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Home > Travel France > France Destinations > Poitiers
Poitiers
France, officially the French Republic, is a country whose metropolitan territory is located in Western Europe and comprises various overseas islands and territories which are located in other regions. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. At 674,843 square kilometers, France is the world's 40th-largest country after Myanmar. France is a member of The European Union and Paris is the capital of this nation. The sole official language of France is French. Since prehistoric times, France has been a crossroads of trade, migrations, and invasions.
Poitiers is a city located in west central France. It is a community and the capital of the Vienne departement and of the Poitou-Charentes region. Poitiers is situated on the Clain River. In 2004, the population of the city was 85,800 and an area of 42.11 square kilometers. Poitiers is strategically situated on the Seuil du Poitou, a shallow zone joining the Armorican to the Central Massif and connecting the Aquitaine Basin to the Paris Basin. The site of Poitiers is a vast promontory between the valleys of Boivre and Clain.
Poitiers was founded before Roman influence by the Pictones tribe. Poitiers was the capital of Poitou, the region governed by the Counts of Poitiers. Poitiers was the birthplace of influential 20th century French philosopher Michel Foucault. Michel Aco, the explorer, was also born there. Many Acadians or Cajuns living in North America can trace origin to this region as their descendants left from there in the 17th century. Poitiers has a railway station on the TGV, French high speed train route between Paris and Bordeaux. The station is in the valley to the west of the old town centre. Services run to Angouleme, Limoges and La Rochelle in addition to Paris and Bordeaux. Poitiers is an attractive city with natural beauty and historical places, while traveling in France.
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