La Roche-sur-Yon

French commune
nomcommune=La Roche-sur-Yon
Square Napoléon and Saint-Louis Church in La Roche-sur-Yon
région=Pays de la Loire
département=Vendée ("préfecture")
arrondissement=La Roche-sur-Yon
canton=Chief town of 2 cantons:
La Roche-sur-Yon-Nord
La Roche-sur-Yon-Sud
(12 communes, 75,156 inhab.)
insee=85191
cp=85000
maire=Pierre Regnault (PS)
mandat=2004-2008
intercomm=Communauté de communes du Pays yonnais (82 296 habitants)
latitude=46.6705
longitude=-1.426
alt moy=74 m
alt mini=32 m
alt maxi=94 m
hectares=8,752
km²=87,52
sans=50,800
date-sans=2004
dens=580
date-dens=2004

La Roche-sur-Yon is a town and commune in western France, "préfecture" (capital) of the Vendée "département". Its inhabitants are called "Yonnais".

History

The town was built after Napoleon I had chosen his site to build the new préfecture of the Vendée, which replaced Fontenay-le-Comte on May 25, 1804.

The town was called successively:
*Napoléon-on-Yon (during the First French Empire)
*Bourbon-Vendée (during the French Restoration)
*Napoléon-Vendée (during the Second Republic)

Administration

The "communauté de communes" of the Pays Yonnais contains 15 communes:
Aubigny,
Chaillé-sous-les-Ormeaux,
La Chaize-le-Vicomte,
Les Clouzeaux,
Dompierre-sur-Yon,
La Ferrière,
Fougeré,
Landeronde,
Mouilleron-le-Captif,
Nesmy, La Roche-sur-Yon,
Saint-Florent-des-Bois,
Le Tablier,
Thorigny and Venansault.

La Roche-sur-Yon is the chief town of the Arrondissement of La Roche-sur-Yon, which covers 11 cantons, 92 communes, and has a population of 230,386 (1999 census).

La-Roche-sur-Yon is chief town of two cantons, covering 12 communes, with a total population of 70,709.
*The canton of La Roche-sur-Yon-Nord (North) is made of part of La Roche-sur-Yon and of the communes of Mouilleron-le-Captif and Venansault (29,789) (42.2%);
*The canton of the La Roche-sur-Yon-Sud (South) is made of part of Roche-sur-Yon and of the communes of Aubigny, Chaillé-sous-les-Ormeaux, La Chaize-le-Vicomte, Les Clouzeaux, Fougeré, Nesmy, Saint-Florent-des-Bois, Le Tablier and Thorigny (40,920) (57.9%).

* Cantons: chief town de 2 cantons (12 communes,70,709 inhabitants)
* Population with double accounts(1999): 52,947 inhabitants
* Population without double accounts (1999): 49,262 inhabitants
* Intercommunality (2004): Communauté de Communes du Pays Yonnais 79,665 inhabitants

Miscellaneous

La Roche-sur-Yon is twinned with:
* Gummersbach, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany
* Coleraine, County Londonderry, Northern Ireland
* Drummondville, Quebec, Canada

External links

* [http://www.ville-larochesuryon.fr/ Official website]