Stephen Branley's photos with the keyword: Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Mauléon-Licharre

The river Saison, better known as Le Gave de Mauléon, flows through the town...

I was watching a game of Basque Pelote. This version of the sport is played essentially in Basque France by 2 teams of 3 players on an outside court referred to as ‘Place Libre’ meaning free space. The origin of this sport is tied to the decline of the ancient jeu de paume (palm game with glove) circa. 1700. While the game evolved to the modern jeu de paume (with racquet, called real tennis in England) and eventually to tennis, rural Alpine and Pyrenean communities kept the traditional game...

The Château de Mauléon, known as Vieux Château (old castle) is a fortified castle that sits high above the town of the same name on Matalon hill (439m/1440ft). The old castle of Mauléon originated in the 11th century, when it was erected on a hill, in those days it was simply composed of a wooden tower, flanked by a farmyard, all protected by a palisade surrounded by a moat. Between 1272 and 1287, Edward I, concerned with the quality of his strongholds, imposed repairs and strengthening of the castle fortifications.