Isère
Isère ( , ; ; , ) is a landlocked Departments of France, department in the southeastern French Regions of France, region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère (river), Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.
Grenoble
Grenoble ( ; ; or ; or ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of the Isère Departments of France, department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Regions of France, region ...
and is adjacent to it on the east.
History
The commune was created around 1100 where the church of St. Martin was located. During the
Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the 5th to the late 15th centuries, similarly to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire and ...
it was administered at some points by the lords of the Castle of Gières, and at other times by the bishop of Grenoble, who had religious and seigniorial disputes with the former. The city remained a mostly rural area, until the 19th century, when it saw its first industrial developments with the opening of roads and railways. In the 1950s and the 1960s the city saw a "new era" with a significant demographic expansion caused by the installation of the University of Grenoble.
The city is limited at the north by the
Isère
Isère ( , ; ; , ) is a landlocked Departments of France, department in the southeastern French Regions of France, region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère (river), Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.
. It is located in an area historically prone to flooding by it and by the ''Mogne'' and ''Sonnant'' streams, though the floods stopped since the construction of dykes and the channelization of the Mogne and Sonnant streams.
Population
Education
Saint-Martin-d'Hères is the home of the main campus "Domaine Universitaire de Grenoble", a center of higher education in the region. The university features the ''Centre universitaire d'études françaises'' (CUEF). The CUEF offers second language instruction in French, and attracts students from a variety of foreign countries. Several universities in the United States sponsor study-abroad programs affiliated with the CUEF.