The canton is an administrative division of France. Metropolitan (i. ... France is divided into 26 régions: 21 of these are in the continental part of metropolitan France, one is Corse on the island of Corsica (although strictly speaking Corse is in fact a territorial collectivity, not a région, but is referred to as a région in common... Région doutre-mer, or Overseas regions, is a recent designation given to the départements doutre-mer which have similar powers to those of the régions of metropolitan France. ... The départements (or departments) are administrative units of France, roughly analogous to British counties. ... Under the 1946 Constitution of the Fourth Republic, the French colonies of Guadeloupe, Martinique and French Guiana in the Caribbean and Réunion in the Indian Ocean became départements doutre-mer (Overseas departments) or DOMs. ... The 100 French départements are divided into 342 arrondissements. ... A communauté urbaine (urban community in English) is the higher degree of intercommunal cooperation in France. ... A communauté dagglomération is a metropolitan governement structure in France, created by the Loi Chevénement in 1999. ... The commune (in French: commune, word appeared in the 12th century, from Medieval Latin communia, gathering of people sharing a common life, from Latin communis, things held in common) is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. ... The municipal arrondissement (French: arrondissement municipal), more simply referred to as arrondissement, is a level of administrative division in France lower than the commune. ... A collectivité doutre-mer (in English Overseas Community) or COM, is an administrative division of France. ... Map of New Caledonia New Caledonia (French: Nouvelle-Calédonie; popular names: Kanaky, Le caillou) is a French territory of 18,575 km² (7,172 sq. ... A pays doutre-mer (POM, French for overseas country) is an administrative division of France. ... A Territoire doutre-mer (TOM, French for Overseas territory) is an administrative division of France. ... The Scattered Islands in the Indian Ocean (French: ÃŽles Éparses or ÃŽles éparses de locéan indien) are five islands of the Indian Ocean with no permanent population, Bassas da India, Europa, Juan de Nova, Glorioso, and Tromelin. ... Metropolitan (i. ...

They are subdivisions of arrondissements and départements of France, grouping several municipalities (communes). The 100 French départements are divided into 342 arrondissements. ... The départements (or departments) are administrative units of France, roughly analogous to British counties. ... The commune (in French: commune, word appeared in the 12th century, from Medieval Latin communia, gathering of people sharing a common life, from Latin communis, things held in common) is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. ...

Cantons number 4,054, including 175 overseas (figure including the 19 newly created cantons of Mayotte).

Role and Administration

The role of the canton is essentially to provide an electoral grid. Each canton elects a person to represent them at the conseil général du département — or President of the general council for the département. This differs with the council of Paris which is elected differently. However, statistically it makes sense to view each of the 20 arrondissements of Paris as individual cantons. In urban areas one commune can generally cover multiple cantons. Conversely in rural areas a canton can be made of several small communes. Often administrative services (gendarmerie squad, etc.) located in the central town (specifically called chef-lieu) of the canton. This article is in need of attention. ... The départements (or departments) are administrative units of France, roughly analogous to British counties. ... The city of Paris, in France is divided into 20 arrondissements. ... The commune (in French: commune, word appeared in the 12th century, from Medieval Latin communia, gathering of people sharing a common life, from Latin communis, things held in common) is the lowest level of administrative division in the French Republic. ... A gendarmerie (French) is a military body charged with general police duties. ...

Cantons also form a legal district as a seat of Court of First Instance. Historically the cantons are called justices de paix — or "district courts". The Court of First Instance, created in 1988, is a court of the European Union. ...

History

The cantons were created in 1790 at the same time as the départements by the Committee for the Division of territory (Comité de division). It was originally regrouped into districts but after the suppressions in 1800 it was changed to arrondissements. 1790 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ... The 100 French départements are divided into 342 arrondissements. ...

At the time of creation in 1790 the cantons were more numerous than today (between 40 and 60 depending on which département). Their number was drastically reduced (between 30 and 50) by the loi du 8 pluviôse an IX (28 January 1801) called, "law for the reduction of the number of district courts", or loi portant réduction du nombre de justices de paix in French. The first prefects named by the government were summoned to establish in their département the redistribution of communes according each newly established canton. The departmental lists, once approved by the government, were published in the Bulletin des Lois during 1801 through 1802 and constitute the base of the administrative division of France which are still in place today. January 28 is the 28th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar. ... 1801 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... The départements (or departments) are administrative units of France, roughly analogous to British counties. ... 1801 was a common year starting on Thursday (see link for calendar). ... 1802 was a common year starting on Friday (see link for calendar). ...

Since 1800, cantons with small populations have been gotten rid of while new ones were created in regions of strong demographic growth. On the whole the number has increased. 1800 was a common year starting on Wednesday (see link for calendar). ...

Statistics

The number of cantons varies from département to département; the Territoire de Belfort has 15 while Nord has 79. In total there are 4,039 cantons in France in 2004 with 156 in the Département d'outre-mer. The départements (or departments) are administrative units of France, roughly analogous to British counties. ... The Territoire de Belfort is a département in the Franche-Comté région of eastern France. ... Nord (French, the north) is a département in the north of France. ... Under the 1946 Constitution of the Fourth Republic, the French colonies of Guadeloupe, Martinique and French Guiana in the Caribbean and Réunion in the Indian Ocean became départements doutre-mer (Overseas departments) or DOMs. ...

The island of Mayotte, which has a representative territorial administration, is divided into 19 cantons.

See also

• Canton (subnational entity)
• List of cantons of France
• Administrative divisions of France