Orléans Source Du Loiret 3

Orléans (;"Orleans"
(US) and , ) is a city in north-central France, about 120 kilometres (74 miles) southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the

department Department may refer to: * Departmentalization, division of a larger organization into parts with specific responsibility Government and military *Department (administrative division), a geographical and administrative division within a country, ...

Loiret Loiret (; ) is a department in the Centre-Val de Loire region of north-central France. It takes its name from the river Loiret, which is contained wholly within the department. In 2019, Loiret had a population of 680,434.

and of the

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 ...

Centre-Val de Loire Centre-Val de Loire (, , ,In isolation, ''Centre'' is pronounced . ) or Centre Region (french: région Centre, link=no, ), as it was known until 2015, is one of the eighteen Regions of France, administrative regions of France. It straddles the mi ...

. Orléans is located on the river

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 Rhôn ...

nestled in the heart of the Loire Valley, classified as a

World Heritage Site A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...

, where the river curves south towards the

Massif Central The (; oc, Massís Central, ; literally ''"Central Massif"'') is a highland region in south-central France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers about 15% of mainland France. Subject to volcanism that has subsided in the last 10,00 ...

. In 2019, the city had 116,269 inhabitants within its municipal boundaries. Orléans is the center of

Orléans Métropole Orléans Métropole is the ''métropole'', an intercommunal structure, centred on the city of Orléans. It is located in the Loiret department, in the Centre-Val de Loire region, central France. It was created in April 2017, replacing the previou ...

that has a population of 288,229. The larger metropolitan area has a population of 451,373, the 20th largest in France. The city owes its development from

antiquity Antiquity or Antiquities may refer to: Historical objects or periods Artifacts *Antiquities, objects or artifacts surviving from ancient cultures Eras Any period before the European Middle Ages (5th to 15th centuries) but still within the histo ...

to the commercial exchanges resulting from the river. An important river trade port, it was the headquarters of the community of merchants frequenting the Loire. It was the capital of the

Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France ( fro, Reaume de France; frm, Royaulme de France; french: link=yes, Royaume de France) is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the medieval and early modern period ...

during the

Merovingian period The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...

and played an important role in the

Hundred Years' War The Hundred Years' War (; 1337–1453) was a series of armed conflicts between the kingdoms of England and France during the Late Middle Ages. It originated from disputed claims to the French throne between the English House of Plantag ...

, particularly known for the role of

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= �an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the corona ...

during the

siege of Orléans The siege of Orléans (12 October 1428 – 8 May 1429) was the watershed of the Hundred Years' War between France and England. The siege took place at the pinnacle of English power during the later stages of the war. The city held strategic and ...

. Every first week of May since 1432, the city pays homage to the "Maid of Orléans" during the Johannic Holidays which has been listed in the inventory of intangible cultural heritage in France. One of Europe's oldest universities was created in 1306 by

Pope Clement V Pope Clement V ( la, Clemens Quintus; c. 1264 – 20 April 1314), born Raymond Bertrand de Got (also occasionally spelled ''de Guoth'' and ''de Goth''), was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 5 June 1305 to his de ...

and re-founded in 1966 as the

University of Orléans The University of Orléans (french: Université d'Orléans) is a French university, in the Academy of Orléans and Tours. As of July 2015 it is a member of the regional university association Leonardo da Vinci consolidated University. History ...

, hosting more than 20,000 students in 2019. The

Île d'Orléans Île d'Orléans (; en, Island of Orleans) is an island located in the Saint Lawrence River about east of downtown Quebec City, Quebec, Canada. It was one of the first parts of the province to be colonized by the French, and a large percentag ...

in Quebec, Canada is named after Orléans in France as well as

Orléans, Ontario Orleans (; French: ; officially and in French OrléansThe suburb is called ''Orléans'' (with an accent) in French, but is commonly called ''Orleans'' (no accent) in English. The official name in English was changed from ''Orleans'' to ''Orléan ...

and the former French colony

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans

Orléans is located in the northern bend of the Loire, which crosses from east to west. Orléans belongs to the vallée de la Loire sector between

Sully-sur-Loire Sully-sur-Loire (, literally ''Sully on Loire'') is a commune in the Loiret department, north-central France. It is the seat of the canton of Sully-sur-Loire. It lies on the left bank of the river Loire. Population Castles The ''château'' ...

and

Chalonnes-sur-Loire Chalonnes-sur-Loire is a commune in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France. It is located on the left bank of the river Loire in the Loire Valley UNESCO World Heritage Site area. Geography The town is in the heart of the Anjou, a hist ...

, which was in 2000 inscribed by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...

as a

. The capital of

Orléanais The Duchy of Orléanais () is a former province of France, which was created during the Renaissance by merging four former counties and towns. However after the French Revolution, the province was dissolved in 1791 and succeeded by five ''départ ...

, 120 kilometres southwest of Paris, is bordered to the north by the

Beauce Beauce may refer to: * Beauce, France, a natural region in northern France * Beaucé, a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department, Brittany, France * Beauce, Quebec, an historical and cultural region of Canada ** Beauce (electoral district), a fede ...

region, more specifically the Orléans Forest (French: ''forêt d'Orléans'') and Orléans-la-Source neighbourhood, and the

Sologne Sologne (; ) is a natural region in Centre-Val de Loire, France, extending over portions of the departements of Loiret, Loir-et-Cher and Cher. Its area is about . To its north is the river Loire, to its south the river Cher, while the districts ...

region to the south. Five bridges in the city cross the Loire: Pont de l'Europe, Pont du Maréchal Joffre (also called Pont Neuf), Pont George-V (also called Pont Royal, carrying the commune

tramway Tramway may refer to: * Tramway (industrial), a lightly laid railway for uses such as logging or mining * A tram transport system (public transport vehicles running on rails) ** The Tramway track, tracks which trams run on (also a section of reserv ...

), Pont René-Thinat and Pont de Vierzon (rail bridge). Orléans Pont George V 01

To the north of the Loire (''rive droite'') is to be found a small hill ( at the pont Georges-V, at the Place du Martroi) which gently rises to at la Croix Fleury, at the limits of

Fleury-les-Aubrais Fleury-les-Aubrais () is a commune in the Loiret department, Centre-Val de Loire, France. It is a northern suburb of Orléans. As a part of German-occupied France The Military Administration in France (german: Militärverwaltung in Frank ...

. Conversely, the south (on the ''rive gauche'') has a gentle depression to about

above sea level Height above mean sea level is a measure of the vertical distance (height, elevation or altitude) of a location in reference to a historic mean sea level taken as a vertical datum. In geodesy, it is formalized as '' orthometric heights''. The ...

(at Saint-Marceau) between the Loire and the Loiret, designated a "zone inondable" (flood-risk zone). At the end of the 1960s, the Orléans-la-Source neighbourhood was created, to the south of the original commune and separated from it by the Val d'Orléans and the river

(whose source is in the Parc Floral de la Source). This quarter's altitude varies from about .

Climate

Orléans experiences an

oceanic climate An oceanic climate, also known as a marine climate, is the humid temperate climate sub-type in Köppen classification ''Cfb'', typical of west coasts in higher middle latitudes of continents, generally featuring cool summers and mild winters ...

(

Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, nota ...

''Cfb''), similar to much of central France. July, the warmest month, has an average temperature of and a high of , while January, the coldest month, has an average temperature of and an average low temperature of , although February has a lower average low than January at . The record high temperature is recorded in July, while the record low temperature of was recorded in January. Precipitation is evenly distributed year-round, with Orléans receiving of precipitation annually. However, some months are slightly wetter than others, with the driest month receiving of rain and the wettest receiving of precipitation on average. Precipitation days vary more, with less of them in the summer months than in the other seasons. Humidity is high year-round but decreases slightly in summer. July and August only have their humidity at 72% but December has 90% humidity on average. Orléans receives 1,767.3 hours of sunshine annually, with summer being the sunniest season and winter being the least sunny season. August, receiving 224.6 hours of sunshine on average, is the sunniest month, and December, receiving 56.6 hours of sunshine on average, has the least amount of sunshine.

The Loire and navigation

In Orléans, the Loire is separated by a submerged