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Orne

Coordinates: 48°42′N 0°0′E / 48.700°N 0.000°E / 48.700; 0.000
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
For French rivers called Orne, see Orne (disambiguation).
Orne
Department
Prefecture building of the Orne department, in Alençon
Prefecture building of the Orne department, in Alençon
Flag of Orne
Flag
Coat of arms of Orne
Coat of arms
Location of Orne in France
Location of Orne in France
Coordinates: 48°42′N 0°0′E / 48.700°N 0.000°E / 48.700; 0.000
CountryFrance
RegionNormandy
PrefectureAlençon
SubprefecturesArgentan
Mortagne-au-Perche
Government
 • President of the Departmental CouncilChristophe de Balorre[1]
Area
1
 • Total
6,103 km2 (2,356 sq mi)
Population
 (2022)[2]
 • Total
276,144
 • Rank78th
 • Density45/km2 (120/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Department number61
Arrondissements3
Cantons21
Communes385
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

Orne (French pronunciation: [ɔʁn] ⓘ; Norman: Ôrne or Orne) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.[3]

History

[edit]

Orne is one of the original 83 départements created during the French Revolution, on 4 March 1790.[4] It was created from parts of the former provinces of Normandy and Perche.[5]

After the Battle of Waterloo the department was occupied by the Prussia as agreed in the Treaty of Paris.[6] The area was occupied for three years, during which time the occupying forces pillaged the locals, taking food and money from the locals.[7] The Prussians left in 1818.[8]

During World War II the commune was occupied by the Axis powers.[9] The commune was liberated from its occupiers on AUgust 21st 1944 as part of Operation Overlord, when the final battle of the battle of the Falaise pocket on Hill 262 near Coudehard was won.[10][11]

It is the birthplace of Charlotte Corday, Girondist and the assassin of Jean-Paul Marat.

Geography

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Orne is in the region of Normandy neighbouring Eure, Eure-et-Loir, Sarthe, Manche, Mayenne, and Calvados.[12] It is the only department of Normandy not to border the English Channel.[13]

Geology

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Orne has several different geological areas, firstly in the west of the department is the Armorican Massif, which is an ancient mountain range that has been eroded over time to become granite hills.[14] You then have the flatter plains of the Plaine d'Argentan in the north.[15] To the east of the Plaine d'Argentan you have the rolling hills of the Pays d'Auge.[16] To the far north east is the Pays d'Ouche, which features Chalk Group and Clay-with-Flints soils that are not agriculturally productive.[17]. In the South of Orne is the forested area of the Perche.[18]

The Orne department has the highest point in Normandy, called the Signal d'Écouves, located in Fontenai-les-Louvets which is 413 metres in height.[19][20]

Hydrology

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The 170km River Orne is the main river that flows through the commune flowing into the English Channel from its source in Aunou-sur-Orne .[21] The Orne forms the Lac de Rabodanges in Putanges-le-Lac a 6 km artificial lake covering almost 240 acres, making it the largest lake in Lower Normandy.[22]

Rivers running through the Orne department

In addition to the river Orne that the department is named after there are a further 16 rivers running through the commune that are at least 25km in length:

  1. Avre - 80.4km long, its source is at Tourouvre au Perche and flows into the Eure near Dreux[23]
  2. Baize - 25.72km long, its source is at Habloville and flows into the river Orne at the border between the communes of Les Isles-Bardel and Rapilly.[24]
  3. Cance - 25.5km long, its source is at La Lande-de-Goult and flows into the river Orne at Écouché-les-Vallées[25]
  4. Charentonne - 63km long, its source is at Saint-Evroult-Notre-Dame-du-Bois and flows into the Eure near Nassandres sur Risle[26]
  5. Colmont - 50.4km long, its source is at Fougerolles-du-Plessis and flows into the Mayenne near Saint-Loup-du-Gast[27]
  6. Dives - 105km long, its source is at Gouffern en Auge and flows into the English Channel in Cabourg[28]
  7. Don - 29.55km long, its source is at Brullemail and flows into the river Orne at Almenêches[29]
  8. Huisne - 164.86km long, its source is at Belforêt-en-Perche and flows into the river Sarthe at Le Mans[30]
  9. Noireau - 43.26km long, its source is at Saint-Christophe-de-Chaulieu and flows into the river Orne at Ménil-Hubert-sur-Orne[31]
  10. Mayenne - 202.61km long, its source is at Lalacelle and flows into the river Maine at Angers[32]
  11. Risle - 144.72km long, its source is at Planches and flows into the river Seine at Berville-sur-Mer[33]
  12. Rouvre - 45.6km long, its source is at Beauvain and flows into the river Orne at Le Mesnil-Villement[34]
  13. Sarthe - 313.81km long, its source is at Soligny-la-Trappe and flows into the river Maine at Angers[35]
  14. Touques - 108.4km long, its source is at Champ-Haut and flows into the English Channel between the communes of Deauville and Trouville-sur-Mer[36]
  15. Udon - 28.24km long, its source is at Chahains and flows into the river Orne at Sevrai[37]
  16. Varenne - 50.4km long, its source is at Messei and flows into the Mayenne near Ambrières-les-Vallées[38]


Fauna and Flora

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The orne has 87,000 hectares (210,000 acres) of forests and 17,600 hectares (43,000 acres) of hedges and groves, the forest covers 17% of the department's surface area.[39] Three quarters of the forest trees are Broad leaf based with eth other 25% being coniferous.[39]

Economy

[edit]

The largest town by a considerable margin is the prefecture, Alençon, which is an administrative and commercial centre for what is still an overwhelmingly rural department. There are no large industrial centres, and agriculture remains the economic focus.

Demographics

[edit]
Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1801395,738—    
1806424,669+1.42%
1821422,884−0.03%
1831441,881+0.44%
1841442,072+0.00%
1851439,884−0.05%
1861423,350−0.38%
1872398,250−0.55%
1881376,126−0.63%
1891354,387−0.59%
1901326,952−0.80%
1911307,433−0.61%
1921274,814−1.12%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1931273,717−0.04%
1936269,331−0.32%
1946273,181+0.14%
1954274,862+0.08%
1962280,549+0.26%
1968288,524+0.47%
1975293,523+0.25%
1982295,472+0.09%
1990293,204−0.10%
1999292,337−0.03%
2006292,874+0.03%
2011290,891−0.14%
2016285,308−0.39%
Sources:[40][41]

The inhabitants of the department are called Ornais.

The recorded population level peaked at 443,688 in 1836. Declining farm incomes and the lure of better prospects in the overseas empire led to a sustained reduction in population levels in many rural departments. By the time of the 1936 census, the recorded population stood at just 269,331. Once motor car ownership started to surge in the 1960s, employment opportunities became less restricted and by 1982, the population level had recovered a little to 295,000, after which it slowly decreased.

Principal towns

[edit]

The most populous commune is Alençon, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 5 communes with more than 5,000 inhabitants:[3]

Commune Population (2019)
Alençon 25,870
Flers 14,762
Argentan 13,395
L'Aigle 7,961
La Ferté Macé 5,186

Politics

[edit]

The president of the Departmental Council is Christophe de Balorre, elected in 2017.

Presidential elections 2nd round

[edit]
Election Winning Candidate Party % 2nd Place Candidate Party %
2022[42] Emmanuel Macron LREM 55.12 Marine Le Pen RN 44.88
2017 Emmanuel Macron LREM 61.64 Marine Le Pen FN 38.36
2012 Nicolas Sarkozy UMP 52.89 François Hollande PS 47.11
2007 Nicolas Sarkozy UMP 57.66 Ségolène Royal PS 42.34
2002[43] Jacques Chirac RPR 81.30 Jean-Marie Le Pen FN 18.70

Current National Assembly Representatives

[edit]
Constituency Member[44] Party
Orne's 1st constituency Joaquim Pueyo Socialist Party
Orne's 2nd constituency Véronique Louwagie The Republicans
Orne's 3rd constituency Jérôme Nury The Republicans

Administrative division of the Orne

[edit]
Map of the arrondissements and cantons cantons of the Orne

The Orne has 3 arrondissements, 21 cantons and 381 communes. [45] [46]


  • The Arrondissement of Alençon extends over the south and southwest of the department.It comprises 111 communes with an area of 15,458.8 km2, which makes it the smallest of the three districts. As of 2017, it had a population of 86,365.[47]
  • The Arrondissement of Argentan extends over the north and northwest of the department. It is organized around Argentan and the northern part of the former arrondissement of Domfront. It is the most populous of the three districts with 123 communes with an area of 1,904.1 km2km2.[47]

Culture

[edit]

Alençon is the chief town of the Orne department.

Camembert, the village where Camembert cheese is made, is located in Orne.

The local dialect is known as Augeron.

Tourism

[edit]

See also

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Populations de référence 2022" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 19 December 2024.
  3. ^ a b Populations légales 2019: 61 Orne, INSEE
  4. ^ "Orne territoires 2019" (PDF). Orne.fr. Orne Department. 2019. Retrieved 18 June 2025.
  5. ^ "L'histoire du Perche - Les amis du Perche". amisduperche.fr.
  6. ^ "L'Orne sous le Consulat et le 1er Empire". napoleon.org.
  7. ^ Montgomery, David H. (March 20, 2019). "Episode 5: The White Terror". The Siècle Podcast.
  8. ^ Tombs 1996, p. 337.
  9. ^ "The Fall of France in the Second World War". English Heritage.
  10. ^ "Normandy, a lasting testament to the scars of War". Normandy Tourism, France.
  11. ^ "To Battle". Hill 262.
  12. ^ "Orne Property Information, Basse Normandie, France". French-Property.com.
  13. ^ "Move to Orne, France's leafy haven". Choisir la Normandie.
  14. ^ "Improving geological and hydrogeological knowledge of the Orne département (AGHO programme) | BRGM". www.brgm.fr.
  15. ^ "Atlas Paysages Orne" (PDF). 2022-11-16. Retrieved 2025-03-29.
  16. ^ "Pays d'Auge: the perfect place for a revitalizing stay - Normandy Pays d'Auge tourism". Normandie Pays d’Auge tourisme. June 4, 2024.
  17. ^ "Comment le climat et le relief du pays d'Ouche contribuent à sa richesse naturelle". actu.fr. June 23, 2022.
  18. ^ "The Perche Regional Nature Park". Normandy Tourism, France.
  19. ^ "A Fontenay-les-Louvets : le sommet de la Normandie". actu.fr. June 10, 2018.
  20. ^ "Géographie et montagnes : depuis l'Orne, où faut-il aller pour trouver plus haut que le Signal d'Ecouves ?". actu.fr. January 12, 2022.
  21. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - L'Orne (I2--0200)".
  22. ^ "Lac de Rabodanges PUTANGES-LE-LAC : Normandy Tourism". en.normandie-tourisme.fr.
  23. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - L'Avre (H42-0400)".
  24. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - La Baize (I22-0400)".
  25. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - Cance (I21-0420)".
  26. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - La Charentonne (H61-0400)".
  27. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - la Colmont (M32-0300)".
  28. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - La Dives (I1--0200)".
  29. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - Don (I20-0400)".
  30. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - Huisne (M0--0150)".
  31. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - Le Noireau (I24-0400)".
  32. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - Mayenne (M---0090)".
  33. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - La Risle (H6--0200)".
  34. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - La Rouvre (I23-0400)".
  35. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - Sarthe (M---0060)".
  36. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - La Touques (I0--0200)".
  37. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - Udon (I21-0410)".
  38. ^ Sandre. "Fiche cours d'eau - la Varenne (M31-0300 )".
  39. ^ a b "La Forêt ornaise - Internet départemental de l'État dans l'Orne". archive.wikiwix.com.
  40. ^ "Historique de l'Orne". Le SPLAF.
  41. ^ "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
  42. ^ "Résultats élections: Orne". Le Monde.
  43. ^ "Résultats de l'élection présidentielle 2002: Orne". Ministère de l'Intérieur.
  44. ^ Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
  45. ^ "Monographie de l'Orne – Édition 2024" (PDF). Préfecture de l’Orne – Direction départementale des territoires.
  46. ^ "Atlas des cantons et circonscriptions législatives dans l'Orne au 01/01/2024" (PDF). Préfecture de l’Orne – Direction départementale des territoires.
  47. ^ a b c "Populations légales en vigueur à compter du 1er janvier 2023 – Département de l'Orne (61)" (PDF). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques (INSEE).
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