Evidence of human settlement dates back to thePaleolithic era, with the CelticSanton tribe settling during theLa Tène period, fostering trade and crafts. Romanization after theGallic War led to the rise ofMediolanum Santonum (Saintes), the capital of Augustan Aquitaine. Initially designated the prefecture in 1790 (having been Saintonge’s capital), Saintes lost this status in 1810 whenNapoleon decreed its transfer toLa Rochelle.[6] The region, under Merovingian and Carolingian rule, oscillated between kingdom and duchy status until Carolingian decline spurred instability, shaping Aunis’ distinct identity.
TheNeolithic "revolution" arrived in the Charente region around the 6th millennium BC, marked by settled agriculture, animal husbandry, and crafts like ceramics.[18] The Middle Neolithic introduced theChassean culture andmegalithic monuments, including dolmens and menhirs, such as the Pierre-Levée dolmen atLa Vallée, Pierre-Folle alley atMontguyon, and the largest menhir atChives (Viviers-Jusseau).[19] In the 4th–3rd millennia BC, the Matignons (e.g.,Ile d'Oléron,Soubise) and Peu-Richard (Thénac,Barzan) civilizations built fortified camps.[20] By the early 3rd millennium BC, theArtenac civilization emerged, introducing copper metallurgy.[18]
Probable geography of theSanton country during Roman domination.
From theBronze Age, Saintonge inhabitants maintained trade with the Atlantic arc, evidenced by bronze objects in the Meschers deposit.[21] In the early Iron Age, a tomb at Courcoury with Mediterranean imports (Etruscan basin, Greek bowl) highlights broader connections.[22] During theLa Tène period, theSantoni established the Pons oppidum as their political and trading hub, a key example ofoppida civilization.[23][24] This rural, hierarchical society featured self-sufficient villages and necropolises.[25] Along the coast, they produced sea salt, while at Novioregum (Barzan), anemporium facilitated trade with theRomans via the Gironde estuary.[26]
From the late 3rd century, barbarian invasions disrupted Santonia:Novioregum was destroyed in 256, andMediolanum Santonum andPons were burned in 276 by theAlamanni.[31][32] Saintes retreated behind ramparts, shrinking significantly.[33] In 285,Diocletian reorganized it into Aquitaine Seconde, diminishing Saintes’ role.[34] Christianity emerged, led byEutrope, the first bishop, though its spread was slow until the 5th century.[35] After theWestern Roman Empire’s fall in 476,Vandals andAlans plundered the region, ending its Gallo-Roman prosperity.[36]
In 418, afœdus betweenVisigoth kingWallia and Roman emperorFlavius Honorius allowed Visigoths to settle in Aquitaine II, including Saintonge, forming theVisigothic kingdom withToulouse as its capital.[37] They occupied the region until 507, leaving toponymic traces like Goutrolles and Aumagne.[38] Frankish kingClovis ousted them after defeatingAlaric at Vouillé.[39] In 584,Gondovald briefly ruled a Merovingian kingdom of Aquitaine, supported by BishopPalladius of Saintes.[40] A second kingdom underCaribert II became a duchy after his death, withEudes resistingSaracen incursions in 732, halted byCharles Martel near Poitiers.[40]Charlemagne established a new kingdom of Aquitaine in 781 for his son Louis.[41] Viking raids began in 843, devastatingRoyan,Saujon, Saintes (845, 863), andSaint-Jean-d’Angély (865), weakening Carolingian control and fostering feudalism.[42][43] By the 10th century, Aunis split from Saintonge, with castles like Broue built for defense.[43]
Post-war recovery in Saintonge and Aunis was rapid, with lords granting land to peasants, spurring population growth and agricultural revival.[56]Louis XI confirmed communal charters, and towns likeMarennes (1452) andJonzac (1473) gained fair rights.[57] La Rochelle’s trade flourished, welcoming foreign ships despite plagues (1500–1515) and a 1518 hurricane.[58] In 1542,François I’s attempt to impose thegabelle tax on salt sparked revolt, initially subdued byGaspard de Saulx, but he granted amnesty after arriving in La Rochelle.[59] TheJacquerie des Pitauds erupted in 1548, spreading regionally; rebels seized Pons, Saintes, and Royan, butAnne de Montmorency’s harsh repression crushed it, thoughHenri II later restored the old tax system in 1555.[60] Cod fishing grew from ports likeLa Tremblade and Royan by 1546, and Jacopolis-sur-Brouage was founded in 1555 as a salt trade hub.[61]
TheReformation gained traction in Aunis and Saintonge afterMartin Luther’s 151795 Theses, fueled byclerical abuses and trade with Protestant Northern Europe.[62]John Calvin briefly preached in Saintonge in 1534 as Charles d’Espeville.[63] Coastal areas likeMarennes andOléron became Reformed strongholds.[64] Repression began in 1548, with public penance in La Rochelle and executions in 1552.[65] Protestant churches emerged, including La Rochelle (1557) andSaint-Jean-d’Angély (1558), though leaders like Philibert Hamelin faced execution.[66] Tensions escalated with the 1562Massacre of Vassy, igniting theWars of Religion.[67]
UnderHenri IV, theEdict of Nantes (1598) brought civil peace, though tensions persisted between Catholics and Protestants. Tax increases, like the 1602 "pancarte" extension, sparked revolts in Aunis and Saintonge, with La Rochelle’s privileges causing regional envy.[75] Henri IV ordered land reclamation inMarans’ marshes, led by Flemish and Brabantine experts.[76] ExplorersPierre Dugua de Mons andSamuel de Champlain from Saintonge founded Québec in 1608, boostingNew France migration.[77] Henri IV’s assassination in 1610 raised Protestant fears under regentMarie de Médicis, who favored Catholics, prompting leaders likeHenri II de Rohan to emerge.[77]
Charente-Maritime’s pre-1790 provinces: Aunis, Saintonge, Poitou, and Angoumois.
From 1615–1620, Aunis and Saintonge saw skirmishes due toLouis XIII’s pro-Spanish policies and Catholic restoration inNavarre, inciting Protestant unrest.[78] In 1621, Louis XIII besiegedSaint-Jean-d’Angély, defended byBenjamin de Soubise, capturing it after a month, abolishing privileges, and razing defenses.[79] Pons surrendered, but Royan’s 1622 siege ended with its destruction.[80] La Rochelle resisted longer, facing a year-long blockade.[78]
La Rochelle, dubbed the "metropolis of heresy" byCardinal Richelieu, defied Louis XIII, leading to the 1622 Treaty of Montpellier, which faltered over Fort-Louis’ demolition.[81] Renewed conflict in 1625 sawJean Guiton’s fleet lose toHenri II de Montmorency, andSaint-Martin-de-Ré fell.[82] In 1627, England’sDuke of Buckingham blockaded Île de Ré, while Richelieu’s siege of La Rochelle, with a dike blocking sea access, began.[83] Famine and disease reduced the population from 28,000 to 5,000, forcing surrender on 28 October 1628.[84]
ThePeace of Alès (1629) stripped Protestants of safe havens but allowed worship, though theCounter-Reformation pushed Catholic resurgence with Jesuit colleges and church restorations.[85] In 1648, the diocese of La Rochelle was created, converting its grand temple into a cathedral.[86] By 1660, 80,000 Protestants remained in Saintonge and Aunis.[87]
The Reign of Louis XIV and the 1685 Revocation of the Edict of Nantes
Louis XIV intensified Protestant persecution withdragonnades, taxes, and temple destruction, culminating in the 1685Edict of Fontainebleau, revoking theEdict of Nantes.[88] Clandestine "desert church" gatherings persisted, and many Protestants emigrated from Marennes and Arvert to England, Holland, and North America.[89]
In 1666,Jean-Baptiste Colbert established Rochefort as a naval arsenal on the Charente, designed on a grid plan with key facilities like the Corderie Royale.[90] Fortifications byVauban bolstered coastal defenses.[91]Michel Bégon, Intendant from 1688, modernized it with social and cultural initiatives.[92]
In 1694,Michel Bégon became Intendant of the newGénéralité de La Rochelle, unifying five elections from Poitiers, Limoges, and Bordeaux jurisdictions.[92]
The 18th century brought agricultural growth in Aunis and Saintonge with the introduction of corn from the New World, complementing wheat, rye, and barley.[93]Cognac production began, with eau-de-vie shipped via La Rochelle to Northern Europe.[94] The "Little Ice Age" caused harsh winters, notably in 1708, 1739, and 1788/1789, freezing rivers and triggering famines.[95] Textile and leather industries thrived in Saintes andJonzac.[96] La Rochelle prospered through thetriangular trade, importing sugar and engaging in the slave trade, while Rochefort trained soldiers forNew France.[97] Enlightenment advances included La Rochelle’s Académie (1732) and Rochefort’s Naval Medicine School (1722).[98] During theSeven Years' War, British raids in 1757 failed to take Rochefort.[99] In 1780,Marquis de La Fayette sailed from Rochefort onL'Hermione to aid the American Revolution.[note 1] Economic decline in the 1780s, worsened by the 1788/1789 winter, led to riots in Rochefort by 1789.[100] TheEstates-General convened in 1789, with representatives from La Rochelle, Saintes, and Saint-Jean-d’Angély drafting reform-focusedcahiers de doléances.[101]
TheEstates-General led to theConstituent Assembly, which, on 22 December 1789, created the department of Saintonge-et-Aunis, renamed Charente-Inférieure by 26 February 1790, centered on theCharente River.[102] Ratified on 4 March 1790, it merged Aunis and Saintonge, incorporating some Poitevin areas, and was divided into seven districts, later six arrondissements, with Saintes chosen as the capital after debate.[102] The new order was widely accepted, with a federative oath taken on 14 July 1790, though rural discontent over lingering feudal rights sparked unrest, including uprisings inSaint-Thomas-de-Conac andVaraize, where a mayor was killed.[103] TheCivil Constitution of the Clergy divided the clergy, with many, including Bishop Pierre-Louis de La Rochefoucauld of Saintes, refusing the oath; he was arrested in 1792 and killed in theSeptember Massacres.[103] From 1791–1793, Charente-Inférieure raised eight battalions for war againstAustria andPrussia.[103] TheRepublic was proclaimed on 22 September 1792.[104]
TheExecution of Louis XVI on 21 January 1793, radicalized the Revolution under theMontagne faction, establishing theComité de salut public andTribunal révolutionnaire.Rochefort gained strategic importance as the Republic’s key arsenal after Toulon’s fall.[105] The Rochefort Revolutionary Court, created 3 November 1793, by Joseph Lequinio and Joseph François Laignelot, became a tool of repression, with the guillotine set up at Place Colbert.[105] A de-Christianization campaign targeted priests, forcing renunciations and transforming churches into "temples of Reason."[106] On 25 January 1794, refractory priests were rounded up for deportation toFrench Guiana, but British blockades confined them to ships like the "Deux-Associés" offÎle Madame, where typhus killed many.[107] Survivors were released in 1795 or later under the 1802 Concordat.[108] Rural brigandage, including "chauffeurs," surged amid administrative chaos.[109]
AfterNapoleon’s coup, Charente-Inférieure overwhelmingly supported theEmpire in 1804, with local leaders attending the coronation.[110]Michel Regnaud rose as a key imperial figure.[111] Napoleon visited in 1804, initiating Fort Boyard’s construction, halted by British threats.[112] The 1809Battle of Aix Island saw British forces underThomas Cochrane destroy much of the French fleet.[113] Napoleon reinforced coastal defenses with forts like Énet.[114] In 1810,La Rochelle became the prefecture. After defeats in 1814, Napoleon was exiled fromÎle d’Aix toSaint Helena.[115]
TheRestoration saw indifference in Charente-Inférieure, though peace spurred rural growth.[116] Marsh reclamation inBrouage began under sub-prefect Charles-Esprit Le Terme.[117] Cultural societies emerged, and the 1833 Guizot law reduced illiteracy from 53.7% (1832) to 2.4% (1901).[118] The 1822four sergeants’ plot againstLouis XVIII gained national attention.[119]
TheSecond Empire boosted agriculture andCognac production, with vineyards growing from 111,000 hectares (1839) to 164,651 (1876), aided by an 1860 trade treaty.[121] Railroads developed, starting with the Rochefort-La Rochelle-Poitiers line in 1857.[122]Prosper de Chasseloup-Laubat became Minister of Marine in 1860.[123]
Charente-Inférieure during the Third Republic (1870-1940)
Charente-Inférieure remained Bonapartist post-1870, with BaronEugène Eschassériaux leading conservatives until 1893.[124] Republican gains came in 1876 withJules Dufaure as President of the Council (1876-1879).[125]Phylloxera devastated vineyards from 1872, dropping production from 7 million to 70,000 hectoliters by 1880; Saintonge rebuilt vineyards, while Aunis shifted to dairy, led by Eugène Biraud’s 1888 cooperative.[121] Coastal resorts like Royan boomed with rail access by 1875, hosting figures likeÉmile Zola during theBelle Époque.[126] In 1895,Alfred Dreyfus was held in Saint-Martin-de-Ré before deportation.[127]
Radicals dominated post-1898, withÉmile Combes of Pons as President of the Council (1902-1905), pushing the 1905 Church-State separation law.[128] In 1910, a rail crash at Saujon killed 38 and injured 80.[129]
World War I mobilization began on 1 August 1914; Charente-Inférieure supported the war effort with converted factories and U.S. bases like Saint-Trojan-les-Bains (1917).[130] The unfinished Talmont port project halted with the 1918 armistice.[131]
Post-war population dropped from 451,044 (1911) to 418,310 (1921), worsened by a 1920 oyster epizootic.[132] The Rochefort arsenal closed in 1927, but La Pallice port expanded by 1930.[133] TheGreat Depression hit in 1931, ending theRoaring Twenties. Radicals held strong in 1936 (42%), with strikes following theFront Populaire victory.[134]
German occupation began 23 June 1940, after the armistice; Charente-Inférieure hosted Alsace-Lorraine refugees from 1939.[135] TheAtlantic Wall fortified the coast, and La Pallice gained aKriegsmarine submarine base by 1941.[136] Resistance faced harsh repression, with deportations to camps likeDrancy.[137] The name changed to Charente-Maritime in 1941.[138] Liberation began in August 1944, with Royan bombed by theRAF in 1945 (442 civilian deaths) and freed in April via Operation Venerable.[139] Oléron was liberated on 30 April, and La Rochelle surrendered on 9 May 1945.[140]
Royan, 85% destroyed, was rebuilt as a modernist "urban laboratory" under Claude Ferret in the 1950s.[141] Saintes launched the "Castors Saintais" housing cooperative in 1950.[142] Rail lines closed, replaced by roads like Rochefort-Aigrefeuille-d’Aunis by 1950.[143]
TheTrente Glorieuses brought industrial growth, withSIMCA in Périgny (1965) and CIT-Alcatel in La Rochelle (1970).[144] Agriculture modernized, but rural exodus hit hard, with commune mergers like Montendre in 1972.[145] Urbanization grew, with La Rochelle’s agglomeration exceeding 100,000 by 1975; tourism surged with the Oléron viaduct (1966) andLa Palmyre Zoo (1967).[146]
1975-1990: Continued Modernization Against a Backdrop of Economic Crisis
A 1976 drought and 1982 floods hit hard.[147] Agriculture shifted to cereals and oilseeds like sunflower.[148] De-industrialization cut 10,000 jobs by 1985, with unemployment peaking above 15%.[149] Peri-urbanization emerged, and infrastructure grew with the A10 freeway (1981) andÎle de Ré bridge (1988).[150] Royan became a tourist hub, hosting 400,000 visitors seasonally.[151]
Since the 1990s, Charente-Maritime has transformed economically and socially, modernizing infrastructure with projects like the Martrou viaduct (1991),A837 freeway (1997), and Paris-La RochelleTGV electrification (1993).[152]La Rochelle University, founded in 1993, bolstered education and research.[152] Tourism drives the economy, making it France’s second most popular destination, with attractions like Royan,La Palmyre Zoo, andLa Rochelle Aquarium.[153] Industry includes rail, aircraft, and yachting, alongsideLa Pallice port activities.[154] Agriculture focuses on cereals, cognac, and pineau, while shellfish farming leads nationally in oysters and mussels.[154] With over 605,000 residents, it’s the most populous and fastest-growing department inPoitou-Charentes.[154] Natural disasters struck withCyclone Martin (1999, 13 deaths, 197 km/h winds) andCyclone Xynthia (2010, 12 deaths, coastal flooding), prompting anatural disaster declaration.[155] After the 2015Charlie Hebdo shooting, 30,000 marched in La Rochelle, with thousands more in Rochefort, Saintes, and Royan, supporting "Je suis Charlie."[156]
The department forms the northern part of theAquitaine Basin. It is separated from theMassif Armoricain by theMarais Poitevin to the north-west and from the Parisian basin by theSeuil du Poitou to the north-east. The highest point in the department is in the forest of Chantemerlière, near thecommune ofContré in the north-east, and rises to 173 m.[157]
The climate is mild and sunny, with less than 900 mm of precipitation per year[159] and withinsolation being remarkably high, in fact, the highest in Western France including southernmost sea resorts such asBiarritz.[160] Average extreme temperatures vary from 39 °C (102 °F)[161] in summer to −5 °C (23 °F) in winter (as of 2022).[162]
The economy of Charente-Maritime is based on three major sectors: tourism,maritime industry, and manufacturing.Cognac andpineau are two of the major agricultural products with maize andsunflowers being the others.[163]
Charente-Maritime is the headquarters of the majoroyster producer Marennes-Oléron.[164] Oysters cultivated here are shipped across Europe.
Rochefort is a shipbuilding site and has been a major French naval base since 1665.[165]
La Rochelle is a seat of major French industry. Just outside the city, inAytré, is a factory for the French engineering giantAlstom, where theTGV, the cars for theParis and othermetros are manufactured (seefr:Alstom Aytré).[166] It is a popular venue for tourism, with its picturesquemedieval harbour and city walls.
The department is served by theTGV atSurgères andLa Rochelle. It can also be reached by motorway by the A10 (E5, Paris-Bordeaux) and A837 (E602, Saintes-Rochefort).
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^"Histoire du CAREL" [History of CAREL].Centre audiovisuel de Royan pour l'étude des langues (in French). 13 November 2008. Archived fromthe original on 13 November 2008. Retrieved25 May 2010.
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Vallée, Sylvain; Nury, Fabien (2007).Il était une fois la France [Once upon a time there was France] (in French). Glénat.ISBN9782723455800.
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