Tarn (department)


Tarn is a department located in the Occitanie region of Southern France. Named after the Tarn River, it had a population of 386,448 as of 2016. Its prefecture and largest city is Albi. The inhabitants of Tarn are known, in French, as Tarnais and Tarnaises.

History

Tarn is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790, through application of the Law of 22 December 1789. It was created from part of the former province of Languedoc, and comprised the dioceses of Albi and Castres.
The new department had five districts: Albi, Castres, Lavaur, Gaillac, Lacaune. The capitals were, alternatively, Albi and Castres but, from 1790 to 1797, the capital was only Albi; in 1797, the capital was moved to Castres. In 1800, Albi became again the capital of the department and the arrondissements were created; the department had four arrondissements: Albi, Castres, Gaillac and Lavaur. In 1926, the arrondissements of Gaillac and Lavaur were eliminated.
By the law of 28 Pluviôse Year 5, the departments of Hérault and of Tarn exchanged the canton of Anglès for that of Saint-Gervais-sur-Mare.

Geography

Tarn is part of the Occitanie region and has an area of. The department is surrounded by 5 departments, all belonging to the region Occitanie: Hérault to the southeast, Aude to the south, Aveyron to the north and east, Haute-Garonne to the southwest and west, as well as Tarn-et-Garonne to the northwest.
The slope of the department is from east to west, and its general character is mountainous or hilly. Tarn's three principal ranges lying to the south-east are: the Mountains of Lacaune, the Sidobre and the Montagne Noire, belonging to the Cévennes.
The stony and wind-blown slopes of the Mountains of Lacaune are used for pasture. The highest point of the range and of the department is the Puech Montgrand, high; several other summits are not much short of this. The granite-strewn plateaux of the Sidobre, from high, separate the valley of the river Agout from that of its western tributary, the Thoré River. The Montagne Noire, on the southwestern border of the department, derives its name from the forests on its northern slope. Its highest point is the Pic de Nore at high.
The limestone and sandstone foot-hills are clothed with vines and fruit trees, and are broken by deep alluvial valleys of particular fertility. With the exception of a small portion of the Montagne Noire, which drains into the river Aude, the whole department belongs to the basin of the Garonne.

Demographics

Tarn has a population, in 2016, of 386,448, for a population density of inhabitants/km2. The arrondissement of Castres, with 192,432 inhabitants, is the arrondissement with more inhabitants. The arrondissement of Albi has 186,515 inhabitants.

Population evolution

Population development since 1793:

Urban centres

The 10 largest cities in Tarn, with more than 6,000 inhabitants, are:
CityPopulation
Arrondissement
Albi49,231Albi
Castres41,529Castres
Gaillac13,820Albi
Graulhet11,890Castres
Lavaur10,242Castres
Mazamet10,093Castres
Saint-Sulpice8,327Castres
Saint-Juéry6,715Albi
Labruguière6,365Castres
Aussillon6,167Castres

Administration

Administrative divisions

There are 2 arrondissements, 23 cantons and 323 communes in Tarn.
ArrondissementINSEE codeCapitalPopulation
Area
Density
Communes
Albi811Albi186,515 2,732 170
Castres812Castres192,432 3,026 153

Politics

Departmental Council of Tarn

The Departmental Council of Tarn has 46 seats. In the 2015 departmental elections, the Socialist Party won 26 seats and The Republicans and Union of Democrats and Independents alliance won 18 seats; two miscellaneous right candidates complete the assembly composition. Christophe Ramond has been President of the Departmental Council since 2017.

Members of the National Assembly

Tarn elected the following members of the National Assembly during the 2017 legislative election:

Gallery