Bazas

For the Greek Orthodox Patriarch of Jerusalem called Bazas, see Zamudas of Jerusalem.

Bazas
Bazas Cathedral
Bazas
Administration
Country	France
Region	Aquitaine
Department	Gironde
Arrondissement	Langon
Canton	Bazas
Intercommunality	Bazadais
Mayor	Bernard Bosset (2008–2014)
Statistics
Elevation	34–123 m (112–404 ft) (avg. 56 m or 184 ft)
Land area1	37.29 km2 (14.40 sq mi)
Population2	4,607  (2008)
- Density	124 /km2 (320 /sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	33036/ 33430
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

City gate of Bazas as painted in the 19th century

Bazas is a commune in the Gironde department in southwestern France.

Geography

Bazas stands on a narrow promontory above the Beuve valley 60 km/37 mi southeast of Bordeaux and 40 km/25 mi southwest of Marmande.

History

The town was the seat of a bishop from at least the beginning of the 6th century till 1790.

According to Gregory of Tours, Bazas had a bishop at the time of the Vandal invasion in the 5th century.

The dedication of the cathedral to St. John the Baptist is explained in an account given by the same historian that a lady of Bazas, whom certain hagiographers of the 19th century believe to have been St. Veronica, brought from Palestine a relic of St. John the Baptist at the time of that saint's death.

For 250 years prior to 1057, the Bishop of Bazas bore the title of Bishop of Aire, Dax, Bayonne, Oloron and Lescar.

Pope Urban II (1088–99) preached the crusade at Bazas.

Bazas was a subprefecture until 1923, when it lost this role to Langon.

Population

Historical population of Bazas

Year	1962	1968	1975	1982	1990	1999	2008
Population	4453	4567	4748	4704	4379	4357	4607

Sights

The town has a Gothic cathedral dating from the 13th to the 16th centuries, now part of Unesco's heritage sights.^{[citation needed]} There are remains of ramparts (15th and 16th centuries) and several old houses of the 16th century. (Photo:[1]) Saturday morning markets are well worth seeing. The area is also home to the Clementin Castles, built by Pope Clement V for himself and his family. You can visit around Bazas:

• Chateau de Roquetaillade
• Chateau de Villandraut
• Chateau de Fargues.
• Chateau de Cazeneuve

Economy

The vineyards of the vicinity produce white wine. The town carries on tanning and trade in the well-known Bazadais cattle.

Transport

Bazas is by-passed by the Route nationale 524 (N524). The N524 forms part of the Itinéraire à Grand Gabarit, a route which has been modified to allow its use by the oversize road convoys conveying body sections and wings of the Airbus A380 airliner, and several upgrades were made made to the road through Bazas to this end.

See also

• Communes of the Gironde department

References

• INSEE

•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Chisholm, Hugh, ed (1911). Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). Cambridge University Press. 
•  This article incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Herbermann, Charles, ed (1913). Catholic Encyclopedia. Robert Appleton Company.  Bordeaux

External links

• Roquetaillade castle
• Town council website
• Bazas Cathedral Setting and Zodiac Signs