ELNE
. Founded by Celto-Iberians in the 7th century B.C., the oppidum of Illiberis occupied a
naturally fortified site above the River Tech. Renamed Helena in the 4th century A.D. in
honor of St. Helena, the mother of the emperor Constantine, Elne (Pyrénées-Orientales)
was the administrative and religious capital of the Roussillon during the Visigothic
period. It was made a bishopric in 571, fell to the Muslims in 719, and was recaptured by
the Franks fifty years later. Its richer neighbor Perpignan, however, eventually supplanted
Elne in the 17th century. The Romanesque cathedral of Sainte-Eulalie, consecrated in
1069, is one of the oldest in France. Its basilica plan, with doubleaisled nave and no
transept or apse, dates from the 11th century. The chevet is surrounded by the
foundations of a Gothic chancel, vestige of a grandiose 14th-century project that was
soon abandoned. Only the south tower, decorated with arcatures and Lombard arcades, is
original. The side chapels are Gothic. The adjacent cloister (1172–86), is constructed of
two sets of twin colonnettes alternating with square pillars of white marble. The
historiated capitals, originally polychrome, contain sculpted scenes of a remarkable
realism. Only the south walk abutting the church is wholly original (1175); the other parts
were reconstructed in the 14th century after the town was sacked in 1285. Of the original
two stories, the upper was destroyed in the 19th century.
William W.Kibler/William W.Clark
Durliat, Marcel. “Le mobilier de la cathédrale d’Elne” and “Le cloître d’Elne.” Congrès
archéologique (Roussillon) 112 (1954):146–60.
Grau, Roger. “La cathédrale d’Elne.” Congrès archéologique (Roussillon) 112(1954):135–45.
ÉLU
. When the French crown sought to levy taxes in the early years of the Hundred Years’
War, some of the resistance to paying arose from popular distrust of the honesty of the
collectors. In 1340, an assembly in northern France promised a tax if its own appointees
collected it. In 1345, the king proposed that each region choose the people who would
collect the taxes. In 1347–48, the Estates of several regions granted large sums to be
collected by their own nominees. In 1355–56, the Estates General of Languedoil
promised taxes to be appointed under the supervision of persons appointed (élus) by the
Estates. The use of such élus not only appeared as a reform to those who distrusted royal
officers, but it provided useful new machinery for dealing with “extraordinary” revenues
that were becoming increasingly regular. In 1360, when the ransom of John II required
collection of the aides and gabelles on a regular basis, the élus became permanent royal
officials. An élu had responsibility for a geographical district that became known as an
election. For most of the 14th century, this term was not used because it coincided with a
diocese of the church. Subsequently, however, the units were divided and the élections
became smaller and more numerous.
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