The Sologne

The the Sologne is a forest area of France, located at the south of the the Loire, in the north of the Berry, the east of the Touraine. The Gentilé of the Sologne east Solognot .

Principal cities

There does not exist strictly speaking of capital. Several cities however are claimed some of which
  • Romorantin-Lanthenay, quoted extremely old whose origin is lost in the mists of time already at the 12th century, as in 1178, a strengthened place of certain importance testifies some.
The other important cities are:

Geography

  • It is a natural area French located in the administrative area of the Center. It extends to the south from the Loire on the Orléanais and the Blésois. It includes part of the Loiret and Loir-et-Cher, as well as a small portion of the Cher. She extends on close to 500  000 hectares.
  • It was a long time one of the poorest areas of France, although a great number of Château X were built there, in particular the Loire ch4ateau, such as Chambord, Cheverny, Chenonceau…

  • Especially known for its pond S (on 12.000 hectares, that is to say 2% of its territory) and its Forêt S, in particular described in Raboliot (Maurice Genevoix). It has a strong tradition of Pêche (halieutic) and of Chasse, very often private.

History of the Sologne

The names of many villages of the Sologne indicate a Gallic origin and many the tumuli discovered shows that the Sologne was populated at the age of iron. The principal rivers bear names of origin Celtique: Cosson, Beuvron (“river of the beavers”), fast Tharonne river . The upper part of the Sauldre, then of Beuvron, constituted the border between Gaulle of the Carnutes (Lyons) and that of the Bituriges (Aquitanian).

The One hundred Year old war does not save the Sologne: Romorantin is taken by the Prince Noir. Jeanne d' Arc crosses of length into broad the area. At the end of this war, the repairing of the area is accompanied by a modification by the landscape with creation by many ponds, pisciculture being more profitable than agriculture.

At the end of the 15th century, the king and his court will remain there to remain. Louis XII settles in Romorantin. François I {{er}} meets there Claude of France which he marries then. The Sologne knows a relative prosperity then.

During 17th and 18th centuries the marshes take again the top and the area is inserted in misery. The solognots will follow by far the sudden starts of the Révolution. The administrative reform divides the Sologne between three departments: Loir-et-Cher, Loiret and Expensive, nobody not seeking to dispute such a poor territory.

The arrival should be awaited, in 1852, of Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, then future president of the Republic but Empereur and which has a field with the Mound-Beuvron, so that the Sologne profits from appreciable subsidies and redécouvre a pretense from growth. The interest which the emperor carries to the Sologne, partly of family fasteners on the side of his mother (Hortense de Beauharnais whose several ancètres had fields in the Sologne), his reputation hunting and the Railroad in 1847, then will attract the upper middle class. The middle-class men succeed the aristocrats thus.

Since agriculture and sylviculture are relegated to the second plan. Hunting pays more and more quickly.

Flora

The forest covers the 3/4 of the country solognot. It consists of several great forest types: the the Oak grove - charmaie, rarest but especially the most diversified, the valley of Sauldre, national forests, vast forest properties. One meets there the Chêne S stalks and sessile, the Charme, the common maple, the Sycomore, the Noisetier, the Bouleau, the woodland Pin (this last having replaced the Maritime pine destroys by the winter 1879), the Sapin Douglas, some Hêtre S, Tremble S and Frêne S. In spring, thanks to their flowering, one distinguishes from the wild fruit-lofts such as: Pear tree S, Apple tree S, service-trees or Wild cherry tree S.

In underwood it is also a festival of flowers: various species of primulas, of which most known is the cuckoo, are present: formed blue carpets of small periwinkles, bluebells to purplished small bells, violets of wood.

Certain plants, in particular the Heather S and the Genêt S are installed on the moors.

Fauna

The stag S, Roe-deer S and Sanglier S often seek the peace of the forests. One rather frequently meets sedentary animals like the roe-deers or wild boars. The stag needs vaster spaces except at the time of the Brame. The hinds as the stags like the calm places: hinds to put low and stags to get rid and remake their wood.

The Sologne is also the refuge many other animals carnivorous, Canidé S and Mustélidé S like the Renard S, Martre S, Fouine S, Belette S, Hermine S, Putois. Among the Lagomorph S, the Wild rabbit, symbol of popular hunting in the Sologne is now limited because of Myxomatose.

Finally one can note the presence of more than two hundred species of Oiseau X, of good forty species of Mammifère S, of about thirty species of Poisson S, of ten species of reptiles and as many batrachians. Finally the species of Insecte S amount per thousands.

Ponds

The nature and the impermeability of the ground of the Sologne explain the presence of many ponds (approximately 3  200 which represents 11  500 hectares of water). They are, for the majority, artificial, because aiming to the development of pisciculture, the rebuilding the shortly after the Guerre One hundred Year old to the " rénovation" , under Napoleon III, of this marshy area. They are particularly concentrated close to the Fountain-in-Sologne and around Saint-Viâtre, this last zone being called the the Sologne of the ponds . Most important 50 hectares (ten in this case) exceed. Largest and more visited is the pond of the Well , located at approximately 60 km in the south-east of Orleans, of a surface of almost 180 hectares, bench at the end of the years 1860 like tank intended to feed the Canal of Sauldre. All these ponds do not date from the Moyen-âge, however, it is well at that time that the majority were created in order to make disappear the vast marshes which had been formed following the intensive deforestations. Today, these maintained ponds, but wild, constitute natural environments for fauna and the flora.

Fishing in pond, in autumn, is one of the oldest traditions of the Sologne.

The traditional habitat solognot

Its villages have a charm, offering an architectural heritage and treasures of great values: red brick dwellings, old half-timbered houses, churches to be caquetoir, small and large museums, manors, castles (the Sologne does not count less than four hundred castles).

Tourism

Climate

The climate solognot is particular. The minimal temperatures are low, because of the sandy ground. The ground which is gorged easily with water can also become very dry in summer.

Reviews and newspapers

The area is covered by several daily newspapers:

There exist two reviews concerning the area:

  • the Newspaper of the Sologne , four numbers per annum, not included/understood them except series;
  • Small the solognot , 12 numbers per annum.

Great writers of the Sologne

Bonds

  • UCPS : union for the popular culture in the Sologne - union of 49 religious organizations.
  • Natura 2000 : the Sologne in the network Natura 2000.
  • SNE: The Natural Sologne Environment - association of study and protection of nature in the Sologne

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