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NAVARRE (Span. Navarra)

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Originally appearing in Volume V19, Page 282 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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NAVARRE (Span. Navarra) , an inland See also:province of See also:northern See also:Spain, and formerly a See also:kingdom which included See also:part of See also:France. The province is bounded on the N. by France (Basses See also:Pyrenees) and Guipilzcoa, E. by See also:Huesca and See also:Saragossa, S. by Saragossa and Logrono and W. by See also:Alava. It is traversed from See also:east to See also:west by the Pyrenees and the Cantabrian Mountains, and almost the whole of the province is overrun by the ramifications of these ranges. From Navarre there are only three practicable roads for carriages into France—those by the Puerta de See also:Vera, the Puerta de See also:Maya and See also:Roncesvalles. The highest See also:summit in the province is the See also:Monte Adi (4931 ft.). The See also:chief See also:river flowing towards the See also:Atlantic is the Bidasoa, which rises near the Puerta de Maya, and after flowing southwards through the valley of Baztan takes a See also:north-easterly course, and for a See also:short distance above its outfall at See also:Fuenterrabia constitutes the frontier between France and Spain (Guipilzcoa); by far the larger portion of Navarre is drained to the Mediterranean through the See also:Ebro, which flows along the western frontier and crosses the extreme See also:south of the province. The hilly districts consist almost entirely of See also:forest and pasture, the most See also:common trees being the See also:pine, See also:beech, See also:oak and See also:chestnut. Much of the See also:lower ground is well adapted for See also:agriculture, and yields See also:grain in abundance; the See also:principal See also:fruit grown is the See also:apple, from which See also:cider is made in some districts; See also:hemp, See also:flax and oil are also produced, and mulberries are cultivated for silkworms. The See also:wine See also:trade is active, and the products of the vineyards are in See also:great demand in south-west France and at Passages in Guipfizcoa for mixing with See also:French wines. Navarre is one of the richest provinces of Spain in live stock. See also:Game, both large and small, is plentiful in the mountains, and the streams abound with See also:trout and other See also:fish.

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Gypsum, See also:limestone, freestone and See also:marble are quarried; there are also mines of See also:copper, See also:lead, See also:iron, See also:zinc and ro,,k See also:salt. See also:Mineral and thermal springs are numerous, but none is of more than See also:local fame. The other See also:industries include manufactures of arms, See also:paper, See also:chocolate, candles, See also:alcohol, See also:leather, coarse linens and See also:cloth. The exports both by See also:rail and by the passes in the Pyrenees consist of live stock, oil, wine, See also:wool, leather and paper. The Ebro Valley railway, which traverses See also:southern Navarre arid skirts the western frontier, sends out a See also:branch See also:line from Castejon to See also:Pamplona and Alsasua junction, where it connects with the Northern See also:railways from See also:Madrid to France. Narrow-See also:gauge railways convey See also:timber and ore from the mountains to these See also:main lines. Pamplona, the See also:capital (pop., 'goo, 28,886), and See also:Tudela (9449) are described in See also:separate articles. The only other towns with more than 5000 inhabitants are Baztan (9234), Corella (6793), See also:Estella (5736) and Tafalla (5494)• See also:History.—The kingdom of Navarre was formed out of a part of the territory occupied by the Vascones, i.e. the See also:Basques and Gascons, who occupied the southern slope of the western Pyrenees and part of the See also:shore of the See also:Bay of See also:Biscay. In the course of the 6th See also:century there was a considerable See also:emigration of Basques to the north of the Pyrenees. The cause is supposed to have been the pressure put upon them by the attacks of the Visigoth See also:kings in Spain. Yet the Basques maintained their See also:independence. The name of Navarre is derived by etymologists from "nava" a See also:flat valley surrounded by hills (a See also:commonplace name in Spain; cf.

Navas de Tolosa to the south of the Sierra Morena) and "erri " a region or See also:

country. It began to appear as the name of part of Vasconia towards the end of the Visigoth See also:epoch in Spain in the 7th century. Its See also:early history is more than obscure. In See also:recent times ingenious attempts have been made to trace the descent of the first historic See also:king of Navarre from one Semen See also:Lupus, See also:duke of See also:Aquitaine in the 6th century. The reader may consult La Vasconie by See also:Jean de Jaurgain (See also:Paris, 1898) for the latest example of this reconstruction of See also:ancient history from fragmentary and dubious materials. Jaurgain has been subjected to very damaging See also:criticism by L. Barrau-Dihigo (Revue Hispanique, t. vii. 141' The first historic king of Navarre was Sancho See also:Garcia, who ruled at Pamplona in the early years of the loth century. Under him and his immediate successors Navarre reached the height of its See also:power and its See also:extension (see SPAIN: History, for the reign of Sancho el See also:Mayor, and the See also:establishment of the Navarrese line as kings of See also:Castile and See also:Leon, and of See also:Aragon). When the kingdom was at its height it included all the See also:modern province of the name; the northern slope of the western Pyrenees called by the Spaniards the " Ultra-puertos " or country beyondthe passes, and now known as French Navarre; the Basque provinces; the Bureba, the valley between the Basque Mountains and the Montes de Oca to the north of See also:Burgos; the See also:Rioja and Tarazona in the upper valley of the Ebro. In the 12th century the kings of Castile gradually annexed the Rioja and Alava. While Navarre was reunited to Aragon—ro76–I134—(see SPAIN: History) it was saved from aggression on the east, but did not recover the territory taken by Castile.

About the See also:

year I200 Alfonso VIII. of Castile annexed the other two Basque provinces, Biscay (Vizcaya) and Guipfizcoa. Tarazona remained in See also:possession of Aragon. After 1234 Navarre, though the See also:crown was claimed by. the kings of Aragon, passed by See also:marriage to a See also:succession of French rulers. In 1516 See also:Spanish Navarre was finally annexed by See also:Ferdinand the See also:Catholic. French Navarre survived as an See also:independent little kingdom till it was See also:united to the crown of France by See also:Henry IV. founder of the See also:Bourbon See also:dynasty. From 1510 until 1833, when it was fully incorporated with Spain, Navarre was a viceroyalty. As originally organized, Navarre was divided into Merindades, or districts, governed by a See also:Merino (mayorino) as representative of the king. They were the Ultrapuertos (French Navarre), Pamplona, Estella, Judela, Sanguesa. In 1407 Olite was added. The See also:Cortes of Navarre began with the king's See also:council of churchmen and nobles. But in the course of the 14th century the burgesses were added. Their presence was due to the fact that the king had need of their co-operation to raise See also:money by grants and See also:aids.

When fully constituted, the Cortes consisted of the churchmen, the nobles and the representatives of twenty-seven " See also:

good towns='—that is to say, towns which had no feudal See also:lord, and, therefore, held directly of the king. In the later stages of its history the Cortes of Navarre included the representatives of See also:thirty-eight towns. The independence of the burgesses was better secured in Navarre than in other parliaments of Spain by the constitutional See also:rule which required the consent of a See also:majority of each See also:order to every See also:act of the Cortes. Thus the burgesses could not be outvoted by the nobles and the See also:Church. Even in the 18th century the Navarrese successfully resisted the See also:attempt of the kings of the Bourbon dynasty to establish See also:custom houses on the French frontier. Yet they were loyal to their Spanish sovereigns, and no part of the country offered a more determined or more skilful resistance to See also:Napoleon. Navarre was much under clerical See also:influence. This, and the resentment See also:felt at the loss of their See also:autonomy when they were incorporated with the See also:rest of Spain in 1833, See also:account for the strong support given by many Navarrese to the Carlist cause. See Historia Compendiada de Navarra by See also:Don J. M. Yanguas, (See also:San See also:Sebastian, 1832).

End of Article: NAVARRE (Span. Navarra)

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