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Allier ( , ; ; ) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region that borders Cher to the west, Nièvre to the north, Saône-et-Loire and Loire to the east, Puy-de-Dôme to the south, and Creuse to the south-west. Named after the river Allier, it had a population of 334,872 in 2021. Populations légales 2021: 03 Allier, INSEE (in French) Moulins is the prefecture; Montluçon and Vichy are the subprefectures. Its INSEE and post code is 03.
Before 2018, the inhabitants of the department did not have a demonym. The inhabitants of the department have officially been known in French as Bourbonnais since 2018, a reference to the historic province of Bourbonnais. Until then, the unofficial term Elavérins had been used.
| Montluçon | 33,342 |
| Vichy | 25,789 |
| Moulins | 19,343 |
| Cusset | 12,909 |
| Yzeure | 12,598 |
The department also includes the spa towns Bourbon-l'Archambault, Néris-les-Bains and Vichy.
Almost all of the southern area consists of Combrailles which is sometimes called High Bourbonnais, in an area that goes beyond the departmental boundaries of Creuse and Puy-de-Dôme. This area of the department rises to 778 metres at Bosse. The rivers Sioule, Bouble, and Cher have carved the most picturesque gorges in Allier.
There are two periods of maximum precipitation in June and October and a minimum in January and February with average of 694 millimetres in Montluçon (altitude 207 metres), 763 mm in Moulins (245 m), 778 mm in Vichy (251 m), 791 mm in Lapalisse (285 m) and nearly 1,200 mm in Assisi (1,050 m). As noted Atlantic winds are dominant from the west, northwest, or southwest. The influence of topography, especially in the valleys of Cher and Allier, also contributes to the south and north variance.
Allier is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Auvergne and Bourbonnais.
In 1940, the Vichy France of Marshal Philippe Pétain chose the town of Vichy as its capital. Vichy also became the department's second sub-prefecture in 1940, since the department now found itself split by the demarcation line between the occupied and (relatively, at least initially) free zones of France.
Since the early 1980s Allier has faced many demographic handicaps. The ratio of older people is important and with low fertility rates the natural growth is negative. Net migration was negative between 1968 and 1999, and slightly positive between 1999 and 2017.
Allier has three major cities: Montluçon, Vichy, and Moulins by size. The rest of the department includes some small towns and villages, scattered mainly along the rivers. The few villages are far from one another, and it is generally a sparsely populated department. Until the end of the 19th century, however, the population was increasing because the development of its cities (industries at Montluçon and Moulins, spas in Vichy) compensated the rural exodus. The department then passed 420,000 inhabitants. After losses of the First World War, the population stabilized and grew a little again in the 1960s. Since then, the continuing rural exodus and especially the decline of old industries has made the population decrease and age steadily, from 386,533 inhabitants in 1968 to 337,988 in 2017.
The population of the department is approximately equal of the country of Iceland.
Jean-Luc Marx, the prefect of Lot, was named the prefect of Allier on 1 June 2011, replacing Pierre Monzani who was appointed Prefect of Seine-et-Marne on 25 May 2011.
In the Senate elections in 2008 the left took one of the two Senate seats in Allier formerly held by the right. Mireille Schurch, PCF Mayor of Lignerolles, was elected:
The current representatives are:
In the local elections of March 2008, Allier department was won by a majority of the left. The URB (Republican Union for Bourbonnais, right) had headed the department between 2001 and 2008, with the last year with only one vote majority. From 2008 the left coalition was in control also with a majority of one vote (10 PC, 6 PS, 2 PRG, 18 seats in total), facing 17 councilors from the URB.
The small town of Commentry has the distinction of being the first town in FranceAgnès Roche, A favourable breeding-ground, Études rurales 3/2004 (No. 171–172), p. 111 to elect a socialist mayor in 1882: Christophe Thivrier. Another local figure, Pierre Brizon, an MP in 1910, was typically a member for sharecroppers.Agnès Roche, A favourable breeding-ground, Études rurales 3/2004 (No. 171–172), pp. 108–109
Earlier, Ledru-Rollin achieved a very good result in 1848 (14%) with Democratic and socialist candidates in the following year (44% of the vote, against 35% for all of France).Agnès Roche, A favourable breeding-ground, Études rurales 3/2004 (No. 171–172), p. 109 Similarly, resistance to the coup of 2 December 1851 was important after an attempt to support the uprising in June 1849.Agnès Roche, A favourable breeding-ground, Études rurales 3/2004 (No. 171–172), pp. 109–110 Republicans were in the majority in 1876 and held all six parliamentary seats. After neighbouring results of 15% of enrolled voters from 1893 to 1906 the Socialists rose to 31% of enrolled votes (42% of those cast) in 1910 and maintained this in 1914Agnès Roche, A favourable breeding-ground, Études rurales 3/2004 (No. 171–172), pp. 111–112
Allier remains a land of rural communism (still 14.66% in the 2004 regional elections – the second best result for the party after Somme) in a sometimes difficult cohabitation with the Socialist Party.
For the causes of their success it may be noted that historically Allier has been a department where vast properties were combined into sharecropping. Sharecropping only spread in the 15th centuryAgnès Roche, A favourable breeding-ground, Études rurales 3/2004 (No. 171–172), p. 105 and was not disturbed by the sale of national assets to the Revolution.Agnès Roche, A favourable breeding-ground, Études rurales 3/2004 (No. 171–172), p. 106 In the 19th century large properties (100 hectares or more) occupied about half of the land, and even more than 70% in the north of the department. In the south, small properties dominate.
Sharecropping continued as a form of land development and it involved 40% of the land in 1892 (only 7% overall for France).Agnès Roche, A favourable breeding-ground, Études rurales 3/2004 (No. 171–172), p. 107 Adverse conditions made sharecroppers promote the creation of rural unions between 1904 and 1911 (the third greatest number per department in France after Hérault and Landes). Despite poor results the mobilization was important and promoted the election of left-wing candidates.Agnès Roche, A favourable breeding-ground, Études rurales 3/2004 (No. 171–172), pp. 107–108
According to studies by INSEE agriculture would be about 7 to 8% of departmental gross domestic product.
This nature preserve also features over 500 castles, Romanesque churches and a number of houses which represent the heritage of the Bourbons. Bourbon cuisine reflects the history of the province and provides a number of local products, including Pâté aux pommes de terre, Charolais cattle beef, wines from Saint-Pourçain AOC, Charroux mustard, and Vichy pastilles.
Among the tourist sites to visit are:
Pompe aux grattons or brioche aux griaudes, a kind of brioche-like bread with cracklings, is a specialty of the Bourbonnais.François-Régis Gaudry, Let's Eat France, , p. 382
Saint-Pourçain AOC wine is produced in Allier and the oak from the forest of Tronçais is one of the most favoured in the construction of wine barrels.
The department has attracted many foreigners, English, Belgian, Swiss, and Dutch, and they have acquired many second homes. Therefore many communes have become "European", such as Pouzy-Mésangy, which today has many English and Swiss residents.
For a long period the people of Allier did not speak standard French but one of the following local languages:
Qualifications:
Politics and administration
Prefecture
Valérie Hatsch is prefect of Allier since 28 March 2022.
Two senators
After 2020 Senate elections, the two senators of Allier are Bruno Rojouan and Claude Malhuret.
Representatives in the National Assembly
The elections of 2007 returned three Socialists (Bernard Lesterlin for Montluçon, Jean Mallot for Saint-Pourçain, and Guy Chambefort for Moulins) and one PRG (Gérard Charasse for Vichy).
Allier's 1st constituency Yannick Monnet French Communist Party Allier's 2nd constituency Jorys Bovet National Rally Allier's 3rd constituency Nicolas Ray The Republicans
Departmental Council
The current president of the Departmental Council is Claude Riboulet, elected in 2017. In the 2021 departmental election, the Departmental Council of Allier was elected as follows: Résultats des élections départementales 2021: Allier (03), Ministère de l'intérieur
History of the left in Allier
The department was distinguished by communist votes in early voting which continued until after the Second World War with the two major political parties of the left being the PCF and the SFIO which have now become the Socialist Party.
Economy
The industries most represented are the food industry, wood and furniture, chemical, foundries and metalworking, rubber, machinery and electrical equipment, automotive, weaponry, textiles, building, and the spas.
Tourism
Marked by the imprint of the Dukes of Bourbon, Allier is a land of rivers, bocage, and small mountains. Landscapes such as Bourbonnais bocage, the gorges of the Sioule, and the Forest of Tronçais are places suitable for the practice of outdoor activities: hiking, fishing, and white water sports. Hydrotherapy is one of the leading sectors of Bourbonnais tourism with the international spa at Vichy.
Gastronomy and viticulture
The pâté aux pommes de terre is one of the specialities of the Allier, as well as of the neighboring Limousin region. The river Allier is one of the rare places in Southern Europe where the freshwater grayling ( Thymallus thymallus), known in French as ombre des rivières, occurs in a natural habitat. This fish is much valued in French gastronomy for its fine and delicate texture and is best eaten along with a light wine.
Jancis Robinson (1999). 019866236X, Oxford University Press. 019866236X
Second homes
In 2020 the quantity of dwellings in the department which were second homes was 7.2%. Logement en 2020: Catégories et types de logements, INSEE The table below shows the main communes of Allier with second homes and which exceed 10% of total housing.
Culture
Sister regions
The Conseil Départemental of Allier co-operates with the following foreign administrative units:
Regional languages
Allier is traversed by the border between Occitan language and French language.Charles de Tourtoulon and Octavien Bringuier (1876), Study on the geographical limits of Occitan and French (with a map), Paris: Imprimerie Nationale reprinted
See also
External links
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