Poitiers: Commune in Vienne, France

The town is picturesque; and its streets are interesting for their remains of ancient architecture, especially of the Romanesque period, and the memories of great historical events.

Poitiers
Prefecture and commune
The old town center.
Coat of arms
Location of Poitiers
Poitiers Show map of France Poitiers Show map of Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Coordinates: 46°21′20″N 0°12′04″E / 46.3555°N 0.2010°E / 46.3555; 0.2010
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Vienne
Arrondissement	Poitiers
Canton	Capital of 5 cantons
Intercommunality	Grand Poitiers
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Alain Claeys
Area 1	42.11 km2 (16.26 sq mi)
Population  (2014)	87,435
• Density	2,100/km2 (5,400/sq mi)
Demonym	Poitevins
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	86194 /86000
Elevation	65–144 m (213–472 ft) (avg. 105 m or 344 ft)
Website	www.poitiers.fr
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

The city itself is very old. It already existed as a Gaulish fort in the time when Julius Caesar came to Gaul. It was the capital of the Pictones tribe.

Poitiers is in the centre of the Vienne department, between the valleys of the Boivre and the Clain rivers. The old town is on the slopes and the summit of a plateau which rises 130 feet (40 m) above the streams which surround it on three sides.

Poitiers is at about 220 km (140 mi) from Bordeaux, 340 km (210 mi) from Paris, 130 km (81 mi) from Limoges and 180 km (110 mi) from Nantes.

The commune has an area of 42.1 km² (16.3 sq mi). Its average altitude is 105 m (344 ft); at the city hall, the altitude is 116 m (381 ft).

The commune of Poitiers is surrounded by the communes:

Climate

The climate of Poitiers, in the Köppen climate classification, is Cfb - Oceanic climate with template summers.

The inhabitants of Poitiers are known, in French, as Pictaviens (women: Pictaviennes).

With a population of 87,435, Poitiers has a population density of 2,076 inhabitants/km².

Evolution of the population in Poitiers

Poitiers forms, with seven other communes, the urban area of Poitiers with a population of 128,111 inhabitants (2013) and an area of 172.3 km² (66.5 sq mi). This urban area is the centre of the metropolitan area of Poitiers, formed by 97 communes, with a population of 257,233 inhabitants (2013) and an area of 2,303.4 km² (889.3 sq mi).

Poitiers is the prefecture of the Vienne department, the capital of the arrondissement of Poitiers and the administrative centre (French: chef-lieu) of five canton:

• Poitiers-1, with 23,086 inhabitants (2014).
• Poitiers-2, with 25,371 inhabitants (2014).
• Poitiers-3, with 26,843 inhabitants (2014).
• Poitiers-4, with 20,756 inhabitants (2014).
• Poitiers-5, with 22,170 inhabitants (2014).

It is part of the intercommunality Grand Poitiers (French: Communauté d'agglomération Grand Poitiers).

Sister cities

Poitiers is twinned with:

•   Northampton, UK
•   Marburg, Germany
•   Lafayette, USA
•   Coimbra, Portugal
•   Yaroslavl, Russia
•   Moundou, Chad
•   Iaşi, Romania

This is a list of people of interest who were born or resided in Poitiers:

• René Descartes studied law at the University of Poitiers
• Michel Foucault, French philosopher
• Jean-Pierre Thiollet, French author
• Brian Joubert, French ice skating champion

• Arrondissement of Poitiers
• Communes of the Vienne department