Poitiers

Undiscovered France

Poitiers is the capital of the Vienne department in western France. Poitiers has a population of approximately 120,000 people. Twenty-five percent of that population is university students. Poitiers is situated at the meeting point of the Boivre and Clain Rivers. Poitiers is situated on top of a hill rising 130 feet above the level of its surrounding rivers on three sides.

Today, Poitiers is home to the Université de Poitiers which has disciplines in law, science, letters (languages), a school of medicine, pharmacy, theology, and fine art. The city is now a center of communications, industry, and agriculture. It produces such goods as: the manufacture of chemicals and electrical equipment, farm produce, wine, wool, cattle, honey, leather, machine building, printing, and other such valuable products. Poitiers also contains the seat of a bishop, a prefect, a court of appeal, a branch of the bank of France, and other such institutions. Although Poitiers is a city rich in ancient history, it has evolved into a modern, industrial city yet retains the flair of medieval times.