^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries and lakes, ponds and glaciers larger than 1 km2
Haute-Vienne (French pronunciation:[otvjɛn]; Occitan: Nauta Vinhana, Nauta Viena; 'Upper Vienne') is a département in the Nouvelle-Aquitaineregion in southwest-central France. Named after the Vienne River, it is one of the twelve départements 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.[3]
Haute-Vienne is part of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region. It is bordered by six departments; Creuse lies to the east, Corrèze to the south, Dordogne to the southwest, Charente to the west, Vienne to the northwest and Indre to the north. The département has two main rivers which cross it from east to west; the Vienne, on which the two main cities, Limoges and Saint-Junien, are situated, and the Gartempe, a tributary of the Creuse. To the southeast of the department lies the Massif Central, and the highest point in the department is Puy Lagarde, 795 m (2,608 ft). The source of the Charente is in the department, in the commune of Chéronnac, near Rochechouart.[4]
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, little sign of the crater is in evidence today apart from the geologic effects on the surrounding rock.[5]
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, and others at Berneuil and Breuilaufa.[6] Artefacts from the Bronze Age 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. 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, Lyon and the Mediterranean. The city declined in the third 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.[7] 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 was mortally wounded during the siege of the Château de Châlus-Chabrol. The region was much involved in the Hundred Years' War and at the Treaty of Brétigny 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 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 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.[8] Around 1765, kaolin was discovered near Saint-Yrieix-la-Perche in the south of the department, and the porcelain 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 and Poitou. 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 was designated as the Parc Naturel Régional Périgord-Limousin.[9]
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.[10]
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. By 1954 it had dwindled to 324,429 but after that it began to rise again, and in 2007 stood at 371,102.[11]
Martial of Limoges or Saint Martial (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 - 6 April 1199, the castle of Chalus Chabrol) was King of England, 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.
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).
Pierre Desproges (9 May 1939 in Pantin - 18 April 1988 in Paris) is a French comedian known for his dark humor, his nonconformity and sense of the absurd.
Richard Dacoury (1959), French basketball player, former international player and emblematic player of the Limoges CSP.
Laurent Koscielny, born 10 September 1985 in Tulle, 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.
^Philips' Modern School Atlas. George Philip and Son, Ltd. 1973. p. 43. ISBN0-540-05278-7.
^"Rochechouart". Earth impact database. Planetary and Space Science Centre, University of New Brunswick, Canada. Archived from the original on 2015-09-24. Retrieved 2015-09-14.
