Descartes, Indre-et-Loire
Descartes is a commune in the Indre-et-Loire department in central France. It is approximately 29 kilometers east of Richelieu and about 48 kilometers east of Loudun, on the banks of the Creuse River.
Descartes | |
|---|---|
 Town hall | |
 Coat of arms | |
Location of Descartes 
| |
  Descartes  Descartes | |
| Coordinates: 46°58′28″N 0°41′55″E | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Centre-Val de Loire |
| Department | Indre-et-Loire |
| Arrondissement | Loches |
| Canton | Descartes |
| Intercommunality | CC Loches Sud Touraine |
| Government | |
| • Mayor (2008–2014) | Jacques Barbier |
| Area 1 | 38.08 km2 (14.70 sq mi) |
| Population (2017-01-01)[1] | 3,489 |
| • Density | 92/km2 (240/sq mi) |
| Time zone | UTC+01:00 (CET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+02:00 (CEST) |
| INSEE/Postal code | 37115 /37160 |
| Elevation | 37–121 m (121–397 ft) |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
History
Liberation of Descartes (then La Haye-Descartes) in 1944
Initially called La Haye en Touraine, the town was the birthplace of the philosopher René Descartes (1596–1650), although his family home was in nearby Châtellerault. Descartes left La Haye in approximately 1606 to attend the College Henri IV at La Flèche.[2] The town was renamed La Haye-Descartes in 1802 in his honour, and then renamed again to Descartes in 1967.
Population
See table at left.
| Historical population | ||
|---|---|---|
| Year | Pop. | ±% |
| 1793 | 997 | — |
| 1800 | 850 | −14.7% |
| 1806 | 943 | +10.9% |
| 1821 | 1,123 | +19.1% |
| 1831 | 1,293 | +15.1% |
| 1836 | 1,393 | +7.7% |
| 1841 | 1,459 | +4.7% |
| 1846 | 1,592 | +9.1% |
| 1851 | 1,633 | +2.6% |
| 1856 | 1,532 | −6.2% |
| 1861 | 1,620 | +5.7% |
| 1866 | 1,609 | −0.7% |
| 1872 | 1,722 | +7.0% |
| 1876 | 1,735 | +0.8% |
| 1881 | 1,608 | −7.3% |
| 1886 | 1,694 | +5.3% |
| 1891 | 1,806 | +6.6% |
| 1896 | 1,786 | −1.1% |
| 1901 | 1,622 | −9.2% |
| 1906 | 1,638 | +1.0% |
| 1911 | 1,697 | +3.6% |
| 1921 | 1,702 | +0.3% |
| 1926 | 1,670 | −1.9% |
| 1931 | 1,570 | −6.0% |
| 1936 | 1,537 | −2.1% |
| 1946 | 1,477 | −3.9% |
| 1954 | 1,466 | −0.7% |
| 1962 | 1,679 | +14.5% |
| 1968 | 4,267 | +154.1% |
| 1975 | 4,446 | +4.2% |
| 1982 | 4,357 | −2.0% |
| 1990 | 4,120 | −5.4% |
| 1999 | 4,015 | −2.5% |
| 2006 | 3,855 | −4.0% |
| 2009 | 3,817 | −1.0% |
Personalities
The town is notable in Acadian genealogy as the birthplace of the Heberts.
References
- "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
- "Editor's Preface" in Discourse on Method and Meditations on First Philosophy (Hackett: 1998)
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