Sésia () was a department of the

First French Republic In the history of France, the First Republic (), sometimes referred to in historiography as Revolutionary France, and officially the French Republic (), was founded on 21 September 1792 during the French Revolution. The First Republic lasted u ...

and of the

First French Empire The First French Empire or French Empire (; ), also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. It lasted from ...

in present-day Italy. It was named after the river

Sesia The Sesia (Latin ''Sesites'' or ''Sessites'') is a river in Piedmont, north-western Italy, tributary to the Po. Geography Its sources are the glaciers of Monte Rosa at the border with Switzerland. It flows through the Alpine valley Valsesia an ...

. It was formed in 1801, when the

Subalpine Republic The Subalpine Republic () was a short-lived republic that existed between 1800 and 1802 on the territory of Piedmont during its military rule by the French Consulate. History Piedmont was the main part of the Kingdom of Sardinia which, despit ...

(formerly the mainland portion of the

Kingdom of Sardinia The Kingdom of Sardinia, also referred to as the Kingdom of Sardinia and Corsica among other names, was a State (polity), country in Southern Europe from the late 13th until the mid-19th century, and from 1297 to 1768 for the Corsican part of ...

) was intended to be annexed to France. Its capital was

Vercelli Vercelli (; ) is a city and ''comune'' of 46,552 inhabitants (January 1, 2017) in the Province of Vercelli, Piedmont, northern Italy. One of the oldest urban sites in northern Italy, it was founded, according to most historians, around 600 BC. ...

. The department was disbanded after the defeat of Napoleon in 1814. At the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon, Napol ...

, the Savoyard

King of Sardinia Sardinia is traditionally known to have been initially ruled by the Nuragic civilization, which was followed by Greek colonization, conquest by the Carthagians, Carthaginians, and occupied by the Ancient Rome, Romans for around a thousand years, ...

was restored in all his previous realms and domains, including

Piedmont Piedmont ( ; ; ) is one of the 20 regions of Italy, located in the northwest Italy, Northwest of the country. It borders the Liguria region to the south, the Lombardy and Emilia-Romagna regions to the east, and the Aosta Valley region to the ...

. Its territory is now divided between the

Italian provinces The provinces of Italy ( ; sing. ) are the second-level administrative divisions of the Italian Republic, on an intermediate level between a municipality () and a region (). Since 2015, provinces have been classified as "institutional bo ...

and

Biella Biella (; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the northern Italy, Italian region of Piedmont, the capital of the Province of Biella, province of the same name, with a population of 44,324 as of 31 December 2017. It is located about northeast of ...

Subdivisions

upCoat of arms of the city of Vercelli under the French Empire The department was subdivided into the following ''arrondissements'' and ''

cantons A canton is a type of administrative division of a country. In general, cantons are relatively small in terms of area and population when compared with other administrative divisions such as counties, departments, or provinces. Internationally, th ...

'' (situation in 1812):Almanach Impérial an bissextil MDCCCXII
p. 468, accessed in Gallica 26 July 2013 *

, cantons: Agnona,

Crevacuore Crevacuore is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Biella in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about northeast of Biella. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,813 and an area of .All demogra ...

Gattinara Gattinara () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Vercelli in the Italy, Italian region of Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about north of Vercelli. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 8,506 and an area of ...

Masserano Masserano is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Biella in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about northeast of Biella. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 2,315 and an area of .All demographi ...

, Quinto,

Stroppiana Stroppiana is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about southeast of Vercelli. Stroppiana borders the following municipalities: Asigliano Vercellese, Cares ...

Trino Trino () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about southwest of Vercelli, at the foot of the Montferrat hills. Trino borders the following municipalit ...

and

(2 cantons). *

, cantons:

Bioglio Bioglio is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Biella in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about northeast of Biella. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 1,049 and an area of .All demographics ...

, Cacciorna,

Candelo Candelo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Biella in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about southeast of Biella. Candelo borders the following municipalities: Benna, Biella, Cossato, Gaglianico, ...

Cavaglià Cavaglià (; ) is a (municipality) in the Province of Biella in the Italian region of Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about south of Biella. Cavaglià borders the following municipalities: Alice Castello, Carisio, Dorzano, R ...

Cossato Cossato is a ''municipality'' in the province of Biella, Italy, in the northwest part of Piedmont, east of Biella. It has a population of about 14,804 and it spreads over an area of 27,74 km2, which makes it the second largest town in the Pro ...

Graglia Graglia () is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Biella in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about southwest of Biella Biella (; ; ) is a city and (municipality) in the northern Italy, Italian regio ...

Mongrando Mongrando is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Biella in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about southwest of Biella. Mongrando borders the following municipalities: Borriana, Camburzano, Donato, ...

and

Mosso Santa Maria Mosso can refer to: People * Angelo Mosso (1846–1910), Italian physiologist Places ;Denmark * Mossø lake in the nature conservation reserve of Klostermølle ;Italy * Mosso, Piedmont, a former ''comune'' in the Province of Biella * Valle Mosso, ...

. *

Santhià Santhià (; or ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about northwest of Vercelli. Santhià is home to a historic carnival named the ''Carnevale Stori ...

, cantons:

Buronzo Buronzo is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about northwest of Vercelli Vercelli (; ) is a city and ''comune'' of 46,552 inhabitants (January 1, 2017 ...

Cigliano Cigliano is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about west of Vercelli. Notable people Pietro Bollea Sr., the paternal grandfather of the famous wrestler ...

Crescentino Crescentino is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Vercelli in the Italian region Piedmont, located about northeast of Turin and about southwest of Vercelli. Crescentino borders the following municipalities: Brusasco, Fontanetto ...

Livorno Livorno () is a port city on the Ligurian Sea on the western coast of the Tuscany region of Italy. It is the capital of the Province of Livorno, having a population of 152,916 residents as of 2025. It is traditionally known in English as Leghorn ...

and

. Its population in 1812 was 202,733, and its area was 335,118 hectares.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Sesia Former departments of France in Italy 1802 establishments in France