Hautes-Alpes is a department in southeastern France named after the
AlpsThe Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
mountain range.
History
Hautes-Alpes is one of the original 83 departments created during the
French RevolutionThe French Revolution , sometimes distinguished as the 'Great French Revolution' , was a period of radical social and political upheaval in France and Europe. The absolute monarchy that had ruled France for centuries collapsed in three years...
on 4 March 1790. It consists of the southeast of the
former provinceThe Kingdom of France was organised into provinces until March 4, 1790, when the establishment of the département system superseded provinces. The provinces of France were roughly equivalent to the historic counties of England...
of
DauphinéThe Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of :Isère, :Drôme, and :Hautes-Alpes....
and the north of
ProvenceProvence ; Provençal: Provença in classical norm or Prouvènço in Mistralian norm) is a region of south eastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur...
.
At the time when the department was created, the two mountain communes of
La GraveLa Grave is a commune in the Hautes-Alpes department in southeastern France.It is a small ski resort in the French Alps, dominated by La Meije . It was the birthplace of Nicolas de Nicolay; adventurer and Geographer Ordinary to Henry II of France....
and
Villar-d'ArêneVillar-d'Arêne is a commune in the Hautes-Alpes department in southeastern France.-Population:-References:*...
successfully campaigned to be included in Hautes-Alpes and not in the neighbouring department of Isère to which they had originally been assigned. This was because they hoped to benefit from the relative autonomy and certain fiscal privileges enjoyed by the region since the fourteenth century under the terms of the Statute of the Briançon Escartons.
NapoleonNapoleon Bonaparte was a French military and political leader during the latter stages of the French Revolution.As Napoleon I, he was Emperor of the French from 1804 to 1815...
passed through Gap when he returned to reclaim France after his exile on
ElbaElba is a Mediterranean island in Tuscany, Italy, from the coastal town of Piombino. The largest island of the Tuscan Archipelago, Elba is also part of the National Park of the Tuscan Archipelago and the third largest island in Italy after Sicily and Sardinia...
.
Geography
The department is surrounded by the following French departments:
Alpes-de-Haute-ProvenceAlpes-de-Haute-Provence is a French department in the south of France, it was formerly part of the province of Provence.- History :Nord-de-Provence was one of the 83 original departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790...
, :Drôme,
IsèreIsère is a department in the Rhône-Alpes region in the east of France named after the river Isère.- History :Isère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Dauphiné...
, and
SavoieSavoie is a French department located in the Rhône-Alpes region in the French Alps.Together with the Haute-Savoie, Savoie is one of the two departments of the historic region of Savoy that was annexed by France on June 14, 1860, following the signature of the Treaty of Turin on March 24, 1860...
. Italy borders it on the east.
Hautes-Alpes is located in the
AlpsThe Alps is one of the great mountain range systems of Europe, stretching from Austria and Slovenia in the east through Italy, Switzerland, Liechtenstein and Germany to France in the west....
mountain range. The average elevations is over 1000 m, and the highest elevation is over 4000 m. The only three sizable towns are
GapGap is a commune in southeastern France, the capital of the Hautes-Alpes department.-Geography:An Alpine crossroads at the intersection of D994 and Route nationale 85 the Route Napoléon, Gap lies above sea level along the right bank of the Luye River...
,
BriançonBriançon a commune in the Hautes-Alpes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department....
, and
EmbrunEmbrun is a commune in the Hautes-Alpes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.-Description:...
, which was the subprefecture until 1926.
The third highest
communeThe commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
in all of Europe is the village of
Saint-VéranSaint-Véran is a commune in the Hautes-Alpes department in southeastern France in the Queyras Regional Natural Park.-Geography:Saint-Véran, located in the French Alps is the most elevated commune of the French Republic...
.
GapGap is a commune in southeastern France, the capital of the Hautes-Alpes department.-Geography:An Alpine crossroads at the intersection of D994 and Route nationale 85 the Route Napoléon, Gap lies above sea level along the right bank of the Luye River...
and
BriançonBriançon a commune in the Hautes-Alpes department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department....
are the highest prefecture and subprefecture in France.
The following rivers flow through the department:
- Durance
The Durance is a major river in south-eastern France.Its source is in the south-western Alps, in Montgenèvre ski resort near Briançon and it flows south-west through the following départements and cities:* Hautes-Alpes: Briançon, Embrun.* Alpes-de-Haute-Provence: Sisteron, Manosque.* Vaucluse:...
- Guisane
- Buëch
The Buëch is a river in southeastern France, right tributary to the Durance. Its source is in the Dauphiné Alps, near the Grand Ferrand peak. It flows generally southward, for most of its course in the Hautes-Alpes département...
- Drac
The Drac is a 130 km long river in southeastern France, left tributary of the Isère. It is formed by the confluence of the Drac Noir and the Drac Blanc, that both rise in the southern part of the Massif des Écrins. It flows through several reservoirs, including the Lac de Monteynard-Avignonet....
- Clarée
The Clarée is a river in southeastern France, a tributary to the Durance. Its source is in the Cottian Alps, near the Mont Thabor and Valloire. It flows for all of its course in the Hautes-Alpes département...
- Séveraisse
The
DuranceThe Durance is a major river in south-eastern France.Its source is in the south-western Alps, in Montgenèvre ski resort near Briançon and it flows south-west through the following départements and cities:* Hautes-Alpes: Briançon, Embrun.* Alpes-de-Haute-Provence: Sisteron, Manosque.* Vaucluse:...
has been dammed to create the largest artificial lake in Europe: the
Lac de Serre-PonçonLake Serre-Ponçon is a lake in southeast France; it is one of the largest artificial lakes in western Europe. The lake gathers the waters of the Durance and the Ubaye rivers, flowing down through the Hautes-Alpes and the Alpes du Sud to the Rhône River...
.
The
QueyrasThe Queyras is a valley located in the French Hautes-Alpes, of which the geographical extension is the basin of river Guil, a tributary of the Durance...
valley is located in the eastern part of the department and is noted by many as being an area of outstanding beauty.
Demographics
The inhabitants of the department are called
Haut-Alpins.
The extremely mountainous terrain explains the sparse population, which was originally about 120,000. It changed little during the 19th century, but fell to about 85,000 after World War I. Thanks in large part to tourism, the population has risen from 87,436 in 1962 to 121,419 in 1999, principally in the town of Gap.
Politics
The President of the General Council is Jean-Yves Dusserre of the
Union for a Popular MovementThe Union for a Popular Movement is a centre-right political party in France, and one of the two major contemporary political parties in the country along with the center-left Socialist Party...
.
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Union for a Popular MovementThe Union for a Popular Movement is a centre-right political party in France, and one of the two major contemporary political parties in the country along with the center-left Socialist Party...
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Socialist PartyThe Socialist Party is a social-democratic political party in France and the largest party of the French centre-left. It is one of the two major contemporary political parties in France, along with the center-right Union for a Popular Movement...
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Left Radical PartyThe Radical Party of the Left is a minor social-liberal, and in opposition to its common understanding of its name, a moderate centre-left political party in France advocating radicalism, secularism to its french extend known as laïcité, progressivism, pro-Europeanism, individual freedom and...
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Miscellaneous Left |
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New CentreNew Centre , also known as the European Social Liberal Party is a centre-right political party in France, formed by the members of the Union for French Democracy – including a majority of former parliamentarians – who did not agree with François Bayrou's...
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Tourism
The tourist industry is largely dependent on skiing in winter. In summer the Alpine scenery and many outdoor activities attract visitors from across Europe(sailing, hiking,
climbingClimbing is the activity of using one's hands and feet to ascend a steep object. It is done both for recreation and professionally, as part of activities such as maintenance of a structure, or military operations.Climbing activities include:* Bouldering: Ascending boulders or small...
and aerial sports such as
glidingGliding is a recreational activity and competitive air sport in which pilots fly unpowered aircraft known as gliders or sailplanes using naturally occurring currents of rising air in the atmosphere to remain airborne. The word soaring is also used for the sport.Gliding as a sport began in the 1920s...
). The
Tour de FranceThe Tour de France is an annual bicycle race held in France and nearby countries. First staged in 1903, the race covers more than and lasts three weeks. As the best known and most prestigious of cycling's three "Grand Tours", the Tour de France attracts riders and teams from around the world. The...
passes through the department regularly. This draws many cycling fanatics to cycle the cols and watch the race.
See also
- Cantons of the Hautes-Alpes department
- Communes of the Hautes-Alpes department
- Arrondissements of the Hautes-Alpes department
External links
Official Website Prefecture website General Council webstite A village in the French Alps built by Vauban