Creuse

Creuse is a département in central France named after the Creuse River.

History

Creuse was one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from the former province of la Marche.

Geography

Creuse is part of the current region of Limousin and is surrounded by the departments of Corrèze, Haute-Vienne, Allier, Puy-de-Dôme, Cher, and Indre.

It is located in the Massif Central and is permeated by the Creuse River and its tributaries. The river is dammed at several locations both for water supply and hydroelectricity generation. Typically for an inland area of continental Europe, Creuse has relatively cold winters with some snow-fall into April but also hot summers although rain-fall occurs throughout the year because of the relatively high elevation of the land. The topography is principally rolling hills intersected by often steep river valleys. The terrestial ecology is typically cool temperate with a species mix that would not be uncommon in the western UK with oak, ash, chestnut , hazel and Prunus species dominating the woodlands. There are no commercial vineyards and much of the farming is beef cattle (Charolais and Limousin) and also sheep.

Demographics

The inhabitants of the département are called Creusois.

Tourism

The major tourist attractions are the tapestry museum in Aubusson and the castles of Villemontaix, Boussac, and Banizette.

Miscellaneous topics

Communes of the Creuse département

External links

• Conseil Général website (in French)
• Prefecture website (in French)
• http://www.entreprise-creuse.com/
• http://www.lacreuse.com/en/index.html
• http://www.infoplease.com/ce6/world/A0805286.html

Creuse is also the name of a commune of the Somme département in France.