The Drance (french: La Drance/Dranse, ) is a

river A river is a natural flowing watercourse, usually freshwater, flowing towards an ocean, sea, lake or another river. In some cases, a river flows into the ground and becomes dry at the end of its course without reaching another body of w ...

Valais Valais ( , , ; frp, Valês; german: Wallis ), more formally the Canton of Valais,; german: Kanton Wallis; in other official Swiss languages outside Valais: it, (Canton) Vallese ; rm, (Chantun) Vallais. is one of the 26 cantons forming the S ...

, Switzerland with a length of to the confluence with the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

, a maximum length of . It has a

drainage basin A drainage basin is an area of land where all flowing surface water converges to a single point, such as a river mouth, or flows into another body of water, such as a lake or ocean. A basin is separated from adjacent basins by a perimeter, ...

of . The river is formed from the confluence of the ''Dranse d'Entremont'' and the ''Dranse de Bagnes'' at the village of Sembrancher. Further upriver the ''Dranse d'Entremont'' splits into the ''Dranse d'Entremont'' and the ''Dranse de Ferret''.

History

In 57/56 BC

Julius Caesar Gaius Julius Caesar (; ; 12 July 100 BC – 15 March 44 BC), was a Roman general and statesman. A member of the First Triumvirate, Caesar led the Roman armies in the Gallic Wars before defeating his political rival Pompey in a civil war, ...

sent Servius Galba with the Twelfth Legion and some cavalry to open the

Great St Bernard Pass it, Colle del Gran San Bernardogerman: Grosser Sankt Bernhard , photo = Great St Bernard Pass.jpg , photo_caption = View of the pass and hospice from Great St Bernard Lake with Mont Vélan in background , elevation_m = 2469 , elevation_ref = ...

. The legion fought the

Veragri The Veragrī (Gaulish: *''Ueragroi'', 'super-warriors'; Greek: ) were a Gallic tribe dwelling around present-day Martigny, in the Pennine Alps, during the Iron Age and the Roman period. Along with the Nantuates, Seduni and Uberi, they were part ...

at the village of Octodurus along the Drance river and drove them across the river before establishing a camp near the river. The

Seduni The Seduni were a Gallic tribe dwelling in the upper Rhône valley, around present-day Sion, during the Iron Age and the Roman period. Along with the Nantuates, Veragri and Uberi, they were part of the Vallenses, a group of tribes living betwe ...

and Veragri attacked the legion camp a few days later in the

Battle of Octodurus The battle of Octodurus took place in the winter of 57–56 BC in the Gallic town of Octodurus in what is now Martigny, Valais, Switzerland. The battle was the result of a Roman attempt to open the Great St. Bernard Pass over the Alps. It was ...

. In 1349 a wooden toll bridge and dam are mentioned near La Bâtiaz village (now part of Martigny). In 1595 the river flooded and destroyed a chapel in La Bâtiaz and damage in Bagnes. In 1818 a glacial dam gave way below

Giétro Glacier The Giétro Glacier or Giétroz Glacier (french: Glacier du Giétro) is a 4 km long valley glacier located in south-western Switzerland. The 1818 Giétro Glacier catastrophe, which led to lake outburst flood, is one of the most famous and mo ...

releasing of water into the river, killing 44 people and destroying many structures along the river. The last covered bridge in use in Valais today was built in 1829 to replace a bridge over the Drance which was destroyed in the 1818 flood. On 26 July 2006 the Drance flooded destroying a section of railway track and derailing a St. Bernard Express train. All 34 passengers and the conductor of the train were uninjured. The floods also forced several thousand to evacuate in Martigny and other villages along the river.

Geography

The Drance river is an alpine river mostly fed by glacial runoff. High in the Alps it is fed by numerous small streams that run down the surrounding mountains. The river flows into the Rhone river near the village of Martigny. About upriver at Sembrancher, the river splits into the ''Dranse d'Entremont'' and the ''Dranse de Bagnes''. Continuing upstream past Sembrancher the ''Dranse d'Entremont'' rises to the south. At

Orsières Orsières is a municipality in the district of Entremont in the canton of Valais in Switzerland. History Orsières is first mentioned in 972 as ''Pons Ursarii''. In medieval times, it was a stage on the ''Via Francigena''. Geography Orsières ...

it splits into the ''Dranse d'Entremont'' and the ''Dranse de Ferret''. The Dranse d'Entremont passes through

Lac des Toules __NOTOC__ Lac des Toules is a reservoir in Valais, Switzerland, at Bourg-Saint-Pierre. Its surface area is . It has a €2.2 million floating solar plant that was flown in by helicopter in 2019, and delivers 800 MWh/year. The dam Les Toules was ...

before reaching its source near the

. The Dranse de Ferret continues south until it reaches the ''Lacs de Fenêtre'' on the western slope of the

Pointe de Drône The Pointe de Drône is a mountain of the Pennine Alps, located on the border between Italy and Switzerland. It lies west of the Great St. Bernard Pass it, Colle del Gran San Bernardogerman: Grosser Sankt Bernhard , photo = Great St Bernard ...

. The Dranse de Bagnes rises to the east and then south east, passing through

Lac de Mauvoisin __NOTOC__ Lac de Mauvoisin is a reservoir in the canton of Valais, Switzerland. The reservoir is formed by the Mauvoisin Dam, which is high. The dam is the 11th highest in the world, and the 6th highest arch dam. It was built in 1951–1957, and ...

, before reaching its source at the Brenay Glacier.

Gallery

Dranse de Bagnes.jpg, Dranse de Bagnes Lac de mauvoisin, dranse - ch.jpg, The Dranse de Bagnes at Lac de Mauvoisin with fluvial

sediment Sediment is a naturally occurring material that is broken down by processes of weathering and erosion, and is subsequently transported by the action of wind, water, or ice or by the force of gravity acting on the particles. For example, sa ...

build-up Dranse d'Entremont.jpg, Dranse d'Entremont Dranse de Ferret.jpg, Dranse de Ferret

References

External links

* {{Authority control

Drance The Drance (french: La Drance/Dranse, ) is a river in Valais, Switzerland with a length of to the confluence with the Rhône, a maximum length of . It has a drainage basin of . The river is formed from the confluence of the ''Dranse d'Entremon ...