An island with an identity crisis: sometimes it is French and sometimes Spanish - depending on the season - voila! tourism

2023-03-17T19:43:34.341Z

Passion Island lies between France and Spain and is owned by Spain from February 1st to July 31st every year - and owned by France the rest of the year. Its strangeness and its history attract visitors

The island that changes hands between Spain and France every six months (@reallifegeo)

This poor island has a serious identity crisis: half of the year it is Spanish and the other half it is French.

The uninhabited Passion Island lies in the Bidsoa River, between the towns of Iron (in Spain) and Hendaye (in France).

Its Franco-Spanish status derives from the Treaty of the Pyrenees signed in 1659.

Since the mid-17th century, the island, which is 200 meters long and 40 meters wide, was controlled by Spain from February 1 to July 31, when it was handed over to the French - who control the island from August 1 to January 31.

How did the situation arise?

On November 7, 1659, the island - considered a neutral area - hosted the signing of the Treaty of the Pyrenees, a peace agreement between Louis XIV, King of France, and Philip IV, King of Spain, which ended the Franco-Spanish war that began in 1635.

The negotiations took place on Passion Island, located on the border between the two countries, which has since remained a Franco-Spanish condominium (territory over which several countries share equal authority).

A stone monolith was erected on the island in 1861 - with an inscription in Spanish on the side facing Spain, while a French inscription is engraved on the side facing France, reports the travel site Fascinating Spain.

This was not the only significant historical event that took place in this tiny area.

In 1660 Maria Theresa of Spain said goodbye to her father, King Felipe IV, before crossing over to France to become the wife of the French King Louis XIV.

The event entered the history books as "the encounter on Passion Island".

Later, in 1721, King Louis XV met on the island the one he wanted to marry, Mariana Victoria of Spain.

Unfortunately, the years never became an official couple, as Louis eventually married Maria Leszczynska, a daughter of a prominent Polish noble family.

The website that reviews the tourism of the Basque Country reveals that the island was also used throughout history for the purpose of exchanging prisoners between the countries.

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Although its name suggests otherwise, there are no pheasants (poultry) on the island.

According to Fascinating Spain, when writer Victor Hugo visited the island in 1843, he resented seeing "at most a cow and three ducks" but no pheasants at all.

Today access to the island is limited.

The general public is only allowed to visit it on special heritage days set to commemorate the historic treaty.

Although the Bidsoa River is in high tide - with water flowing into the Canterbury Sea - the island can sometimes be reached on foot from Spain.

The Basque town of Iron lies on the Spanish side of the river.

After taking in the view of Passion Island from the riverbanks, visitors can admire the town's ancient Roman baths and dine alfresco at a variety of Basque restaurants.

On the French side of the river you'll find Hendaye, a Basque seaside town that offers travelers sandy beaches and a 19th-century castle.

The local councils of Iron and Henday take responsibility for the maintenance of the island - and come to it by boat to cut down its trellises and trim its tree branches.