Le Mans

Le Mans is a city in northwestern France on the Sarthe River where it meets the Huisne. It is the traditional capital of the province of Maine, now the capital of the Sarthe department in the Pays de la Loire region, and the seat of a Roman Catholic diocese. Its people are called Manceaux and Mancelles. In 2022 the metropolitan area held 370,280 inhabitants, with 145,182 living in the commune itself. The Romans took the city of the Cenomani in 47 BC, and a third-century amphitheatre and one of the most complete circuits of Gallo-Roman walls still survive. In the Middle Ages it was contested by the counts of Anjou and the dukes of Normandy, and Henry II Plantagenet was born there. Since 1923 the city has hosted the 24 Hours of Le Mans, the oldest active endurance sports car race in the world.