Charente-Maritime () is a
department in the
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 ...
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 an ...
on the southwestern coast of
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 ...
. Named after the river
Charente
Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...
, its
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 ...
is
La Rochelle
La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wi ...
. As of 2019, it had a population of 651,358 with an area of 6,864 square kilometres (2,650 sq mi).
History
Previously a part of the provinces of
Saintonge
Saintonge may refer to:
*County of Saintonge, a historical province of France on the Atlantic coast
*Saintonge (region), a region of France corresponding to the historical province
Places
* Saint-Genis-de-Saintonge, a commune in the Charente-Mar ...
and
Aunis
Aunis () is a historical province of France, situated in the north-west of the department of Charente-Maritime. Its historic capital is La Rochelle, which took over from Castrum Allionis (Châtelaillon) the historic capital which gives its name ...
, Charente-Inférieure was one of the 83 original 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 conside ...
on 4 March 1790. On 4 September 1941, during World War II, it was renamed as Charente-Maritime.
When the department was first organised, the
commune of
Saintes was designated as 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 the department (Saintes had previously been the capital of
Saintonge
Saintonge may refer to:
*County of Saintonge, a historical province of France on the Atlantic coast
*Saintonge (region), a region of France corresponding to the historical province
Places
* Saint-Genis-de-Saintonge, a commune in the Charente-Mar ...
). This changed in 1810 when
Napoleon
Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader wh ...
passed an imperial decree to move the prefecture to
La Rochelle
La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wi ...
.
During
World War II
World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the World War II by country, vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great power ...
, the department was invaded by the German Army and became part of
occupied France
The Military Administration in France (german: Militärverwaltung in Frankreich; french: Occupation de la France par l'Allemagne) was an interim occupation authority established by Nazi Germany during World War II to administer the occupied z ...
. To provide defence against a possible beach landing by the
Allies
An alliance is a relationship among people, groups, or states that have joined together for mutual benefit or to achieve some common purpose, whether or not explicit agreement has been worked out among them. Members of an alliance are called ...
, the
Organisation Todt constructed a number of
sea defences
The sea, connected as the world ocean or simply the ocean, is the body of salty water that covers approximately 71% of the Earth's surface. The word sea is also used to denote second-order sections of the sea, such as the Mediterranean Sea, ...
in the area. Defences such as
pillboxes are particularly noticeable on the beaches of the presqu'île d'
Arvert and the island of
Oléron
The Isle of Oléron or Oléron Island (french: île d'Oléron, ; Saintongese: ''ilâte d'Olerun''; oc, illa d'Olairon or ; la, Uliarus insula, ) is an island off the Atlantic coast of France (due west of Rochefort), on the southern side of t ...
.
At the end of the war, the two last pockets of German resistance were both in this area: at La Rochelle in the north and
Royan in the south. Despite
Royan having been nearly destroyed during an
RAF bombing raid on 5 January 1945, the town was not liberated by the
French Forces of the Interior until April of the same year. La Rochelle was finally liberated on 9 May 1945.
Geography
Charente-Maritime is part of the
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 ...
administrative region. It is surrounded by the departments of
Gironde
Gironde ( US usually, , ; oc, Gironda, ) is the largest department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,6 ...
,
Charente
Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...
,
Deux-Sèvres
Deux-Sèvres () is a French department. ''Deux-Sèvres'' literally means "two Sèvres": the Sèvre Nantaise and the Sèvre Niortaise are two rivers which have their sources in the department. It had a population of 374,878 in 2019. ,
Dordogne
Dordogne ( , or ; ; oc, Dordonha ) is a large rural department in Southwestern France, with its prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and the Pyrenees, it is named ...
and
Vendée
Vendée (; br, Vande) is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442. . It has a land area of 6864 km
2 and 651,358 inhabitants as of 2019.
The important rivers are the
Charente
Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...
and its tributaries, the
Boutonne
The Boutonne () is a long river in the Deux-Sèvres and Charente-Maritime departments in western France. Its source is in the village of Chef-Boutonne (french: head of the Boutonne). It flows generally southwest. It is a right tributary of th ...
and the
Seugne, along with the
Sèvre Niortaise
The Sèvre Niortaise () is a long river in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine and Pays de la Loire regions in western France, flowing into the Atlantic Ocean. Its source is in the Deux-Sèvres department, near Sepvret, north of Melle.
It flows through ...
, the
Seudre
The Seudre () is a river in the Charente-Maritime ''département'', southwestern France, flowing into the Atlantic Ocean. It is long. Its source is near Saint-Genis-de-Saintonge. It flows northwest through Saint-André-de-Lidon, Saujon and La ...
and the
Garonne
The Garonne (, also , ; Occitan, Catalan, Basque, and es, Garona, ; la, Garumna
or ) is a river of southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux – ...
, in its downstream part, which is the estuary of the
Gironde
Gironde ( US usually, , ; oc, Gironda, ) is the largest department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of Southwestern France. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is Bordeaux. In 2019, it had a population of 1,6 ...
.
The department includes the islands of
Île de Ré,
Île d'Aix,
Ile d'Oléron
Ile may refer to:
* iLe, a Puerto Rican singer
* Ile District (disambiguation), multiple places
* Ilé-Ifẹ̀, an ancient Yoruba city in south-western Nigeria
* Interlingue (ISO 639:ile), a planned language
* Isoleucine, an amino acid
* Another ...
and
Île Madame.
The department forms the northern part of the
Aquitaine Basin. It is separated from the
Massif Armoricain by the
Marais Poitevin to the north-west and from the Parisian basin by the
Seuil du Poitou to the north-east. The highest point in the department is in the woods of Chantemerlière, near the
commune of
Contré
Contré () is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department in southwestern France.
Population
See also
*Communes of the Charente-Maritime department
The following is a list of the 463 communes of the Charente-Maritime department of Fran ...
in the north-east, and rises to 173 m.
Principal towns
The most populous commune is
La Rochelle
La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wi ...
, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 7 communes with more than 8,000 inhabitants:
[Populations légales 2019: 17 Charente-Maritime]
INSEE
Climate
The climate is mild and sunny, with less than 900 mm of precipitation per year and with
insolation
Solar irradiance is the power per unit area ( surface power density) received from the Sun in the form of electromagnetic radiation in the wavelength range of the measuring instrument.
Solar irradiance is measured in watts per square metre ...
being remarkably high, in fact, the highest in Western France including southernmost sea resorts such as
Biarritz
Biarritz ( , , , ; Basque also ; oc, Biàrritz ) is a city on the Bay of Biscay, on the Atlantic coast in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department in the French Basque Country in southwestern France. It is located from the border with Spa ...
. Average extreme temperatures vary from in summer to in winter (as of 2022).
Economy
The economy of Charente-Maritime is based on three major sectors:
tourism
Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
,
maritime industry
Maritime transport (or ocean transport) and hydraulic effluvial transport, or more generally waterborne transport, is the transport of people (passengers) or goods (cargo) via waterways. Freight transport by sea has been widely used thro ...
, and
manufacturing
Manufacturing is the creation or production of goods with the help of equipment, labor, machines, tools, and chemical or biological processing or formulation. It is the essence of secondary sector of the economy. The term may refer to ...
.
Cognac
Cognac ( , also , ) is a variety of brandy named after the commune of Cognac, France. It is produced in the surrounding wine-growing region in the departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime.
Cognac production falls under French appella ...
and
pineau
Pineau des Charentes, (Pineau Charentais, or simply Pineau) is a regional aperitif of western France, made in the départements of Charente, Charente-Maritime, and (to a lesser extent) Dordogne. While popular within its region of production, ...
are two of the major agricultural products with
maize
Maize ( ; ''Zea mays'' subsp. ''mays'', from es, maíz after tnq, mahiz), also known as corn (North American English, North American and Australian English), is a cereal grain first domesticated by indigenous peoples of Mexico, indigenous ...
and
sunflowers being the others.
During the summer months, families flock from all over Europe to bask in the sun and enjoy the local seafood.
Royan, popular for its extensive beaches and attractions, is one of the most famous seaside resort of atlantic coast.
Charente-Maritime is the headquarters of the major
oyster
Oyster is the common name for a number of different families of salt-water bivalve molluscs that live in marine or brackish habitats. In some species, the valves are highly calcified, and many are somewhat irregular in shape. Many, but not ...
producer Marennes-Oléron. Oysters cultivated here are shipped across Europe.
Rochefort is a shipbuilding site and has been a major French naval base since 1665.
La Rochelle
La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wi ...
is a seat of major French industry. Just outside the city, in
Aytré
Aytré () is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France.
Aytré is especially known for its long beach, which is easily accessible from neighbouring La Rochelle, or Les Minimes. The beach is flat and ...
, is a factory for the French engineering giant
Alstom
Alstom SA is a French multinational corporation, multinational rolling stock manufacturer operating worldwide in rail transport markets, active in the fields of passenger transportation, signalling, and locomotives, with products including the A ...
, where the
TGV
The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
, the cars for the
Paris
Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
and other
metros are manufactured (see
:fr:Alstom Aytré). It is a popular venue for tourism, with its picturesque
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 period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
harbour and city walls.
Demographics
The inhabitants of the department are called ''Charentais-Maritimes''.
Politics
Departmental Council of Charente-Maritime
The
President of the Departmental Council
In France, the President of the Departmental Council ( French: ''Président du Conseil départemental'') is the locally elected head of the departmental council, the assembly governing a department in France. The position is elected by the depar ...
has been
Dominique Bussereau
Dominique Bussereau (born 13 July 1952) is a French politician.
He is president of the departmental council of Charente-Maritime since
2008 and president of the since 2015.
He was Secretary of State for Transport within the government of ...
(
LR) since 2008. He was replaced by Sylvie Marcilly after the
departmental elections of June 2021.
National representation
In the
2017 legislative election, Charente-Maritime elected the following members of the
National Assembly
In politics, a national assembly is either a unicameral legislature, the lower house of a bicameral legislature, or both houses of a bicameral legislature together. In the English language it generally means "an assembly composed of the r ...
:
In the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
, Charente-Maritime is represented by
three members
3 is a number, numeral, and glyph.
3, three, or III may also refer to:
* AD 3, the third year of the AD era
* 3 BC, the third year before the AD era
* March, the third month
Books
* '' Three of Them'' (Russian: ', literally, "three"), a 1901 ...
:
Daniel Laurent (since 2008), Corinne Imbert (since 2014) and Mickaël Vallet (since 2020).
Tourism
Popular destinations include
La Rochelle
La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wi ...
,
Royan,
Saintes,
Saint-Jean-d'Angély
Saint-Jean-d'Angély (; Saintongeais: ''Sént-Jhan-d'Anjhéli'') is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department in southwestern France.
The commune has its historical origins in the Abbey of Saint-Jean-d'Angély.
Royal abbey
Founded in the ...
,
Rochefort, the
Île d'Aix,
Île de Ré and
Île d'Oléron.
The department is served by the
TGV
The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
at
Surgères and
La Rochelle
La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wi ...
. It can also be reached by motorway by the A10 (E5, Paris-
Bordeaux
Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectu ...
) and A837 (E602, Saintes-Rochefort).
File:La Rochelle2tours.jpg, La Rochelle
La Rochelle (, , ; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''La Rochéle''; oc, La Rochèla ) is a city on the west coast of France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department. Wi ...
File:Port Royan.jpg, Royan, a seaside resort
File:Cabanes ostréicoles au Château-d'Oléron.jpg, Oyster farms on the island of Oléron
The Isle of Oléron or Oléron Island (french: île d'Oléron, ; Saintongese: ''ilâte d'Olerun''; oc, illa d'Olairon or ; la, Uliarus insula, ) is an island off the Atlantic coast of France (due west of Rochefort), on the southern side of t ...
File:Talmont sur Gironde.jpg, Talmont-sur-Gironde
Talmont-sur-Gironde (, literally ''Talmont on Gironde'') is a commune in the Charente-Maritime department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwestern France.
Geography
The village lies about south of Royan, on a small promontory which d ...
File:Jonzac 17 Église façade 2013.jpg, Jonzac
File:Fort boyard aout 2006-6.JPG, Fort Boyard
File:Hennessy cognac.jpg, Barrels of Hennessy cognac
Cognac ( , also , ) is a variety of brandy named after the commune of Cognac, France. It is produced in the surrounding wine-growing region in the departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime.
Cognac production falls under French appella ...
See also
*
Cantons of the Charente-Maritime department
*
Communes of the Charente-Maritime department
*
Arrondissements of the Charente-Maritime department
*
Éclade des Moules
References
External links
*
*
Prefecture website*
Departmental Council website*
Tourism website
{{Authority control
1790 establishments in France
Nouvelle-Aquitaine region articles needing translation from French Wikipedia
Departments of Nouvelle-Aquitaine
States and territories established in 1790