It is named after theCharenteriver, the most important river in the department. The two largest towns of the department,Angoulême andCognac, are along this river.
Charente is one of the 83 French departments made during theFrench revolution, on 4 March 1790. It was created from the old province ofAngoumois with lands aroundAngoulême.
In 1800, with the creation of thearrondissements in France, the six districts were changed into fivearrondissements: Angoulême, Barbezieux, Cognac, Confolens and Ruffec.[3]
On 10 September 1926, thearrondissements of Barbezieux and Ruffec were eliminated.[3]
The highest point of the department isRocher aux Oiseaux,368m (1,207ft) high, in thecommune ofMontrollet; the lowest point is in the valley of the Charente river,commune ofMerpins, and is8m (26ft) high.
The climate of Cognac is an oceanic climate with template summers,Cfb (Marine West Coast Climate) in theKöppen climate classification.[4]
Theaverage amount ofprecipitation for the year in Cognac is777.2mm (30.6in). The month with the most precipitation on average is November with86.4mm (3.4in) of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is July with an average of48.3mm (1.9in).
The average temperature for the year in Cognac is13.3°C (55.9°F). The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of21.1°C (70.0°F). The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of6.1°C (43.0°F).
The following is a list of the 19cantons of the Charente department (with theirINSEE codes), following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:[8]
The inhabitants of Charente are known, inFrench, asCharentais (women:Charentaises).[9]
Charente has a population, in 2014, of 353,853,[2] for a population density of59.4 inhabitants/km2. Thearrondissement of Angoulême, with 197,377 inhabitants, is by far the largest. The other two, Cognac and Confolens, have respectively 92,224 and 64,252 inhabitants.[6]
12"Département de la Charente (16)".Comparateur de territoire (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved31 May 2017.
↑"Département de la Charente (16)".Géographie administrative et d'étude (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved31 May 2017.
↑"Département de la Charente (16)".Comparateur de territoire (in French). Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques - INSEE. Retrieved31 May 2017.
