Saint-Martin-l'Ars

Saint-Martin-l'Ars
Commune
The church of Saint-Martin
Saint-Martin-l'Ars
Location within Nouvelle-Aquitaine region  Saint-Martin-l'Ars
Coordinates: 46°13′13″N 0°31′53″E / 46.2203°N 0.5314°E / 46.2203; 0.5314Coordinates: 46°13′13″N 0°31′53″E / 46.2203°N 0.5314°E / 46.2203; 0.5314
Country	France
Region	Nouvelle-Aquitaine
Department	Vienne
Arrondissement	Montmorillon
Canton	Civray
Intercommunality	Montmorillonnais
Government
• Mayor (2014–2020)	Xavier Diot
Area1	41.76 km2 (16.12 sq mi)
Population (2014)2	378
• Density	9.1/km2 (23/sq mi)
Time zone	CET (UTC+1)
• Summer (DST)	CEST (UTC+2)
INSEE/Postal code	86234 /86350
Elevation	132–169 m (433–554 ft) (avg. 146 m or 479 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Saint-Martin-l'Ars is a commune in the Vienne department and Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of western France.

The Clouère flows north-northwest through the middle of the commune. The Clain flows northwest through the south-western part of the commune and crosses the village.

The commune is part of the region known as the and has a beautiful landscape of hills.

202 ponds have been identified across the municipality (out of 30,000 recorded in the Poitou-Charentes region). They were created by humans, especially to meet the water needs of people (community ponds), livestock or after extraction (clay, marl, millstones). Rich in botanical life they play a major role for amphibians (newts, frogs), reptiles (snakes) and dragonflies. They are a symbolic element of the rural heritage and contribute greatly to the maintenance of biodiversity in both the plains and the woodlands.

The climate is oceanic with mild summers.

The village's name comes from Saint Martin of Vienne, bishop of Vienne in the 2nd century, the evangelist of Poitou. The suffix "ars" means "burnt".

During World War II, the battle line crossed the commune, from 22 June 1940 to 1 March 1943, leaving the settlement in the free zone and a small part of the territory of the municipality in the occupied zone. On 14 July 1941, the population showed their strength of will by celebrating the National Day, which was banned in 1940, around a bonfire and singing the Marseillaise.