Lescar

Lescar
Cathedral
Lescar
Location within Nouvelle-Aquitaine region  Lescar
Coordinates: 43°20′01″N 0°26′05″W / 43.3336°N 0.4347°W / 43.3336; -0.4347Coordinates: 43°20′01″N 0°26′05″W / 43.3336°N 0.4347°W / 43.3336; -0.4347
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Pyrénées-Atlantiques
Arrondissement	Pau
Canton	Lescar
Intercommunality	Pau-Pyrénées
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Christian Laine
Area1	27 km2 (10 sq mi)
Population (2013)2	9,993
• Density	370/km2 (960/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
INSEE/Postal code	64335 / 64230
Elevation	142–203 m (466–666 ft) (avg. 154 m or 505 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Lescar (Occitan: Lescar) is a commune in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department and Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of south-western France.

Lescar is the site of the Roman city known variously as Benearnum, Beneharnum or Civitas Benarnensium, the location providing the name for the later region of Béarn.

In 841, Benearnum was razed by the Vikings and Morlaàs became the Béarnaise capital. However, from the twelfth century a new city grew up at Lescar. Lescar Cathedral was built during this period, and was the seat of the Diocese of Lescar until 1801. The remains of the last monarchs of all Navarre Queen Catherine I (†1517) and King John III (†1516) lie at the cathedral.

Today, Lescar is primarily a suburb of the nearby town of Pau. The commune of Lescar has joined together with 13 neighbouring communes to establish the intercommmunality of Pau-Pyrénées which provides a framework within which local tasks are carried out together.