Antiquity Before the
Roman era, an oppidum called Atura existed on the site of Aire. From this name, borrowed from the
Adour River, derive both the name of the town of Aire and that of the
Tursan region (pagus aturensis). It was inhabited by the
Aquitanian people of the
Tarusates (
Proto-Basques). Capital of the subjugated peoples around 56 BC by
Crassus, lieutenant of Julius Caesar, the name of Aire, and particularly of its town, was Romanized to Vicus Julii. Two Roman altars, one dedicated to
Mars, were discovered there by Émile Taillebois in 1884.
Visigoths In the 5th century, Aire was part of the
Visigothic kingdom of
Toulouse; it became a royal residence under Kings
Euric (466-484) and
Alaric II (484-507). In 470, Euric, an
Arian, issued orders from Aire against the
Nicene churches. In February 506, Alaric II convened an assembly of bishops and nobles, as well as jurists, in Aire, where they established a collection of laws for the Gallo-Romans of the kingdom, largely inspired by the
Theodosian Code (438), that is,
Roman law.
Alaric's breviary would later influence medieval Roman law. A year later, Alaric was defeated by
Clovis at the
Battle of Vouillé. It was in 476 that
Quitterie, a Catholic princess of
Spain, daughter of "King" Caius, who was fleeing her suitor, was allegedly beheaded in Aire by the Visigoths, adherents of
Arianism, a
heresy. Her head is said to have caused a miraculous spring to gush forth. Legends concerning Saint Quitterie are numerous and suggest various origins (Spain, Galicia, Portugal, or the Visigothic kingdom of Toulouse); in any case, no historical sources exist. Her cult was widespread in
Vasconia (pronounced "Quiteri"), where she was believed to cure headaches, madness, and rabies. Aire became the seat of a bishopric.
The Bishopric The presence of a representative of Marcellus, Bishop of Aire, at the
Council of Agde in 506, suggests a long history of an
episcopal see in this location. Aire lost its bishopric during the French Revolution. At the beginning of the 19th century, a reorganization of the
dioceses of France (Concordats of 1801 and
1817) united the dioceses of Aire and
Dax. The main seat of the bishopric was officially transferred in 1933 to Dax, a larger city better served by rail. The
cathedral of Aire holds the title of Co-Cathedral.
Middle Ages It was in Aire, but down below, in the fortified city bordering the Adour, that an agreement was made in the 12th century between the
King of England,
Edward I, and the Bishop of Aire, one granting his protection, the other a share of his revenues.
The pilgrimage to Compostela Aire-sur-l'Adour is a stop on the
Via Podiensis of the
pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela. The next stop is
Miramont-Sensacq. Historically, the previous stop, 27 km away, was
Nogaro. In Aire-sur-l'Adour, there were two hospitals for pilgrims, including the Manso Hospital, located at the bottom of the street leading up to the Church of Sainte-Quitterie, now Rue Félix-Despagnet. There, pilgrims were welcomed, fed, cared for, and comforted. The pilgrim hospitals were run by confraternities of the Way of St. James, composed in each town of those who had made the pilgrimage. In this way, they gave back what they had received, thus perpetuating the tradition. They welcomed pilgrims passing through their town and prepared those who were about to set off. These hospitals were also run by hospitaller orders of chivalry.
Contemporary history Between 1790 and 1794, Aire absorbed the short-lived commune of
Le Mas. On March 2, 1814,
Wellington's English and Portuguese troops, advancing from Spain, won a battle against Marshal
Soult's forces on the heights southwest of the town, resulting in several hundred deaths. It went down in history as the
Battle of Aire-sur-l'Adour. On May 25, 1982, the
arson attack on a medical-educational center for young people with psychiatric disorders, the Jean-Sarrailh Center, killed 24 people, including 21 children. The previous evening, a documentary entitled "Should We Burn Down Psychiatric Hospitals?" had been broadcast on television. In the 2000s, a bypass allowed long-distance traffic to avoid the town center. This bypass was incorporated into the route of the
A65 autoroute. Famed Spanish
bullfighter Iván Fandiño died at the
Arènes Maurice-Lauche in Aire-sur-l'Adour after being
gored by a
bull on 17 June 2017. ==Economy==