Gironde
For the Revolutionary party, see Girondists.
| Gironde | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| — Department — | |||
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| Coordinates: 44°50′N 00°40′E / 44.833°N 0.667°ECoordinates: 44°50′N 00°40′E / 44.833°N 0.667°E | |||
| Country | France | ||
| Region | Aquitaine | ||
| Prefecture | Bordeaux | ||
| Subprefectures | Arcachon Blaye Langon Lesparre-Médoc Libourne |
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| Government | |||
| • President of the General Council | Philippe Madrelle | ||
| Area1 | |||
| • Total | 10,000 km2 (4,000 sq mi) | ||
| Population (2007) | |||
| • Total | 1,409,345 | ||
| • Rank | 8th | ||
| • Density | 140/km2 (370/sq mi) | ||
| Time zone | CET (UTC+1) | ||
| • Summer (DST) | CEST (UTC+2) | ||
| 33000 | |||
| Department number | 33 | ||
| Arrondissements | 6 | ||
| Cantons | 63 | ||
| Communes | 542 | ||
| ^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2 | |||
Gironde (French pronunciation: [ʒiʁɔ̃d]; in Gascon Gironda) is a common name for the Gironde estuary, where the mouths of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers merge, and for a department in the Aquitaine region situated in southwest France.
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[edit] History
Gironde is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Guyenne and Gascogne.
From 1793 to 1795, the department's name was changed to Bec-d'Ambès to avoid the association with the revolutionary party, the Girondists.
[edit] Geography
Gironde is part of the current region of Aquitaine and is surrounded by the departments of Landes, Lot-et-Garonne, Dordogne and Charente-Maritime and the Atlantic Ocean on the west. With an area of 10,000 km², Gironde is the largest department in metropolitan France. If overseas departments are included, however, Gironde's land area is dwarfed by the 83,846 km² of Guyane.
Gironde is well known for the Côte d'Argent beach which is Europe's longest, attracting many surfers to Lacanau each year. It is also the birth place of Jacques-Yves Cousteau who studied the sea and all forms of life in water.
The Great Dune of Pyla in Arcachon Bay near Bordeaux is the tallest sand dune in Europe.[1]
[edit] Politics
The President of the General Council is Philippe Madrelle of the Socialist Party.
| Party | seats | |
|---|---|---|
| • | Socialist Party | 45 |
| Union for a Popular Movement | 12 | |
| • | French Communist Party | 3 |
| Miscellaneous Right | 1 | |
| MoDem | 1 | |
| Hunting, Fishing, Nature, Tradition | 1 | |
[edit] See also
- Cantons of the Gironde department
- Communes of the Gironde department
- Arrondissements of the Gironde department
- Bordeaux wine regions
[edit] References
- ^ C.G. (14 August 2009). Les Adresses de Mathilde Seigner et Fabien Onteniente. Le Figaro Magazine. (French)
[edit] External links
- (French) General Council website
- (French) Prefecture website
- (English) Gironde at the Open Directory Project
- (French) Tourism Office website
