Editing Nantes (section)

==Governance==

===Local government===
{{Further|List of mayors of Nantes}}
[[File:Nantes - Hotel de ville 02.jpg|thumb|alt=Photo of the city hall|[[Hôtel de Ville, Nantes|Hôtel de Ville]] (City Hall)]]
[[File:Johanna Rolland, maire de Nantes..jpg|thumb|alt=Photo of the mayor of Nantes|Johanna Rolland, mayor of Nantes since 2014]]
Nantes is the {{Lang|fr|[[Prefectures in France|préfecture]]}} (capital city) of the [[Loire-Atlantique]] ''[[departments of France|département]]'' and the [[Pays de la Loire]] {{Lang|fr|[[regions of France|région]]}}. It is the residence of a {{Lang|fr|région}} and ''département'' ''prefect'', local representatives of the [[Government of France|French government]]. Nantes is also the meeting place of the {{Lang|fr|région}} and ''département'' councils, two elected political bodies.

The city is administered by a mayor and a council, elected every six years. The council has 65 councillors.{{sfn|Vos 65 élu-e-s}} It originated in 1410, when [[John V, Duke of Brittany]] created the Burghers's Council. The assembly was controlled by wealthy merchants and the Lord Lieutenant. After the union of Brittany and France, the burghers petitioned the French king to give them a city council which would enhance their freedom; their request was granted by [[Francis II of France|Francis II]] in 1559. The new council had a mayor, ten aldermen and a crown prosecutor. The first council was elected in 1565 with Nantes's first mayor, Geoffroy Drouet.{{sfn|Le pouvoir municipal}} The present city council is a result of the [[French Revolution]] and a 4 December 1789 act. The current [[Mayor (France)|mayor]] of Nantes is Johanna Rolland ([[Socialist Party (France)|Socialist Party]]), who was elected on 4 April 2014. The party has held a majority since 1983, and Nantes has become a [[Left-wing politics|left-wing]] stronghold.{{sfn|Antoine Gazeau|2013}} The city council is based at the [[Hôtel de Ville, Nantes|Hôtel de Ville]] (City Hall).<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.pss-archi.eu/immeubles/FR-44109-5951.html  |title=Hôtel-de-Ville – Hôtel de Derval|publisher=PSS Architecture|access-date=16 October 2024}}</ref>

Since 1995, Nantes has been divided into 11 neighbourhoods (''quartiers''), each with an advisory committee and administrative agents. City-council members are appointed to each ''quartier'' to consult with the local committees. The neighbourhood committees, existing primarily to facilitate dialogue between citizens and the local government, meet twice a year.{{sfn|Le dialogue citoyen}}

Like most [[communes of France|French municipalities]], Nantes is part of an [[communes in France#Intercommunality|intercommunal]] structure which combines the city with 24 smaller, neighbouring communes. Called [[Nantes Métropole]], it encompasses the city's [[metropolitan area]] and had a population of 609,198 in 2013. Nantes Métropole administers urban planning, transport, public areas, waste disposal, energy, water, housing, higher education, economic development, employment and European topics.{{sfn|Les compétences de}} As a consequence, the city council's mandates are security, primary and secondary education, early childhood, social aid, culture, sport and health.{{sfn|Compétences de la}} Nantes Métropole, created in 1999, is administered by a council consisting of the 97 members of the local municipal councils. According to an act passed in 2014, beginning in 2020, the metropolitan council will be elected by the citizens of Nantes Métropole. The council is currently overseen by Rolland.{{sfn|Une organisation au}}

===Heraldry===
[[File:Grandes_Armes_de_Nantes.svg|thumb|alt=See caption|Nantes's coat of arms]]
Local authorities began using official symbols in the 14th century, when the provost commissioned a seal on which the Duke of Brittany stood on a boat and protected Nantes with his sword. The present coat of arms was first used in 1514; its [[Ermine (heraldry)|ermines]] symbolise [[Brittany]], and its green waves suggest the Loire.{{sfn|Historique des armoiries}}

Nantes's coat of arms had ducal emblems before the French Revolution: the belt cord of the [[Order of the Ladies of the Cord|Order of the Cord]] (founded by [[Anne of Brittany]]) and the city's [[coronet]]. The coronet was replaced by a [[mural crown]] during the 18th century, and during the revolution a new emblem with a statue of [[Liberty (personification)|Liberty]] replaced the coat of arms. During Napoleon's rule the coat of arms returned, with bees (a symbol of his [[First French Empire|empire]]) added to the [[Chief (heraldry)|chief]]. The original coat of arms was readopted in 1816, and the [[Order of Liberation|Liberation Cross]] and the [[Croix de guerre 1939–1945 (France)|1939–45 War Cross]] were added in 1948.{{sfn|Historique des armoiries}}

Before the revolution, Nantes's motto was "''Oculi omnium in te sperant, Domine''" ("The eyes of all wait upon thee, O Lord", a line from a [[grace (prayer)|grace]]). It disappeared during the revolution, and the city adopted its current motto—"''Favet Neptunus eunti''" ("Neptune favours the traveller"){{sfn|Historique des armoiries}}—in 1816. Nantes's flag is derived from the naval [[Jack (flag)|jack]] flown by Breton vessels before the French Revolution. The flag has a white cross on a black one; its [[Quartering (heraldry)|quarters]] have Breton ermines except for the upper left, which has the city's coat of arms. The black and white crosses are historic symbols of Brittany and France, respectively.{{sfn|Drapeau de la}}

===Nantes and Brittany===
[[File:Château de Nantes - armoiries ducales.jpg|thumb|alt=Photo of a coat of arms on a castle wall|The arms of the dukes of Brittany in the [[Château des ducs de Bretagne|Castle of the Dukes of Brittany]]]]
Nantes and the Loire-Atlantique ''département'' were part of the historic province of [[Brittany]], and the city and [[Rennes]] were its traditional capitals. In the 1789 replacement of the historic [[provinces of France]], Brittany was divided among five ''[[départements]]''. The administrative region of Brittany did not exist during the 19th and early 20th centuries, although its cultural heritage remained.{{sfn|Reviews of Life}} Nantes and Rennes are in [[Upper Brittany]] (the [[Romance languages|Romance-speaking]] part of the region), and [[Lower Brittany]] in the west is traditionally [[Breton language|Breton-speaking]] and more [[Celts|Celtic]] in culture. As a large port whose outskirts encompassed other provinces, Nantes has been Brittany's economic capital and a cultural crossroads. Breton culture in Nantes is not necessarily characteristic of Lower Brittany's, although the city experienced substantial Lower Breton immigration during the 19th century.{{sfn|Le Page|2014|p=71}}{{sfn|Le Page|2014|p=76}}

In the mid-20th century, several French governments considered creating a new level of local government by combining ''départements'' into larger regions.{{sfn|Le Page|2014|p=83}} The regions, established by acts of parliament in 1955 and 1972, loosely follow the pre-revolutionary divisions and Brittany was revived as [[Brittany (region)|Region Brittany]]. Nantes and the Loire-Atlantique ''département'' were not included, because each new region centred on one metropolis.{{sfn|Le Page|2014|pp=93-94}} Region Brittany was created around Rennes, similar in size to Nantes; the Loire-Atlantique ''département'' formed a new region with four other ''départements'', mainly portions of the old provinces of [[Duchy of Anjou|Anjou]], [[Maine (France)|Maine]] and [[Poitou]]. The new region was called [[Pays de la Loire]] ("Loire Countries") although it does not include most of the [[Loire Valley]]. It has often been said that the separation of Nantes from the rest of Brittany was decided by [[Vichy France]] during the [[Second World War]]. [[Philippe Pétain]] created a new Brittany without Nantes in 1941, but his region disappeared after the [[Liberation of France|liberation]].{{sfn|Alain Déniel|1976}}{{sfn|Bodineau|1995}}{{sfn|Le Page|2014|p=95}}

Debate continues about Nantes's place in Brittany, with polls indicating a large majority in Loire-Atlantique and throughout the historic province favouring [[Reunification of Brittany|Breton reunification]].{{sfn|Le Page|2014|p=124}} In a 2014 poll, 67 percent of Breton people and 77 percent of [[Loire-Atlantique]] residents favoured reunification.{{sfn|La réunification de|2015}} Opponents, primarily Pays de la Loire officials, say that their region could not exist economically without Nantes. Pays de la Loire officials favour a union of Brittany with the Pays de la Loire, but Breton politicians oppose the incorporation of their region into a Greater West region.{{sfn|Bretagne: la bataille de la réunification}} Nantes's city council has acknowledged the fact that the city is culturally part of Brittany, but its position on reunification is similar to that of the Pays de la Loire.{{sfn|Le Page|2014|p=134}} City officials tend to consider Nantes an open metropolis with its own personality, independent of surrounding regions.{{sfn|Le Page|2014|p=135}}

===Twin towns – sister cities===
{{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in France}}
Nantes is [[Sister city|twinned]] with:<ref>{{cite web |title=Déclaration d'amitié Nantes-Cardiff|url=https://metropole.nantes.fr/actualites/2020/institutions/nantes-cardiff|publisher=Nantes|language=fr|access-date=5 December 2022}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
*{{flagicon|WAL}} [[Cardiff]], Wales, United Kingdom (1964)
*{{flagicon|ROU}} [[Cluj-Napoca]], Romania (1991){{sfn|Orase infratite}}
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Jacksonville, Florida|Jacksonville]], United States (1984){{sfn|Nantes-USA}}
*{{flagicon|JPN}} [[Niigata (city)|Niigata]], Japan (1999){{sfn|Jumelage entre les villes}}
*{{flagicon|CHN}} [[Qingdao]], China (2005){{sfn|Atlas français de la coopération décentralisée}}
*{{flagicon|GER}} [[Saarbrücken]], Germany (1965){{sfn|Nantes-Sarrebruck}}
*{{flagicon|USA}} [[Seattle]], United States (1980){{sfn|Nantes, France}}
*{{flagicon|KOR}} [[Suncheon]], South Korea (2007){{sfn|Liste des jumelages}}
*{{flagicon|GEO}} [[Tbilisi]], Georgia (1979){{sfn|Tbilisi Sister Cities}}
{{div col end}}

===Cooperation agreements===
Partnership agreements have been signed with cities in developing countries, including:<ref>{{cite web |title=Solidarité et coopérations internationales|url=https://metropole.nantes.fr/territoire-institutions/nantes/competences-municipales/solidarite-internationale|publisher=Nantes|language=fr|access-date=5 December 2022}}</ref>
{{div col|colwidth=20em}}
*{{flagicon|MAR}} [[Agadir]], Morocco
*{{flagicon|CMR}} [[Dschang]], Cameroon
*{{flagicon|HTI}} [[Grand'Anse (department)|Grand'Anse]], Haiti
*{{flagicon|GUI}} [[Kindia]], Guinea
*{{flagicon|BRA}} [[Recife]], Brazil
*{{flagicon|SEN}} [[Rufisque]], Senegal
{{div col end}}