History of the Loire Department

The Loire department has an interesting history. It was created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. At first, it was part of a larger department called Rhône-et-Loire.

How Loire Became Its Own Department

In 1793, the Rhône-et-Loire department was split into two separate departments: Rhône and Loire. The new Loire department had three main areas called districts: Montbrison, Roanne, and Saint-Étienne.

Changes in the Capital City

The first capital city of Loire was Feurs. But in 1795, the capital was moved to Montbrison. Later, in 1855, the capital moved again to Saint-Étienne, where it is today.

Important Events in Loire's History

After the famous Battle of Waterloo in 1815, soldiers from Austria occupied the Loire department. They stayed there from June 1815 until November 1818.

Geography of Loire

Loire is located in east-central France, within the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. It covers an area of about 4,780.6 square kilometers (1,845.8 square miles). The department is long and narrow, stretching about 136 kilometers (85 miles) from north to south, but only about 50 kilometers (31 miles) wide from east to west.

Neighboring Departments

Loire shares its borders with seven other departments across two different regions:

In the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region:

* Saône-et-Loire (to the north)

In the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region:

* Rhône (to the east) * Isère (to the southeast) * Ardèche (to the southeast) * Haute-Loire (to the south) * Puy-de-Dôme (to the west) * Allier (to the northwest)

Allier	Saône-et-Loire
Puy-de-Dôme		Rhône
	Loire

	Haute-Loire	Isère Ardèche

Mountains and Rivers

The Loire department is in the eastern part of the Massif Central, which is a large group of mountains and plateaus in central France. Several mountain ranges can be found here:

Monts du Forez: These mountains are in the west of the department. The highest point in Loire, Pierre-sur-Haute, is here. It stands at 1,634 meters (5,361 feet) high and is on the border with the Puy-de-Dôme department.
Monts de la Madeleine: Located north of the Monts du Forez, these mountains form the border between Loire and the Allier department.
Monts du Lyonnais: These mountains mark the eastern border of the Loire department.
Pilat: This is a shorter mountain range within Loire, but it also borders four other departments: Rhône, Isère, Ardèche, and Haute-Loire.

The two most important rivers in the Loire department are:

The Loire: This river gives the department its name. It flows through the department from southwest to northeast for about 130 kilometers (81 miles).
The Rhône: This river is found in the southeast part of the department.

Climate in Loire

The climate in the Loire department, especially around Saint-Étienne, is an oceanic climate. This means it has mild temperatures and rainfall throughout the year.

The average yearly temperature in Andrézieux-Bouthéon, near Saint-Étienne, is about 11.5°C (52.7°F). July is usually the warmest month, with an average of 20.5°C (68.9°F). January is the coolest, averaging 3.2°C (37.8°F).

On average, the area receives about 896.6 millimeters (35.3 inches) of rain each year. December tends to be the wettest month, while April is usually the driest.

Administration of Loire

The Loire department is part of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. It is managed by the Departmental Council of the Loire, which is based in Saint-Étienne.

Divisions of the Department

Loire is divided into smaller administrative areas to help manage it. These include:

3 arrondissements (which are like large districts)
21 cantons (smaller administrative areas)
326 communes (which are like towns or municipalities)

Here are the three arrondissements of Loire:

INSEE code	Arrondissement	Capital	Population (2014)	Area (km²)	Density (Inh./km²)	Communes
421	Montbrison	Montbrison	188,635	1,959.5	96.3	136
422	Roanne	Roanne	157,268	1,779.9	88.4	115
423	Saint-Étienne	Saint-Étienne	411,402	1,041.2	395.1	75

Population of Loire

People who live in the Loire department are called Ligériens (for men) or Ligériennes (for women) in French. This name comes from Liger, which was the old Latin name for the Loire river.

In 2014, the Loire department had a population of 757,305 people. This means there were about 158.4 inhabitants per square kilometer (410 inhabitants per square mile). The arrondissement of Saint-Étienne is the largest, with 411,402 people.

The biggest city in the department is its capital, Saint-Étienne, with 170,761 inhabitants. The other main cities, Roanne and Montbrison, have populations of 35,200 and 15,689 respectively.

Population Changes Over Time

Evolution of the population in Loire

Major Cities in Loire

Here are the most important cities in the department by population:

City	Population (2014)	Arrondissement
Saint-Étienne	170,761	Saint-Étienne
Roanne	35,200	Roanne
Saint-Chamond	35,097	Saint-Étienne
Firminy	16,931	Saint-Étienne
Montbrison	15,689	Montbrison
Rive-de-Gier	14,730	Saint-Étienne
Saint-Just-Saint-Rambert	14,448	Montbrison
Le Chambon-Feugerolles	12,582	Saint-Étienne
Riorges	10,741	Roanne
Roche-la-Molière	9,925	Saint-Étienne
Andrézieux-Bouthéon	9,876	Montbrison

Gallery

Saint-Étienne.
Château de La Roche, Saint-Priest-la-Roche.
Château de Grangent, Saint-Just-Saint-Rambert.
Church of Champdieu.
Sainte-Croix-en-Jarez.

Images for kids

Source
The river port of Roanne
Confluence of the Allier and the Loire
Map of the Loire basin showing the major tributaries
The Loire at Decize
The Loire spanned at Nantes
Loire at Bréhémont, Indre-et-Loire
Greengage blossom
European eel (Anguilla anguilla)
Yellow-bellied toad
Mediterranean gull
Loire Vivante WWF protests in 1989 against the proposed Serre de la Fare dam
A pristine gorge of the Loire
The Loire as it flows through Blois.
The Vikings invading in 879
Château de Montsoreau (1453) is the only Château of the Loire Valley to be built directly in the Loire riverbed.
Orléans
An 1840 poster advertising excursions on the river
Château d'Azay-le-Rideau.
Vineyard in the Loire Valley
Sauvignon blanc is the principal grape of Sancerre and Pouilly-Fumé, found in the Loire Valley.
Amboise on the banks of the Loire
Chateau de Langeais
Château de Blois interior façades in Gothic, Renaissance and Classic styles (from right to left).
Château de Valençay.
Château de Montsoreau
Scène of the Loire, by J. M. W. Turner.
La source de la Loire, by Gustave Courbet.
Portrait of the Loire, by Jean-Max Albert, 1988. Musée de la Loire, Cosne-sur-Loire.
Les Rosiers-sur-Loire by Jean-Jacques Delusse [fr], 1800
The Loire at Montsoreau, J. M. W. Turner, 1832, Château de Montsoreau-Museum of Contemporary Art.