Vaucluse (Department, France)

Last modified: 2015-04-06 by ivan sache
Keywords: vaucluse |
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Flag of the General Council of Vaucluse - Image by Ivan Sache, 1 December 2004

• Administrative data
• History of the department of Vaucluse
• Flag of the General Council of Vaucluse
• Vaucluse (Department, France): Municipal flags
  • Gigondas
  • Isle-sur-la-Sorgue (L')
  • Monteux
  • Pernes-les-Fontaines
  • Roaix
  • Saumane-de-Vaucluse
  • Séguret
  • Sérignan-du-Comtat
  • Valréas
  • Vedène
• Choralies (choir festival organized in Vaison-la-Romaine)

See also:

• France
• France: Metropolitan departments
• Clickable map of France (departments)

Administrative data

Code: 84
Region: Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur
Traditional provinces: Comtat Venaissin, Provence
Bordering departments: Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Hautes-Alpes, Ardèche, Bouches-du-Rhône, Drôme, Gard

Area: 3,567 km² (including the canton of Valréas, enclaved in the department of Drôme)
Population (2008): 537,500 inhabitants

Préfecture: Avignon
Sous-préfectures: Apt, Carpentras
Subdivisions: 3 arrondissements, 24 cantons, 151 communes.

The department is named after Vallis Closa, the "closed valley" from which emerges Fountain Vaucluse, the source of river Sorgue. Fountain Vaucluse is known by hydrologists worldwide as the model of "Vauclusian resurgence".

Ivan Sache, 15 November 2009

History of the department of Vaucluse

The department of Vaucluse was created as the (then) 87th French department by Decree of 25 June 1793. It incorporates the following former entities:
- Comtat d'Avignon, incorporated to France on 14 September 1791 and allocated on 28 March 1792 to the department of Bouches-du-Rhône as the district of Avignon;
- Comtat Venaissin, incorporated to France on 14 September 1791 and allocated on 28 March 1792 to the department of Drôme as the district of Carpentrads;
- Principality of Orange, incorporated to France in 1713 and allocated in 1790 to the department of Bouches-du-Rhône;
- Viguerie (a former administrative division of Provence) of Apt, allocated in 1790 to the department of Bouches-du-Rhône;
- County of Sault, allocated in 1790 to the department of Basses-Alpes.

In 1800, the canton of Suze-la-Rousse was incorporated to the department of Drôme, recreating the former Papal Enclave of Valréas (Valréas, Grillon, Richerenches and Visan), which forms an exclave of Vaucluse enclaved in Drôme.

Ivan Sache, 15 November 2009

Flag of the General Council of Vaucluse

The flag of the General Council of Vaucluse is white with the logo of the General Council.
The logotype of the General Council of Vaucluse is made of a blue square charged with a "fuzzy" white V. A dark yellow vertical stripe is placed along the left side of the square, from which it is separated by a white fimbriation. "Conseil général de Vaucluse" is written in blue beneath the square.

Ivan Sache, 1 December 2004