Sarthe () is a
department of the French region of
Pays de la Loire
Pays de la Loire (; but can also mean 'Lower Loire') is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France, located on the country's Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. It was created in the 1950s to serve as a zone of influence for its capital an ...
, and the
province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Maine
Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
, situated in the ''
Grand-Ouest
The Grand-Ouest () is a geographical area of France that encompasses Brittany and Pays de la Loire.
Traditionally, this area has a very agriculture-based economy.
The largest cities are Rennes and Nantes
Nantes (, ; ; or ; ) is a city ...
'' of the country. It is named after the river
Sarthe
Sarthe () is a department of the French region of Pays de la Loire, and the province of Maine, situated in the '' Grand-Ouest'' of the country. It is named after the river Sarthe, which flows from east of Le Mans to just north of Angers. It ha ...
, which flows from east of
Le Mans
Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...
to just north of
Angers
Angers (, , ;) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the Prefectures of France, prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Duchy of Anjou, Anjou until the French Revolution. The i ...
. It had a population of 566,412 in 2019.
[Populations légales 2019: 72 Sarthe]
INSEE
History
In the late 18th century, before it was officially Sarthe, the nobility built their mansions and chateaux in this region, as an escape from Paris.
The department was created during the
French Revolution on 4 March 1790, pursuant to the law of 22 December 1789, starting from a part of the
province
A province is an administrative division within a country or sovereign state, state. The term derives from the ancient Roman , which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire, Roman Empire's territorial possessions ou ...
of
Maine
Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
. The latter was divided into two departments, Sarthe to the east and
Mayenne
Mayenne ( ) is a landlocked department in northwest France named after the river Mayenne. Mayenne is part of the administrative region of Pays de la Loire and is surrounded by the departments of Manche, Orne, Sarthe, Maine-et-Loire, and Il ...
to the west.
In Roman times, this province contained the city of
Mans, and many of its ruins are still standing. The Roman Thermal Bathhouse attracts many tourists, as does the Theater of
Aubigné-Racan
Aubigné-Racan () is a commune in the Sarthe department in the region of Pays de la Loire in north-western France.
Population
Sights
In the surrounding countryside, one can find prehistoric standing stones, or dolmens ("dolmen de la Pierre" a ...
, both located on the outskirts of
Anjou
Anjou may refer to:
Geography and titles France
*County of Anjou, a historical county in France and predecessor of the Duchy of Anjou
**Count of Anjou, title of nobility
*Duchy of Anjou, a historical duchy and later a province of France
** Du ...
,
Maine
Maine ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the United States, and the northeasternmost state in the Contiguous United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Provinces and ...
, and
Touraine
Touraine (; ) is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, Touraine was divided between the departments of Indre-et-Loire, :Loir-et-Cher, Indre and Vien ...
.
Marin Mersenne
Marin Mersenne, OM (also known as Marinus Mersennus or ''le Père'' Mersenne; ; 8 September 1588 – 1 September 1648) was a French polymath whose works touched a wide variety of fields. He is perhaps best known today among mathematicians for ...
, perhaps the most important scientific figure in the early 17th century, was born in the vicinity of Sarthe.
Geography
The department of Sarthe is at the north end of the administrative
region
In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...
of
Pays de la Loire
Pays de la Loire (; but can also mean 'Lower Loire') is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France, located on the country's Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. It was created in the 1950s to serve as a zone of influence for its capital an ...
. It is south of
Normandy
Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy.
Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...
and on the southern edge of the
Armorican Massif
The Armorican Massif (, ) is a geologic massif that covers a large area in the northwest of France, including Brittany, the western part of Normandy and the Pays de la Loire. It is important because it is connected to Dover on the British side o ...
. It is bordered by the departments of
Orne
Orne (; or ) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.[Eure-et-Loir
Eure-et-Loir (, locally: ) is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers. It is located in the region of Centre-Val de Loire. In 2019, Eure-et-Loir had a population of 431,575.][Loir-et-Cher
Loir-et-Cher (, ) is a Departments of France, department in the Centre-Val de Loire Regions of France, region of France. It is named after two rivers which run through it, the Loir in its northern part and the Cher (river), Cher in its southern p ...]
,
Indre-et-Loire
Indre-et-Loire () is a department in west-central France named after the Indre River and Loire River. In 2019, it had a population of 610,079.[Maine-et-Loire
Maine-et-Loire () is a department in the Loire Valley in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France. It is named after the two rivers, Maine and the Loire. It borders Mayenne and Sarthe to the north, Loire-Atlantique to the west, Indr ...]
and
Mayenne
Mayenne ( ) is a landlocked department in northwest France named after the river Mayenne. Mayenne is part of the administrative region of Pays de la Loire and is surrounded by the departments of Manche, Orne, Sarthe, Maine-et-Loire, and Il ...
.
The arrival of the
railways
Rail transport (also known as train transport) is a means of transport using wheeled vehicles running in tracks, which usually consist of two parallel steel rails. Rail transport is one of the two primary means of land transport, next to roa ...
in 1854 boosted trade for the local economy. A
TGV
The TGV (; , , 'high-speed train') is France's intercity high-speed rail service. With commercial operating speeds of up to on the newer lines, the TGV was conceived at the same period as other technological projects such as the Ariane 1 rocke ...
connection was constructed in 1989, connecting the community to high-speed transport. In terms of road connections, the
A11 autoroute
The A 11 autoroute is a motorway which connects Paris with Nantes via Le Mans and Angers. It is called L'Océane. The road is long.
Regions crossed
The following list indexes the sites worth visiting within 14 km of the road.
* Paris
* ...
, which was constructed to Le Mans from
the east in 1978, enhances Sarthe's strategic position as the gateway to the French west.
Principal towns
The most populous commune is
Le Mans
Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...
, the prefecture. Approximately 370,000 people, comprising 65% of the department's population, live in the Le Mans
urban area
An urban area is a human settlement with a high population density and an infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas originate through urbanization, and researchers categorize them as cities, towns, conurbations or suburbs. In urbani ...
. The rest of the department retains a rural character, with agriculture as the chief part of the economy. As of 2019, there are 4 communes with more than 10,000 inhabitants:
[
]
Demographics
Population development since 1801:
Politics
The department was the electoral base of former Prime Minister François Fillon
François Charles Amand Fillon (; born 4 March 1954) is a French retired politician who served as Prime Minister of France from 2007 to 2012 under President Nicolas Sarkozy. He was the nominee of The Republicans (previously known as the Union ...
, who since 2012 sits in the National Assembly of France
The National Assembly (, ) is the lower house of the Bicameralism, bicameral French Parliament under the French Fifth Republic, Fifth Republic, the upper house being the Senate (France), Senate (). The National Assembly's legislators are known ...
for a constituency in central Paris. The president of the Departmental Council is Dominique Le Mèner
Dominique Le Mèner (born 12 November 1958) is a French politician. He has been the president of the Sarthe departmental council since 2 April 2015.
He was a member of the National Assembly of France, representing Sarthe's 5th constituency f ...
, elected in 2015.
Presidential elections 2nd round
Current National Assembly Representatives
Tourism
File:Le Mans muraille Gallo Romaine nord-est.JPG, Gallo-Roman
Gallo-Roman culture was a consequence of the Romanization (cultural), Romanization of Gauls under the rule of the Roman Empire in Roman Gaul. It was characterized by the Gaulish adoption or adaptation of Roman culture, Roman culture, language ...
walls and Cathedral
A cathedral is a church (building), church that contains the of a bishop, thus serving as the central church of a diocese, Annual conferences within Methodism, conference, or episcopate. Churches with the function of "cathedral" are usually s ...
in Le Mans
Le Mans (; ) is a Communes of France, city in Northwestern France on the Sarthe (river), Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. Traditionally the capital of the Provinces of France, province of Maine (province), Maine, it is now the capital of ...
File:Le Mans - St Julien SGW (large version).jpg, Stained glass in Le Mans Cathedral
Le Mans Cathedral ( French: ''Cathédrale St-Julien du Mans'') is a Catholic church situated in Le Mans, France. The cathedral is dedicated to Saint Julian of Le Mans, the city's first bishop, who established Christianity in the area around the b ...
File:908 lm2008 montagny.jpg, The 24 Hours of Le Mans
The 24 Hours of Le Mans () is an endurance-focused Sports car racing, sports car race held annually near the city of Le Mans, France. It is widely considered to be one of the world's most prestigious races, and is one of the races—along with ...
is the world's oldest continuing sports car race in endurance racing.La Ferté-Bernard
La Ferté-Bernard () is a commune in the Sarthe department in the Pays de la Loire region in north-western France.
History
La Ferté-Bernard owes its origin and name to a stronghold (''fermeté'') built about the 11th century and afterwards hel ...
File:Le Lude castle, aerial view.jpg, Château du Lude
The Château du Lude is one of the many monumental châteaux of the Loire Valley (Vallée de la Loire) in France. The château is situated in the commune of Le Lude in the Sarthe department in the region of Pays de la Loire and stands at the ...
File:FR-GD-Courtanvaux1.JPG, Château de Courtanvaux
See also
* Arrondissements of the Sarthe department
An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, and certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands.
Europe
France
The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissement ...
* Cantons of the Sarthe department
The following is a list of the 21 cantons of the Sarthe department, in France, following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:Circuit de la Sarthe (cycling)
The Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans, also known as Circuit de la Sarthe (after the 1906 French Grand Prix triangle circuit) located in Le Mans, Sarthe, France, is a semi-permanent motorsport Race track, race course, chiefly known as the venue fo ...
, an annual road cycling race
* Circuit de la Sarthe
The Circuit des 24 Heures du Mans, also known as Circuit de la Sarthe (after the 1906 French Grand Prix triangle circuit) located in Le Mans, Sarthe, France, is a semi-permanent motorsport race course, chiefly known as the venue for the 24 H ...
, a motor racing track
* Communes of the Sarthe department
The following is a list of the 352 communes of the Sarthe department of France.
The communes cooperate in the following intercommunalities (as of 2025):[History of Le Lude
The history of Le Lude (Sarthe) encompasses all ancient or recent events related to this France, French town. The megalithic complexes in the Loir, Loir Valley provide evidence of the region's occupation since the Neolithic period. The spur of th ...]
* Gallo-Roman enclosure of Le Mans
The Gallo-Roman enclosure of Le Mans, also referred to as the Roman enclosure of Le Mans, is located in the city once known as ''Vindinum'' or ''Vindunum''. This city was the capital of the Gauls, Gallic people, the Aulerci Cenomani. The constru ...
References
External links
Prefecture
Departmental Council
Sarthe information
{{Authority control
1790 establishments in France
Departments of Pays de la Loire
States and territories established in 1790