Morbihan ( , ; br, Mor-Bihan ) is a department in the

administrative region Administrative division, administrative unit,Article 3(1). country subdivision, administrative region, subnational entity, constituent state, as well as many similar terms, are generic names for geographical areas into which a particular, ind ...

Brittany Brittany (; french: link=no, Bretagne ; br, Breizh, or ; Gallo language, Gallo: ''Bertaèyn'' ) is a peninsula, Historical region, historical country and cultural area in the west of modern France, covering the western part of what was known ...

, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the

Morbihan Morbihan ( , ; br, Mor-Bihan ) is a department in the administrative region of Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan (''small sea'' in Breton), the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastl ...

(''small sea'' in

Breton Breton most often refers to: *anything associated with Brittany, and generally ** Breton people ** Breton language, a Southwestern Brittonic Celtic language of the Indo-European language family, spoken in Brittany ** Breton (horse), a breed **Ga ...

), the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastline. It had a population of 759,684 in 2019.Populations légales 2019: 56 Morbihan
INSEE It is noted for its Carnac stones, which predate and are more extensive than the

Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, topped by connectin ...

monument in

Wiltshire Wiltshire (; abbreviated Wilts) is a historic and ceremonial county in South West England with an area of . It is landlocked and borders the counties of Dorset to the southwest, Somerset to the west, Hampshire to the southeast, Gloucestershire ...

, England. Three major military educational facilities are located in Guer, including École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr, the national military academy for officers.

History

Morbihan is one of the original 83 departments created on 4 March 1790 during the

French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in November 1799. Many of its ideas are considere ...

. It was created from a part of the

Duchy of Brittany The Duchy of Brittany ( br, Dugelezh Breizh, ; french: Duché de Bretagne) was a medieval feudal state that existed between approximately 939 and 1547. Its territory covered the northwestern peninsula of Europe, bordered by the Atlantic Ocean t ...

. In 1945 cadets from École Spéciale Militaire de Saint-Cyr, France's foremost military academy for officers, were relocated to Camp Coëtquidan (Camp de Coëtquidan) in Guer. This has been developed to include also the

École militaire interarmes The ''Combined Arms School'' or ''Joint military school'', known as École Militaire Interarmes or EMIA, is a military school of the French Army intended to train officers who have risen from the ranks. It was founded in 1942 and based in a rural ...

(inter-services military school), for non-commissioned officers; and École Militaire du Corps Technique et Administratif (military school of the technical and administrative corps).

Geography

Morbihan, part of the

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

, is surrounded by the departments of

Finistère Finistère (, ; br, Penn-ar-Bed ) is a department of France in the extreme west of Brittany. In 2019, it had a population of 915,090.

Côtes-d'Armor The Côtes-d'Armor (, ; ; br, Aodoù-an-Arvor, ), formerly known as Côtes-du-Nord ( br, Aodoù-an-Hanternoz, link=no, ), are a department in the north of Brittany, in northwestern France. In 2019, it had a population of 600,582.

Ille-et-Vilaine Ille-et-Vilaine (; br, Il-ha-Gwilen) is a department of France, located in the region of Brittany in the northwest of the country. It is named after the two rivers of the Ille and the Vilaine. It had a population of 1,079,498 in 2019.

, and Loire-Atlantique, and the Atlantic Ocean on the southwest. The

Gulf of Morbihan The Gulf of Morbihan is a natural harbour on the coast of the department of Morbihan in southern Brittany, France. Its English name is taken from the French version, ''le golfe du Morbihan'', though it would be more precisely called 'the Mo ...

has many islands: 365 according to legend. There are actually between 30 and 40, depending on how they are counted. There are also many islets that are too small for any development. Of these islands, all but two are privately owned: l'

Île-aux-Moines Île-aux-Moines (; ''Enizenac'h'' in Breton; the name means ''island of the monks'') is a commune in the Morbihan department in the region of Brittany in northwestern France. It is the largest island in the Gulf of Morbihan. It is one of two is ...

and l'

Île-d'Arz Île-d'Arz (; br, An Arzh, ) is an archipelago of nine islands and a commune in the Morbihan department, Brittany, northwestern France, only to the southwest of Vannes. It is located in the Gulf of Morbihan. Île d'Arz and Île-aux-Moines ...

. Owners of the others include movie stars, fashion designers, and other wealthy "glitterati". In the department of Morbihan, but outside the Gulf, there are four inhabited islands: *

Belle Île Belle-Île, Belle-Île-en-Mer, or Belle Isle ( br, Ar Gerveur, ; br, label=Old Breton, Guedel) is a French island off the coast of Brittany in the ''département'' of Morbihan, and the largest of Brittany's islands. It is from the Quiberon peni ...

Groix Groix (; br, Enez Groe) is an island and a commune in the Morbihan department of the region of Brittany in north-western France. Groix lies a few kilometres off the coast of Lorient. Several ferries a day run from Lorient to Groix. There are ...

* Houat * Hoëdic Meaban, an island just outside the Port du Crouesty, is an ornithological reserve. Visitors are forbidden there.

Principal towns

The most populous commune is

Lorient Lorient (; ) is a town ('' commune'') and seaport in the Morbihan department of Brittany in western France. History Prehistory and classical antiquity Beginning around 3000 BC, settlements in the area of Lorient are attested by the presen ...

; the prefecture

Vannes Vannes (; br, Gwened) is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2,000 years ago. History Celtic Era The name ''Vannes'' comes from the Veneti, a seafaring Celtic people who live ...

is the second-most populous. As of 2019, there are 6 communes with more than 15,000 inhabitants:

Demographics

Art and culture

Many residents support maintenance and use of the

Breton language Breton (, ; or in Morbihan) is a Southwestern Brittonic language of the Celtic language family spoken in Brittany, part of modern-day France. It is the only Celtic language still widely in use on the European mainland, albeit as a member of t ...

, and there are numerous advocates of bilingual education. The painter

Raymond Wintz Raymond Wintz (Joseph Raimond Wintz) (1884–1956) was a Paris-born painter and engraver whose most famous paintings were of marine and coastal views in Brittany. He is best known for his painting ''The Blue Door'', which is still widely ava ...

(1884–1956) depicted locations around the Gulf of Morbihan.

Politics

As of 2014, the

préfet A prefect (french: préfet, plural ''préfets'') in France is the state's representative in a department or region. Subprefects (French: ''sous-préfets'') are responsible for the subdivisions of departments, known as arrondissements. The office ...

of Morbihan is Jean-François Savy, previously head of the Prefectures of Ardennes and of

Hautes-Alpes Hautes-Alpes (; oc, Auts Aups; en, Upper Alps) is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. It is located in the heart of the French Alps, after which it is named. Hautes-Alpes had a population of 141,220 ...

. The president of the Departmental Council is David Lappartient, elected in July 2021.

Current National Assembly Representatives

Tourism

* The Carnac stones,

megalith A megalith is a large stone that has been used to construct a prehistoric structure or monument, either alone or together with other stones. There are over 35,000 in Europe alone, located widely from Sweden to the Mediterranean sea. The ...

ic alignments of Carnac, are situated in Morbihan.
Tourism office of Auray
File:Vieux-quartier-port-vannes.jpg,

File:Entre Golfe Morbihan.JPG, The

is a popular

sailing Sailing employs the wind—acting on sails, wingsails or kites—to propel a craft on the surface of the ''water'' (sailing ship, sailboat, raft, windsurfer, or kitesurfer), on ''ice'' (iceboat) or on ''land'' (land yacht) over a chosen cou ...

destination File:Château de Rochefort-en-Terre (cour 1).jpg,

Rochefort-en-Terre Rochefort-en-Terre (; ) is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France. Rochefort-en-Terre is a designated “Petite Cité de Caractère”. The medieval chateau located in the town was the home of American painter ...

File:Bagad.JPG, The

bagad A bagad (, ) is a Breton band, composed of bagpipes ( br, binioù, french: cornemuse), bombards and drums (including snare, tenor and bass drums). The pipe band tradition in Brittany was inspired by the Scottish example and has developed si ...

of Lann-Bihoué File:Kerlescan.JPG, Carnac stones