Gironde ( US usually, , ; oc, Gironda, ) is the largest department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine

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 ...

of Southwestern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan ar ...

. Named after the Gironde estuary, a major waterway, its prefecture is

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 prefecture ...

. In 2019, it had a population of 1,623,749.Populations légales 2019: 33 Gironde
INSEE The famous Bordeaux wine region is in Gironde. It has six arrondissements, making it one of the

departments Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

with the most arrondissements ( Nord also has six, while Pas-de-Calais has the most of any department, with seven).

History

Gironde 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 conside ...

on 4 March 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Guyenne and Gascony. From 1793 to 1795, the department's name was changed to ''Bec-d'Ambès'' to avoid the association with the Girondist political party of the French Revolution. In July 2022, Gironde was affected by large wildfires.

Geography

Gironde is part of the current region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine and is surrounded by the departments of Landes, Lot-et-Garonne,

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

Charente-Maritime Charente-Maritime () is a department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region on the southwestern coast of France. Named after the river Charente, its prefecture is La Rochelle. As of 2019, it had a population of 651,358 with an area of 6,864 square ...

and the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth#Surface, Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the "Old World" of Afr ...

on the west. With an area of 10,000 km², Gironde is the largest department in metropolitan France. If overseas departments are included, however, Gironde's land area is dwarfed by the 83,846 km² of

French Guiana French Guiana ( or ; french: link=no, Guyane ; gcr, label=French Guianese Creole, Lagwiyann ) is an overseas departments and regions of France, overseas department/region and single territorial collectivity of France on the northern Atlantic ...

. Gironde is well known for the Côte d'Argent beach which is Europe's longest, attracting many surfers to Lacanau each year. It is also the birthplace of Jacques-Yves Cousteau who studied the sea and all forms of life in water. The Great Dune of Pyla in Arcachon Bay near Bordeaux is the tallest sand dune in Europe.C.G. (14 August 2009). Les Adresses de Mathilde Seigner et Fabien Onteniente. '' Le Figaro Magazine''.

Demographics

Principal towns

The most populous commune is

, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 7 communes with more than 30,000 inhabitants:

Politics

The President of the Departmental Council is Jean-Luc Gleyze of the Socialist Party.

Current National Assembly Representatives

Tourism

File:Place-Bourse Bordeaux-boosted-colours.jpg,

File:Cave Blanc Château de Rochemorin.JPG, Bordeaux wine File:Dune du pyla 2009.JPG, The Great Dune of Pyla File:Arcachon tchanquée.JPG, Arcachon Bay File:Bourg-sur-Gironde2.jpg,

Bourg-sur-Gironde Bourg (; oc, Borg), also informally known as ''Bourg-sur-Gironde'', is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. It is part of the Côtes de Bourg wine region. Bourg originated as a fortified villa built ...

File:Château de La Brède en Gironde.jpg, Château de la Brède, birthplace of

Montesquieu Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (; ; 18 January 168910 February 1755), generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher. He is the principa ...

File:France - Blaye - La Gironde depuis la citadelle.jpg, The Gironde estuary seen from the citadel of Blaye File:Les Grottes de Ferrand.jpg, Grottoes of Ferrand File:Château des Freytets nouveau château d'Eck cadaujac.JPG,

Château d'Eck Château d'Eck is a château in Gironde, Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories ...

References

External links

*
Departmental Council website
*
Prefecture website
* *
Tourism Office website
{{Authority control 1790 establishments in France Departments of Nouvelle-Aquitaine States and territories established in 1790