Romans-sur-Isère (; ;

Old Occitan Old Occitan (, ), also called Old Provençal, was the earliest form of the Occitano-Romance languages, as attested in writings dating from the 8th to the 14th centuries. Old Occitan generally includes Early and Old Occitan. Middle Occitan is some ...

: ''Romans'') is a commune in the

Drôme Drôme (; Occitan: ''Droma''; Arpitan: ''Drôma'') is the southernmost department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. Named after the river Drôme, it had a population of 516,762 as of 2019.

department in southeastern

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

Geography

Romans-sur-Isère is located on the

Isère Isère ( , ; ; , ) is a landlocked Departments of France, department in the southeastern French Regions of France, region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. Named after the river Isère (river), Isère, it had a population of 1,271,166 in 2019.

, northeast of Valence. There are more than 50,000 inhabitants in the urban area (if the neighboring town of Bourg-de-Péage is included). Romans is close to the Vercors.

Population

Economy

* Nuclear fuel manufacture (FBFC, Franco-Belge de Fabrication du Combustible),

Framatome Framatome () is a French nuclear reactor business. It is owned by Électricité de France (EDF) (80.5%) and Mitsubishi Heavy Industries (19.5%). The company first formed in 1958 to license Westinghouse's pressurized water reactor (PWR) designs ...

subsidiary. *

Shoe A shoe is an item of footwear intended to protect and comfort the human foot. Though the human foot can adapt to varied terrains and climate conditions, it is vulnerable, and shoes provide protection. Form was originally tied to function, but ...

manufacture (including Robert Clergerie)

History

*Historian Emmanuel Le Roy Ladurie wrote ''Carnaval de Romans'' (1980) a microhistorical study, based on the only two surviving eyewitness accounts, of the 1580 massacre of about twenty artisans at the annual carnival in the town. He treats the massacre as a microcosm of the political, social and religious conflicts of rural society in the latter half of the 16th century in France. *On 18 July 2017, the town was the end point for Stage 16 of the

Tour de France The Tour de France () is an annual men's multiple-stage cycle sport, bicycle race held primarily in France. It is the oldest and most prestigious of the three Grand Tour (cycling), Grand Tours, which include the Giro d'Italia and the Vuelta a ...

. *On 4 April 2020, two people were killed and five wounded in a knife attack, in what the interior minister called an act of

terrorism Terrorism, in its broadest sense, is the use of violence against non-combatants to achieve political or ideological aims. The term is used in this regard primarily to refer to intentional violence during peacetime or in the context of war aga ...

. Prosecutors said the suspect was a Sudanese

refugee A refugee, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR), is a person "forced to flee their own country and seek safety in another country. They are unable to return to their own country because of feared persecution as ...

in his 30s who lived in the town.

Sights

* Collegiate Church of Saint-Barnard *International Museum of Footwear *Tower of Jacquemart clock

Twin towns - sister cities

Romans-sur-Isère is twinned with: * Coalville, England, United Kingdom * Corsano, Italy *

Straubing Straubing (; Central Bavarian: ''Strauwing'') is an independent city in Lower Bavaria, southern Germany. It is seat of the Districts of Germany, district of Straubing-Bogen. Annually in August the Gäubodenvolksfest, the second largest fair in Ba ...

, Germany *

Varese Varese ( , ; or ; ; ; archaic ) is a city and ''comune'' in north-western Lombardy, northern Italy, north-west of Milan. The population of Varese in 2018 was 80,559. It is the capital of the Province of Varese. The hinterland or exurban part ...

, Italy *

Zadar Zadar ( , ), historically known as Zara (from Venetian and Italian, ; see also other names), is the oldest continuously inhabited city in Croatia. It is situated on the Adriatic Sea, at the northwestern part of Ravni Kotari region. Zadar ...

, Croatia *

Zlín Zlín (in 1949–1989 Gottwaldov; ; ) is a city in the Czech Republic. It has about 75,000 inhabitants. It is the seat of the Zlín Region and it lies on the Dřevnice River. It is known as an industrial centre. The development of the modern city ...

, Czech Republic

Notable people

* Hippolyte Charles (1773-1837), lover of Joséphine Bonaparte * Robert Clergerie, shoe designer * Érik Comas (1963-), former Formula One driver * Pierre Latour (1993-), cyclist * Jules Nadi (1872-1928), former mayor and councilor who did much to develop the city * Baptiste Reynet, professional footballer * Philippe Saint-André, rugby player and national team coach * Thomas Arthur, Comte de Lally, general of Irish Jacobite ancestry

Climate

References

External links

Town council website

Communauté de communes du Pays de Romans website
* * Communes of Drôme Dauphiné {{Drôme-geo-stub