Loiret

Loiret is a department in north-central France in the Centre-Val de Loire region. It is named after the Loiret river, a tributary of Loire that is completely within the department.
Its prefecture is Orléans and there are two subprefectures: Montargis and Pithiviers.
History.
The department is one of the 83 French departments made during the French revolution, on 4 March 1790. The department was created from part of the former province of Orléanais.
The new department had seven districts: Orléans, Beaugency, Neuville, Pithiviers, Montargis, Gien and Boiscommun. The capital (now prefecture) was Orléans.
In 1800, with the creation of the "arrondissements" in France, the seven districts were changed into four "arrondissements": Orléans, Gien, Montargis and Pithiviers.
After the Battle of Waterloo (18 June 1815), the department was occupied by the Bavarian army from June 1815 to November 1818.
On 10 September 1926, the "arrondissement" of Gien and Pithiviers were eliminated but in 1942 Pithiviers became again an "arrondissement" of the department.
Geography.
Loiret is part of the Centre-Val de Loire region. It has an area of .
The department is bordered by the 7 departments in 3 regions:
The highest point of the department is in the place called "Col des Étourneaux" (), in the "commune" of Pierrefitte-ès-Bois, and that is above sea level; it is in northwestern Massif Central.
The main rivers are:
There are several natural regions in the Loiret department:
Climate.
The Köppen climate classification type for the climate at Orléans is an "Oceanic climate" (also known as Marine West Coast Climate) and of the subtype Cfb.
The average amount of precipitation for the year in Orléans is . The month with the most precipitation on average is August with of precipitation. The month with the least precipitation on average is March with an average of .
The average temperature for the year in Orléans is . The warmest month, on average, is July with an average temperature of . The coolest month on average is January, with an average temperature of .
Administration.
The department is managed by the "Departmental Council of the Loiret" in Orléans. Loiret is part of the region of Centre-Val de Loire.
Administrative divisions.
There are 3 "arrondissements" (districts), 21 "cantons" and 326 "communes" (municipalities) in Loiret.
The following is a list of the 21 cantons of the Loir-et-Cher department, following the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015:
Demographics.
The inhabitants of Loiret are known, in French, as "Loiretains" (women: "Loiretaines").
Loiret has a population, in 2014, of 669,737, for a population density of inhabitants/km2. The "arrondissement" of Orléans, with 435,676 inhabitants, is by far the largest.
Evolution of the population in Loiret
The main cities in the department are: