Corte, Haute-Corse

Corte (/ˈkɔːrteɪ/; Italian: [ˈkorte];[2] French: [kɔʁte]; Corsican: Corti, pronounced [ˈkorti]) is a commune in the Upper Corsica department of France on the island of Corsica. It is the fourth-largest commune in Corsica after Ajaccio, Bastia, and Porto Vecchio.

Corte Corti
Subprefecture and commune
Citadel
Coat of arms
Location of Corte
Corte Show map of France Corte Show map of Corsica
Coordinates: 42°18′23″N 9°09′05″E
Country	France
Region	Corsica
Department	Haute-Corse
Arrondissement	Corte
Canton	Corte
Intercommunality	Centre Corse
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Antoine Sindali
Area ^1	149.27 km^2 (57.63 sq mi)
Population  (2017-01-01)[1]	7,446
• Density	50/km^2 (130/sq mi)
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	2B096 /20250
Elevation	299–2,626 m (981–8,615 ft) (avg. 486 m or 1,594 ft)
^1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km^2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Administration

Corte is a subprefecture of the Haute-Corse department.

History

Corte was the capital of the Corsican independent state during the period of Pasquale Paoli.

During World War I, German prisoners of war were kept in the Citadel.

Population

Historical population

Year	Pop.	±%
1800	2,092	—
1806	3,073	+46.9%
1821	2,735	−11.0%
1831	3,282	+20.0%
1836	3,587	+9.3%
1841	3,505	−2.3%
1846	4,599	+31.2%
1851	4,719	+2.6%
1856	4,676	−0.9%
1861	5,754	+23.1%
1866	6,094	+5.9%
1872	5,426	−11.0%
1876	5,018	−7.5%
1881	5,136	+2.4%
1886	5,002	−2.6%
1891	5,029	+0.5%
1896	5,000	−0.6%
1901	5,425	+8.5%
1906	5,188	−4.4%
1911	5,211	+0.4%
1921	5,094	−2.2%
1926	5,267	+3.4%
1931	5,396	+2.4%
1936	6,014	+11.5%
1946	5,310	−11.7%
1954	5,033	−5.2%
1962	5,066	+0.7%
1968	4,948	−2.3%
1975	5,230	+5.7%
1982	5,177	−1.0%
1990	5,693	+10.0%
1999	6,329	+11.2%
2008	6,779	+7.1%
2016	7,389	+9.0%

Sights

Sites of interest include the Fortress (A citadella), the Museum of Corsica (Museu di a Corsica), and the University of Corsica (Università di Corsica).

Transport

National roads lead to Ajaccio and Bastia.

Corte is also linked to Ajaccio, Bastia and Calvi by the Chemin de fer de la Corse (Corsican Railway), and is served by trains running between Ajaccio and Calvi, and Ajaccio and Bastia.

Climate

Corte has a hot-summer mediterranean climate (Köppen climate classification: Csa), sometimes presenting alpine conditions during the winter, with 52 summer days and 56 frost days.

Climate data for Corte, Haute-Corse (1990–2010 averages, extremes 1990–present)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Record high °C (°F)	23.8 (74.8)	22.4 (72.3)	29.2 (84.6)	27.2 (81.0)	33.1 (91.6)	36.5 (97.7)	41.1 (106.0)	39.5 (103.1)	35.3 (95.5)	31.2 (88.2)	24.8 (76.6)	21.5 (70.7)	41.1 (106.0)
Average high °C (°F)	12.0 (53.6)	12.9 (55.2)	15.8 (60.4)	18.1 (64.6)	23.5 (74.3)	27.6 (81.7)	31.1 (88.0)	31.3 (88.3)	26.0 (78.8)	21.3 (70.3)	15.9 (60.6)	12.0 (53.6)	20.7 (69.3)
Daily mean °C (°F)	6.3 (43.3)	6.6 (43.9)	9.3 (48.7)	11.5 (52.7)	16.1 (61.0)	20.0 (68.0)	22.8 (73.0)	23.2 (73.8)	18.8 (65.8)	15.1 (59.2)	10.1 (50.2)	6.9 (44.4)	13.9 (57.0)
Average low °C (°F)	0.5 (32.9)	0.3 (32.5)	2.7 (36.9)	4.9 (40.8)	8.7 (47.7)	12.3 (54.1)	14.5 (58.1)	15.0 (59.0)	11.7 (53.1)	8.9 (48.0)	4.4 (39.9)	1.7 (35.1)	7.2 (45.0)
Record low °C (°F)	−8.3 (17.1)	−8.7 (16.3)	−8.7 (16.3)	−3.9 (25.0)	0.9 (33.6)	3.9 (39.0)	6.2 (43.2)	6.8 (44.2)	3.9 (39.0)	−0.8 (30.6)	−4.7 (23.5)	−7.5 (18.5)	−8.7 (16.3)
Average precipitation mm (inches)	68.2 (2.69)	55.1 (2.17)	49.7 (1.96)	79.1 (3.11)	57.5 (2.26)	35.7 (1.41)	29.1 (1.15)	30.7 (1.21)	53.4 (2.10)	106.6 (4.20)	116.6 (4.59)	121.5 (4.78)	803.6 (31.64)
Average precipitation days (≥ 1.0 mm)	7.3	6.4	6.7	9.1	6.4	4.4	3.0	3.8	6.5	8.5	10.6	10.2	82.6
Source: Météo France[3]

Education

Corte has become a major university town in Corsica since the Pasquale Paoli University opened up again in 1980s.

Notable people

Corte was the birthplace of Joseph Bonaparte (1768–1844), the eldest brother of the French Emperor Napoleon I, who made him King of Naples (1806–1808) and Spain (1808–1813).

Gallery

• 
  Panorama
• 
  Citadel
• 
  Church
• 
  La Citadelle
• 
  Place Gaffori, with the statue of General Ghjuvan Petru Gaffori in front of his former home
• 
  Fountain at the beginning of the boardwalk called Rampe Sainte Croix from the Cours Paoli to the Chapel of Sainte Croix
• 
  House of birth of Joseph Bonaparte (1768)
• 
  Corte Panorama created from three images recorded at the bridge over the Restonica, pont vieux

See also

• Communes of the Haute-Corse department

References

• INSEE

1. "Populations légales 2017". INSEE. Retrieved 6 January 2020.
2. (in Italian) Entry corte in the Dizionario d'ortografia e di pronunzia (DOP).
3. "Corte_FDF (20)" (PDF). Fiche Climatologique: Statistiques 1981–2010 et records (in French). Meteo France. Archived from the original (PDF) on 22 September 2019. Retrieved 22 September 2019.

External links

• Official website (in French)
• Tourist office website (in French)
• University of Corsica (in English)