Eure-et-Loir (French pronunciation: [œʁ‿e lwaʁ], locally: [øʁ‿e lwaʁ]) is a French department, named after the Eure and Loir rivers. It is located in the region of Centre-Val de Loire. In 2019, Eure-et-Loir had a population of 431,575.[3]

Eure-et-Loir
Hôtel de Ligneris (1795), Prefecture building of the Eure-et-Loir department, in Chartres
Hôtel de Ligneris (1795), Prefecture building of the Eure-et-Loir department, in Chartres
Flag of Eure-et-Loir
Coat of arms of Eure-et-Loir
Location of Eure-et-Loir in France
Location of Eure-et-Loir in France
Coordinates: 48°20′N 01°25′E / 48.333°N 1.417°E / 48.333; 1.417
CountryFrance
RegionCentre-Val de Loire
PrefectureChartres
SubprefecturesChâteaudun
Dreux
Nogent-le-Rotrou
Government
 • President of the Departmental CouncilChristophe Le Dorven[1] (LR)
Area
 • Total
5,880 km2 (2,270 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[2]
 • Total
431,277
 • Rank58th
 • Density73/km2 (190/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Department number28
Arrondissements4
Cantons15
Communes365
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

History

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Eure-et-Loir is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790 pursuant to the Act of December 22, 1789. It was created mainly from parts of the former provinces of Orléanais (Beauce) and Maine (Perche), but also parts of Île-de-France (Drouais, Thymerais, Valley of the Avre, Hurepoix).

The current department corresponds to the central part of the land of the Carnutes who had their capital at Autricum (Chartres). The Carnutes are known for their commitment, real or imagined, to the ancient Druidic religion. In the north of the department another pre-Roman people, the little-known Durocasses, had their capital at Dreux.

Geography

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Eure-et-Loir comprises the main part of the region of Beauce, politically it belongs to the current region of Centre-Val de Loire and is surrounded by the departments of Loir-et-Cher, Loiret, Essonne, Yvelines, Eure, Orne, and Sarthe.

Principal towns

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The most populous commune is Chartres, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 6 communes with more than 10,000 inhabitants:[3]

Commune Population (2019)
Chartres 38,534
Dreux 30,646
Lucé 15,403
Châteaudun 13,096
Vernouillet 12,472
Mainvilliers 11,127

Demographics

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The inhabitants of the department are called Euréliens.

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1791256,636—    
1801257,793+0.04%
1821264,448+0.13%
1831278,820+0.53%
1841286,368+0.27%
1851294,892+0.29%
1861290,455−0.15%
1872282,622−0.25%
1881280,097−0.10%
1891284,683+0.16%
1901275,433−0.33%
1911272,255−0.12%
1921251,255−0.80%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1931254,790+0.14%
1936252,690−0.17%
1946258,110+0.21%
1954261,035+0.14%
1962277,546+0.77%
1968302,251+1.43%
1975335,151+1.49%
1982362,813+1.14%
1990396,073+1.10%
1999407,665+0.32%
2006421,114+0.46%
2011430,416+0.44%
2016433,929+0.16%
Sources:[4][5]

Economy

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The Eure-et-Loir is a department of agricultural tradition (Beauce), but also at the forefront in three economic sectors :

Agriculture

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The department is a major economic player in the production of grain and oilseed in France.[6] Its agricultural economy is still heavily dependent on the economic and regulatory environment of the markets for crops. The Eure-et-Loir region is the first grain producer of France. It is also the national leader in the production of rapeseed and peas. Wheat production is by far the most dominant in the area. Nearly 40% of all farmland is devoted to the cultivation of wheat, which has generated an average of 29% of the commercial agricultural production of the department over the last 5 years.

The "Pôle AgroDynamic also promotes agriculture in the department", a grouping of subsidiaries providing added values in different sectors: agro-energy, agribusiness, agricultural materials, Agrohealth.

Industries

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  • The Cosmetic Valley cluster, around Chartres, which is the most important centre of the French beauty and well-being (perfumes/cosmetics) industry, with big names such as Guerlain, Paco Rabanne, Lolita Lempicka, Jean-Charles de Castelbajac and Jean-Paul Gaultier. The Cosmetic Valley represents 2.5 billion euros of turnover, includes 200 companies, collaborates with the Universities of Orleans and Paris and employs more than 30,000 employees.
  • The pharmaceutical industry, around Dreux and the Polepharma cluster. Created in 2002 under the leadership of CODEL[7] Polepharma is a cluster of French pharmaceutical production which includes companies like Ipsen, Novo Nordisk, Laboratoires Expanscience, LEO Pharma, Ethypharm Famar, Norgine, Nypro, Synerlab / Sophartex and Seratec. The cluster represents 50% of drug production in France and 30,000 jobs. The Pharma cluster is also one of the creators of the inter-regional alliance "Pharma Valley" that has partner networks: Polepharma, CBS and Grepic. This alliance represents 60% of the production sites located in France and 2.5 billion euros of turnover.
  • the agri-food industry, promoted by Agrodynamic (rural center of excellence), with two major companies in the sector: Ebly at Chateaudun and an Andros at Auneau.
  • woodcraft and furniture industry around the association Perchebois.
  • the rubber and plastics industry, through the cluster Elastopole.
  • the elevator manufacturer Octé has its head office in Châteauneuf-en-Thymerais [8]

Energy

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The department also has the lead in renewable energy. Already ranked second nationally in terms of power generation through its wind farms located in particular in the Beauce region of Eure-et-Loir in 2012 will be the largest producer of electricity with photovoltaic French original creation on the airbase NATO disused Crucey-Villages near Brezolles in the region's natural Thymerais, the largest photovoltaic park in France. Given in February 2011 by the General Council to the operator, EDF Energies Nouvelles, the park will cover 245 ha of the military base and produce the equivalent output of 160 wind turbines.

Politics

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The President of the Departmental council is Christophe Le Dorven of The Republicans.

Party seats
The Republicans, Union of Democrats and Independents, Miscellaneous right 17
The Republicans 11
Miscellaneous Left 2

Presidential elections 2nd round

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Election Winning Candidate Party % 2nd Place Candidate Party %
2022[9] Emmanuel Macron LREM 53.29 Marine Le Pen FN 46.71
2017[10] Emmanuel Macron LREM 60.27 Marine Le Pen FN 39.73
2012 Nicolas Sarkozy UMP 53.47 François Hollande PS 46.53
2007 Nicolas Sarkozy UMP 58.16 Ségolène Royal PS 41.84
2002[10] Jacques Chirac RPR 79.26 Jean-Marie Le Pen FN 20.74
1995[11] Jacques Chirac RPR 54.27 Lionel Jospin PS 46.71

Current National Assembly Representatives

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Constituency Member[12] Party
Eure-et-Loir's 1st constituency Véronique de Montchalin La République En Marche!
Eure-et-Loir's 2nd constituency Olivier Marleix The Republicans
Eure-et-Loir's 3rd constituency Laure de La Raudière The Republicans
Eure-et-Loir's 4th constituency Philippe Vigier Union of Democrats and Independents

Tourism

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Notable people

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Middle Ages

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Renaissance

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19th and 20th century

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Media

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The media in Eure-et-Loir include the following:

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
  3. ^ a b Populations légales 2019: 28 Eure-et-Loir, INSEE
  4. ^ "Historique d'Eure-et-Loir". Le SPLAF.
  5. ^ "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
  6. ^ Agricultural chamber of Eure-et-Loir
  7. ^ Codel: Eure-et-Loir economic development board
  8. ^ "Drive systems". Archived from the original on 2018-07-10. Retrieved 2017-05-04.
  9. ^ "Les résultats du second tour de l'élection présidentielle". 19 April 2022.
  10. ^ a b "Présidentielles".
  11. ^ "Résultats de l'élection présidentielle de 1995 par département - Politiquemania".
  12. ^ Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
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