Creuse (; oc, Cruesa or ) is a department in central France named after the river

Creuse Creuse (; oc, Cruesa or ) is a department in central France named after the river Creuse. After Lozère, it is the second least populated department in France. It is bordered by Indre and Cher to the north, Allier and Puy-de-Dôme to the ea ...

. After

Lozère Lozère (; oc, Losera ) is a landlocked department in the region of Occitanie in Southern France, located near the Massif Central, bounded to the northeast by Haute-Loire, to the east by Ardèche, to the south by Gard, to the west by Aveyron, ...

, it is the second least populated department in

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It is bordered by Indre and

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

to the north,

Allier Allier ( , , ; oc, Alèir) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region that borders Cher to the west, Nièvre to the north, Saône-et-Loire and Loire to the east, Puy-de-Dôme to the south, and Creuse to the south-west. Named afte ...

and

Puy-de-Dôme Puy-de-Dôme (; oc, label=Auvergnat, lo Puèi de Doma or ''lo Puèi Domat'') is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in the centre of France. In 2019, it had a population of 662,152.Corrèze Corrèze (; oc, Corresa) is a department in France, named after the river Corrèze which runs through it. Although its prefecture is Tulle, its most populated city is Brive-la-Gaillarde. Corrèze is located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, ...

to the south, and

Haute-Vienne Haute-Vienne (; oc, Nauta Vinhana, ; English: Upper Vienne) is a department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwest-central France. Named after the Vienne River, it is one of the twelve departments that together constitute Nouvelle-Aquitai ...

to the west.

Guéret Guéret (; Occitan: ''Garait'') is a commune and the prefecture of the Creuse department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in central France. Geography Guéret is a light industrial town, the largest in the department, with a big woodland a ...

, the

Prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

of Creuse has a population approximately 12,000, making it the largest settlement in the department. The next biggest town is

La Souterraine La Souterraine (; Limousin: ''La Sotarrana'') is a commune in the Creuse department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in central France. Geography La Souterraine is an area of farming and light industry, comprising the town and a few small hamle ...

and then Aubusson. The department is situated in the former

Province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

of La Marche. Creuse is one of the most rural and sparsely populated departments in France, with a

population density Population density (in agriculture: standing stock or plant density) is a measurement of population per unit land area. It is mostly applied to humans, but sometimes to other living organisms too. It is a key geographical term.Matt RosenberPopul ...

of 21/km² (56/sq mi), and a 2019 population of 116,617 - the second-smallest of any Departments in

.Populations légales 2019: 23 Creuse
INSEE The land use is mostly agricultural and the department is well known for its

chestnut The chestnuts are the deciduous trees and shrubs in the genus ''Castanea'', in the beech family Fagaceae. They are native to temperate regions of the Northern Hemisphere. The name also refers to the edible nuts they produce. The unrelat ...

and

hazelnut The hazelnut is the fruit of the hazel tree and therefore includes any of the nuts deriving from species of the genus ''Corylus'', especially the nuts of the species ''Corylus avellana''. They are also known as cobnuts or filberts according t ...

production, and for the Charolais and

Limousin cattle The Limousin, french: italic=no, Limousine, is a French breed of beef cattle from the Limousin and Marche regions of France. It was formerly used mainly as a draught animal, but in modern times is reared for beef. A herd-book was established ...

breeds.

History

Creuse is one of the original 83 departments created during the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

on 4 March 1790. It was created from the former

province A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''Roman province, provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire ...

of La Marche. The County of Marche was a county in

medieval France The Kingdom of France in the Middle Ages (roughly, from the 10th century to the middle of the 15th century) was marked by the fragmentation of the Carolingian Empire and West Francia (843–987); the expansion of royal control by the House of C ...

that approximately corresponded to the modern ''département'' of Creuse. Marche first appeared as a separate fief around the mid-10th century, when

William III, Duke of Aquitaine William III (913 – 3 April 963), called Towhead (french: Tête d'étoupe, la, Caput Stupe) from the colour of his hair, was the "Count of the Duchy of Aquitaine" from 959 and Duke of Aquitaine from 962 to his death. He was also the Count o ...

, gave it to one of his vassals named Boso, who took the title of count. In the 12th century, the countship passed to the family of

Lusignan The House of Lusignan ( ; ) was a royal house of French origin, which at various times ruled several principalities in Europe and the Levant, including the kingdoms of Jerusalem, Cyprus, and Armenia, from the 12th through the 15th centuries du ...

. They also were sometimes

counts of Angoulême Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

and counts of

Limousin Limousin (; oc, Lemosin ) is a former administrative region of southwest-central France. On 1 January 2016, it became part of the new administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It comprised three departments: Corrèze, Creuse, and Haute-Vienn ...

. With the death of the childless Count Guy in 1308, his possessions in La Marche were seized by

Philip IV of France Philip IV (April–June 1268 – 29 November 1314), called Philip the Fair (french: Philippe le Bel), was King of France from 1285 to 1314. By virtue of his marriage with Joan I of Navarre, he was also King of Navarre as Philip I from 12 ...

. In 1316 the king made La Marche an ''

appanage An appanage, or apanage (; french: apanage ), is the grant of an estate, title, office or other thing of value to a younger child of a sovereign, who would otherwise have no inheritance under the system of primogeniture. It was common in much o ...

'' for his youngest son the Prince, afterwards Charles IV. Several years later in 1327, La Marche passed into the hands of the

House of Bourbon The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spanis ...

. The family of

Armagnac Armagnac (, ) is a distinctive kind of brandy produced in the Armagnac region in Gascony, southwest France. It is distilled from wine usually made from a blend of grapes including Baco 22A, Colombard, Folle blanche and Ugni blanc, traditionally ...

held it from 1435 to 1477, when it reverted to the Bourbons. In 1527 La Marche was seized by

Francis I Francis I or Francis the First may refer to: * Francesco I Gonzaga (1366–1407) * Francis I, Duke of Brittany (1414–1450), reigned 1442–1450 * Francis I of France (1494–1547), King of France, reigned 1515–1547 * Francis I, Duke of Saxe-Lau ...

and became part of the domains of the French crown. It was divided into ''Haute Marche'' and ''Basse Marche'', the estates of the former continuing until the 17th century. From 1470 to the Revolution, the province was under the jurisdiction of the

Parliament of Paris The Parliament of Paris (french: Parlement de Paris) was the oldest ''parlement'' in the Kingdom of France, formed in the 14th century. It was fixed in Paris by Philip IV of France in 1302. The Parliament of Paris would hold sessions inside the ...

. In 1886, Bourganeuf ville lumière, located in a remote part of Creuse, became somewhat improbably the third town in France to receive a public electricity supply. Three years later, in 1889, the construction of a primitive hydro-electric factory at Cascade of the Jarrauds (''Cascade des Jarrauds'') on the little river Maulde at Saint-Martin-Château, away, established a more reliable electricity supply for the little town. The creation of a power line from the plant to Bourganeuf was supervised by an innovative engineer named

Marcel Deprez Marcel Deprez (12 December 1843 – 13 October 1918) was a French electrical engineer. He was born in Aillant-sur-Milleron. He died in Vincennes. Biography Deprez was born in Aillant-sur-Milleron in rural France and attended the School of Mines ...

; this was the first time that a power line over such a long distance had been constructed in France. The achievement was crowned with the region's first telephone line, which was installed to permit instant communication between the generating station and the newly-illuminated town.

Geography

Creuse is part of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by t ...

. It is in the

Massif Central The (; oc, Massís Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France. Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,00 ...

and permeated by the

and its tributaries. The river is dammed at several locations both for water supply and

hydroelectricity Hydroelectricity, or hydroelectric power, is Electricity generation, electricity generated from hydropower (water power). Hydropower supplies one sixth of the world's electricity, almost 4500 TWh in 2020, which is more than all other Renewabl ...

generation. As is typical for an inland area of continental Europe, Creuse has relatively cold winters with some snowfall into April, but also hot summers. Rain falls throughout the year because of the relatively high elevation. The topography is principally rolling hills intersected by often steep valleys. The terrestrial ecology is typically cool

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout t ...

with a species mix common in the western UK: with

oak An oak is a tree or shrub in the genus ''Quercus'' (; Latin "oak tree") of the beech family, Fagaceae. There are approximately 500 extant species of oaks. The common name "oak" also appears in the names of species in related genera, notably ''L ...

ash Ash or ashes are the solid remnants of fires. Specifically, ''ash'' refers to all non-aqueous, non- gaseous residues that remain after something burns. In analytical chemistry, to analyse the mineral and metal content of chemical samples, ash ...

hazel The hazel (''Corylus'') is a genus of deciduous trees and large shrubs native to the temperate Northern Hemisphere. The genus is usually placed in the birch family Betulaceae,Germplasmgobills Information Network''Corylus''Rushforth, K. (1999). ...

and ''

Prunus ''Prunus'' is a genus of trees and shrubs, which includes (among many others) the fruits plums, cherries, peaches, nectarines, apricots, and almonds. Native to the North American temperate regions, the neotropics of South America, and the p ...

'' species dominating the woodlands. There are no commercial

vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...

s. Much of the farming is beef cattle: Charolais and

, and also sheep.

Principal towns

The most populous commune is

, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 5 communes with more than 2,000 inhabitants:

Demographics

The inhabitants of the department are called ''Creusois''. The population of the department is approximately equal of the country of

Kiribati Kiribati (), officially the Republic of Kiribati ( gil, ibaberikiKiribati),Kiribati
''The Wor ...

. The population peaked at 287,075 in 1851, after which it declined gently until the First World War. During and after the war, the decline in population became much more rapid both because of the death and disruption that characterised the war years and because of the higher wages available to any workers with marketable skills in the economically more dynamic towns and cities outside Creuse. By 1921 the registered population had slumped by almost 38,000 (approximately 14%) in ten years to 228,244, and the decline continued throughout the twentieth century. Over the last four decades of the twentieth century Creuse experienced the greatest proportional population decline of any French department, from 164,000 in 1960 to 124,000 in 1999 – a decrease of 24%. Because of its low population density, it is considered to fall within the empty diagonal.

Politics

The President of the Departmental Council is Valérie Simonet of The Republicans.

Current National Assembly Representative

Culture

Language

Until the 1980s,

Occitan Occitan may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania territory in parts of France, Italy, Monaco and Spain. * Something of, from, or related to the Occitania administrative region of France. * Occitan language Occitan (; o ...

was the primary language of rural areas. There remain three different Occitan dialects in use in Limousin, although their use is rapidly declining. These are: *

( oc, Lemosin) dialect *

Auvergnat or (endonym: ) is a northern dialect of Occitan spoken in central and southern France, in particular in the former administrative region of Auvergne. Currently, research shows that there is not really a true Auvergnat dialect but rather a va ...

( oc, Auvernhat) dialect in the East * in the North, the Crescent transition area between Occitan and French is sometimes considered as a separate (basically Occitan) dialect called Marchois ( oc, Marchés).

Cuisine

The Creuse Cake is a dessert named after the region. It is made with butter and hazelnuts. There are many varieties, and they are sold throughout France.

Notable people

George Sand Amantine Lucile Aurore Dupin de Francueil (; 1 July 1804 – 8 June 1876), best known by her pen name George Sand (), was a French novelist, memoirist and journalist. One of the most popular writers in Europe in her lifetime, bein ...

(1804–1878) She situated some of the action of her 1844 novel ''Jeanne'' in rural Boussac. *

Thierry Ardisson Thierry Ardisson (; born 6 January 1949, Bourganeuf, Creuse), is a French television producer and host and a movie producer. Many of his shows have some of the longest run times on French television, such as ''Paris Dernière'', ''Tout le mon ...

(1949- ), host and journalist * Pierre d'Aubusson (1423–1503), Grand Master of the

order of St. John of Jerusalem The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic Church, Catholic Military ord ...

(the

Knights Hospitaller The Order of Knights of the Hospital of Saint John of Jerusalem ( la, Ordo Fratrum Hospitalis Sancti Ioannis Hierosolymitani), commonly known as the Knights Hospitaller (), was a medieval and early modern Catholic Church, Catholic Military ord ...

) . * Jacques Barraband (1767–1809) painter and draftsman *

Léonard-Léopold Forgemol de Bostquénard Léonard-Léopold Forgemol de Bostquénard (1821–1897) was a general in the French Army. Biography Léonard-Léopold Forgemol de Bostquénard was born on 17 September 1821 at Azerables, in the Creuse department and died on 28 November 1897 at ...

(1821–1897), general in the French Army. *

Jean de Brosse Jean de Brosse (1375–1433), Lord of Boussac, Sainte-Sévère and Huriel, was a councillor and chamberlain to Charles VII of France; he was made a Marshal of France in 1426. Early life Jean de Brosse was born in 1375 in his father’s castle a ...

(1375–1433) councillor to

Charles VII of France Charles VII (22 February 1403 – 22 July 1461), called the Victorious (french: le Victorieux) or the Well-Served (), was King of France from 1422 to his death in 1461. In the midst of the Hundred Years' War, Charles VII inherited the throne of F ...

Gustave Caillebotte Gustave Caillebotte (; 19 August 1848 – 21 February 1894) was a French painter who was a member and patron of the Impressionists, although he painted in a more realistic manner than many others in the group. Caillebotte was known for his early ...

(1848–1894) Impressionist painter, owned a castle in Creuse *

Gilles Clément Gilles Clément (born at Argenton-sur-Creuse, Indre, France in 1943), is a French gardener, garden designer, botanist, entomologist and writer. He is the author of several concepts in the framework of landscaping of the end of the twentieth cent ...

(1943- ): prizewinning park and landscape designer *

François Denhaut François Denhaut (1877–1952) was a French aviator notable for designing, constructing and flying the first flying boat in 1912.Nicolaou, p.17 Life He was born on 4 October 1877 at Champagnat, Creuse and after some success as a racing cycli ...

(1877–1952) inventor of flying boats * David Feuerwerker (1912–1980), rabbi of Creuse. * Armand Guillaumin (1841–1927) impressionist painter *

Jean Guitton Jean Guitton (August 18, 1901 – March 21, 1999) was a French Catholic philosopher and theologian. Biography Born in Saint-Étienne, Loire in August 1901, he studied at the Lycée du Parc in Lyon and was accepted at the École Normale Sup� ...

(1901–1999) Catholic philosopher and theologian *

Marcel Jouhandeau Marcel Jouhandeau (July 26, 1888 Guéret – April 7, 1979) was a French writer. Biography Born in Guéret, Creuse, France, Marcel Jouhandeau grew up in a world of women presided over by his grandmother. Under the influence of a young woman from ...

(1888–1979) writer *

Lucien Le Cam Lucien Marie Le Cam (November 18, 1924 – April 25, 2000) was a mathematician and statistician. Biography Le Cam was born November 18, 1924 in Croze, France. His parents were farmers, and unable to afford higher education for him; his father die ...

(1924–2000) statistician *

Pierre Leroux Pierre Henri Leroux (7 April 1797 – 12 April 1871), was a French philosopher and political economist. He was born at Bercy, now a part of Paris, the son of an artisan. Life His education was interrupted by the death of his father, which co ...

(1797–1871) philosopher and political economist *

Jean Lurçat Jean Lurçat (; 1 July 1892 – 6 January 1966) was a French artist noted for his role in the revival of contemporary tapestry. Biography He was born in Bruyères, Vosges, the son of Lucien Jean Baptiste Lurçat and Marie Emilie Marguerite L' ...

(1892–1966) tapestry artist * Jules Marouzeau (1878–1964) Latinist and philologist *

Pierre Michon Pierre Michon (born 28 March 1945, Châtelus-le-Marcheix, Creuse) is a French writer. His first novel, ''Small lives'' (1984), is widely regarded as a genuine masterpiece in contemporary French literature. He has won several prizes for ''Small ...

(1945- ) novelist *

Martin Nadaud Martin Nadaud (17 November 1815, Soubrebost, Creuse – 28 December 1898) rose from being a peasant boy to becoming a revolutionary and Member of Parliament. His first language was Langue d'oc and he learned French while working in Paris as a Stonem ...

(1815–1898) politician and writer *

Raymond Poulidor Raymond Poulidor (; 15 April 1936 – 13 November 2019), nicknamed "Pou-Pou" (), was a French professional racing cyclist, who rode for his entire career. His distinguished career coincided with two other outstanding riders – Jacques Anquet ...

(1936–2019) cyclist *

Michael Riffaterre Michel Riffaterre (; 20 November 1924 in Bourganeuf, Creuse – 27 May 2006 in New York), known as Michael Riffaterre, was an influential French literary critic and theorist. He pursued a generally structuralist approach. He is well known in ...

(1924–2006), writer and critic *

Maurice Rollinat Maurice Rollinat (December 29, 1846 in Châteauroux, Indre – October 26, 1903 in Ivry-sur-Seine) was a French poet and musician. Early works His father represented Indre in the National Assembly of 1848, and was a friend of George Sand, whose i ...

(1846–1903) poet *

Jules Sandeau Léonard Sylvain Julien (Jules) Sandeau (; 19 February 1811 – 24 April 1883) was a French novelist. Early life Sandeau was born at Aubusson (Creuse), and was sent to Paris to study law, but spent much of his time in unruly behaviour with oth ...

(1811–1883) novelist *

Georges Sarre Georges Sarre (26 November 1935 – 31 January 2019) was a French politician and leader of the Citizen and Republican Movement. Sarre was an early supporter of Jean-Pierre Chevènement and François Mitterrand within the new Socialist P ...

(1935- ) Secretary of State *

Antoine Varillas Antoine Varillas (1624 – 9 June 1696) was a French historian, best known for his history of heresy. Life He was born in Guéret and made a troubled way as a man of letters in Paris. He worked as a historian for Gaston, Duke of Orléans. Through ...

(1624–1696) historian *

Hubert Védrine Hubert Védrine (; born 31 July 1947) is a French Socialist politician. He is an advisor at Moelis & Company. Early life and career Following a history degree and graduating from both Sciences Po and ENA, Védrine had toyed with the idea of ...

(1947- ) Minister of Foreign Affairs *

Jacques Laffite Jacques-Henri Laffite (; born 21 November 1943) is a French former racing driver who competed in Formula One from to . He achieved six Grand Prix wins, all while driving for the Ligier team. From 1997 to 2013, Laffite was a presenter for TF1. ...

(1943- ) racing driver *

Jean-Pierre Jabouille Jean-Pierre Alain Jabouille (born 1 October 1942) is a French former racing driver. He raced in 55 Formula One Grands Prix, collecting two wins during the first years of Renault's turbocharged programme in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Jabou ...

(1942- ) racing driver has creusoises origins and has a property in Creuse, sponsor of a motor rally Creusekistan * Marcel Balsa, born on 1 January 1909 in Saint-Frion and died 11 August 1984 in

Maisons-Alfort Maisons-Alfort () is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the center of Paris. Maisons-Alfort is famous as the location of the National Veterinary School of Alfort. The Fort de Charenton, constructed betw ...

, French driver. *

Nathalie Baye Nathalie Marie Andrée Baye (born 6 July 1948) is a French film, television and stage actress. She began her career in 1970 and has appeared in more than 80 films. A ten-time César Award nominee, her four wins were for '' Every Man for Himself' ...

(1948- ) actor is a resident of the department *

Victor Lanoux Victor Lanoux (18 June 1936 – 4 May 2017) was a French actor best known to English speaking audiences for his role as Ludovic in '' Cousin, Cousine''. Biography Victor Lanoux, born Victor Robert Nataf was the son of a Tunisian Jew from Sfax a ...

the actor settles in Creuse to La Chapelle-Taillefert * The lawyer

Serge Klarsfeld Serge Klarsfeld (born 17 September 1935) is a Romanian-born French activist and Nazi hunter known for documenting the Holocaust in order to establish the record and to enable the prosecution of war criminals. Since the 1960s, he has made notab ...

and the comic

Popeck Popeck (born Judka Herpstu; 18 May 1936) is a French actor and stand-up comedian. Early life The son of Jewish immigrants from Poland and Romania, Judka Herpstu was born in Paris. He was among the children saved from the Holocaust by the OSE, ...

took refuge through the organization of Felix Chevrier, the castle Masgelier in

Le Grand-Bourg Le Grand-Bourg (; Limousin: ''Le Borg'') is a commune in the Creuse department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in central France. Geography An area of farming and forestry comprising the village and a few small hamlets situated some west of G ...

and stayed there several months *

François Baroin François Claude Pierre René Baroin (born 21 June 1965) is a French politician and lawyer who served as Finance Minister from 2011 to 2012, following a stint as Budget Minister in the government of Prime Minister François Fillon. A member of ...

, French politician native son of

Dun-le-Palestel Dun-le-Palestel (; oc, Dun) is a Communes of France, commune in the Creuse Departments of France, department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Regions of France, region in central France. Geography A farming and light industry, light industrial villag ...

The summers were devoted to the Creuse, where the mother of the little Frenchman had a house. * Jean-Francois Cope, French politician *

Claude Chabrol Claude Henri Jean Chabrol (; 24 June 1930 – 12 September 2010) was a French film director and a member of the French New Wave (''nouvelle vague'') group of filmmakers who first came to prominence at the end of the 1950s. Like his colleagues an ...

, filmmaker, spent part of his childhood in

Sardent Sardent (; oc, Sarden) is a commune in the Creuse department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in central France. Geography An area of streams, lakes, forestry and farming, comprising the village and several hamlets situated in the valley of th ...

with his grandmother * Jean Auclair, (1946-) is a French politician. *

Michel Vergnier Michel Vergnier (born 25 November 1946 in Ennery, Moselle) was a member of the National Assembly of France. He represented the Creuse department's only constituency until 2017, and is a member of the Socialiste, radical, citoyen et divers ga ...

, (1946-) Socialist politician, deputy mayor of Gueret since 29 November 1998.

Tourism

As a traditionally rural and lightly populated area, with ancient and typical ''art de vivre'', original stone architecture, no major urban center and many heritage site such as

castles A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified ...

abbeys An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christian monks and nuns. The conc ...

and Celtic stone monuments: the Creuse department has become a

Green tourism Ecotourism is a form of tourism involving responsible travel (using sustainable transport) to natural areas, conserving the environment, and improving the well-being of the local people. Its purpose may be to educate the traveler, to provide funds ...

destination since the late 1990s. Creuse enjoyed a

temperate climate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout t ...

with mild springs and autumns, rather cold and snowy but sunny winters, and relatively warm and sunny summers, but not as hot as in the southern parts of France. Thanks to its preserved forested landscape, little pollution and wonderful stone buildings, many foreigners (notably British and Dutch, but also German and Belgian) have sought to buy holiday homes in Creuse. The major tourist attractions are the

tapestry Tapestry is a form of textile art, traditionally woven by hand on a loom. Tapestry is weft-faced weaving, in which all the warp threads are hidden in the completed work, unlike most woven textiles, where both the warp and the weft threads may ...

museum in Aubusson and the many castles, notably those of Villemonteix, Boussac, and Banizette. The monastery of

Moutier-d'Ahun Moutier-d’Ahun (, literally ''Moutier of Ahun''; oc, Mostier d'Aiun) is a commune in the Creuse department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in central France. Geography A farming area comprising the village and a couple of hamlets situated ...

has exceptional wood carvings from the 17th century. ( :fr:Abbaye de Moutier-d'Ahun). After World War 1, some towns in France set up pacifist war memorials. Instead of commemorating the glorious dead, these memorials denounce war with figures of grieving widows and children rather than soldiers. Such memorials provoked anger among veterans and the military in general. The most famous is at Gentioux-Pigerolles in the department (see picture on the left). Below the column which lists the name of the fallen, stands an orphan in bronze pointing to an inscription 'Maudite soit la guerre' (Cursed be war). Feelings ran so high that the memorial was not officially inaugurated until 1990 and soldiers at the nearby army camp were under orders to turn their heads when they walked past. The Chapelle du Mas-Saint-Jean is in Saint-Sulpice-le-Dunois. A local legend declares that

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= �an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronati ...

prayed there in about 1430."Jeanne d'Arc at the Chapelle du Mas-Saint-Jean: reality Or legend?"
Town of Dunois website

, Creuse is also home to a large nearby animal park named Les Loups de Chabrières containing some of France's few remaining wolves, held in semi-captivity. It includes 24 European Grey Wolves, two Canadian White Wolves and two Canadian Black Wolves in five enclosures. Motor racing Mas du Clos It is twelve kilometers from Aubusson at the foot of the family castle of Saint-Avit-de-Tardes. Pierre Bardinon creates all pieces in 1963.

Gallery

File:ChateauDeVillemonteix.jpg, Villemonteix Castle in winter File:Bourganeuf - Château.JPG, Bourganeuf

Castle A castle is a type of fortified structure built during the Middle Ages predominantly by the nobility or royalty and by military orders. Scholars debate the scope of the word ''castle'', but usually consider it to be the private fortified r ...

with infamous

Cem Sultan Cem Sultan (also spelled Djem or Jem) or Sultan Cem or Şehzade Cem (December 22, 1459 – February 25, 1495, ; ota, جم سلطان, Cem sulṭān; tr, Cem Sultan; french: Zizim), was a claimant to the Ottoman throne in the 15th century. Ce ...

tower File:EvauxLesBains1.jpg, View of Evaux-les-Bains File:PontSuspenduTardes1.jpg, 19th-century bridge architecture in Creuse File:Aubusson tour de l horloge.JPG, Aubusson's

Medieval In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the Post-classical, post-classical period of World history (field), global history. It began with t ...

Clock Tower File:Tapisserie d'Aubusson (Huet).JPG, typical Aubusson tapestry File:PierresJaumatres3.jpg, Natural granitic site of Les Pierres-Jaumâtres, in Creuse File:Monet The Petite Creuse River.jpg,

Monet Oscar-Claude Monet (, , ; 14 November 1840 – 5 December 1926) was a French painter and founder of impressionist painting who is seen as a key precursor to modernism, especially in his attempts to paint nature as he perceived it. During ...

's ''Petite Creuse'', 1889 File:Paysage en Creuse.JPG, Western Creuse typical landscape File:Ruisseau du Langladure au Moulin.jpg, Small river in Creuse File:ChateauBoussacSurPetiteCreuse.jpg, Boussac

, Creuse Image:Pont senoueix vgen.jpg, Senoueix Bridge Image:Vache-de-race-limousine-en-correze-2.jpg, typical

in Creuse Image:Guéret Loups de Chabrières.JPG, The

wolves The wolf (''Canis lupus''; plural, : wolves), also known as the gray wolf or grey wolf, is a large Canis, canine native to Eurasia and North America. More than thirty subspecies of Canis lupus, subspecies of ''Canis lupus'' have been reco ...

of Chabrières Image:Lac vassivière vue géné.jpg, Lake Vassivière in Creuse

References

External links

*
Departmental Council website
*
Prefecture website

Official Tourism Website
*
Land of Gueret Portal (Portail du Pays de Guéret)

The English Language Portal for La Creuse

News from the Creuse and practical advice about living there, in English
{{Authority control Massif Central 1790 establishments in France Departments of Nouvelle-Aquitaine States and territories established in 1790