Marne (department)

Marne (French pronunciation: [maʁn]) is a department in the Grand Est region of France. It is named after the river Marne which flows through it. The prefecture (capital) of Marne is Châlons-en-Champagne (formerly known as Châlons-sur-Marne). The subprefectures are Épernay, Reims, and Vitry-le-François. It had a population of 566,855 in 2019.[3]

Marne
Department
Prefecture building of the Marne department, in Châlons-en-Champagne
Prefecture building of the Marne department, in Châlons-en-Champagne
Flag of Marne
Flag
Coat of arms of Marne
Coat of arms
Location of Marne in France
Location of Marne in France
Coordinates: 49°00′N 04°15′E
CountryFrance
RegionGrand Est
PrefectureChâlons-en-Champagne
SubprefecturesÉpernay
Reims
Vitry-le-François
Government
 • President of the Departmental CouncilChristian Bruyen[1]
Area
1
 • Total8,162 km2 (3,151 sq mi)
Population
 (Jan. 2020)[2]
 • Total566,659
 • Rank45th
 • Density69/km2 (180/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Department number51
Arrondissements4
Cantons23
Communes613
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

The Champagne vineyards producing the eponymous sparkling wine are in Marne.

Name

The department is named after the Marne, which was called Matrona in Roman times.

History

Marne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from the province of Champagne.

Marne has a long association with the French Army. The training ground of the Camp Militaire de Mailly straddles the border with the département of Aube in the south while that of the Camp de Mourmelon occupies a large area north of Châlons-en-Champagne. The smaller Camp de Moronvilliers lies to the east of Reims and the Camp Militaire de Suippes lies to the east of that. These are all located on the chalk grounds of the Champagne plateau, a feature comparable in geology but not size, with the British military training ground on Salisbury Plain.

The Battles of the Marne, where the British and French fought against Germany during World War I, took place here.

Geography

Marne is part of the region of Grand Est and is surrounded by the departments of Ardennes, Meuse, Haute-Marne, Aube, Seine-et-Marne, and Aisne.

Geologically, it divides into two distinct parts; the Upper Cretaceous chalk plain in the east and the more wooded and hilly Eocene and Oligocene in the west.

Rivers draining the department include the Marne, Vesle, Ardre and Somme-Soude. Numerous other rivers, such as the Grande and the Petite Morin rise in the department but flow mainly in others. Conversely, the Aube joins the Seine in the department of Marne.

Principal towns

The most populous commune in the department is Reims; the prefecture Châlons-en-Champagne is the second-most populous. As of 2019, there are five communes with more than 10,000 inhabitants:[3]

Commune Population (2019)
Reims 181,194
Châlons-en-Champagne 44,379
Épernay 22,433
Vitry-le-François 11,376
Tinqueux 10,294

Demographics

The inhabitants of the department are called Marnais.

Population development since 1801:

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1801304,651—    
1806311,017+0.41%
1821307,644−0.07%
1831337,076+0.92%
1841356,632+0.57%
1851373,302+0.46%
1861385,498+0.32%
1872386,157+0.02%
1881421,800+0.99%
1891434,734+0.30%
1901432,882−0.04%
1911436,310+0.08%
1921366,734−1.72%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1931412,156+1.17%
1936410,238−0.09%
1946386,926−0.58%
1954415,141+0.88%
1962442,135+0.79%
1968485,388+1.57%
1975530,399+1.27%
1982543,627+0.35%
1990558,217+0.33%
1999565,229+0.14%
2006565,841+0.02%
2011566,571+0.03%
2016570,883+0.15%
Sources:[4][5]

Politics

The president of the Departmental Council is Christian Bruyen, elected in 2017.

Presidential elections 2nd round
ElectionWinning CandidateParty%2nd Place CandidateParty%
2022 Emmanuel Macron LREM 52.10 Marine Le Pen FN 47.90
2017[6] Emmanuel Macron LREM 57.01 Marine Le Pen FN 42.99
2012 Nicolas Sarkozy UMP 55.31 François Hollande PS 44.69
2007 Nicolas Sarkozy UMP 59.20 Ségolène Royal PS 40.80
2002[6] Jacques Chirac RPR 79.83 Jean-Marie Le Pen FN 20.17
1995[7] Jacques Chirac RPR 54.53 Lionel Jospin PS 45.47

Current National Assembly Representatives
ConstituencyMember[8]Party
Marne's 1st constituency Valérie Beauvais The Republicans
Marne's 2nd constituency Aina Kuric La République En Marche!
Marne's 3rd constituency Éric Girardin La République En Marche!
Marne's 4th constituency Lise Magnier The Republicans
Marne's 5th constituency Charles de Courson Union of Democrats and Independents

Tourism

Reims, with its cathedral in which the kings of France were traditionally crowned, is a major attraction. Others include the bird reserve on the Lake Der-Chantecoq and the fishing lakes nearby. The Parc Naturel Régional de la Montagne de Reims is a major area of country recreation. In the west of the département there are many scenic routes as also are the several wine cellars of Épernay.

See also

References
  1. "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
  2. "Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2020". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 29 December 2022.
  3. Populations légales 2019: 51 Marne, INSEE
  4. "Historique de la Marne". Le SPLAF.
  5. "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
  6. "Présidentielles".
  7. "Résultats de l'élection présidentielle de 1995 par département - Politiquemania".
  8. Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
Wikisource has the text of a 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica article about Marne.
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