Rhône (; frp, Rôno) is a department of east-central

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, in the central-southeastern

Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes (ARA; ; frp, Ôvèrgne-Rôno-Ârpes; oc, Auvèrnhe Ròse Aups; it, Alvernia-Rodano-Alpi) is a region in southeast-central France created by the 2014 territorial reform of French regions; it resulted from the merger of Au ...

region In geography, regions, otherwise referred to as zones, lands or territories, are areas that are broadly divided by physical characteristics (physical geography), human impact characteristics (human geography), and the interaction of humanity and t ...

. Named after the river

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 ...

, its

prefecture A prefecture (from the Latin ''Praefectura'') is an administrative jurisdiction traditionally governed by an appointed prefect. This can be a regional or local government subdivision in various countries, or a subdivision in certain international ...

Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...

. Its sole

subprefecture A subprefecture is an administrative division of a country that is below prefecture or province. Albania There are twelve Albanian counties or prefectures, each of which is divided into several districts, sometimes translated as subprefectures. ...

Villefranche-sur-Saône Villefranche-sur-Saône (, ; frp, Velafranche) is a commune in the Rhône department in eastern France. It lies 1 mile (1.6 km) west of the river Saône, and is around north of Lyon. The inhabitants of the town are called ''Caladois''. ...

. In 2019, it had a population of 1,875,747.Populations légales 2019: 69 Rhône
INSEE

History

The department was created on August 12, 1793, when the former Rhône-et-Loire was split into two departments: Rhône and

Loire The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...

. Originally, the eastern border of Rhône was the city of

itself, so that the

communes An intentional community is a voluntary residential community which is designed to have a high degree of social cohesion and teamwork from the start. The members of an intentional community typically hold a common social, political, relig ...

immediately east of Lyon belonged to neighboring departments. With the growth of Lyon and the extension of its urban area into communes such as

Villeurbanne Villeurbanne (; frp, Velorbana) is a commune in the Metropolis of Lyon in Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. It is situated northeast of Lyon, with which it forms the heart of the second-largest metropolitan area in France after ...

, the limits of the department were judged impractical as they left the suburbs of Lyon outside of Rhône. Thus, Rhône was enlarged several times to incorporate into it the suburbs of Lyon from neighboring department: * In 1852, four communes from

Isère Isère ( , ; frp, Isera; oc, Isèra, ) is a landlocked department in the southeastern French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.Ain Ain (, ; frp, En) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where ...

were incorporated into Rhône. * In 1971, one commune from Isère was incorporated into Rhône. With these enlargements, the area of the department increased from 2,791 km² to 3,249 km² (16.4% larger). At the 1999 French census, the original department of Rhône would have had only 1,071,288 inhabitants, which means that the population in the territories added in the last two centuries was 507,581 inhabitants in 1999. In 2015 the

Metropolis of Lyon The Metropolis of Lyon (french: Métropole de Lyon), also known as ("Greater Lyon"), is a French territorial collectivity located in the east-central region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is a directly elected metropolitan authority encompassing t ...

was separated from the department of Rhône. Rhône lost 16% of its territory, and 75% of its population.Comparateur de territoires: Département du Rhône (69), Métropole de Lyon (200046977)
INSEE Lyon, although no longer part of the department, remains its administrative center.

Geography

Rivers include the

and the

Saône The Saône ( , ; frp, Sona; lat, Arar) is a river in eastern France. It is a right tributary of the Rhône, rising at Vioménil in the Vosges department and joining the Rhône in Lyon, at the southern end of the Presqu'île. The name ...

(which joins the Rhône in Lyon). The neighboring departments are

Ain Ain (, ; frp, En) is a department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Eastern France. Named after the Ain river, it is bordered by the Saône and Rhône rivers. Ain is located on the country's eastern edge, on the Swiss border, where ...

Isère Isère ( , ; frp, Isera; oc, Isèra, ) is a landlocked department in the southeastern French region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.Loire The Loire (, also ; ; oc, Léger, ; la, Liger) is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of , it drains , more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône ...

and

Saône-et-Loire Saône-et-Loire (; Arpitan: ''Sona-et-Lêre'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the rivers Saône and Loire, between which it lies, in the country's central-eastern part. Saône-et-Loire is Bo ...

Demographics

Population development since 1801 (with Lyon Metropolis) : Before the Metropolis of Lyon was separated from the department, over 75% of its population lived within the

Greater Lyon The Metropolis of Lyon (french: Métropole de Lyon), also known as ("Greater Lyon"), is a French territorial collectivity located in the east-central region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is a directly elected metropolitan authority encompassing t ...

, which included all of the largest cities of the Rhône department, apart from Villefranche-sur-Saône. The most populous commune of the new department of Rhône is

. As of 2019, there are 5 communes with more than 10,000 inhabitants:

Politics

The

President of the Departmental Council In France, the President of the Departmental Council ( French: ''Président du Conseil départemental'') is the locally elected head of the departmental council, the assembly governing a department in France. The position is elected by the depa ...

is Christophe Guilloteau, a member of the Republicans (LR).

Current National Assembly Representatives

This list includes representatives from

Lyon Metropolis The Metropolis of Lyon (french: Métropole de Lyon), also known as ("Greater Lyon"), is a French territorial collectivity located in the east-central region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is a directly elected metropolitan authority encompassing t ...

created in 2015 as a separate department.

Tourism

File:View from Chiroubles Cru Beaujolais.jpg,

Beaujolais Beaujolais ( , ) is a French ''Appellation d'Origine Contrôlée'' (AOC) wine generally made of the Gamay grape, which has a thin skin and is low in tannins. Like most AOC wines they are not labeled varietally. Whites from the region, which mak ...

vineyards File:Oingt, July 2012 (3).jpg,

Oingt Oingt () is a former commune in the Rhône department of the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in eastern France. On 1 January 2017, Le Bois-d'Oingt, Oingt and Saint-Laurent-d'Oingt merged becoming one commune of Val d'Oingt.The Most Beautiful Villages of France File:Château de Jarnioux 1.JPG, Château de

Jarnioux Jarnioux () is a former commune in the Rhône department in eastern France. On 1 January 2019, it was merged into the commune Porte des Pierres Dorées.

References

External links

Prefecture website

Departmental Council website

''69.pagesd.info - Webportal and directory of communes and web sites of the Rhône (69) département'' website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Rhone 1793 establishments in France Departments of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes States and territories established in 1793 Massif Central