Basses-Pyrénées

Pyrénées-Atlantiques (Pirinio Atlantikoak)
Department
Coat of arms
Location of Pyrénées-Atlantiques in France
Coordinates: 43°15′N 0°50′E / 43.250°N 0.833°E / 43.250; 0.833Coordinates: 43°15′N 0°50′E / 43.250°N 0.833°E / 43.250; 0.833
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Prefecture	Pau
Subprefectures	Bayonne Oloron-Sainte-Marie
Government
• President of the General Council	Georges Labazée
Area
• Total	7,645 km2 (2,952 sq mi)
Population (2013)
• Total	664,057
• Rank	36th
• Density	87/km2 (220/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
Department number	64
Arrondissements	3
Cantons	27
Communes	547
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

Pyrénées-Atlantiques (French pronunciation: ​[pi.ʁe.ne.a.tlɑ̃.tik]; Gascon: Pirenèus-Atlantics; Basque: Pirinio Atlantiarrak or Pirinio Atlantikoak) is a department in the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, in southwestern France. It takes its name from the Pyrenees mountains and the Atlantic Ocean. It covers the French Basque Country and the Béarn.

Basses-Pyrénées is one of the original 83 departments of France created during the French Revolution, on 4 March 1790. It was created out of parts belonging to the former greater province of Guyenne and Gascony, as well as the Béarn-Navarre (still, at least nominally, Kingdom of Navarre), i.e. the Basques provinces of Basse-Navarre, Labourd, Bayonne (detached a few years before from Labourd), and Soule, and Béarn.

The 1790 administrative design brought about the end of native institutions and laws. The Basque third-estate representatives overtly opposed the new administrative layout since it suppressed their institutions and laws. The representatives of Lower Navarre refused to vote arguing that they were not part of the Kingdom of France, those of Soule voted against, while the brothers Garat, representing Labourd, eventually voted yes, thinking that would give them a say in upcoming political decisions.

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