Hautes-Alpes (; ; ) is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. It is located in the heart of the French Alps, after which it is named. Hautes-Alpes had a population of 143,467 as of 2023,

{| class=wikitable

! Commune

! Population (2023)

|-

| Gap

| style="text-align: center;" | 41,293

|-

| Briançon

| style="text-align: center;" | 11,411

|-

| Embrun

| style="text-align: center;" | 6,412

|-

| Laragne-Montéglin

| style="text-align: center;" | 3,549

|-

| Veynes

| style="text-align: center;" | 3,214

|-

| Chorges

| style="text-align: center;" | 3,146

|}

Demographics

The inhabitants of the department are called Haut-Alpins (masculine) and Haut-Alpines (feminine) in French.

The extremely mountainous terrain explains the sparse population, which was about 120,000 in 1791. It changed little during the 19th century, but fell to about 85,000 after World War I. Thanks in large part to tourism, the population has risen from 87,436 in 1962 to 143,467 in 2023, principally in the town of Gap.

Population development since 1791:

Politics

Departmental Council of Hautes-Alpes

The President of the Departmental Council of Hautes-Alpes has been Jean-Marie Bernard of The Republicans since the 2015 departmental elections.

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size: 95%;"

!colspan=2| Party || Seats

|-

! style="background-color: " |<span style="color:white; font-size:190%;">•</span>

|The Republicans and Union of Democrats and Independents ||align="right"| 22

|-

! style="background-color: " |

|Socialist Party and Radical Party of the Left ||align="right"| 8

|-

|}

Members of the National Assembly

{| class="wikitable"

|-

!colspan="2"|Constituency!!Member!!Party

|-

|style="background-color: " |

| Hautes-Alpes's 1st constituency

| Marie-José Allemand

| Socialist Party

|-

|style="background-color: " |

| Hautes-Alpes's 2nd constituency

| Valérie Rossi

| Socialist Party

|}

Tourism

The tourist industry is largely dependent on skiing in winter. In summer the Alpine scenery and many outdoor activities attract visitors from across Europe (sailing, hiking, climbing and aerial sports such as gliding). The Tour de France passes through the department regularly. This draws many cycling fanatics to cycle the cols and watch the race.

<gallery>

File:La Collégiale à Briançon.jpg|Briançon

File:SNCF B81500 Gap - Veynes-Devoluy.jpg|SNCF regional service near Gap

File:Embrun - Couvent des Cordeliers -829.jpg|Embrun

File:Vue en montant à Vallonpierre.jpg|Massif des Écrins

File:La Grave 2.jpg|La Grave

File:Emparis- massif de la Meije depuis le lac Noir.jpg|La Meije

File:Echaugette de Mont Dauphin - panoramio.jpg|The Alps and the Guil valley seen from Fort Mont-Dauphin

</gallery>

See also

  • Cantons of the Hautes-Alpes department
  • Communes of the Hautes-Alpes department
  • Arrondissements of the Hautes-Alpes department

References

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  • Prefecture website
  • Departmental Council website
  • Tourist office Website