Loire (; ; ; or Leir) is a landlocked department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of France occupying the river Loire's upper reaches. Its prefecture is Saint-ÃÂtienne. It had a population of 774,133 in 2023.
Loire was created in 1793 when the Rhône-et-Loire département was split into two, about three years after it was created in 1790. This was a response to counter-revolutionary activities in Lyon which, by population, was the country's second largest city. By splitting Rhône-et-Loire the government sought to protect the French Revolution from the potential power and influence of counter revolutionary activity in the Lyon region.
The Loire département roughly corresponds to the former province of Forez.
The departmental capitals (prefectures) throughout its history are as follows:
Loire is part of the current administrative region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and is surrounded by the départements of Rhône, Isère, Ardèche, Haute-Loire, Puy-de-Dôme, Allier, and Saône-et-Loire.
The river Loire traverses the department from south to north.
The Loire département is divided into three arrondissements:
Parts of the department belong to Parc naturel régional Livradois-Forez.
The inhabitants of the département are called Ligériens in French. The industrial city of Saint-ÃÂtienne with its agglomeration contains about half of the inhabitants of the département.
Population development since 1801:
The most populous commune is Saint-ÃÂtienne, the prefecture. As of 2023, there are 7 communes with more than 15,000 inhabitants:
The president of the Departmental Council is Georges Ziegler, elected in October 2017.