The Gâtine Vendéenne is a historical area in the west of France, around the town of Parthenay in the département of Deux-Sèvres. The area is hilly and wooded, distinguished by small fields and relatively poor land.
France, officially the French Republic, is a country whose territory consists of metropolitan France in Western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The metropolitan area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. It is bordered by Belgium, Luxembourg and Germany to the northeast, Switzerland and Italy to the east, and Andorra and Spain to the south. The overseas territories include French Guiana in South America and several islands in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. The country's 18 integral regions span a combined area of 643,801 square kilometres (248,573 sq mi) and a total population of 67.3 million. France, a sovereign state, is a unitary semi-presidential republic with its capital in Paris, the country's largest city and main cultural and commercial centre. Other major urban areas include Lyon, Marseille, Toulouse, Bordeaux, Lille and Nice.
Parthenay is an ancient fortified town and commune in the Deux-Sèvres department of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France. It is sited on a rocky spur that is surrounded on two sides by the River Thouet, and is the sub-prefecture of the Parthenay arrondissement.
Deux-Sèvres is a French department. Deux-Sèvres literally means "two Sèvres": the Sèvre Nantaise and the Sèvre Niortaise are two rivers which have their sources in the department.
Several places in the Gâtine have names deriving from their location, including:
La Boissière-en-Gâtine is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in western France.
Mazières-en-Gâtine is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department in western France.
Saint-Paul-en-Gâtine is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department in western France.
