La Roche-sur-Yon

La Roche-sur-Yon (pronounced [la ʁɔʃ syʁ jɔ̃]) is a commune in the Vendée department in the Pays de la Loire region in western France. It is the capital of the department. The demonym for its inhabitants is Yonnais.^[3]

La Roche-sur-Yon
Prefecture and commune
Square Napoléon (Place Napoléon [fr])
Coat of arms
Location of La Roche-sur-Yon
La Roche-sur-Yon Show map of France La Roche-sur-Yon Show map of Pays de la Loire
Coordinates: 46°40′14″N 1°25′34″W
Country	France
Region	Pays de la Loire
Department	Vendée
Arrondissement	La Roche-sur-Yon
Canton	La Roche-sur-Yon-1 and 2
Intercommunality	La Roche-sur-Yon Agglomération
Government
• Mayor (2020–2026)	Luc Bouard[1]
Area 1	87.52 km2 (33.79 sq mi)
Population  (2022)[2]	54,699
• Density	620/km2 (1,600/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	85191 /85000
Elevation	32–94 m (105–308 ft) (avg. 74 m or 243 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Known for its historical significance and cultural heritage, La Roche-sur-Yon also houses a wide range of educational institutions, from primary schools to higher education establishments.

History

The Hôtel de Ville (town hall) of 1814

The town expanded significantly after Napoleon I had chosen the site as the new préfecture of the Vendée on 25 May 1804 to replace Fontenay-le-Comte (then under its revolutionary name of Fontenay-le-Peuple). At the time, most of La Roche had been eradicated in the War in the Vendée (1793–96); the renamed Napoléonville was laid out and a fresh population of soldiers and civil servants was brought in. Napoléonville was designed to accommodate 15,000 people.^[4] The Hôtel de Ville (town hall) was established on the southwestern side of Place Napoléon in 1814.^[5]

The town was called successively:

• La Roche-sur-Yon (during the Ancien Régime and the French First Republic)
• Napoléon-sur-Yon (during the First French Empire)
• Bourbon-Vendée (during the French Restoration)
• Napoléon-Vendée (during the French Second Empire)

Geography

The river Yon flows southward through the commune and crosses the town.

Climate

La Roche-sur-Yon has an oceanic climate (Köppen climate classification Cfb). The average annual temperature in La Roche-sur-Yon is 12.4 °C (54.3 °F). The average annual rainfall is 885.5 mm (34.86 in) with November as the wettest month. The temperatures are highest on average in August, at around 19.5 °C (67.1 °F), and lowest in January, at around 6.1 °C (43.0 °F). The highest temperature ever recorded in La Roche-sur-Yon was 41.5 °C (106.7 °F) on 18 July 2022; the coldest temperature ever recorded was −15.4 °C (4.3 °F) on 10 February 1986.

Comparison of local Meteorological data with other cities in France^[6]

Town	Sunshine (hours/yr)	Rain (mm/yr)	Snow (days/yr)	Storm (days/yr)	Fog (days/yr)
National average	1,973	770	14	22	40
La Roche-sur-Yon	1,922.4	880.7	4.9	13.1	56.4
Paris	1,661	637	12	18	10
Nice	2,724	767	1	29	1
Strasbourg	1,693	665	29	29	56
Brest	1,605	1,211	7	12	75

Climate data for La Roche-sur-Yon (1991−2020 normals, extremes 1984−present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	15.9 (60.6)	21.6 (70.9)	24.1 (75.4)	28.1 (82.6)	31.9 (89.4)	38.8 (101.8)	41.5 (106.7)	38.7 (101.7)	34.2 (93.6)	29.9 (85.8)	21.1 (70.0)	18.7 (65.7)	41.5 (106.7)
Mean daily maximum °C (°F)	9.0 (48.2)	10.1 (50.2)	13.1 (55.6)	15.7 (60.3)	19.3 (66.7)	22.8 (73.0)	24.9 (76.8)	25.1 (77.2)	22.1 (71.8)	17.3 (63.1)	12.5 (54.5)	9.5 (49.1)	16.8 (62.2)
Daily mean °C (°F)	6.1 (43.0)	6.4 (43.5)	8.8 (47.8)	10.9 (51.6)	14.3 (57.7)	17.5 (63.5)	19.4 (66.9)	19.5 (67.1)	16.8 (62.2)	13.4 (56.1)	9.2 (48.6)	6.5 (43.7)	12.4 (54.3)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F)	3.2 (37.8)	2.7 (36.9)	4.4 (39.9)	6.0 (42.8)	9.3 (48.7)	12.3 (54.1)	13.9 (57.0)	13.9 (57.0)	11.4 (52.5)	9.4 (48.9)	5.9 (42.6)	3.6 (38.5)	8.0 (46.4)
Record low °C (°F)	−14.9 (5.2)	−15.4 (4.3)	−10.3 (13.5)	−4.1 (24.6)	−0.3 (31.5)	2.8 (37.0)	7.2 (45.0)	5.1 (41.2)	2.5 (36.5)	−4.5 (23.9)	−7.1 (19.2)	−9.5 (14.9)	−15.4 (4.3)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	94.8 (3.73)	70.5 (2.78)	64.4 (2.54)	65.9 (2.59)	62.4 (2.46)	45.3 (1.78)	47.9 (1.89)	52.1 (2.05)	71.9 (2.83)	98.7 (3.89)	108.1 (4.26)	103.5 (4.07)	885.5 (34.86)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	12.6	10.5	10.3	10.0	9.5	7.5	7.4	7.6	7.9	12.0	13.3	13.2	121.8
Mean monthly sunshine hours	73.6	106.4	151.1	183.6	210.8	229.0	241.4	235.7	199.1	128.8	88.9	74.0	1,922.4
Source: Meteo France[7][8][9]

Population

The population data in the table and graph below refer to the commune of La Roche-sur-Yon proper, in its geography at the given years. The commune of La Roche-sur-Yon absorbed the former communes of Le Bourg-sous-la-Roche-sur-Yon and Saint-André-d'Ornay in 1964.^[10]

Historical population

Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1800 1,015 —     1806 857 −2.78% 1821 2,792 +8.19% 1831 3,904 +3.41% 1836 5,257 +6.13% 1841 5,164 −0.36% 1846 6,909 +6.00% 1851 7,498 +1.65% 1856 8,178 +1.75% 1861 8,298 +0.29% 1866 8,710 +0.97% 1872 8,841 +0.25% 1876 9,755 +2.49% 1881 10,634 +1.74% 1886 11,773 +2.06% 1891 12,215 +0.74% 1896 12,710 +0.80% 1901 13,629 +1.41%	Year Pop. ±% p.a. 1906 13,685 +0.08% 1911 14,885 +1.70% 1921 13,629 −0.88% 1926 14,538 +1.30% 1931 15,247 +0.96% 1936 16,073 +1.06% 1946 18,107 +1.20% 1954 19,576 +0.98% 1962 24,019 +2.59% 1968 36,067 +7.01% 1975 44,713 +3.12% 1982 45,098 +0.12% 1990 45,219 +0.03% 1999 49,262 +0.96% 2007 51,124 +0.46% 2012 52,808 +0.65% 2017 54,372 +0.59%
Source: EHESS[10] and INSEE (1968-2017)[11]

Administration

The Communauté d'agglomération "La Roche-sur-Yon Agglomération" contains 15 communes:

• Aubigny
• Chaillé-sous-les-Ormeaux
• La Chaize-le-Vicomte
• Les Clouzeaux
• Dompierre-sur-Yon
• La Ferrière
• Fougeré
• Landeronde
• Mouilleron-le-Captif
• Nesmy
• La Roche-sur-Yon
• Saint-Florent-des-Bois
• Le Tablier
• Thorigny
• Venansault

La Roche-sur-Yon is the chief town of the Arrondissement of La Roche-sur-Yon, which covers 11 cantons, 92 communes, and has a population of 230,386 (1999 census).

La-Roche-sur-Yon is chief town of two cantons, Canton of La Roche-sur-Yon-1 and Canton of La Roche-sur-Yon-2.

Main sights

• 
  Napoléon's statue (1854)
• 
  Kiosk on Napoléon square
• 
  Napoléon square / Place Napoléon [fr]
• 
  Saint-Louis church
• 
  Saint-Louis church
• 
  Saint-Louis church organ
• 
  Saint Louis Church of La Roche-sur-Yon
• 
  Theatre
• 
  Old Hospital
• 
  Museum
• 
  Post office
• 
  Prefecture building
• 
  Sacré-cœur church
• 
  Renaissance house (1566)
• 
  Old Palais de Justice
• 
  Benjamin Rabier media library
• 
  Train station
• 
  Fontenelles Abbey

Transport

The Gare de La Roche-sur-Yon railway station offers connections to Nantes, Paris, Les Sables-d'Olonne, Bordeaux and several regional destinations. The A87 motorway connects La Roche-sur-Yon with Les Sables-d'Olonne and Angers, the A83 with Nantes and Niort.

The airport, situated north of the city, on the East of the Lake "Moulin Papon", is host to a private jet business (SD Aviation), linking the city with Europe and North Africa. The airport is frequently used by general aviation, business jets and charter flights. There is no regular flight though.

Education

Primary and secondary education

The commune has designated attendance zones for its primary schools.^[12]

Schools include:

• 2 public preschools (écoles maternelles)^[13]
• 2 public elementary schools^[13]
• 13 public school groups of combined preschools and elementary schools^[13]
• 6 private elementary schools^[13]
• Public junior high schools: Collège Auguste et Jean-Renoir, Collège mixte Les Gondoliers, Collège mixte Edouard Herriot, Collège Haxo^[14]
• Private junior high schools: Collège mixte du Sacré-Coeur, Collège mixte Richelieu, Collège mixte Saint-Louis^[14]
• Public senior high schools: Lycée Nature (general education and agricultural technology), Lycée d'état mixte Alfred-Kastler, Lycée polyvalent Jean de Lattre-de-Tassigny, Lycée polyvalent Pierre-Mendès-France, and Lycée professionnel Edoaurd Branly^[15]
• Private senior high schools: Lycée Saint-François d'Assise, Lycée d'enseignement général et technologique Notre-Dame-du-Roc, Lycée les Etablières^[15]
• One grande école : Institut catholique d'arts et métiers

Higher education

La Roche-sur-Yon is home to several higher education institutions:

• Université de Nantes — La Roche-sur-Yon Campus: An extension of the University of Nantes, this campus hosts a variety of undergraduate programs including Business Administration, Computer Science, and Law.^[16]
• IUT La Roche-sur-Yon: A part of the University Institute of Technology, it provides vocational-technical education, granting two-year diplomas in fields like Mechanical Engineering, Business and Administration Management, and Multimedia and Internet Technologies.^[17]
• ICES (Institut Catholique d'Études Supérieures): A private institution known for programs in humanities, social sciences, law, and business.^[18]

Specialized institutions

La Roche-sur-Yon also hosts several specialized educational institutions:

• École Supérieure de Design de La Roche-sur-Yon: A design school offering programs in graphic design, product design, and interaction design.^[19]

• Conservatoire à rayonnement départemental de La Roche-sur-Yon: A music, dance, and drama school providing a wide range of courses for all ages.

Sports

In 2014 La Roche-sur-yon hosted the 2014 French championship of table tennis.^[20]

La Roche-sur-Yon's Vendéspace hosted one of the first round ties of the 2014 Davis Cup tennis tournament over the weekend of 31 January - 2 February 2014. France hosted Australia as both teams competed for a place in the World Group quarterfinals.

In 2015 La Roche-sur-Yon, will host the 2015 FIRS Men's Roller Hockey World Cup, the first time that a World Cup of roller hockey is held in France.

In June 2015 La Roche-sur-Yon's Vendéspace will host the qualification tournament for the World Championships in Savate Combat.^[21]

Twin towns – sister cities

La Roche-sur-Yon is twinned with:^[22]

• Gummersbach, Germany
• Coleraine, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom
• Drummondville, Canada
• Cáceres, Spain, since 1982
• Tizi Ouzou, Algeria, since 1989
• Burg bei Magdeburg, Germany, since 2005
• Broomhedge, Northern Ireland, United Kingdom, since 2021

Notable people

• Joséphine Colomb (1833-1892), children's writer, lyricist, translator
• Ciryl Gane (born 1990), mixed martial artist, former UFC Interim Heavyweight Champion
• Adlène Guedioura (born 1985), Algerian former professional footballer
• Thomas Laurent (born 1998), racing driver
• Nicolas Marroc (born 1986), racing driver
• MHD (born 1994), rapper

See also

• Communes of the Vendée department
• Education in France
• List of schools in France
• University of Nantes
• Institut Catholique d'Études Supérieures