Vienne
Vienne (French pronunciation: [vjɛn] ⓘ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: Viéne) is a landlocked department in the French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It takes its name from the river Vienne. It had a population of 438,435 in 2019.[3]
Vienne | |
|---|---|
 Prefecture building of the Vienne department, in Poitiers | |
 Flag  Coat of arms | |
 Location of Vienne in France | |
| Coordinates: 45.5221°N 4.8453°E | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Nouvelle-Aquitaine |
| Prefecture | Poitiers |
| Subprefectures | Châtellerault Montmorillon |
| Government | |
| • President of the Departmental Council | Alain Pichon[1] |
| Area | |
| • Total | 6,990 km2 (2,700 sq mi) |
| Population | |
| • Total | 439,332 |
| • Rank | 56th |
| • Density | 63/km2 (160/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+1 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+2 (CEST) |
| Department number | 86 |
| Arrondissements | 3 |
| Cantons | 19 |
| Communes | 266 |
| ^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2 | |
History
Established on March 4, 1790, during the French Revolution, Vienne is one of the original 83 departments. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Poitou, Touraine, and Berry, the last being a part of the Duchy of Aquitaine until the 15th century.
The original Acadians, who settled in and around what is now Nova Scotia, left Vienne for North America after 1604. Kennedy (2014) argues that the emigrants carried to Canada their customs and social structure. They were frontier peoples, who dispersed their settlements based on kinship. They optimized use of farmland and emphasized trading for a profit. They were hierarchical and politically active.[4]
Geography
The department of Vienne has an area of 6,990 km2 (2,700 sq mi). Part of the region Nouvelle-Aquitaine, it borders Maine-et-Loire to the northwest, Indre-et-Loire to the north, Indre to the east, Haute-Vienne to the southeast, Charente to the south and Deux-Sèvres to the west. It is crossed by the river Vienne, a tributary of the Loire.
Principal towns
The most populous commune is Poitiers, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 6 communes with more than 7,000 inhabitants:[3]
| Commune | Population (2019) |
|---|---|
| Poitiers | 89,212 |
| Châtellerault | 31,487 |
| Buxerolles | 10,060 |
| Jaunay-Marigny | 7,600 |
| Saint-Benoît | 7,267 |
| Chauvigny | 7,062 |
Demographics
Population development since 1801:
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| Sources:[5][6] | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
Politics
Édith Cresson, France's first woman prime minister from 1991 to 1992, was a deputy (MP) for the department. The president of the Departmental Council is Alain Pichon, elected in 2020.
Vienne has three arrondissements: Poitiers, the prefecture, and the subprefectures Châtellerault and Montmorillon.
Current National Assembly Representatives
Religion
The capital, Poitiers, is the see of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Poitiers, which pastorally serves the department.
Tourism and sights
The most famous tourist sites include the Futuroscope theme park, Poitiers (city of Art and History), the Abbey Church of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe, a UNESCO world heritage site, the animal parks of Monkey's Valley in Romagne and the Crocodile Planet in Civaux.
Economy
The production of goat cheese is an important industry in Vienne.
International relations
Vienne has a partnership relationship with:
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Notable people
- Benoît-François Bernier (1720–1799), New France army officer, served as financial commissary of wars
Gallery
Tympanum of the church of Civray
See also
References
- "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
- "Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2020". The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 29 December 2022.
- Populations légales 2019: 86 Vienne, INSEE
- Gregory M.W. Kennedy. Something of a Peasant Paradise? Comparing Rural Societies in Acadie and the Loudunais, 1604-1755 (MQUP, 2014)
- "Historique de la Vienne". Le SPLAF.
- "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
- Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
- "Partneri- ja kummikaupungit (Partnership and twinning cities)". Oulun kaupunki (City of Oulu) (in Finnish). Retrieved 2013-07-27.
- 友好城市 (Friendly cities) Archived 2013-09-23 at the Wayback Machine, 市外办 (Foreign Affairs Office), 2008-03-22. (Translation by Google Translate.)
- 国际友好城市一览表 (International Friendship Cities List) Archived 2012-06-02 at the Wayback Machine, 2011-01-20. (Translation by Google Translate.)
- 友好交流 (Friendly exchanges) Archived 2014-04-10 at the Wayback Machine, 2011-09-13. (Translation by Google Translate.)
External links
- Departmental Council website (in French)
- Prefecture website (in French)
- Vienne Tourism Agency
