Subprefectures ÉtampesPalaiseau Department number 91 Area 1,804 km² Population 1.254 million (2013) | Region Île-de-France Time zone CET (UTC+1) Arrondissements 3 Prefecture Évry, Essonne Capital Évry, Essonne | |
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Colleges and Universities University of Évry Val d'Essonne, University of Paris‑Sud, École Polytechnique, Telecom Business School, Telecom SudParis Points of interest Château de Courances, Château de Dourdan, Château de Chamarande, Évry Cathedral, Château de Courson |
Essonne ([ɛ.sɔn]) is a French department in the region of Île-de-France. It is named after the Essonne River.
Contents
Map of Essonne, France
It was formed on 1 January 1968 when Seine-et-Oise was split into smaller departments.
History
The Essonne department was created on 1 January 1968, from the southern portion of the former department of Seine-et-Oise.
In June 1963 Carrefour S.A. opened the first hypermarket in the Paris region at Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois (although the word "hypermarché" was first used only in 1966). Based on the ideas put forward by the American logistics pioneer Bernardo Trujillo, the centre offered on a single 2,500 m2 (26,909.78 sq ft) site a hitherto unknown combination of wide choice and low prices, supported by 400 car parking spaces.
In 1969, the communes of Châteaufort and Toussus-le-Noble were separated from Essonne and added to the department of Yvelines.
Geography
Essonne belongs to the region of Île-de-France.
It has borders with the departments of:
All of northern Essonne department belongs to the Parisian agglomeration and is very urbanized. The south remains rural.
In descending order, the cities over 25,000 population are: Évry, Corbeil-Essonnes, Massy, Savigny-sur-Orge, Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois, Viry-Châtillon, Athis-Mons, Palaiseau, Draveil, Yerres, Les Ulis, and Vigneux-sur-Seine. Milly-la-Forêt is an example of its more rural communes.
Main sights
Politics
The department's most high-profile political representative has been Manuel Valls, Prime Minister of France since 31 March 2014. He visited its main town Évry to deliver remarks following the Charlie Hebdo massacre of January 2015.