Editing Yonne

{{short description|Department in Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, France}}
{{About|the French department|the French river|Yonne (river)}}
{{Infobox settlement
<!-- See Template:Infobox settlement for additional fields and descriptions -->
| name                = Yonne
| native_name         = 
| native_name_lang    = fr<!-- ISO 639-2 code e.g. "fr" for French. If more than one, use {{lang}} instead -->
| type                = [[Departments of France|Department of France]]
| image_skyline       = Auxerre - 111.jpg
| image_alt           = 
| image_caption       = The Palais épiscopal in [[Auxerre]], which houses the [[Prefectures in France|prefecture]] of Yonne
| image_flag          = Flag_of_the_Department_of_Yonne.svg
| flag_alt            = 
| image_shield        = Blason département fr Yonne.svg
| shield_alt          = 
| nickname            = 
| motto               = 
| image_map           = Yonne-Position.svg
| map_alt             = 
| map_caption         = Location of Yonne in France
| pushpin_map         = 
| pushpin_label_position = 
| pushpin_map_alt     = 
| pushpin_map_caption = 
| coordinates         = {{coord|47|48|N|3|34|E|region:FR_type:adm2nd|display=inline,title}}
| coor_pinpoint       = 
| coordinates_footnotes = 
| subdivision_type    = [[List of sovereign states|Country]]
| subdivision_name    = [[France]]
| subdivision_type1   = [[Regions of France|Region]]
| subdivision_name1   = [[Bourgogne-Franche-Comté]]
| established_title   = 
| established_date    = 
| founder             = 
| seat_type           = [[Prefectures in France|Prefecture]]
| seat                = [[Auxerre]]
| parts_type          = [[Subprefectures in France|Subprefectures]]
| parts_style         = para
| p1                  = [[Avallon]]<br>[[Sens]]
| government_footnotes = 
| leader_party        = [[The Republicans (France)|LR]]
| leader_title        = [[List of presidents of departmental councils (France)|President of the Departmental Council]]
| leader_name         = Patrick Gendraud<ref>{{cite web|title=Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux|url=https://www.data.gouv.fr/fr/datasets/r/601ef073-d986-4582-8e1a-ed14dc857fba|website=data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises|date=4 May 2022|language=fr}}</ref>
| unit_pref           = Metric<!-- or US or UK -->
| area_magnitude      = 
| area_footnotes      = {{ref|area|1}}
| area_total_km2      = 7427
| area_note           = 
| elevation_footnotes = 
| elevation_m         = 
| elevation_min_m     = 
| elevation_max_m     = 
| population_total        = {{France metadata Wikidata|population_total}}
| population_as_of        = {{France metadata Wikidata|population_as_of}}
| population_footnotes    = {{France metadata Wikidata|population_footnotes2}}
| population_rank     = [[List of French departments by population|70th]]
| population_density_km2 = auto
| population_demonym  = 
| population_note     = 
| blank_name_sec1     = [[Departments of France|Department number]]
| blank_info_sec1     = 89
| blank_name_sec2     = [[Arrondissements of France|Arrondissements]]
| blank_info_sec2     = [[arrondissements of the Yonne department|3]]
| blank1_name_sec2    = [[Cantons in France|Cantons]]
| blank1_info_sec2    = [[Cantons of the Yonne department|21]]
| blank2_name_sec2    = [[Communes in France|Communes]]
| blank2_info_sec2    = [[Communes of the Yonne department|423]]
| timezone1           = [[Central European Time|CET]]
| utc_offset1         = +1
| timezone1_DST       = [[Central European Summer Time|CEST]]
| utc_offset1_DST     = +2
| postal_code_type    = 
| postal_code         = 
| area_code_type      = 
| area_code           = 
| iso_code            = 
| website             = 
| footnotes           = {{note|area|1}} French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries and lakes, ponds and glaciers larger than 1 km<sup>2</sup>
}}

'''Yonne''' ({{IPA|fr|jɔn|lang}}, in [[Burgundian language (Oïl)|Burgundian]]: ''Ghienne'') is a [[Departments of France|department]] in the [[Bourgogne-Franche-Comté]] [[Regions of France|region]] in [[France]]. It is named after the river [[Yonne (river)|Yonne]], which flows through it, in the country's north-central part. One of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté's eight constituent departments, it is located in its northwestern part, bordering [[Île-de-France]]. It was created in 1790 during the [[French Revolution]]. Its [[Prefectures in France|prefecture]] is [[Auxerre]], with [[Subprefectures in France|subprefectures]] in [[Avallon]] and [[Sens]]. Its [[Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques|INSEE]] and postcode number is 89.

Yonne is Bourgogne-Franche-Comté's fourth-most populous department, with a population of 335,707 (2019).<ref name=pop2019>[https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/fichier/6011060/dep89.pdf Populations légales 2019: 89 Yonne], INSEE</ref> Its largest city is its prefecture Auxerre, with a population of about 35,000 within city limits and 68,000 in the urban area.

==History==
The first evidence of occupation in this area is found in the Grottes d'Arcy-sur-Cure, where paintings have been found dating back 28,000 years. The Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers of that time also left behind numerous flint artefacts. The area is believed to have been occupied for about 200,000 years.<ref name=CRDP2>{{cite book
| author  =B. Schmider
| title   =L'Yonne, un département: Le paléolithique supérieur dans l'Yonne
| editor  =CRDP de l'Académie de Dijon
| year    =1984
| isbn    =2-86621-043-3
}}</ref> By 4000 BC, a wave of Neolithics arrived from the [[Danube River]] region of eastern Europe. They built substantial wooden houses and introduced pottery decorated with the characteristics of the [[Linear Pottery culture]]. Further waves of migrants followed, the [[Chasséen culture]], and the [[Michelsberg culture]].<ref name=CRDP3>{{cite book
| author =Claude Mordant
| title  =L'Yonne, un département: Le néolithique dans l'Yonne
| editor =CRDP de l'Académie de Dijon
| year   =1984
| isbn   =2-86621-043-3
}}</ref>

The [[Celts|Celtic tribe]] in the area were named "Icauna", after the River Yonne which they thought sacred. The region was later occupied by [[Gauls|Gallic tribes]]. In that period, the area came under the control of the [[Roman Empire]], whose chief town was Sens, which they called Agendicum. It was the capital of their province of [[Gallia Lugdunensis]], one of four provinces into which France was divided.{{citation needed|date=April 2016}} The present main roads from [[Lyon]] to [[Boulogne]], and from Sens to [[Alise-Sainte-Reine]] date from this period. About this time, Auxerre, Tonnerre (Tornodurum) and [[Avallon]] were growing in size. In the fourth century, Sens became a walled city. The first bishops were appointed in Sens and [[Langres]], and they influenced the region profoundly because of their power.{{citation needed|date=October 2015}}

In 1771, the north-westerly part of the present department belonged to [[Prince Francis Xavier of Saxony]], the uncle of [[Louis XVI of France]]. The current Yonne department was organized and defined during the French Revolution, on March 4, 1790, as a result of the passing of an Act on December 22, 1789.<ref>{{cite book|author=McPhee, Peter|title=The French Revolution, 1789–1799 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cfDmJX3QhlkC |year=2001 |publisher=OUP Oxford |isbn=978-0-19-160825-4}}</ref> It was carved out of parts of the provinces of [[Burgundy]], [[Champagne (province)|Champagne]] and [[Orléans]], and to a lesser extent from parts of the [[Nivernais]] and [[Île-de-France]].

==Geography==
[[File:Carte de l'Yonne.svg|thumb|300px|right|Map of Yonne]]
Yonne is a department in central France, one of the eight constituent departments of the region of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté. To the northeast lies the department of [[Aube]], to the east lies [[Côte-d'Or]], to the south lies [[Nièvre]], to the west lies [[Loiret]] and to the northwest, the department of [[Seine-et-Marne]]. The River Yonne flows northwards through the department. [[Auxerre]], the capital of the department, is situated on the River Yonne, and the [[Serein|River Serein]] joins this a few kilometres north of the city. The [[Canal de Bourgogne]], which connects the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean, joins the River Yonne through [[Lock (water transport)|locks]] at [[Migennes]] a little further north. The second biggest town is [[Sens]], situated at the confluence of the rivers [[Vanne (river)|Vanne]] and Yonne.<ref name=Philips>{{cite book |title=Philips' Modern School Atlas |year=1973 |publisher=George Philip and Son, Ltd. |isbn=0-540-05278-7 |page=43 }}</ref>

The geology of the department is complex with concentric rings of granite, Jurassic, Cretaceous and Tertiary rocks, and layers of sedimentary rocks. The terrain is mostly a low-lying plateau used for agriculture. The southwestern part is the [[Puisaye]], which has a higher elevation and is more wooded. To the centre and east, the land inclines to the northwest where the higher land of the Tonnerrois region lies. To the east the rock is mostly limestone. The Auxerrois region is renowned for the grapes grown here, which are used in the production of [[Chablis]] wine. To the south lies the mountainous massif of [[Morvan]], the highest parts of which are in the neighbouring department of Nièvre.<ref name=Philips/> The department has some forested areas but is mainly used for pasture or cultivated for wheat.<ref name=Baxevanis>{{cite book|author=Baxevanis, John J. |title=The Wines of Champagne, Burgundy, Eastern and Southern France|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=EczgQ7PLGVkC&pg=PA89 |year=1987|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield |isbn=978-0-8476-7534-0 |page=89}}</ref>

===Principal towns===

The most populous commune is [[Auxerre]], the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 6 communes with more than 5,000 inhabitants:<ref name=pop2019/>

{| class=wikitable
! Commune
! Population (2019)
|-
| [[Auxerre]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 34,451
|-
| [[Sens]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 26,688
|-
| [[Joigny]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 9,557
|-
| [[Migennes]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 7,258
|-
| [[Avallon]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 6,462
|-
| [[Villeneuve-sur-Yonne]]
| style="text-align: center;" | 5,165
|}

== Demographics ==
Population development since 1801:{{historical populations|cols=2|13=1801|14=320,596|15=1806|16=326,548|17=1821|18=332,905|19=1831|20=352,487|21=1841|22=362,961|23=1851|24=381,133|25=1861|26=370,305|27=1872|28=363,608|29=1881|30=357,029|31=1891|32=344,688|33=1901|34=321,062|35=1911|36=303,889|37=1921|38=273,118|39=1931|40=275,755|41=1936|42=271,685|43=1946|44=266,014|45=1954|46=266,410|47=1962|48=269,826|49=1968|50=283,376|51=1975|52=299,851|53=1982|54=311,019|55=1990|56=323,096|57=1999|58=333,221|59=2006|60=340,088|61=2011|62=342,463|63=2016|64=340,544|align=middle|percentages=pagr|footnote=source:<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://splaf.free.fr/89his.html|title=Historique de l'Yonne|website=Le SPLAF}}</ref><ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.insee.fr/fr/statistiques/4176909?geo=DEP-89|title=Évolution et structure de la population en 2016|publisher=INSEE}}</ref>|graph-pos=bottom}}

==Economy==
Over fifty percent of the inhabitants of the department are engaged in agricultural activities. Yonne is one of the poorest and most rural departments in France. During the hundred years leading up to 1962, its population declined by around 100,000, while all of the surrounding departments experienced population growth. Yonne had been bypassed by the development of the railways. As French industry flourished elsewhere in the late nineteenth century, the young people left Yonne seeking better opportunities, and the department stagnated.{{citation needed|date = March 2023}}

The [[viticulture]] industry was severely affected by the advent of [[powdery mildew]] and the arrival of ''[[Phylloxera]]'' in the nineteenth century; at the same time, the development of the railway network allowed cheaper wines from other regions to undercut [[Chablis wine]] in the Paris market. The once-thriving industry never recovered.<ref>J. Robinson (ed) ''"The Oxford Companion to Wine"'', Third Edition, pg 148–149, Oxford University Press, 2006 {{ISBN|0-19-860990-6}}</ref> By 1945, only 4000 hectares of grapevines remained, and only 471 hectares of grapes were grown for Chablis.<ref name=Baxevanis/>

More recently, the population trend has been reversed. During the period 1999 to 2007, it rose by 8000 to a total of 341,418. However, with a population of 46 inhabitants per square kilometre, the density in Yonne is still less than half that for the whole of France, which was 100.5 for the same year.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.insee.fr/fr/bases-de-donnees/default.asp?page=recensements.htm |title=Les résultats des recensements de la population |publisher=Insee |access-date=2015-09-22}}</ref>

==Politics==

The president of the Departmental Council is Patrick Gendraud, elected in 2017. In 2015, the General Council of the department was allotted a budget of 410 million euros.<ref>{{cite web |url= http://www.cg89.fr/Le-Conseil-Departemental/Budget-2015 |title=Budget 2015: Le Conseil Départemental: Portail Internet du Conseil Départemental de l'Yonne |publisher=www.cg89.fr |access-date=2015-09-02}}</ref>

===Current National Assembly Representatives===

The department elects three members of parliament to the [[National Assembly of France|National Assembly]]. In the 2012–17 parliamentary term, two represented the right-wing [[Union for a Popular Movement]] (UMP) and one the [[Socialist Party (France)]] (PS).

{| class="wikitable"
|-
!colspan="2"|Constituency!!Member<ref>{{Cite web|url=https://www.assemblee-nationale.fr/|title=Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français|first=Assemblée|last=Nationale|website=Assemblée nationale}}</ref>!!Party
|-
|style="background-color: {{party color|National Rally}}" |
| [[Yonne's 1st constituency]]
| [[Daniel Grenon]]
| [[National Rally]]
|-
|style="background-color: {{party color|Union of Democrats and Independents}}" |
| [[Yonne's 2nd constituency]]
| [[André Villiers]]
| [[Horizons (political party)|Horizons]]
|-
|style="background-color: {{party color|National Rally}}" |
| [[Yonne's 3rd constituency]]
| [[Julien Odoul]]
| [[National Rally]]
|}

==Tourism==
<gallery>
File:1240-Auxerre.jpg|[[Auxerre]] and the [[Yonne River]]
File:Léglise Saint-Maurice et lYonne à Sens (2637691088).jpg|[[Sens]] on the Yonne river
File:Avallon-Tour de l'Horloge depuis la place de la Collégiale Saint-Lazare.jpg|[[Avallon]]
File:2012-DSC 0335-Villeneuve-sur-Yonne-Porte-de-Joigny.jpg|[[Villeneuve-sur-Yonne]]
File:Château de Guédelon (juillet 2009).jpg|The medieval construction project of [[Guédelon Castle]] as of 2009
</gallery>

==See also==
* [[Cantons of the Yonne department]]
* [[Communes of the Yonne department]]
* [[Arrondissements of the Yonne department]]

==References==
{{reflist|30em}}

==External links==
{{commons category}}
* {{in lang|fr}} [https://www.yonne.gouv.fr/ Prefecture website]
* {{in lang|fr}} [https://www.yonne.fr/ Departmental Council website]
* (in French) [http://www.yonne.cci.fr/ Chamber of commerce]

{{Departments of France}}
{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Yonne| ]]
[[Category:Departments of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté]]
[[Category:States and territories established in 1790]]