Home

Orléanais

Orléanais, also known as Orléannais, is a historic province of central France named after its capital, Orléans. In the Ancien Régime it formed part of the administrative and territorial framework of the Kingdom of France, with its identity closely tied to the Loire Valley and the city of Orléans.

Geographically, the Orléanais occupied the central Loire corridor around Orléans. Its boundaries roughly align with the

Historically, the province played a notable role in national events. Its capital, Orléans, gained fame during

With the French Revolution in 1790, the provinces were reorganized into départements, and Orléanais ceased to

modern
Centre-Val
de
Loire
region
and
include
large
parts
of
the
present-day
departments
of
Loiret,
Eure-et-Loir,
and
Loir-et-Cher.
The
landscape
features
the
Loire
and
its
tributaries,
with
plains,
woodlands,
and
agricultural
areas
that
have
supported
grain,
wine,
and
other
rural
economies.
the
Hundred
Years’
War,
notably
in
the
siege
of
Orléans
in
1429
when
Joan
of
Arc
inspired
French
resistance.
The
Orléanais
was
governed
by
the
Counts
and
later
Dukes
of
Orléans,
and
it
participated
in
the
political
and
cultural
developments
of
medieval
and
early
modern
France.
exist
as
an
administrative
unit.
The
territory
was
divided
primarily
among
Loiret,
Eure-et-Loir,
and
Loir-et-Cher,
within
the
modern
Centre-Val
de
Loire
region.
Today
the
name
survives
in
historical
and
cultural
references
and
in
the
regional
identity
of
the
Loire
Valley.