SEINE-MARITIME

dpartement, Haute-Normandie rgion, northern France, on the English Channel. Created as Seine-Infrieure in 1790 from the eastern part of the historic province of Normandy, it was renamed in 1955. Its 2,424 square miles (6,278 square km) extend over a vast chalk plateau (the Pays de Caux) that is bounded on the northwest by a coastline of more than 80 miles (130 km). Its southern border runs east from the Channel port of Le Havre, the dpartement's biggest town, below the sweeping meanders of the Seine River, through pasture and forestland past the ancient city of Rouen, the departmental capital, and Elbeuf to the west of Beauvais. The coastline of chalk cliffs about 300 feet (90 m) in height is cut by valleys sheltering small towns and seaside resorts, including the harbour town of Dieppe, Saint-Valry-en-Caux, Fcamp, tretat, and Le Trport. The plateau is cut by a number of tributaries of the Seine and by smaller rivers flowing through woods and pastures directly into the Channel. The highest ground is in the northeast, in the hills near Neufchtel, with an elevation of 810 feet (247 m). The dpartement has a maritime climate, with mild winters and cool summers. The Seine valley is frequently shrouded in mist, while the Rouen area is one of the wettest in France, with an average of about 120 rainy days a year. Agriculture is divided between dairy farming and the cultivation of cereals, sugar beets, potatoes, flax, and fruit. Parts of the Seine valley, including the regions of Rouen and Le Havre, are highly industrialized. Petroleum refineries in the Seine estuary are connected by pipeline with Paris. The manufacture of cloth is concentrated in the Elbeuf area but has been declining in recent years. The construction of one of the longest suspension bridges in Europe across the upper estuary of the Seine at Tancarville has greatly improved road communications. The dpartement has good facilities for tourism, particularly along the coast and in the Seine valley. Much reconstruction has been done to restore Rouen, which was severely damaged by bombing during World War II. The ruins of Jumiges Abbey, Saint-Wandrille-Ranon Abbey, and the church at Saint-Martin-de-Boscherville are much-visited historic sites. The dpartement is divided into three arrondissements, Rouen, Dieppe, and Le Havre, and is in the educational division of Rouen. Pop. (1987 est.) 1,209,400.