Alpes-de-Haute-Provence (sometimes abbreviated as AHP; French pronunciation: [alp də ot pʁɔvɑ̃s] ⓘ; Occitan: Aups d'Auta Provença; lit.

'Lower Alps'), is a department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of France, bordering Alpes-Maritimes and Italy to the east, Var to the south, Vaucluse to the west, Drôme and Hautes-Alpes to the north.

Alpes-de-Haute-Provence's main cities are Digne-les-Bains (prefecture), Manosque, Sisteron, Barcelonnette, Castellane and Forcalquier.

[5] The main cities are Manosque, Digne-les-Bains, Sisteron, Château-Arnoux-Saint-Auban, Oraison, Forcalquier, Les Mées, Pierrevert, Villeneuve, Sainte-Tulle, Gréoux-les-Bains, Barcelonnette and Castellane.

It is in the Durance valley that the most important traffic routes are found: the A51 autoroute and the railway main line.

Almost all of the department is in the watershed of the Durance except for the extreme south-east (the cantons of Annot and Entrevaux) which are drained by the Var.

The summer low water levels are severe and violent floods occur when heavy rains fall which is often in autumn.

The Durance, Verdon, Bléone and Buëch have had the construction of several dams and the diversion of parts of the river for irrigation and power generation in the 20th century.

The characteristics of both climate trends are found throughout the department to a greater or lesser extent: Haute-Provence is therefore very interesting for European astronomers looking for a partly cloudy night sky and untouched by light pollution.

Among the 15 cantons in the department, 5 have a resident population of less than 10,000 inhabitants: Barcelonnette, Castellane, Riez, Seyne, and Valensole.

Here is an unflattering excerpt from an article called "Basse Alpes" from the Atlas Larousse published at the beginning of the 20th century: "Scattered whitish rocks stand out like bones, a thin topsoil where bushes languish, some mountain flowers and stunted trees ... these mountains form almost everywhere a dreadful desert which will not have more inhabitants: this is the Sahara without the sun of Africa, with the snows of Siberia."

"On these steep slopes deforestation and flooding have resulted in a lack of fertile soil and agriculture has been the most miserable.

There are strong republican traditions such as the number of Political clubs during the French Revolution and the resistance to the coup of Napoleon III in 1851.

The tradition of the left is also manifested in rural areas since all cantons devoted to agriculture very early showed an inclination to vote for Republican candidates.

These areas, deeply Catholic, have long opted for elected conservatives – one of the most famous being the former Minister of the Third Republic, Paul Reynaud.

A definition of the political choices of the county population is often translated as: the higher the altitude rises, the more the popular vote looks to the right.

Since the end of the First World War the department has been most often depicted, both by the Senate and the National Assembly, as an electoral issue of either the PCF or, especially, the socialist movement – the SFIO or the PS, or by the radical left.

The other seat is occupied by the President of the Departmental Council, Jean-Louis Bianco, a former minister with François Mitterrand.

Both of Alpes-de-Haute-Provence's seats in the National Assembly changed hands in the 2022 legislative election with the 1st constituency lost by the New Democrats' Delphine Bagarry to Christian Girard of National Rally and the 2nd lost by LREM's Christophe Castaner to Léo Walter of La France insoumise.

The department has, by its own characteristics (mountainous and low population), a character marked by a relatively weak industrial base and a move towards the creation of jobs in the areas of trades and services.

However, significant changes in the sociological situation of the department are to be expected from the implementation of the ITER project at the mouth of the Durance valley.

[16] The 2003 heat wave caused the decline of many species of trees, consequently accelerating the return of Mediterranean oaks, alders and linden.

Some more specialized factories (olive oil, perfumes, wines) produce products with high added value.

The industrial sector has lost nearly 400 jobs since 2001 particularly from downsizing at Arkema and despite the good financial health of Total S.A. which owns it.

After the depopulation caused by the rural exodus, the department pioneered agritourism in the 1950s although it is no longer the leader in France in this field.

The positive migration flow for the department often originates from the arrival of retired households, due in particular to the significant increase in numbers of elderly and home care services.

A free bimonthly magazine is associated with the website providing close-ups of artists and events in the region.

Distributed to 4,000 copies in town halls, tourist offices and shops, it is to this day the strongest support media for the department.

These natural conditions make access to certain parts of the department rather difficult, especially in winter, and particularly the communes in the Arrondissements of Barcelonnette and Castellane.

These are: Old abandoned lines: The families Simiane, Agoult, and Ponteves, nobles of Provence (TV films in Italics)