La Roche-sur-Yon () is a commune in the

Vendée Vendée () is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442.department in the

Pays de la Loire Pays de la Loire (; but can also mean 'Lower Loire') is one of the eighteen administrative regions of France, located on the country's Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic coast. It was created in the 1950s to serve as a zone of influence for its capital an ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as areas, zones, lands or territories, are portions of the Earth's surface that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and ...

in western France. It is the capital of the department. The demonym for its inhabitants is ''Yonnais''. Known for its historical significance and cultural heritage, La Roche-sur-Yon also houses a wide range of educational institutions, from primary schools to higher education establishments.

History

The town expanded significantly after

Napoleon I Napoleon Bonaparte (born Napoleone di Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French general and statesman who rose to prominence during the French Revolution and led Military career ...

chose the site as the new préfecture of the

Vendée Vendée () is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442.Fontenay-le-Comte Fontenay-le-Comte (; Poitevin dialect, Poitevin: ''Funtenaes'' or ''Fintenè'') is a Communes of France, commune and Subprefectures in France, subprefecture in the Vendée Departments of France, department in the Pays de la Loire Regions of France ...

(then under its revolutionary name of Fontenay-le-Peuple). At the time, most of La Roche had been eradicated in the

Vendée Revolt Vendée () is a department in the Pays de la Loire region in Western France, on the Atlantic coast. In 2019, it had a population of 685,442.Hôtel de Ville (town hall) was established on the southwest side of Place Napoléon in 1814. The town was called successively: *La Roche-sur-Yon (during the

Ancien Régime ''Ancien'' may refer to * the French word for " ancient, old" ** Société des anciens textes français * the French for "former, senior" ** Virelai ancien ** Ancien Régime ** Ancien Régime in France {{disambig ...

and the

French First Republic In the history of France, the First Republic (), sometimes referred to in historiography as Revolutionary France, and officially the French Republic (), was founded on 21 September 1792 during the French Revolution. The First Republic lasted un ...

) *Napoléon-sur-Yon (during the

First French Empire The First French Empire or French Empire (; ), also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental Europe at the beginning of the 19th century. It lasted from ...

) *Bourbon-Vendée (during the

French Restoration The Bourbon Restoration was the period of French history during which the House of Bourbon returned to power after the fall of Napoleon Bonaparte in 1814 and 1815. The second Bourbon Restoration lasted until the July Revolution of 1830, during ...

) *Napoléon-Vendée (during the

French Second Empire The Second French Empire, officially the French Empire, was the government of France from 1852 to 1870. It was established on 2 December 1852 by Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte, president of France under the French Second Republic, who proclaimed hi ...

)

Geography

The river

Yon Yon may refer to: * Yon (name), including a list of people with the name * Yon (river), France * Yon Mound and Village Site, a prehistoric archaeological site in Florida * ''Yön'' ("Direction" in English), a Turkish weekly leftist political magaz ...

flows southward through the commune and crosses the town.

Climate

La Roche-sur-Yon has an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate or maritime climate, is the temperate climate sub-type in Köppen climate classification, Köppen classification represented as ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of co ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification divides Earth climates into five main climate groups, with each group being divided based on patterns of seasonal precipitation and temperature. The five main groups are ''A'' (tropical), ''B'' (arid), ''C'' (te ...

''Cfb''). The average annual temperature in La Roche-sur-Yon is . The average annual rainfall is with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around , and lowest in January, at around . The highest temperature ever recorded in La Roche-sur-Yon was on 18 July 2022; the coldest temperature ever recorded was on 10 February 1986.

Population

The population data in the table and graph below refer to the commune of La Roche-sur-Yon proper, in its geography at the given years. The commune of La Roche-sur-Yon absorbed the former communes of Le Bourg-sous-la-Roche-sur-Yon and Saint-André-d'Ornay in 1964.

Administration

The "La Roche-sur-Yon Agglomération" contains 15 communes: * Aubigny *

Chaillé-sous-les-Ormeaux Chaillé-sous-les-Ormeaux () is a former commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Rives-de-l'Yon.La Chaize-le-Vicomte La Chaize-le-Vicomte () is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. Geography The river Yon forms part of the commune's northern border. Population See also *Communes of the Vendée department ...

Les Clouzeaux Les Clouzeaux () is a former commune of the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Aubigny-Les Clouzeaux.Dompierre-sur-Yon Dompierre-sur-Yon (, literally ''Dompierre on Yon'') is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overs ...

* La Ferrière * Fougeré *

Landeronde Landeronde () is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. Population See also *Communes of the Vendée department The following is a list of the 253 communes of the Vendée department of Fran ...

Mouilleron-le-Captif Mouilleron-le-Captif () is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. Population See also *Communes of the Vendée department The following is a list of the 253 communes of the Vendée departme ...

Nesmy Nesmy () is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. It is located from the Atlantic Ocean and from La Roche-sur-Yon. Nesmy is part of the ''Communauté d'agglomération'' ''La Roche-sur-Yon Agglom ...

*La Roche-sur-Yon *

Saint-Florent-des-Bois Saint-Florent-des-Bois () is a former Communes of France, commune in the Vendée Departments of France, department in the Pays de la Loire Regions of France, region in western France. On 1 January 2016, it was merged into the new commune of Rives- ...

Le Tablier Le Tablier () is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. Geography The river Yon forms most of the commune's western border. See also *Communes of the Vendée department The following is a list ...

Thorigny Thorigny () is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. Education The commune has a public elementary school, École publique Jacques Golly de Thorigny, and private school, Ecole Privée Jeanne D'Ar ...

Venansault Venansault () is a commune in the northern-western of France. Located in the Vendée department in the Pays de Loire region. It belongs to the urban area and agglomeration of La Roche-sur-Yon (chief town of the department). Population The French ...

La Roche-sur-Yon is the chief town of the

Arrondissement of La Roche-sur-Yon The arrondissement of La Roche-sur-Yon is an Arrondissements of France, arrondissement of France in the Vendée Departments of France, department in the Pays de la Loire Regions of France, region. It has 78 communes. Its population is 304,663 (2021 ...

, which covers 11 cantons, 92 communes, and has a population of 230,386 (1999 census). La-Roche-sur-Yon is chief town of two cantons, Canton of La Roche-sur-Yon-1 and Canton of La Roche-sur-Yon-2.

Main sights

File:Statue de Napoléon.JPG, Napoléon's statue (1854) File:Kiosque Place Napoléon.JPG, Kiosk on Napoléon square File:Animaux mécaniques Place Napoléon LRSY.JPG, Napoléon square / File:Église Saint-Louis (façade droite) - La Roche-sur-Yon.jpg, Saint-Louis church File:Église Saint-Louis (nef) - La Roche-sur-Yon.jpg, Saint-Louis church File:Église Saint-Louis (orgues 1) - La Roche-sur-Yon.jpg, Saint-Louis church organ File:Eglise Saint-Louis de La Roche-sur-Yon depuis la tribune haute.JPG, Saint Louis Church of La Roche-sur-Yon File:Théâtre (façade) de La Roche-sur-Yon.jpg, Theatre File:Ancien Hôpital (façade centrale) - La Roche-sur-Yon.jpg, Old Hospital File:Musée.jpg, Museum File:La Roche-sur-Yon - Hôtel des Postes.jpg, Post office File:Hôtel de préfecture de la Vendée - La Roche-sur-Yon.jpg, Prefecture building File:Sacrécoeurlry.JPG, Sacré-cœur church File:Pavillon Renaissance (façade principale) - La Roche-sur-Yon.jpg, Renaissance house (1566) File:Ancien Palais de Justice - La Roche-sur-Yon.jpg, Old Palais de Justice File:La médiathèque B. Rabier.JPG, Benjamin Rabier media library File:Gare de La Roche sur Yon.JPG, Train station File:Abbaye des Fontenelles (vue d'ensemble) - La Roche-sur-Yon.jpg,

Fontenelles Abbey Fontenelles Abbey or Les Fontenelles Abbey (; or ''Fontenaeum'') was an Augustinian monastery in the former commune of Saint-André-d'Ornay (incorporated into La Roche-sur-Yon in 1964), in the Vendée, France. History The abbey was founded in ...

Transport

The Gare de La Roche-sur-Yon railway station offers connections to Nantes, Paris, Les Sables-d'Olonne, Bordeaux and several regional destinations. The A87 motorway connects La Roche-sur-Yon with Les Sables-d'Olonne and Angers, the A83 with Nantes and Niort. The airport, situated north of the city, on the East of the Lake "Moulin Papon", is host to a private jet business (SD Aviation), linking the city with Europe and North Africa. The airport is frequently used by

general aviation General aviation (GA) is defined by the International Civil Aviation Organization (ICAO) as all civil aviation aircraft operations except for commercial air transport or aerial work, which is defined as specialized aviation services for other ...

, business jets and charter flights. There is no regular flight though.

Education

Primary and secondary education

The commune has designated attendance zones for its primary schools. Schools include: *2 public preschools (''écoles maternelles'')
" La Roche Sur-Yon. Retrieved on 6 September 2016. *2 public elementary schools *13 public school groups of combined preschools and elementary schools *6 private elementary schools *Public junior high schools: Collège Auguste et Jean-Renoir, Collège mixte Les Gondoliers, Collège mixte Edouard Herriot, Collège HaxoCollèges
" La Roche Sur-Yon. Retrieved on 6 September 2016. *Private junior high schools: Collège mixte du Sacré-Coeur, Collège mixte Richelieu, Collège mixte Saint-Louis *Public senior high schools:

Lycée Nature In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

(general education and agricultural technology), Lycée d'état mixte Alfred-Kastler,

Lycée polyvalent Jean de Lattre-de-Tassigny In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

, Lycée polyvalent Pierre-Mendès-France, and

Lycée professionnel Edoaurd Branly In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

Lycées
" La Roche Sur-Yon. Retrieved on 6 September 2016. *Private senior high schools:

Lycée Saint-François d'Assise In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

Lycée d'enseignement général et technologique Notre-Dame-du-Roc In France, secondary education is in two stages: * ''Collèges'' () cater for the first four years of secondary education from the ages of 11 to 14. * ''Lycées'' () provide a three-year course of further secondary education for students between ...

, Lycée les Etablières *One ''

grande école A (; ) is a specialized top-level educational institution in France and some other countries such as Morocco and Tunisia. are part of an alternative educational system that operates alongside the mainstream List of public universities in Franc ...

'' :

Institut catholique d'arts et métiers Located in six cities in France, Institut catholique d'arts et métiers is a Graduate Engineering school created in 1898. It is one of the ''grande école, grandes écoles'' part of Toulouse Tech. Its different curricula lead to the following Fr ...

Higher education

La Roche-sur-Yon is home to several higher education institutions: * ''

Université de Nantes Nantes University () is a public university located in the city of Nantes, France. In addition to the several campuses scattered in the city of Nantes, there are two satellite campuses located in Saint-Nazaire and La Roche-sur-Yon. The university ...

'' — La Roche-sur-Yon Campus: An extension of the University of Nantes, this campus hosts a variety of undergraduate programs including Business Administration, Computer Science, and Law. * '' IUT La Roche-sur-Yon'': A part of the University Institute of Technology, it provides vocational-technical education, granting two-year diplomas in fields like Mechanical Engineering, Business and Administration Management, and Multimedia and Internet Technologies. * ''ICES (Institut Catholique d'Études Supérieures)'': A private institution known for programs in humanities, social sciences, law, and business.

Specialized institutions

La Roche-sur-Yon also hosts several specialized educational institutions: * ''École Supérieure de Design de La Roche-sur-Yon'': A design school offering programs in graphic design, product design, and interaction design. * ''Conservatoire à rayonnement départemental de La Roche-sur-Yon'': A music, dance, and drama school providing a wide range of courses for all ages.

Sports

In 2014 La Roche-sur-yon hosted the 2014 French championship of table tennis. La Roche-sur-Yon's Vendéspace hosted one of the first round ties of the

2014 Davis Cup The 2014 Davis Cup (also known as the 2014 Davis Cup by BNP Paribas for sponsorship purposes) was the 103rd edition of the tournament between national teams in men's tennis. The final took place between the 21–23 of November 2014 in Lille, Fran ...

tennis tournament over the weekend of 31 January - 2 February 2014. France hosted Australia as both teams competed for a place in the World Group quarterfinals. In 2015 La Roche-sur-Yon, will host the

2015 FIRS Men's Roller Hockey World Cup The 2015 FIRS Men's Roller Hockey World Cup was the 42nd edition of the Roller Hockey World Cup, organised by the Fédération Internationale de Roller Sports (FIRS). The tournament was held for the first time in France, in the city of La Roche-su ...

, the first time that a World Cup of

roller hockey Roller hockey is a form of hockey played on a dry surface using wheeled skates. It can be played with traditional roller skates (quad skates) or with inline skates and use either a ball or puck. Combined, roller hockey is played in nearly 60 cou ...

is held in France. In June 2015 La Roche-sur-Yon's Vendéspace will host the qualification tournament for the World Championships in

Savate Savate (), also known as French Boxing (French language, French: ''Boxe Française'') or French Foot Fighting, is a French hybrid martial art and full-contact combat sport that combines principles of boxing, western boxing with a wide variety ...

Combat.

Twin towns – sister cities

La Roche-sur-Yon is twinned with: *

Gummersbach Gummersbach () is a town in the States of Germany, state of North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, being the district seat of the Oberbergischer Kreis. It is located east of Cologne. History In 1109 Gummersbach was mentioned in official documents for t ...

, Germany *

Coleraine Coleraine ( ; from , 'nook of the ferns'Flanaghan, Deirdre & Laurence; ''Irish Place Names'', page 194. Gill & Macmillan, 2002. ) is a town and Civil parishes in Ireland, civil parish near the mouth of the River Bann in County Londonderry, No ...

, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom *

Drummondville Drummondville () is a city in the Centre-du-Québec region of Quebec, located east of Montreal on the Saint-François River. The population as of the Canada 2021 Census was 79,258. The mayor of Drummondville is Stéphanie Lacoste. Drummondville ...

, Canada * Cáceres, Spain, since 1982 *

Tizi Ouzou Tizi Ouzou or Thizi Wezzu (, Kabyle: Tizi Wezzu) is a city in north central Algeria, and capital of Tizi Ouzou Province and Tizi Ouzou District. It is among the largest cities in Algeria. It is the second most populous city in the Kabylia reg ...

, Algeria, since 1989 *

Burg bei Magdeburg Burg (; also known as Burg bei Magdeburg to distinguish from other places with the same name) is a town of about 22,400 inhabitants on the Elbe–Havel Canal in northeastern Germany, northeast of Magdeburg. It is the capital of the Jerichower L ...

, Germany, since 2005 *

Broomhedge Broomhedge is a small village in County Antrim, Northern Ireland, near Lisburn, approximately 12 miles (19 km) southwest of Belfast. It lies within the Lisburn and Castlereagh City Council area, and the Maghaberry electoral ward. Demograp ...

, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, since 2021

Notable people

Joséphine Colomb Joséphine Colomb (née, Bouchet; 4 February 1833 – 17 September 1892) was a 19th-century French children's writer, lyricist, and translator who signed her works, Mme J. Colomb or Mme Louis-Casimir Colomb. She was a recipient of the Montyon Prize ...

(1833-1892), children's writer, lyricist, translator *

Ciryl Gane Ciryl Romain Jacky Gane (born April 12, 1990) is a French professional mixed martial artist and former Muay Thai fighter. He currently competes in the Heavyweight division of the Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC), where he is a former Interi ...

(born 1990), mixed martial artist, former

UFC The Ultimate Fighting Championship (UFC) is an American mixed martial arts (MMA) promotion company based in Las Vegas, Nevada. It is owned and operated by TKO Group Holdings, a majority owned subsidiary of Endeavor Group Holdings. The larg ...

Interim Heavyweight Champion *

Adlène Guedioura Adlène Guedioura (; born 12 November 1985) is a former professional Association football, footballer who plays as a midfielder. At club level, Guedioura had spells at CS Sedan Ardennes, Sedan, Olympique Noisy-le-Sec, Noisy-le-Sec, L'Entente S ...

(born 1985),

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

n former professional footballer *

Thomas Laurent Thomas Laurent (born 5 April 1998) is a French racing driver who currently competes in the 2025 European Le Mans Series with DKR Engineering. He previously competed in the FIA World Endurance Championship for French team Signatech Alpine Matm ...

(born 1998), racing driver *

Nicolas Marroc Nicolas Marroc (born 5 December 1986 in La Roche-sur-Yon) is a French racing driver. Career Formula Renault Campus France Marroc began his formula racing career in the 2006 Championnat de France FFSA Formule Campus Renault Elf season. He fini ...

(born 1986), racing driver * MHD (born 1994), rapper

References

External links

Official website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rochesuryon Communes of Vendée Prefectures in France Poitou