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Seine-Maritime
Department
Prefecture building of the Seine-Maritime department, in Rouen
Flag Coat of arms
Location of Seine-Maritime in France
Coordinates: 49°40′N 0°50′E / 49.667°N 0.833°E / 49.667; 0.833Coordinates: 49°40′N 0°50′E / 49.667°N 0.833°E / 49.667; 0.833
Country	France
Region	Normandy
Prefecture	Rouen
Subprefectures	Dieppe Le Havre
Government
• President of the General Council	Pascal Martin
Area 1
• Total	6,278 km2 (2,424 sq mi)
Population (2013)
• Total	1,254,609
• Rank	14th
• Density	200/km2 (520/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+1 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+2 (CEST)
Department number	76
Arrondissements	3
Cantons	35
Communes	710
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

Seine-Maritime (French pronunciation: ​[sɛn maʁitim]) is a department of France in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the northern coast of France, at the mouth of the Seine, and includes the cities of Rouen and Le Havre. Until 1955 it was named Seine-Inférieure.

History

1790 - Creation of the Seine-Inférieure department

The department was created from part of the old province of Normandy during the French revolution, on 4 March 1790, through the application of a law of 22 December 1789.

1815 - Occupation

After the victory at Waterloo of the coalition armies, the department was occupied by British forces from June 1815 till November 1818.

1843 – Railways and industry

In Rouen, Elbeuf, and Bolbec, the number of textile factories is increasing. Metallurgy and naval construction as well.

1851 - A republican department

Following the then president, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte's 1851 Coup d'état, Seine-Inférieure was one of several departments placed under a state of emergency (literally, in French, state of siege) ^[1] following fears of significant resistance to the new government.

World War II

In 1942, during occupation by Nazi Germany, at the channel coast of Seine-Inférieure took place two Allied raids, the Bruneval raid and Dieppe raid.

2005 - Inhabitants renamed

Previously lacking a demonym, the inhabitants of Seine-Maritime (as the department had been renamed in 1955) determined, following a public consultation, that they should be known in official documents as "Seinomarins" ^[2] (males) and "Seinomarines" (females).

Heraldry

The arms of the departement Seine-Maritime are blazoned : Gules a fess wavy argent between two lions passant gardant or armed and langued azure.

Geography

The department can be split into three main areas:^[3]

• The Seine valley. The Seine flows through the provincial capital Rouen.


• The chalk plateau Pays de Caux, with its abrupt coastline (the Alabaster Coast).


• The Norman Pays de Bray, with its hills and bocage landscape.

Administration

The département was created in 1790 as Seine-Inférieure, one of five departements that replaced the former province of Normandy. In 1800 five arrondissements were created within the département, namely Rouen, Le Havre, Dieppe, Neufchatel and Yvetot, although the latter two were disbanded in 1926. On 18 January 1955 the name of the département was changed to Seine-Maritime, in order to provide a more positive-sounding name and in-keeping with changes made in a number of other French departements.

Transport

In 1843 the railway from Paris reached the region.
The département is connected to the adjacent Eure department via the Tancarville and Pont de Normandie bridge crossings of the Seine.

Culture

Madame Bovary by Gustave Flaubert is set in Seine Maritime.

The novel La Place by Annie Ernaux largely takes place in Seine-Maritime and describes events and changes that take place in relation to French society in the 20th century especially in relation to the rural population.

The first story of the long-running series Valérian and Laureline is set in Seine-Maritime, with the character Laureline originating from the area.

Cauchois is the dialect of the Pays de Caux, and is one of the most vibrant forms of the Norman language beyond Cotentinais

Tourism

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  Notre-Dame of Rouen
  

  
  

  
  


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  Element of the Atlantic Wall near Fécamp
  

  
  

  
  


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  Entirely destroyed during World War II, Le Havre has been rebuilt in modernist style
  

  
  

  
  


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  Limestone cliffs of Étretat
  

  
  

  
  


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  Pont de Normandie above the Seine estuary
  

  
  

  
  

See also

• Cantons of the Seine-Maritime department


• Communes of the Seine-Maritime department


• Arrondissements of the Seine-Maritime department

References

External links

• 
  (in French) General Council website
  


• 
  (in French) Communes 76
  


• 
  (in French) Prefecture website