Arrondissement of Saintes

The **arrondissement of Saintes** is an arrondissement of France, in the Charente-Maritime department, Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. Its capital is the city of Saintes.

## History
When the Charente-Maritime department was created on 1790, the *arrondissement* of Saintes was part of that original department.

It was the centre of the old province of Saintonge.

## Geography
It is the largest of the *arrondissements* of the Charente-Maritime department but the third by population. It has an area of , and a population of 128,786 inhabitants for a density of  inhabitants/km².

Saintes is in the central part of the department. It is bordered to the north by the *arrondissement* of Saint-Jean-d'Angély, to the east by the *arrondissement* of Cognac (Charente department), to the south by the *arrondissement* of  Jonzac, to the southwest by the Gironde department (through the Gironde estuary), to the west and northwest by the *arrondissement* of Rochefort.

## Composition
### Cantons
After the reorganisation of the cantons in France, cantons are not subdivisions of the *arrondissements* so they could have *communes* that belong to different *arrondissements*.

In the *arrondissement* of Saintes, there are only two cantons where all their "communes" are in the *arrondissement*: the Saint-Porchaire and Saintes cantons. The following table shows the distribution of the "communes" in the cantons and *arrondissements*:

### Communes
The *arrondissement* of Saintes has 89 *communes*; they are (with their INSEE codes):

# Arces (17015)
# Balanzac (17030)
# Barzan (17034)
# Berneuil (17044)
# Beurlay (17045)
# Boutenac-Touvent (17060)
# Brie-sous-Mortagne (17068)
# Burie (17072)
# Bussac-sur-Charente (17073)
# Chaniers (17086)
# La Chapelle-des-Pots (17089)
# Le Chay (17097)
# Chenac-Saint-Seurin-d'Uzet (17098)
# Chérac (17100)
# Chermignac (17102)
# La Clisse (17112)
# Colombiers (17115)
# Corme-Écluse (17119)
# Corme-Royal (17120)
# Courcoury (17128)
# Cozes (17131)
# Cravans (17133)
# Crazannes (17134)
# Dompierre-sur-Charente (17141)
# Le Douhet (17143)
# Écoyeux (17147)
# Écurat (17148)
# Épargnes (17152)
# Les Essards (17154)
# Floirac (17160)
# Fontcouverte (17164)
# Geay (17171)
# Gémozac (17172)
# Les Gonds (17179)
# Grézac (17183)
# La Jard (17191)
# Jazennes (17196)
# Luchat (17214)
# Médis (17228)
# Meursac (17232)
# Migron (17235)
# Montils (17242)
# Montpellier-de-Médillan (17244)
# Mortagne-sur-Gironde (17248)
# Nancras (17255)
# Nieul-lès-Saintes (17262)
# Pessines (17275)
# Pisany (17278)
# Plassay (17280)
# Pont-l'Abbé-d'Arnoult (17284)
# Port-d'Envaux (17285)
# Préguillac (17289)
# Rétaud (17296)
# Rioux (17298)
# Romegoux (17302)
# Rouffiac (17304)
# Sablonceaux (17307)
# Saint-André-de-Lidon (17310)
# Saint-Bris-des-Bois (17313)
# Saint-Césaire (17314)
# Sainte-Gemme (17330)
# Saint-Georges-des-Coteaux (17336)
# Saint-Porchaire (17387)
# Sainte-Radegonde (17389)
# Saint-Romain-sur-Gironde (17392)
# Saint-Romain-de-Benet (17393)
# Saint-Sauvant (17395)
# Saint-Sever-de-Saintonge (17400)
# Saint-Simon-de-Pellouaille (17404)
# Saint-Sulpice-d'Arnoult (17408)
# Saint-Vaize (17412)
# Saintes (17415)
# Saujon (17421)
# Semussac (17425)
# Le Seure (17426)
# Soulignonne (17431)
# Talmont-sur-Gironde (17437)
# Tanzac (17438)
# Tesson (17441)
# Thaims (17442)
# Thénac (17444)
# Thézac (17445)
# Trizay (17453)
# La Vallée (17455)
# Varzay (17460)
# Vénérand (17462)
# Villars-en-Pons (17469)
# Villars-les-Bois (17470)
# Virollet (17479) 

The *communes* with more inhabitants in the *arrondissement* are:

## Related pages
* Arrondissements of the Charente-Maritime department
* List of arrondissements of France

## References