, the son of Constantine in 350 A.D. With the division of southern Gaul in 462, Elne became one of the "seven cities" of Septimania
. Its Catholic bishopric was established in the 6th century. The first known sishop of Elne, Dominus, was mentioned in 571 in the Chronicle of John of Biclarum. Its bishop attended the Council of Toledo in 599. Numerous synods were held by the bishops of Elne: That of 1027 in Toulouges
upheld the Peace and Truce of God
, that no one should attack his enemy from Saturday at nine o'clock to Monday at one. Further synods were held in 1058, 1114, 1335, 1337, 1338, 1339, 1340, and 1380 (CE).
When the Arabs crossed the Pyrenees
in 719 Elne was one of the first towns to be attacked, and when the counts of Roussillon achieved independence, Perpignan
became the capital of the county, with Elne remaining the Episcopal
city.
The present cathedral of Sainte-Eulalie-et-Sainte-Julie was begun its high altar was consecrated in 1069. Its Romanesque
cloister was built in the 12th to 14th centuries. In 1285, under the Aragonese domination, during the Aragonese Crusade
instigated by Pope Martin IV
, the town was plundered, the cathedral set fire and the people, who had taken refuge inside, massacred by the French troops of Philip III
.
During the later Middle Ages, Elne was increasingly overshadowed by the growing prosperity of nearby Perpignan
; the counts of Roussillon moved their seat from Elne to Perpignan, and after vicissitudes lasting two centuries the episcopal seat was finally transferred to Perpignan also, in 1601 by a Bull of Pope Clement VIII
(CE).
In 1472 the inhabitants of Elne revolted against French rule. The town, yet again besieged, was conquered and its captain, Bernat d'Oms, beheaded (1474). In 1493 Elne, along with all Roussillon
, was returned to the Crown of Aragon. In 1641 Elne suffered another siege by the French and after the Treaty of the Pyrenees
(1659), became French. The medieval ramparts were partly destroyed in 1680 on Louis XIV
's orders.
Since then Elne has become an agricultural town which, in spite of repeated destructions caused by its several invaders, remains a witness to its past glories, attracting some 70,000 visitors annually.
In the twentieth century a sculptor and a painter have left their imprint : Aristide Maillol
and Etienne Terrus
, to whom a local museum is dedicated. "Pomone" by Maillol serves as the WWII war memorial, and the studio of Terrus, where Henri Matisse
and André Derain
were received, saw the birth of the Fauve
movement.
Currently the city is extending towards the north, in a carefully planned urbanization— "Las Trillas"— extending over 40 hectares, which takes advantage of picturesque views of the cathedral. A pedestrian boulevard through the city, on the model of Barcelona
's successful "Las Ramblas", is under way, as well as a new square, Place Jordi incorporating the ramparts of the upper city.
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in the Pyrénées-Orientales
Pyrénées-Orientales
Pyrénées-Orientales is a department of southern France adjacent to the northern Spanish frontier and the Mediterranean Sea. It also surrounds the tiny Spanish enclave of Llívia, and thus has two distinct borders with Spain.- History :...
department in southern France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
It lies in the former province of Roussillon
Roussillon
Roussillon is one of the historical counties of the former Principality of Catalonia, corresponding roughly to the present-day southern French département of Pyrénées-Orientales...
, of which it was the first capital, being later replaced by Perpignan
Perpignan
-Sport:Perpignan is a rugby stronghold: their rugby union side, USA Perpignan, is a regular competitor in the Heineken Cup and seven times champion of the Top 14 , while their rugby league side plays in the engage Super League under the name Catalans Dragons.-Culture:Since 2004, every year in the...
. Its inhabitants are still called Illibériens in reference to the city's Iberian
Iberians
The Iberians were a set of peoples that Greek and Roman sources identified with that name in the eastern and southern coasts of the Iberian peninsula at least from the 6th century BC...
name, Illiberis, one that it shared with the Illiberis that became Granada, Spain
Granada
Granada is a city and the capital of the province of Granada, in the autonomous community of Andalusia, Spain. Granada is located at the foot of the Sierra Nevada mountains, at the confluence of three rivers, the Beiro, the Darro and the Genil. It sits at an elevation of 738 metres above sea...
.
Geography
Elne is situated 4 km (2.5 mi) from the Mediterranean on the Tech RiverTech River
The Tech is a river in southern France, very close to the French-Spanish border. It runs through a valley in the Pyrénées-Orientales, in the former Roussillon, and is 84 km long. Its source is the Parcigoule Valley and it feeds the Mediterranean Sea...
, in Pyrénées-Orientales
Pyrénées-Orientales
Pyrénées-Orientales is a department of southern France adjacent to the northern Spanish frontier and the Mediterranean Sea. It also surrounds the tiny Spanish enclave of Llívia, and thus has two distinct borders with Spain.- History :...
, 12 km (7.5 mi) from Perpignan
Perpignan
-Sport:Perpignan is a rugby stronghold: their rugby union side, USA Perpignan, is a regular competitor in the Heineken Cup and seven times champion of the Top 14 , while their rugby league side plays in the engage Super League under the name Catalans Dragons.-Culture:Since 2004, every year in the...
and 7 km (4.3 mi) from Argelès
Argelès-sur-Mer
Argelès-sur-Mer is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.It lies near Perpignan.-Geography:...
.
The canton of Elne covers seven communes: Elne (chief town), Villeneuve-de-la-Raho
Villeneuve-de-la-Raho
Villeneuve-de-la-Raho is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
, Bages
Bages, Pyrénées-Orientales
Bages is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
, Corneilla-del-Vercol
Corneilla-del-Vercol
Corneilla-del-Vercol is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
, Montescot
Montescot
Montescot is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
, Théza
Théza
Théza is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
, Ortaffa
Ortaffa
Ortaffa is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-References:*...
.
Demography
History
Elne, from the heights of its fortified site, dominates the narrow plain of RoussillonRoussillon
Roussillon is one of the historical counties of the former Principality of Catalonia, corresponding roughly to the present-day southern French département of Pyrénées-Orientales...
between the Pyrenees and the Mediterranean
Mediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
. Numerous archeological researches have shown that the surrounding countryside has been occupied since Neolithic
Neolithic
The Neolithic Age, Era, or Period, or New Stone Age, was a period in the development of human technology, beginning about 9500 BC in some parts of the Middle East, and later in other parts of the world. It is traditionally considered as the last part of the Stone Age...
times. Elne was an Iberian
Iberians
The Iberians were a set of peoples that Greek and Roman sources identified with that name in the eastern and southern coasts of the Iberian peninsula at least from the 6th century BC...
oppidum
Oppidum
Oppidum is a Latin word meaning the main settlement in any administrative area of ancient Rome. The word is derived from the earlier Latin ob-pedum, "enclosed space," possibly from the Proto-Indo-European *pedóm-, "occupied space" or "footprint."Julius Caesar described the larger Celtic Iron Age...
or fortified town. Elne is the oldest town in Roussillon
Roussillon
Roussillon is one of the historical counties of the former Principality of Catalonia, corresponding roughly to the present-day southern French département of Pyrénées-Orientales...
and since it is situated on the way towards the Iberian peninsula
Iberians
The Iberians were a set of peoples that Greek and Roman sources identified with that name in the eastern and southern coasts of the Iberian peninsula at least from the 6th century BC...
, successive civilisations have left their traces. The first mention of Illiberis occurs in the history of Livy
Livy
Titus Livius — known as Livy in English — was a Roman historian who wrote a monumental history of Rome and the Roman people. Ab Urbe Condita Libri, "Chapters from the Foundation of the City," covering the period from the earliest legends of Rome well before the traditional foundation in 753 BC...
(xxi.24) http://www.romansonline.com/Src_Frame.asp?DocID=Hor_Lv21_24 : it was the Iberian
Iberians
The Iberians were a set of peoples that Greek and Roman sources identified with that name in the eastern and southern coasts of the Iberian peninsula at least from the 6th century BC...
city at which Hannibal pitched camp having crossed the Pyrenees in 218 BCE, where he negotiated with the assembled Gaulish chiefs his safe passage through their territories on the way to Italy. In the first century CE, however, it was no more than "a modest vestige of a hitherto great city" (Pliny
Pliny the Younger
Gaius Plinius Caecilius Secundus, born Gaius Caecilius or Gaius Caecilius Cilo , better known as Pliny the Younger, was a lawyer, author, and magistrate of Ancient Rome. Pliny's uncle, Pliny the Elder, helped raise and educate him...
).
In the fourth century Illiberis became "Castrum Helenae" after Helen
Helena of Constantinople
Saint Helena also known as Saint Helen, Helena Augusta or Helena of Constantinople was the consort of Emperor Constantius, and the mother of Emperor Constantine I...
, the mother of Constantine, whence its modern name was derived by degrees. Within its walls was assassinated Constans
Constans
Constans , was Roman Emperor from 337 to 350. He defeated his brother Constantine II in 340, but anger in the army over his personal life and preference for his barbarian bodyguards saw the general Magnentius rebel, resulting in Constans’ assassination in 350.-Career:Constans was the third and...
, the son of Constantine in 350 A.D. With the division of southern Gaul in 462, Elne became one of the "seven cities" of Septimania
Septimania
Septimania was the western region of the Roman province of Gallia Narbonensis that passed under the control of the Visigoths in 462, when Septimania was ceded to their king, Theodoric II. Under the Visigoths it was known as simply Gallia or Narbonensis. It corresponded roughly with the modern...
. Its Catholic bishopric was established in the 6th century. The first known sishop of Elne, Dominus, was mentioned in 571 in the Chronicle of John of Biclarum. Its bishop attended the Council of Toledo in 599. Numerous synods were held by the bishops of Elne: That of 1027 in Toulouges
Toulouges
Toulouges is a commune in the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France.-History:Toulouges was probably grew upon a Roman villa. It was first mentioned in 904 at the same time mentioning the church called Tulogias...
upheld the Peace and Truce of God
Peace and Truce of God
The Peace and Truce of God was a medieval European movement of the Catholic Church that applied spiritual sanctions in order to limit the violence of private war in feudal society. The movement constituted the first organized attempt to control civil society in medieval Europe through non-violent...
, that no one should attack his enemy from Saturday at nine o'clock to Monday at one. Further synods were held in 1058, 1114, 1335, 1337, 1338, 1339, 1340, and 1380 (CE).
When the Arabs crossed the Pyrenees
Pyrenees
The Pyrenees is a range of mountains in southwest Europe that forms a natural border between France and Spain...
in 719 Elne was one of the first towns to be attacked, and when the counts of Roussillon achieved independence, Perpignan
Perpignan
-Sport:Perpignan is a rugby stronghold: their rugby union side, USA Perpignan, is a regular competitor in the Heineken Cup and seven times champion of the Top 14 , while their rugby league side plays in the engage Super League under the name Catalans Dragons.-Culture:Since 2004, every year in the...
became the capital of the county, with Elne remaining the Episcopal
Bishop
A bishop is an ordained or consecrated member of the Christian clergy who is generally entrusted with a position of authority and oversight. Within the Catholic Church, Eastern Orthodox, Oriental Orthodox Churches, in the Assyrian Church of the East, in the Independent Catholic Churches, and in the...
city.
Romanesque architecture
Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of Medieval Europe characterised by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque architecture, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 10th century. It developed in the 12th century into the Gothic style,...
cloister was built in the 12th to 14th centuries. In 1285, under the Aragonese domination, during the Aragonese Crusade
Aragonese Crusade
The Aragonese Crusade or Crusade of Aragon, a part of the larger War of the Sicilian Vespers, was declared by Pope Martin IV against the King of Aragon, Peter III the Great, in 1284 and 1285...
instigated by Pope Martin IV
Pope Martin IV
Pope Martin IV, born Simon de Brion held the papacy from February 21, 1281 until his death....
, the town was plundered, the cathedral set fire and the people, who had taken refuge inside, massacred by the French troops of Philip III
Philip III of France
Philip III , called the Bold , was the King of France, succeeding his father, Louis IX, and reigning from 1270 to 1285. He was a member of the House of Capet.-Biography:...
.
During the later Middle Ages, Elne was increasingly overshadowed by the growing prosperity of nearby Perpignan
Perpignan
-Sport:Perpignan is a rugby stronghold: their rugby union side, USA Perpignan, is a regular competitor in the Heineken Cup and seven times champion of the Top 14 , while their rugby league side plays in the engage Super League under the name Catalans Dragons.-Culture:Since 2004, every year in the...
; the counts of Roussillon moved their seat from Elne to Perpignan, and after vicissitudes lasting two centuries the episcopal seat was finally transferred to Perpignan also, in 1601 by a Bull of Pope Clement VIII
Pope Clement VIII
Pope Clement VIII , born Ippolito Aldobrandini, was Pope from 30 January 1592 to 3 March 1605.-Cardinal:...
(CE).
In 1472 the inhabitants of Elne revolted against French rule. The town, yet again besieged, was conquered and its captain, Bernat d'Oms, beheaded (1474). In 1493 Elne, along with all Roussillon
Roussillon
Roussillon is one of the historical counties of the former Principality of Catalonia, corresponding roughly to the present-day southern French département of Pyrénées-Orientales...
, was returned to the Crown of Aragon. In 1641 Elne suffered another siege by the French and after the Treaty of the Pyrenees
Treaty of the Pyrenees
The Treaty of the Pyrenees was signed to end the 1635 to 1659 war between France and Spain, a war that was initially a part of the wider Thirty Years' War. It was signed on Pheasant Island, a river island on the border between the two countries...
(1659), became French. The medieval ramparts were partly destroyed in 1680 on Louis XIV
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
's orders.
In the twentieth century a sculptor and a painter have left their imprint : Aristide Maillol
Aristide Maillol
Aristide Maillol or Aristides Maillol was a French Catalan sculptor and painter.-Biography:...
and Etienne Terrus
Étienne Terrus
Étienne Terrus, was a Catalan painter from RoussillonWhen he was 17 years old, he went studying to Paris but soon after, he went back to Elne, where he made most of his works....
, to whom a local museum is dedicated. "Pomone" by Maillol serves as the WWII war memorial, and the studio of Terrus, where Henri Matisse
Henri Matisse
Henri Matisse was a French artist, known for his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a draughtsman, printmaker, and sculptor, but is known primarily as a painter...
and André Derain
André Derain
André Derain was a French artist, painter, sculptor and co-founder of Fauvism with Henri Matisse.-Early years:...
were received, saw the birth of the Fauve
Fauve
Fauve may refer to:* Fauve , American comics artist* Fauve , a short legged hunting breed of dog* Fauvism, a short-lived and loose grouping of early 20th century modern art* Fauve Software, a defunct software company...
movement.
Currently the city is extending towards the north, in a carefully planned urbanization— "Las Trillas"— extending over 40 hectares, which takes advantage of picturesque views of the cathedral. A pedestrian boulevard through the city, on the model of Barcelona
Barcelona
Barcelona is the second largest city in Spain after Madrid, and the capital of Catalonia, with a population of 1,621,537 within its administrative limits on a land area of...
's successful "Las Ramblas", is under way, as well as a new square, Place Jordi incorporating the ramparts of the upper city.
External links
- Elne.fr Elne (official site); (in French)
- Elne, ville d'Arts (official site): (in French)
- Catholic Dictionary: "Diocese of Perpignan"