Sare is a village in the traditional
Basque province of
Labourd, now a
commune in the
Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in south-western
France on the border with Spain. It is backed by the Pyrenean mountain range, which forms a basin around the village open to the east and the north. Its geological history explains the formation of caves that were occupied by the
Aurignacian. The bronze age left a number of funerary monuments on the slopes and mountain plateaus of the region. Today, it's territory forms an enclave in the
Navarre, a region of Spain, with which it shares a 25 km border. This in particular has had significant consequences on the history of the village, with centuries of pastoral agreements with neighbouring Spanish villages. During the
Peninsular War the
Anglo-Portuguese Army led by the future Duke of Wellington breached the frontier and repelled the French troops who had stationed themselves in forts on
La Rhune.
