EURE-ET-LOIR

(eur-é-lwar), a department in the north-west of France, forming part of the old provinces of Orléanna is and Ile-de-France; area, 2,291 sq. miles. A ridge of no great height divides the department into a north and a south basin, traversed respectively by the Eure and the Loire. The soil is extremely fertile, and there is scarcely any waste land. A considerable portion is occupied by orchards and vineyards, but the greater part is devoted to cereal crops. The department is e entially agricultural, and has few manufactures. The capital is Chart res. Pop. (1931), 254,790.