Bassillon-Vauzé
Bassillon-Vauzé (; ) is a commune of the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of south-western France. 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 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. Toponymy. Michel Grosclaude said that "Bassillon" comes from the Latin 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: Origins: History. Paul Raymond noted on page 23 of his 1863 dictionary that in 1385 Bassillon had 7 fires and depended on the bailiwick of Lembeye. On page 173 he mentioned that Vauzé had a lay abbey, vassal of the Viscount of Vauzé, and that the Barony of Vauzé was created in 1641 under the Viscounts of Béarn 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: Demography. In 2017 the commune had 66 inhabitants. Economy. The commune is located in the appellation d'origine contrôlée (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: Religious heritage. The commune has several religious buildings and sites that are registered as historical monuments: