Lorient
Encyclopedia
Lorient, or L'Orient, is a commune
and a seaport
in the Morbihan
department in Brittany
in north-western France
.
had established warehouses in Port-Louis
. They later built additional warehouses across the bay in 1628, at the location which became known as L'Orient (the Orient
in French
).
Later, the French East India Company
, founded in 1664 and chartered by King Louis XIV
, established shipyard
s there, thus giving an impetus to the development of the city. In 1746 during the War of the Austrian Succession
, Britain launched an unsuccessful Raid on Lorient
to destroy French shipping.
In attempts to destroy German submarine pen
s (U-boat
bases) and their supply lines, most of this city was destroyed by Allied bombing
during World War II
(see section below). Thus, today's Lorient reflects an architectural style of the 1950s.
. The rivers Blavet
and Scorff
enter the Atlantic Ocean at Lorient.
.
Inhabitants of Lorient are called Lorientais.
on 25 January 2007.
In 2008, 2.71% of the children attended the bilingual schools in primary education.
: Porzh Pesketa), at Keroman and the docks area at Kergroise handle large cargo and passenger ships.
Tourism plays an important part in the city's economy and there are several large yachting marina
s around the bay. The annual Festival Interceltique de Lorient
was founded in Lorient in 1971 and attracts large numbers of tourists to the area every summer (700 000 people came in 2009).
Lorient was a former base of the French Navy
but these piers, docks, etc., have now been removed. However, many important former French naval buildings remain around the quayside.
is situated just west of the city at Lann Bihoue, and it has direct flights to several destinations, such as to Paris
and Lyon
. There are direct connections with Ireland in Summer.
The Gare de Lorient
is the railway station, offering connections to Quimper, Nantes, Rennes, Paris (slightly less than 4 hours by TGV) and several regional destinations.
Lorient was the location of a German
U-boat
base during World War II
. Grossadmiral Karl Dönitz
decided to construct the base on 28 June 1940. Between February 1941 and January 1942 three gigantic reinforced concrete structures were built on the Keroman peninsula. They are called K1, K2 and K3. In 1944 work began on a fourth structure. The base was capable of sheltering thirty submarines under cover. Although Lorient was heavily damaged by Allied bombing raids, this naval base survived through to the end of the war. Lorient was held until May 1945 by the Nazi German army, even though this city was surrounded by the American Army, since the Germans there refused to surrender.
Since they could not destroy the base and its submarine pen
s, the Allies had decided to flatten the city and port of Lorient, in order to cut the supply lines to the U-boat bases. Without fuel, resupplies of weapons (e.g. torpedo
es), and provisions, it became impossible for those U-boats to return to war patrols in the Atlantic Ocean
. Between 14 January 1943 and 17 February 1943, as many as 500 high-explosive aerial bomb
s and more than 60,000 incendiary bombs were dropped on Lorient. The city was almost completely destroyed, with nearly 90% of the city flattened. Thousands of French civilians, as well as German military personnel, were killed.
Presently, the former U-boat base of Keroman is open to the public, and it can be visited year-round. During the tours, the submarine pens of block K3 can be seen. Its roof (3.4 to 7 m (11.2 to 23 ) of steel-reinforced concrete
) can be visited, as well as a former anti-aircraft tower on top of the U-boat base. The tower affords an excellent view of the harbour and of the former headquarters of the Grossadmiral Karl Dönitz
of the Kriegsmarine
(Nazi German navy) across the bay at Larmor-Plage
.
After the war the base was taken over by the French Navy and was used up to 1997. The base was renamed after Jacques Stosskopf
in July 1946. He had been the deputy director of naval construction at the base and gave valuable information to the Allies during the war.
(1769-1832), sailor, adventurer, and Grand Mandarin in Vietnam
Jules Simon
(1814-1896), statesman and philosopher; and Marie-Léontine Bordes-Pène
(1858-1924), pianist
Lorient is the home of a major Celtic music
festival, the Festival Interceltique de Lorient
. It is also the home of FC Lorient
Bretagne Sud whose stadium, Stade du Moustoir
, is in the city centre. In the 2006 Tour de France
, Lorient hosted the end of Stage 8.
, Ireland
, since 1978 Vigo
, Spain
Wirral
, United Kingdom
Ventspils
, Latvia
Ludwigshafen, Germany
České Budějovice
, Czech Republic
Denizli
, Turkey
Communes of France
The commune is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to incorporated municipalities or villages in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany...
and a seaport
Port
A port is a location on a coast or shore containing one or more harbors where ships can dock and transfer people or cargo to or from land....
in the Morbihan
Morbihan
Morbihan is a department in Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan , the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastline.-History:...
department in Brittany
Brittany
Brittany is a cultural and administrative region in the north-west of France. Previously a kingdom and then a duchy, Brittany was united to the Kingdom of France in 1532 as a province. Brittany has also been referred to as Less, Lesser or Little Britain...
in north-western France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
.
History
At the beginning of the 17th century, merchants who were trading with IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
had established warehouses in Port-Louis
Port-Louis, Morbihan
Port-Louis is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France.-Demographics:Inhabitants of Port-Louis are called in French Port-Louisiens.-References:* * -External links:* * *...
. They later built additional warehouses across the bay in 1628, at the location which became known as L'Orient (the Orient
Orient
The Orient means "the East." It is a traditional designation for anything that belongs to the Eastern world or the Far East, in relation to Europe. In English it is a metonym that means various parts of Asia.- Derivation :...
in French
French language
French is a Romance language spoken as a first language in France, the Romandy region in Switzerland, Wallonia and Brussels in Belgium, Monaco, the regions of Quebec and Acadia in Canada, and by various communities elsewhere. Second-language speakers of French are distributed throughout many parts...
).
Later, the French East India Company
French East India Company
The French East India Company was a commercial enterprise, founded in 1664 to compete with the British and Dutch East India companies in colonial India....
, founded in 1664 and chartered by King Louis XIV
Louis XIV of France
Louis XIV , known as Louis the Great or the Sun King , was a Bourbon monarch who ruled as King of France and Navarre. His reign, from 1643 to his death in 1715, began at the age of four and lasted seventy-two years, three months, and eighteen days...
, established shipyard
Shipyard
Shipyards and dockyards are places which repair and build ships. These can be yachts, military vessels, cruise liners or other cargo or passenger ships. Dockyards are sometimes more associated with maintenance and basing activities than shipyards, which are sometimes associated more with initial...
s there, thus giving an impetus to the development of the city. In 1746 during the War of the Austrian Succession
War of the Austrian Succession
The War of the Austrian Succession – including King George's War in North America, the Anglo-Spanish War of Jenkins' Ear, and two of the three Silesian wars – involved most of the powers of Europe over the question of Maria Theresa's succession to the realms of the House of Habsburg.The...
, Britain launched an unsuccessful Raid on Lorient
Raid on Lorient
The Raid on Lorient took place in September 1746 during the War of the Austrian Succession when British troops landed on the French coast with the intention of capturing the town of Lorient...
to destroy French shipping.
In attempts to destroy German submarine pen
Submarine pen
A submarine pen is a bunker which is designed to protect submarines from air attack.The term is generally applied to submarine bases constructed during World War II, particularly in Germany and the occupied countries which were also known as U-boat pens .-Background:Amongst the first...
s (U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
bases) and their supply lines, most of this city was destroyed by Allied bombing
Allied bombing
Allied bombing refers mostly to strategic bombing during World War II, as conducted by the Allies of World War II. Targets were places under control by the Axis powers, which included e.g...
during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
(see section below). Thus, today's Lorient reflects an architectural style of the 1950s.
Geography
Lorient is located on the south coast of Brittany on the Atlantic OceanAtlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
. The rivers Blavet
Blavet
The Blavet river flows from central Brittany and enters the Atlantic Ocean on the south coast near Lorient. The river is canalized for most of its length and is navigable for smaller craft. It is part of Brittany's canal system and became more important when the western half of that system got cut...
and Scorff
Scorff
The Scorff River flows from central Brittany and enters the Atlantic Ocean on the south coast in Lorient.The Scorff rises north of Langoëlan, in the Morbihan department, and flows through the towns of Guémené-sur-Scorff and Pont-Scorff. From there its bed enlarges to form a ria, submitted to the...
enter the Atlantic Ocean at Lorient.
Population
With a population of 58,135 (urban area: 186,144) Lorient is the most populous commune in Morbihan, although the capital is the slightly smaller commune of VannesVannes
Vannes is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2000 years ago.-Geography:Vannes is located on the Gulf of Morbihan at the mouth of two rivers, the Marle and the Vincin. It is around 100 km northwest of Nantes and 450 km south west...
.
Inhabitants of Lorient are called Lorientais.
Breton language
The municipality launched a linguistic plan through Ya d'ar brezhonegYa d'ar brezhoneg
Ya d'ar brezhoneg is a campaign launched by the Ofis ar Brezhoneg in order to stimulate the use of the Breton language in daily life in Brittany, western France. In the first phase, started on 5 October 2001, civil society was targeted. Over 560 enterprises and organisations have signed the...
on 25 January 2007.
In 2008, 2.71% of the children attended the bilingual schools in primary education.
Industry
Lorient has a major fishing port, Port de Pêche (BretonBreton language
Breton is a Celtic language spoken in Brittany , France. Breton is a Brythonic language, descended from the Celtic British language brought from Great Britain to Armorica by migrating Britons during the Early Middle Ages. Like the other Brythonic languages, Welsh and Cornish, it is classified as...
: Porzh Pesketa), at Keroman and the docks area at Kergroise handle large cargo and passenger ships.
Tourism plays an important part in the city's economy and there are several large yachting marina
Marina
A marina is a dock or basin with moorings and supplies for yachts and small boats.A marina differs from a port in that a marina does not handle large passenger ships or cargo from freighters....
s around the bay. The annual Festival Interceltique de Lorient
Festival Interceltique de Lorient
The Festival Interceltique de Lorient or Gouelioù Etrekeltiek An Oriant was founded in Lorient, Brittany in 1971 by Polig Montjarret...
was founded in Lorient in 1971 and attracts large numbers of tourists to the area every summer (700 000 people came in 2009).
Lorient was a former base of the French Navy
French Navy
The French Navy, officially the Marine nationale and often called La Royale is the maritime arm of the French military. It includes a full range of fighting vessels, from patrol boats to a nuclear powered aircraft carrier and 10 nuclear-powered submarines, four of which are capable of launching...
but these piers, docks, etc., have now been removed. However, many important former French naval buildings remain around the quayside.
Transport
Lorient South Brittany AirportLorient South Brittany Airport
Lorient South Brittany Airport or Aéroport de Lorient Bretagne Sud , also known as Lorient-Lann-Bihoué Airport, is the airport serving the city of Lorient...
is situated just west of the city at Lann Bihoue, and it has direct flights to several destinations, such as to Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
and Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
. There are direct connections with Ireland in Summer.
The Gare de Lorient
Gare de Lorient
Lorient is a railway station in Lorient, Brittany, France. The station was opened on 26 September 1862 is located on the Savenay - Landerneau railway line...
is the railway station, offering connections to Quimper, Nantes, Rennes, Paris (slightly less than 4 hours by TGV) and several regional destinations.
Keroman Submarine Base
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
U-boat
U-boat
U-boat is the anglicized version of the German word U-Boot , itself an abbreviation of Unterseeboot , and refers to military submarines operated by Germany, particularly in World War I and World War II...
base during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Grossadmiral Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...
decided to construct the base on 28 June 1940. Between February 1941 and January 1942 three gigantic reinforced concrete structures were built on the Keroman peninsula. They are called K1, K2 and K3. In 1944 work began on a fourth structure. The base was capable of sheltering thirty submarines under cover. Although Lorient was heavily damaged by Allied bombing raids, this naval base survived through to the end of the war. Lorient was held until May 1945 by the Nazi German army, even though this city was surrounded by the American Army, since the Germans there refused to surrender.
Since they could not destroy the base and its submarine pen
Submarine pen
A submarine pen is a bunker which is designed to protect submarines from air attack.The term is generally applied to submarine bases constructed during World War II, particularly in Germany and the occupied countries which were also known as U-boat pens .-Background:Amongst the first...
s, the Allies had decided to flatten the city and port of Lorient, in order to cut the supply lines to the U-boat bases. Without fuel, resupplies of weapons (e.g. torpedo
Torpedo
The modern torpedo is a self-propelled missile weapon with an explosive warhead, launched above or below the water surface, propelled underwater towards a target, and designed to detonate either on contact with it or in proximity to it.The term torpedo was originally employed for...
es), and provisions, it became impossible for those U-boats to return to war patrols in the Atlantic Ocean
Atlantic Ocean
The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
. Between 14 January 1943 and 17 February 1943, as many as 500 high-explosive aerial bomb
Aerial bomb
An aerial bomb is a type of explosive weapon intended to travel through the air with predictable trajectories, usually designed to be dropped from an aircraft...
s and more than 60,000 incendiary bombs were dropped on Lorient. The city was almost completely destroyed, with nearly 90% of the city flattened. Thousands of French civilians, as well as German military personnel, were killed.
Presently, the former U-boat base of Keroman is open to the public, and it can be visited year-round. During the tours, the submarine pens of block K3 can be seen. Its roof (3.4 to 7 m (11.2 to 23 ) of steel-reinforced concrete
Concrete
Concrete is a composite construction material, composed of cement and other cementitious materials such as fly ash and slag cement, aggregate , water and chemical admixtures.The word concrete comes from the Latin word...
) can be visited, as well as a former anti-aircraft tower on top of the U-boat base. The tower affords an excellent view of the harbour and of the former headquarters of the Grossadmiral Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz
Karl Dönitz was a German naval commander during World War II. He started his career in the German Navy during World War I. In 1918, while he was in command of , the submarine was sunk by British forces and Dönitz was taken prisoner...
of the Kriegsmarine
Kriegsmarine
The Kriegsmarine was the name of the German Navy during the Nazi regime . It superseded the Kaiserliche Marine of World War I and the post-war Reichsmarine. The Kriegsmarine was one of three official branches of the Wehrmacht, the unified armed forces of Nazi Germany.The Kriegsmarine grew rapidly...
(Nazi German navy) across the bay at Larmor-Plage
Larmor-Plage
Larmor-Plage is a commune in the Morbihan department of Brittany in north-western France.-History:Larmor-Plage was created as a new commune in 1925. Before that, it came within the administrative area of the town of Ploemeur...
.
After the war the base was taken over by the French Navy and was used up to 1997. The base was renamed after Jacques Stosskopf
Jacques Stosskopf
Jaques Stosskopf held the post of deputy director of naval construction at the Lorient arsenal. From September 1940, under the guise of collaboration with the Germans, he used his position to inform Allied forces of submarine movements at Lorient. He was denounced and arrested by the Gestapo in...
in July 1946. He had been the deputy director of naval construction at the base and gave valuable information to the Allies during the war.
Culture
Lorient was the birthplace of: ; Jean-Baptiste ChaigneauJean-Baptiste Chaigneau
Jean-Baptiste Chaigneau was a French Navy soldier and an adventurer who played an important role in Vietnam in the 19th century...
(1769-1832), sailor, adventurer, and Grand Mandarin in Vietnam
Vietnam
Vietnam – sometimes spelled Viet Nam , officially the Socialist Republic of Vietnam – is the easternmost country on the Indochina Peninsula in Southeast Asia. It is bordered by China to the north, Laos to the northwest, Cambodia to the southwest, and the South China Sea –...
Jules Simon
Jules Simon
Jules François Simon was a French statesman and philosopher, and one of the leader of the Opportunist Republicans faction.-Biography:Simon was born at Lorient. His father was a linen-draper from Lorraine, who renounced Protestantism before his second marriage with a Catholic Breton. Jules Simon...
(1814-1896), statesman and philosopher; and Marie-Léontine Bordes-Pène
Marie-Léontine Bordes-Pène
Marie-Léontine Bordes-Pène was notable French pianist, who premiered major works by César Franck, Vincent d'Indy and others....
(1858-1924), pianist
Lorient is the home of a major Celtic music
Celtic music
Celtic music is a term utilised by artists, record companies, music stores and music magazines to describe a broad grouping of musical genres that evolved out of the folk musical traditions of the Celtic people of Western Europe...
festival, the Festival Interceltique de Lorient
Festival Interceltique de Lorient
The Festival Interceltique de Lorient or Gouelioù Etrekeltiek An Oriant was founded in Lorient, Brittany in 1971 by Polig Montjarret...
. It is also the home of FC Lorient
FC Lorient
Football Club Lorient-Bretagne Sud is a French association football club based in Lorient. The club was founded in 1926 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top level of French football. Lorient plays its home matches at the Stade du Moustoir located within the city. The team is managed by Christian...
Bretagne Sud whose stadium, Stade du Moustoir
Stade du Moustoir
Stade du Moustoir is a multi-use stadium in Lorient, France. It is currently used mostly for football matches and is the home stadium of FC Lorient. The stadium holds 18,100 people.-References:...
, is in the city centre. In the 2006 Tour de France
2006 Tour de France
The 2006 Tour de France was the 93rd Tour de France, taking place from July 1 to July 23, 2006. It was won by Óscar Pereiro following the disqualification of apparent winner Floyd Landis....
, Lorient hosted the end of Stage 8.
Twin towns — Sister cities
Lorient is twinned with: GalwayGalway
Galway or City of Galway is a city in County Galway, Republic of Ireland. It is the sixth largest and the fastest-growing city in Ireland. It is also the third largest city within the Republic and the only city in the Province of Connacht. Located on the west coast of Ireland, it sits on the...
, Ireland
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
, since 1978 Vigo
Vigo
Vigo is a city and municipality in north-west Spain, in Galicia, situated on the ria of the same name on the Atlantic Ocean.-Population:...
, Spain
Spain
Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula...
Wirral
Metropolitan Borough of Wirral
The Metropolitan Borough of Wirral is a metropolitan borough of Merseyside, in North West England. It has a population of 311,200, and encompasses of the northern part of the Wirral Peninsula. Major settlements include Birkenhead, Wallasey, Bebington, Heswall, Hoylake and West Kirby. The city of...
, United Kingdom
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
Ventspils
Ventspils
Ventspils is a city in northwestern Latvia in the Courland historical region of Latvia, the sixth largest city in the country. As of 2006, Ventspils had a population of 43,806. Ventspils is situated on the Venta River and the Baltic Sea, and has an ice-free port...
, Latvia
Latvia
Latvia , officially the Republic of Latvia , is a country in the Baltic region of Northern Europe. It is bordered to the north by Estonia , to the south by Lithuania , to the east by the Russian Federation , to the southeast by Belarus and shares maritime borders to the west with Sweden...
Ludwigshafen, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
České Budějovice
Ceské Budejovice
České Budějovice is a city in the Czech Republic. It is the largest city in the South Bohemian Region and is the political and commercial capital of the region and centre of the Roman Catholic Diocese of České Budějovice and of the University of South Bohemia and the Academy of Sciences...
, Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
Denizli
Denizli
Denizli is a growing industrial city in the Southwestern part of Turkey and the eastern end of the alluvial valley formed by the river Büyük Menderes, where the plain reaches an elevation of about a hundred meters. Denizli is located in southwestern Turkey, in the country's Aegean Region.The city...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
See also
- Mississippi CompanyMississippi CompanyThe "Mississippi Company" became the "Company of the West" and expanded as the "Company of the Indies" .-The Banque Royale:...
- U-74
- FC LorientFC LorientFootball Club Lorient-Bretagne Sud is a French association football club based in Lorient. The club was founded in 1926 and currently play in Ligue 1, the top level of French football. Lorient plays its home matches at the Stade du Moustoir located within the city. The team is managed by Christian...
- Festival Interceltique de LorientFestival Interceltique de LorientThe Festival Interceltique de Lorient or Gouelioù Etrekeltiek An Oriant was founded in Lorient, Brittany in 1971 by Polig Montjarret...
- Arrondissement of LorientArrondissement of LorientThe arrondissement of Lorient is an arrondissement of France, located in the Morbihan département, in the Brittany region. It has fifteen cantons and sixty communes.-Cantons:The cantons of the arrondissement of Lorient are:# Auray# Belle-Île# Belz...
- Communes of the Morbihan department