Loiret is a department in north-central France in the Centre-Val de Loire region. It is named after the Loiret river, a tributary of Loire that is completely within the department.
Its prefecture is Orléans and there are two subprefectures: Montargis and Pithiviers.
The department is one of the 83 French departments made during the French revolution, on 4 March 1790. The department was created from part of the former province of Orléanais.
The new department had seven districts: Orléans, Beaugency, Neuville, Pithiviers, Montargis, Gien and Boiscommun. The capital (now prefecture) was Orléans.
In 1800, with the creation of the "arrondissements" in France, the seven districts were changed into four "arrondissements": Orléans, Gien, Montargis and Pithiviers.
After the Battle of Waterloo (18 June 1815), the department was occupied by the Bavarian army from June 1815 to November 1818.
On 10 September 1926, the "arrondissement" of Gien and Pithiviers were eliminated but in 1942 Pithiviers became again an "arrondissement" of the department.
Loiret is part of the Centre-Val de Loire region. It has an area of .
The department is bordered by the 7 departments in 3 regions:
The highest point of the department is in the place called "Col des Étourneaux" (), in the "commune" of Pierrefitte-ès-Bois, and that is above sea level; it is in northwestern Massif Central.
The main rivers are:
There are several natural regions in the Loiret department:
The Köppen climate classification type for the climate at Orléans is an "Oceanic climate" (also known as Marine West Coast Climate) and of the subtype Cfb.
The average amount of precipitation for the year in Orléans is . The month with the most precipitation on average is August with of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is March with an average of .
The average temperature for the year in Orléans is . The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of . The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of .
The department is managed by the "Departmental Council of the Loiret" in Orléans. Loiret is part of the region of Centre-Val de Loire.
There are 3 "arrondissements" (districts), 21 "cantons" and 326 "communes" (municipalities) in Loiret.
The following is a list of the 21 cantons of the Loir-et-Cher department, following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:
The inhabitants of Loiret are known, in French, as "Loiretains" (women: "Loiretaines").
Loiret has a population, in 2014, of 669,737, for a population density of inhabitants/km. The "arrondissement" of Orléans, with 435,676 inhabitants, is by far the largest.
Evolution of the population in Loiret
The main cities in the department are:
Lot (department)
Lot () is a French department in the Occitanie region of southern France named after the Lot river. Its prefecture and largest city is Cahors.
Lot is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from the old province of Quercy.
The new department had six districts: Cahors, Martel, Gourdon, Figeac, Montauban and Lazorte. The capital (now prefecture) was Cahors.
In 1808, some of the original southeastern cantons were separated from it to form the department of Tarn-et-Garonne. It originally extended much farther to the south and included the city of Montauban.
Lot is part of the Occitanie region and has an area of .
The department borders with 6 other departments in 3 regions:
The Lot river crosses the department from east to west with numerous meanders. The Dordogne river flows through the northern part of the department.
There are seven natural regions in the department:
The climate in Gourdon, in the north of the department at an altitude of above sea level, is an oceanic climate with relatively hot summers, mild winters and abundant rainfall, Cfb in the Köppen climate classification.
The average amount of precipitation for the year in Gourdon is . The month with the most precipitation on average is May with of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is February with an average of . There are an average of 168.0 days of precipitation, with the most precipitation occurring in January with 17.0 days and the least precipitation occurring in July with 10.0 days.
The average temperature for the year in Gourdon is . The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of . The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of .
The department is managed by the "Departamental Council of the Lot" in Cahors. Lot is part of the Occitanie region.
There are 3 "arrondissements" (districts), 17 "cantons" and 326 "communes" (municipalities) in Lot.
The following is a list of the 17 cantons of the Lot department, following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:
The inhabitants of Lot are known, in French, as "Lotois" (women: "Lotoises").
Lot has a population, in 2014, of 173,648, for a population density of inhabitants/km. The "arrondissement" of Cahors, with 76,216 inhabitants, is by far the largest. The other two, Figeac and Gourdon, have respectively 54,060 and 43,372 inhabitants.
The city with more people living in it is the capital, Cahors (19,630). The subprefectures of Figeac and Gourdon have, respectively, 9,820 and 4,297 inhabitants.
Evolution of the population in Lot
The cities in the department with more of 2,000 inhabitants are:
Lot-et-Garonne
Lot-et-Garonne () is a department in the southwest of France named after the Lot and Garonne rivers.
Lot-et-Garonne was formed during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790 with parts of the old provinces of Guyenne and Gascony. It was divided into nine districts: Agen, Nérac, Marmande, Tonneins, Villeneuve, Lauzun, Monflanquin, Casteljaloux and Valence.
Agen and Aiguillon were alternatively the capital of the department but in 1791 it was decided that only Agen would be the capital.
Several of the original southeastern cantons in the arrondissements of Agen and Villeneuve-sur-Lot were separated from it in 1808 to become a part of the newly created department of Tarn-et-Garonne.
Lot-et-Garonne is part of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, southwestern France, with an area of .
The departement is surrounded by two regions and six departments:
The main rivers in the Lot-et-Garonne are the Garonne river that flows through the south central part of the department, and the Lot river that flows through the northern regions of the department before joining, as a right tributary, the Garonne near the Aiguillon "commune".
Other river is the Baïse, a left tributary of the Garonne.
In the west of the department, mainly in the arrondissement of Nérac, there is a forest of maritime pine like in the Landes department.
The climate of Estillac, where is the Agen La Garenne Airport, is Marine West Coast Climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb), with mild winters and warm summers.
The average temperature for the year in Estillac is . The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of . The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of .
The average amount of precipitation for the year in Estillac is . The month with the most precipitation on average is December with of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is April with an average of .
The department is managed by the "Departamental Council of Lot-et-Garonne" in Agen. Lot-et-Garonne is part of the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine.
There are 4 "arrondissements" (districts), 21 "cantons" and 319 "communes" (municipalities) in Lot-et-Garonne.
The following is a list of the 21 cantons of the Lot-et-Garonne department (with their INSEE codes), following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:
The inhabitants of Lot-et-Garonne are known, in French, as "Lot-et-Garonnais" (women: "Lot-et-Garonnaises").