BAYONNE, ba-y6n, France, a cathedral town and a fortress of the first class in the department of the Basses-Pyrenees. It is sit uated at the confluence of the Nive and the Adour, about four miles from the Bay of Bis cay. These rivers form a harbor capable of admitting vessels of considerable size. The har bor is safe and commodious, and has three lighthouses at its entrance. They divide the town into three parts, namely, Great Bayonne on the left bank of the Nive, Little Bayonne between the rivers and Saint Esprit on the right bank of the Adour. A citadel, built by Vauban, on the summit of an eminence in the suburb, commands the harbor and the city. The cathedral is a beautiful building dating from 1213, restored in the 19th century and fur nished with two towers. The arsenal, one of the finest in France, and the mint are among the other buildings of Bayonne. The city has a considerable trade with Spain, Portugal and South America, and masts and other timber for shipbuilding, from the Pyrenees, are exported to Brest and other ports of France. Ships are
built, and woolens, chocolate, soap, brandy, leather, linen goods, glass, etc., are manufac tured. Other exports include wine, tars and resins, minerals, grain, chocolate and the famous Bayonne hams. Among the lower class the ancient Biscayan or Basque language is spoken. Catherine de Medici had an important inter view with the Dulce of Alva in Bayonne, June 1565, at which it is said the massacre of Saint Bartholomew was arranged. The meeting of Napoleon with the King of Spain, Charles IV, and the Prince of the Asturias, took place here in May 1803, when the latter transferred their rights to the Spanish territories in Europe and India to the French Emperor. Pop. 27,886.