Haute-Vienne (; oc, Nauta Vinhana, ; English: Upper Vienne) is a department in the

Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by ...

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 an ...

in southwest-central France. Named after the

Vienne River The Vienne (; oc, Vinhana, ) is a major river in south-western France. It is long. It is a significant left tributary of the lower Loire. It supports numerous hydroelectric dams, and it is the main river of the northern part of the Nouvelle-Aq ...

, it is one of the twelve departments that together constitute Nouvelle-Aquitaine. The prefecture and largest city in the department is Limoges, the other towns in the department each having fewer than twenty thousand inhabitants. Haute-Vienne had a population of 372,359 in 2019.Populations légales 2019: 87 Haute-Vienne
INSEE

Geography

Haute-Vienne is part of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. It is bordered by six departments;

Creuse Creuse (; oc, Cruesa or ) is a department in central France named after the river Creuse. After Lozère, it is the second least populated department in France. It is bordered by Indre and Cher to the north, Allier and Puy-de-Dôme to the ea ...

lies to the east,

Corrèze Corrèze (; oc, Corresa) is a department in France, named after the river Corrèze which runs through it. Although its prefecture is Tulle, its most populated city is Brive-la-Gaillarde. Corrèze is located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region ...

to the south,

Dordogne Dordogne ( , or ; ; oc, Dordonha ) is a large rural department in Southwestern France, with its prefecture in Périgueux. Located in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region roughly half-way between the Loire Valley and the Pyrenees, it is name ...

to the southwest, Charente to the west,

Vienne Vienne (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Viéne'') is a landlocked department in the French region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It takes its name from the river Vienne. It had a population of 438,435 in 2019.Gartempe The Gartempe () is a French river, long. It is a left tributary of the Creuse, which it joins in La Roche-Posay. Its source is in the municipality of Peyrabout. Among its tributaries are the Anglin, the Brame, the Semme and the Ardour. Th ...

, a tributary of the

. To the southeast of the department lies the

Massif Central The (; oc, Massís Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France. Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,0 ...

, and the highest point in the department is Puy Lagarde, . The source of the Charente is in the department, in the commune of Chéronnac, near Rochechouart. At the west end of the department is the Rochechouart impact structure, an impact crater caused by a meteorite that crashed into the earth's surface over 200 million years ago; because of subsequent

erosion Erosion is the action of surface processes (such as water flow or wind) that removes soil, rock, or dissolved material from one location on the Earth's crust, and then transports it to another location where it is deposited. Erosion is dis ...

, little sign of the crater is in evidence today apart from the geologic effects on the surrounding rock.

Principal towns

The most populous commune is Limoges, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 5 communes with more than 7,000 inhabitants:

Subdivisions

The three

arrondissements An arrondissement (, , ) is any of various administrative divisions of France, Belgium, Haiti, certain other Francophone countries, as well as the Netherlands. Europe France The 101 French departments are divided into 342 ''arrondissements'', ...

of the Haute-Vienne department are: # Arrondissement of Bellac, (

subprefecture A subprefecture is an administrative division of a country that is below prefecture or province. Albania There are twelve Albanian counties or prefectures, each of which is divided into several districts, sometimes translated as subprefectures. ...

: Bellac) with 57

communes An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to have a high degree of social cohesion and teamwork from the start. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, relig ...

. # Arrondissement of Limoges, ( prefecture of the Haute-Vienne department: Limoges) with 108 communes. # Arrondissement of Rochechouart, (subprefecture: Rochechouart) with 30 communes. Haute-Vienne consists of 21

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, t ...

History

A few Paleolithic and Mesolithic remains have been found in the department, Neolithic inhabitants are attested to by standing stones and by burial chambers, like the dolmen Chez Boucher in

La Croix-sur-Gartempe La Croix-sur-Gartempe (, literally ''La Croix on Gartempe''; ) is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France. See also *Communes of the Haute-Vienne department The following is a list of the 195 ...

, and others at Berneuil and Breuilaufa. Artefacts from the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age is a historic period, lasting approximately from 3300 BC to 1200 BC, characterized by the use of bronze, the presence of writing in some areas, and other early features of urban civilization. The Bronze Age is the second prin ...

include axe heads found at Châlus. With the coming of the Romans, trade was opened up and gold and tin were mined. Agriculture developed and grapes were grown; amphorae for storing wine were found at

Saint-Gence Saint-Gence (; oc, Sent Gençan) is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in west-central France. Demographics Inhabitants are known as ''Saint-Gençois'' in French. Entertainment There is an annual food ...

. During the reign of Augustus, the city of Augustoritum was founded (later to become Limoges) at a strategic ford across the Vienne. The Romans built roads from here to

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

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...

and the Mediterranean. The city declined in the 3rd Century when barbarian invasions of the region took place. The domination of the Visigoths was short-lived and Clovis I seized control of Limousin after the battle of Vouillé in 507. By 674, the region was attached to the duchy of Aquitaine, and the Viscount of Limoges was created. There followed an unsettled period with various powers vying for control. In 1199,

Richard Cœur de Lion Richard I (8 September 1157 – 6 April 1199) was King of England from 1189 until his death in 1199. He also ruled as Duke of Normandy, Aquitaine and Gascony, Lord of Cyprus, and Count of Poitiers, Anjou, Maine, and Nantes, and was ...

was mortally wounded during the siege of the

Château de Châlus-Chabrol The Château de Châlus-Chabrol ( Occitan Limousin : ''Chasteu de Chasluç-Chabròl'') is a castle in the ''commune'' of Châlus in the ''département'' of Haute-Vienne, France. The castle dominates the town of Châlus. It consists today of a ...

. The region was much involved in the Hundred Years' War and at the

Treaty of Brétigny The Treaty of Brétigny was a treaty, drafted on 8 May 1360 and ratified on 24 October 1360, between Kings Edward III of England and John II of France. In retrospect, it is seen as having marked the end of the first phase of the Hundred Years ...

in 1360, France granted England a large area of territory comprising much of Limousin. Limoges city rebelled and gave its allegiance to the French crown, and as a result was sacked in 1370. Further troubled years followed but when peace was restored, the department benefited economically; tanneries sprang up by the Vienne, paper was produced, printing developed and the area became known for fine enamelwork. After a revolt by the peasants,

Henri IV Henry IV (french: Henri IV; 13 December 1553 – 14 May 1610), also known by the epithets Good King Henry or Henry the Great, was King of Navarre (as Henry III) from 1572 and King of France from 1589 to 1610. He was the first monarc ...

brought peace and prosperity to the region of Limousin. He visited Limoges in 1607 and was greeted enthusiastically. The Counter-Reformation led to the creation of numerous convents and religious orders, especially in Limoges. In 1761,

Anne Robert Jacques Turgot Anne Robert Jacques Turgot, Baron de l'Aulne ( ; ; 10 May 172718 March 1781), commonly known as Turgot, was a French economist and statesman. Originally considered a physiocrat, he is today best remembered as an early advocate for economic libe ...

was appointed ''intendent'' (tax collector) of Limoges. He negotiated a reduction in taxes payable by the region and developed fairer methods of collecting taxes, as well as improving the road system and encouraging agricultural development. Around 1765,

kaolin Kaolinite ( ) is a clay mineral, with the chemical composition Al2 Si2 O5( OH)4. It is an important industrial mineral. It is a layered silicate mineral, with one tetrahedral sheet of silica () linked through oxygen atoms to one octahedral ...

was discovered near

Saint-Yrieix-la-Perche Saint-Yrieix-la-Perche (; oc, link=no, Sent Iriès, ) is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, France. It is significant as the first place where kaolin was found in France, a discovery of great importance to ...

in the south of the department, and the

porcelain Porcelain () is a ceramic material made by heating substances, generally including materials such as kaolinite, in a kiln to temperatures between . The strength and translucence of porcelain, relative to other types of pottery, arises main ...

industry developed. The department was created on 4 March 1790, during the French Revolution, the southern half being a subdivision of the Region of Limousin while the northern half was carved out of the county of Marche, as well as some parts of

Angoumois Angoumois (), historically the County of Angoulême, was a county and province of France, originally inferior to the parent duchy of Aquitaine, similar to the Périgord to its east but lower and generally less forested, equally with occasional vin ...

and

Poitou Poitou (, , ; ; Poitevin: ''Poetou'') was a province of west-central France whose capital city was Poitiers. Both Poitou and Poitiers are named after the Pictones Gallic tribe. Geography The main historical cities are Poitiers (historical c ...

. At first it was given the number 81, but in the nineteenth century, the number was changed to the 87th department, when further land to the east and northeast was added. It takes its name from the upper reaches of the Vienne which flows through it. In 1998, the southwest part of the department, together with the northern part of the region of

Périgord Périgord ( , ; ; oc, Peiregòrd / ) is a natural region and former province of France, which corresponds roughly to the current Dordogne department, now forming the northern part of the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. It is div ...

was designated as the Parc Naturel Régional Périgord-Limousin.

Economy

In 2013, twenty million euros were earned from agriculture in the province, as against twenty-one million three hundred thousand from Limousin. There were 351,475 cattle in Haute-Vienne, 22,780 pigs, 320,500 sheep and 6,500 goats. 723,340 hectolitres of milk were produced from cows and 30,690 hectolitres from sheep. In the same year, 1,897,800 hectares of cereals were grown and in the previous year, 12,294 hectares of land were producing organic foodstuffs.

Demographics

In 1801, the population of the department was 245,150. It grew steadily over the next century so that in 1901 it was 381,753. It peaked at 385,732 in 1906, fell back slightly in 1911 to 384,736 and fell sharply to 350,235 in 1921, after the

Great War World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. By 1954 it had dwindled to 324,429 but after that it began to rise again, and in 2007 stood at 371,102.

Politics

The president of the Departmental Council is Jean-Claude Leblois, first elected in 2015.

Current National Assembly Representatives

Tourism

File:Château de Montbrun (1).jpg, Château de Montbrun File:Car in Oradour-sur-Glane4.jpg, Ruins of

Oradour-sur-Glane Oradour-sur-Glane (; oc, Orador de Glana) was a commune in the Haute-Vienne department, New Aquitaine, west central France, as well as the name of the main village within the commune. History The original village was destroyed on 10 June 194 ...

File:Saint-Yrieix-la-Perche - Mairie.jpg,

File:Chateau-Rocher 09.JPG, Maisonnais-sur-Tardoire File:Mortemart-la-halle.jpg,

Mortemart Mortemart (; oc, Mòrtamar) is a Communes of France, commune in the Haute-Vienne Departments of France, department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Regions of France, region in west-central France. See also *Communes of the Haute-Vienne department Ref ...

File:Saint-Laurent-les-Églises (Haute-Vienne, Fr), paysage matinal.JPG, Limousin cows near Saint-Laurent-les-Églises File:Rochechouart chateau.jpg,

Château de Rochechouart Château de Rochechouart is a thirteenth-century French castle, located at the top of the confluence of the Grêne and Vayres rivers in the commune of Rochechouart within the ''département'' of Haute-Vienne. Background The Viscounts of Roche ...

Notable people

* Martial of Limoges or

Saint Martial Saint Martial (3rd century), called "the Apostle of the Gauls" or "the Apostle of Aquitaine", was the first bishop of Limoges. His feast day is 30 June. Life There is no accurate information as to the origin, dates of birth and death, or the acts ...

(third century), also called the apostle of Gaul or the apostle of Aquitaine, is traditionally the first bishop of Limoges. * Richard the Lion Heart (8 September 1157, Beaumont Palace in

Oxford Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...

- 6 April 1199, the castle of Chalus Chabrol) was King of

England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Wales to its west and Scotland to its north. The Irish Sea lies northwest and the Celtic Sea to the southwest. It is separated from continental Europe b ...

, Duke of Normandy, Duke of Aquitaine, count of Poitiers, Count of Maine and Count of Anjou 1189 until his death in 1199. Son of Henry II of England and Eleanor of Aquitaine. *

Jean-Baptiste Jourdan Jean-Baptiste Jourdan, 1st Count Jourdan (29 April 1762 – 23 November 1833), was a French military commander who served during the French Revolutionary Wars and the Napoleonic Wars. He was made a Marshal of the Empire by Emperor Napoleon I in ...

(1762-1833), Marshal of France. *

Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud Pierre Victurnien Vergniaud (; 31 May 1753 – 31 October 1793) was a French lawyer and statesman, a figure of the French Revolution. A deputy to the Assembly from Bordeaux, Vergniaud was an eloquent orator. He was a supporter of Jacques Pie ...

(1753-1793), revolutionary. *

Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac Joseph Louis Gay-Lussac (, , ; 6 December 1778 – 9 May 1850) was a French chemist and physicist. He is known mostly for his discovery that water is made of two parts hydrogen and one part oxygen (with Alexander von Humboldt), for two laws ...

(1778-1850), chemist and physicist *

Jean Giraudoux Hippolyte Jean Giraudoux (; 29 October 1882 – 31 January 1944) was a French novelist, essayist, diplomat and playwright. He is considered among the most important French dramatists of the period between World War I and World War II. His wo ...

(1882-1944) novelist and diplomat. *

Maryse Bastié Maryse Bastié (27 February 1898 – 6 July 1952) was a French aviator who set several international records for female aviators during the 1930s. Early life She was born Marie-Louise Bombec in Limoges, Haute-Vienne; Bastié's father died ...

(1898-1952) aviator. * Auguste Renoir (1841-1919), impressionist painter. * Sadi Carnot (1837-1894), French president. *

Jean Chassagne Jean Chassagne (26 July 1881, in La Croisille-sur-Briance – 13 April 1947) was a pioneer submariner, aviator and French racecar driver active 1906-1930. Chassagne finished third in the 1913 French Grand Prix; won the 1922 Tourist Trophy and fi ...

(26 July 1881– 13 April 1947) was a pioneer submariner, aviator and French racecar driver active 1906-1930. *

Tōson Shimazaki was the pen-name of Haruki Shimazaki, a Japanese writer active in the Meiji, Taishō and early Shōwa periods of Japan. He began his career as a Romantic poet, but went on to establish himself as a major proponent of Japanese Naturalism. Ea ...

(1872 - 1943), Japanese writer, exiled to Limoges in 1914. *

Suzanne Valadon Suzanne Valadon (23 September 18657 April 1938) was a French painter who was born Marie-Clémentine Valadon at Bessines-sur-Gartempe, Haute-Vienne, France. In 1894, Valadon became the first woman painter admitted to the Société Nationale des ...

(1865-1938), painter and artist's model. * Martial Valin (1898-1980), commander of the Free French Air Force. * Serge Gainsbourg (Lucien Ginzburg) (1928-1991), took refuge in 1944 in the local high school, to escape the persecution of Jews (his parents had immigrated from

Crimea Crimea, crh, Къырым, Qırım, grc, Κιμμερία / Ταυρική, translit=Kimmería / Taurikḗ ( ) is a peninsula in Ukraine, on the northern coast of the Black Sea, that has been occupied by Russia since 2014. It has a pop ...

). *

Pierre Desproges Pierre Desproges (9 May 1939 – 18 April 1988) was a French humorist. He was born in Pantin, Seine-Saint-Denis. According to himself, he made no significant achievements before the age of 30. From 1967 to 1970, he worked as: life insurance sal ...

(9 May 1939 in

Pantin Pantin () is a commune in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. In 2019 its population was estimated to be 59,846. Pantin is located on the edge of the city of Paris and is mainly formed by a plai ...

- 18 April 1988 in Paris) is a French comedian known for his dark humor, his nonconformity and sense of the absurd. * Paul Rebeyrolle (1926-2005), artist. *

Edmond Gondinet Edmond Gondinet (7 March 1828 – 19 November 1888) was a French playwright and librettist. This author, nearly forgotten today, produced forty plays of which several were successful. He collaborated with Alphonse Daudet and Eugène Labiche, ...

(1828-1888), playwright. *

Roland Dumas Roland Dumas (; born 23 August 1922) is a French lawyer and Socialist politician who served as Foreign Minister under President François Mitterrand from 1984 to 1986 and from 1988 to 1993. He was also President of the Constitutional Counci ...

(1922), politician. * Georges-Emmanuel Clancier, born 3 May 1914 in Limoges, was a French writer and poet. * Xavier Darcos (1947), politician. *

Bob Maloubier Robert Maloubier (2 February 1923 – 20 April 2015) was a French secret agent who worked for the British Special Operations Executive (SOE) in World War II. He received his training at Wanborough Manor in Surrey. Following the war, Maloubier wen ...

(2 February 1923 in Neuilly-sur-Seine - 20 April 2015 in Paris) was, during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

, a secret agent of the

Special Operations Executive The Special Operations Executive (SOE) was a secret British World War II organisation. It was officially formed on 22 July 1940 under Minister of Economic Warfare Hugh Dalton, from the amalgamation of three existing secret organisations. Its pu ...

. *

Pascal Sevran Pascal Sevran (16 October 1945 – 9 May 2008) was a French TV presenter and author. Biography Son of a communist taxi driver, and a Spanish seamstress, Pascal Sevran was born on 16 October 1945 in Paris. His real name was Jean-Claude Jouhaud. He ...

(1945-2008), songwriter, television host, who died in Limoges. * Theo Sarapo is a singer and actor of Greek origin, born Theophanis Lamboukas 26 January 1936 in

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...

, died 28 August 1970 in Limoges. * Jean-Paul Denanot, is a French politician, member of the

Socialist Socialism is a left-wing economic philosophy and movement encompassing a range of economic systems characterized by the dominance of social ownership of the means of production as opposed to private ownership. As a term, it describes the ...

Party (PS). *

Robert Hébras Robert Hébras (29 June 1925 – 11 February 2023) was one of only six people to survive the massacre of Oradour by Nazi Germany's Waffen-SS Das Reich Panzer Division on 10 June 1944. He was born in Oradour-sur-Glane. Hébras died on 11 Febru ...

(born 29 June 1925 in

) is one of six people who survived the

Oradour-sur-Glane massacre On 10 June 1944, four days after D-Day, the village of Oradour-sur-Glane in Haute-Vienne in Nazi-occupied France was destroyed when 643 civilians, including non-combatant women and children, were massacred by a German Waffen-SS company. A n ...

on 10 June 1944. *

Raymond Poulidor Raymond Poulidor (; 15 April 1936 – 13 November 2019), nicknamed "Pou-Pou" (), was a French professional racing cyclist, who rode for his entire career. His distinguished career coincided with two other outstanding riders – Jacques Anquet ...

, said "Poupou" is a French cyclist, born 15 April 1936 in Masbaraud-Mérignat in the department of

. * Henri Rabaute, (26 May 1943 in Limoges - 11 November 2000) was a French cyclist. *

Vincent Perrot Vincent Perrot (born 3 August 1965, in Confolens) is a French journalist, radio and television presenter and drag racing driver. Biography Perrot's father was the Mayor of the town and died when Vincent was 11. His mother Marina decided to ...

, (born 3 August 1965) is a French journalist, radio and television presenter and drag racing driver. * Nathanaël de Rincquesen, born Nathanael Willecot Rincquesen on 9 March 1972 in

, is a French journalist and television presenter. *

Luc Leblanc Luc Leblanc (born 4 August 1966 in Limoges, France) is a retired French professional road cyclist. He was World Road Champion in 1994. Biography In 1978, a drunk driver hit Luc Leblanc, aged 11, and his younger brother Gilles Leblanc, aged 8. ...

(1966), French cyclist. *

Richard Dacoury Richard Dacoury (born July 6, 1959, in Abidjan, Ivory Coast) is a former French professional basketball player. He retired in 1998, as the basketball player who won the most French League titles during his career, with 9. Dacoury is considered ...

(1959), French basketball player, former international player and emblematic player of the

Limoges CSP Limoges Cercle Saint-Pierre, commonly referred to as Limoges CSP or CSP, is a French professional basketball club based in the city of Limoges. History The club was founded in 1929, but its peak was during the 1980s and 1990s, when they became t ...

. *

Laurent Koscielny Laurent Koscielny (born 10 September 1985) is a French former professional footballer who played as a centre back. Born in Tulle, Koscielny began his football career playing for a host of youth clubs before moving to Guingamp in 2003, where he q ...

, born 10 September 1985 in

Tulle Tulle (; ) is a commune in central France. It is the third-largest town in the former region of Limousin and is the capital of the department of Corrèze, in the region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine. Tulle is also the episcopal see of the Roman Cat ...

, French international footballer who played in Limoges FC. He played in the Premier League as a central defender with Arsenal. * Laetitia Milot (born 5 July 1980), actress, model and French writer.

References

External links

*
Prefecture website
*
Departmental Council website
*
Tourism
{{Authority control Massif Central Departments of Nouvelle-Aquitaine 1790 establishments in France States and territories established in 1790