Seine-Maritime () is a department of France in the

Normandy Normandy (; or ) is a geographical and cultural region in northwestern Europe, roughly coextensive with the historical Duchy of Normandy. Normandy comprises Normandy (administrative region), mainland Normandy (a part of France) and insular N ...

region of northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the

Seine The Seine ( , ) is a river in northern France. Its drainage basin is in the Paris Basin (a geological relative lowland) covering most of northern France. It rises at Source-Seine, northwest of Dijon in northeastern France in the Langres plat ...

, and includes the cities of

Rouen Rouen (, ; or ) is a city on the River Seine, in northwestern France. It is in the prefecture of Regions of France, region of Normandy (administrative region), Normandy and the Departments of France, department of Seine-Maritime. Formerly one ...

and Le Havre. Until 1955 it was named Seine-Inférieure. It had a population of 1,255,633 in 2019.Populations légales 2019: 76 Seine-Maritime
INSEE

History

;1790 - Creation of the Seine-Inférieure department :The department was created from part of the old province of

during the French Revolution, on 4 March 1790, through the application of a law of 22 December 1789. ;1815 - Occupation :After the victory at Waterloo of the coalition armies, the department was occupied by British forces from June 1815 till November 1818. ;1843 – Railways and industry :In Rouen, Elbeuf, and Bolbec, the number of textile factories is increasing. Metallurgy and naval construction as well. ;1851 - A republican department :Following President Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte's 1851 Coup d'état, Seine-Inférieure was one of several departments placed under a state of emergency (literally, in French, '' state of siege)'' following fears of significant resistance to the new government. ;

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

:In 1942, during occupation by

Nazi Germany Nazi Germany, officially known as the German Reich and later the Greater German Reich, was the German Reich, German state between 1933 and 1945, when Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party controlled the country, transforming it into a Totalit ...

, two Allied raids, the Bruneval and Dieppe, took place at towns of the channel coast of Seine-Inférieure. ;1955 - Rename to Seine-Maritime In 1955, the department's name was officially changed to Seine-Maritime.

Heraldry

Geography

The department can be split into three main areas: * The Seine valley. The Seine flows through the provincial capital

. * The chalk plateau Pays de Caux, with its abrupt coastline (the Alabaster Coast). * The Norman Pays de Bray, with its hills and bocage landscape.

Administration

The département was created in 1790 as Seine-Inférieure, one of five departements that replaced the former province of

. In 1800 five arrondissements were created within the département, namely

, Le Havre, Dieppe, Neufchatel and Yvetot, although the latter two were disbanded in 1926. On 18 January 1955 the name of the département was changed to Seine-Maritime, in order to provide a more positive-sounding name and in-keeping with changes made in a number of other French departements.

Principal towns

The most populous commune is Le Havre; the prefecture

is the second-most populous. As of 2019, there are 7 communes with more than 20,000 inhabitants:

Demographics

Previously lacking a demonym, the inhabitants of Seine-Maritime (as the department had been renamed in 1955) chose, following a public consultation, to be identified in official documents as "Seinomarins" (males) and "Seinomarines" (females).

Politics

The president of the Departmental Council is Bertrand Bellanger, elected in 2019.

Presidential elections 2nd round

Current National Assembly Representatives

Transport

In 1843 the railway from

Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, largest city of France. With an estimated population of 2,048,472 residents in January 2025 in an area of more than , Paris is the List of ci ...

reached the region. The département is connected to the adjacent Eure department via the Tancarville and Pont de Normandie bridge crossings of the

Culture

'' Madame Bovary'' by Gustave Flaubert is set in Seine Maritime. The novel ''La Place'' by Annie Ernaux largely takes place in Seine-Maritime and describes events and changes that take place in relation to French society in the 20th century especially in relation to the rural population. The first story of the long-running series '' Valérian and Laureline'' is set in Seine-Maritime, with the character Laureline originating from the area. Cauchois is the dialect of the Pays de Caux, and is one of the most vibrant forms of the Norman language beyond Cotentinais.

Tourism

File:Rouen Cathedral as seen from Gros Horloge 140215 4.jpg, Notre-Dame of

File:Blockhaus Fécamp (3) 0018.JPG, Element of the Atlantic Wall near Fécamp File:LeHavre.jpg, Entirely destroyed during

, Le Havre has been rebuilt in modernist style File:L'Aiguille et la Porte d'Aval-Etretat-Normandie.jpg, Limestone cliffs of Étretat File:Le Jardin jungle en normandie.jpg, the jardin jungle of Eu

References

External links

*
Departmental Council website
*
Prefecture website
*
Communes 76
{{Authority control 1790 establishments in France Departments of Normandy States and territories established in 1790