Rhne

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(Redirected from Rhone)
For other uses, see Rhne (disambiguation).

This article may be expanded with text translated from the corresponding article in
French. (July 2014) Click [show] for important translation instructions. [show]
Rhne (French Le Rhne)
German Rhone
River
Leman img 0573.jpg
View over the Rhne flowing from Valais into Lake Geneva
Countries Switzerland, France
Source Rhne Glacier
- elevation 2,208 m (7,244 ft)
Mouth Mediterranean Sea
- elevation 0 m (0 ft)
- coordinates 4319'51?N 450'44?ECoordinates 4319'51?N 450'44?E
Length 813 km (505 mi)
Basin 98,000 km2 (37,838 sq mi)
Discharge
- average 1,710 m3s (60,388 cu fts)
- max 13,000 m3s (459,091 cu fts)
- min 360 m3s (12,713 cu fts)
Rhone drainage basin.png
The Rhne ('ro?n; French Le Rhne [?on]; German Rhone ['ro?n?]; Walliser German
Rotten ['rot?n]; Italian Rodano ['r??dano]; Arpitan Rno ['?ono]; Occitan Rse ['r?
ze]) is one of the major rivers of Europe and has twice the average discharge of
the Loire (which is the longest French river), rising in the Rhne Glacier in the
Swiss Alps at the far eastern end of the Swiss canton of Valais, passing through
Lake Geneva and running through southeastern France. At Arles, near its mouth on
the Mediterranean Sea, the river divides into two branches, known as the Great
Rhne (French Le Grand Rhne) and the Little Rhne (Le Petit Rhne). The resulting
delta constitutes the Camargue region.

Contents [hide]
1 Name
2 Navigation
3 Course
4 History
5 Post-World War II development
6 Along the Rhne
6.1 Switzerland
6.2 France
7 See also
8 References and notes
9 Further reading
10 External links
Name[edit]

Mouth of the Rhne

The name Rhne continues the name Rhodanus (Greek ??da??? Rhodanos) in Greco-Roman
geography. The Gaulish name of the river was Rodonos or Rotonos (from a PIE root
ret- to run, roll frequently found in river names).

The Greco-Roman as well as the reconstructed Gaulish name is masculine, as is

French le Rhne. This form survives in the SpanishPortuguese and Italian namesakes,
elo Rdano and il Rodano, respectively. German has adopted the French name but
given it the feminine gender, die Rhone. The original German adoption of the Latin
name was also masculine, der Rotten; it survives only in the Upper Valais
(dialectal Rottu).

In French, the adjective derived from the river is rhodanien, as in le sillon

rhodanien (literally the furrow of the Rhne), which is the name of the long,
straight Sane and Rhne river valleys, a deep cleft running due south to the
Mediterranean and separating the Alps from the Massif Central.

Navigation[edit]
Before railroads and highways were developed, the Rhne was an important inland
trade and transportation route, connecting the cities of Arles, Avignon, Valence,
Vienne and Lyon to the Mediterranean ports of Fos-sur-Mer, Marseille and Ste.
Travelling down the Rhne by barge would take three weeks. By motorized vessel, the
trip now takes only three days. The Rhne is classified as a Class V waterway from
the mouth of the Sane to the sea. The Sane, which is also canalized, connects the
Rhne ports to the cities of Villefranche-sur-Sane, Mcon and Chalon-sur-Sane.
Smaller vessels (up to CEMT class I) can travel further northwest, north and
northeast via the Centre-Loire-Briare and Loing Canals to the Seine, via the Canal
de la Marne la Sane (recently often called the Canal entre Champagne et
Bourgogne) to the Marne, via the Canal des Vosges (formerly called the Canal de
l'Est Branche Sud) to the Moselle and via the Canal du Rhne au Rhin to the
Rhine.

The Rhne is infamous for its strong current when the river carries large
quantities of water current speeds up to 10 kilometres per hour (6 mph) are
sometimes reached, particularly in the stretch below the last lock at Vallabrgues
and in the relatively narrow first diversion canal south of Lyon. The 12 locks are
operated daily from 500 a.m. until 900 p.m. All operation is centrally controlled
from one control centre at Chteauneuf. Commercial barges may navigate during the
night hours by authorisation.[1]

Course[edit]

The Rhne Glacier above Oberwald, Switzerland is the source of the river.

The Rhne flowing through the valleys of the Swiss Alps and arriving into Lake
Geneva, in Switzerland.
The Rhne rises as an effluent of the Rhne Glacier in the Valais, in the Swiss
Alps, at an altitude of approximately 2,208 metres (7,244 ft).[2] From there it
flows south through Gletsch and the Goms, the uppermost, valley region of the
Valais before Brig. Shortly before reaching Brig, it receives the waters of the
Massa from the Aletsch Glacier. It flows onward through the valley which bears its
name and runs initially in a westerly direction about thirty kilometers to Leuk,
then southwest about fifty kilometers to Martigny .

Down as far as Brig, the Rhne is a torrent; it then becomes a great mountain river
running southwest through a glacier valley. Between Brig and Martigny, it collects
waters mostly from the valleys of the Pennine Alps to the south, whose rivers
originate from the large glaciers of the massifs of Monte Rosa, Dom, and Grand
Combin.

At Martigny, where it receives the waters of la Drance on its left bank, the Rhne
makes a strong turn towards the north. Heading toward Lake Geneva, the valley
narrows, a feature that has long given the Rhne valley strategic importance for
the control of the Alpine passes. The Rhne then marks the boundary between the
cantons of Valais (left bank) and Vaud (right bank), separating the Valais Chablais
and Chablais Vaudois. It enters Lake Geneva near Le Bouveret.

On a portion of its extent Lake Geneva marks the border between France and
Switzerland.