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Valence (, ; oc, Valença ) is a commune in southeastern France, the prefecture of 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 and within the
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 an ...
. It is situated on the left bank of 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 ...
, about south of
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 ...
, along the railway line that runs from Paris to
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
. It is the eighth-largest city in the region by its population and has 64,726 registered inhabitants in 2018 (132,556 inhabitants in the urban area ('' unité urbaine''). The city is divided into four cantons. Its inhabitants are called ''Valentinois''. Located in the heart of the Rhone corridor, Valence is often referred to as "the door to the
South of France Southern France, also known as the South of France or colloquially in French as , is a defined geographical area consisting of the regions of France that border the Atlantic Ocean south of the Marais Poitevin,Louis Papy, ''Le midi atlantique'', ...
", the local saying ''à Valence le Midi commence'' ("at Valence the Midi begins") pays tribute to the city's southern culture. Between Vercors and
Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bo ...
, its geographical location attracts many tourists. Axes of transport and communications are the A7 and A49 autoroutes, the RN7, Paris/Marseille TGV line, as well as 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 ...
. In addition, the Valence agglomeration is equipped with a , a , two railway stations ( Valence-Ville and Valence-TGV) and an
airport An airport is an aerodrome with extended facilities, mostly for commercial air transport. Airports usually consists of a landing area, which comprises an aerially accessible open space including at least one operationally active surfa ...
. Its business is essentially turned towards the sectors of
agriculture Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people ...
, metallurgy,
engineering Engineering is the use of scientific principles to design and build machines, structures, and other items, including bridges, tunnels, roads, vehicles, and buildings. The discipline of engineering encompasses a broad range of more speciali ...
and
electronics The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...
. The commune, founded in 121 BC, after the invasion of
Gallia Narbonensis Gallia Narbonensis (Latin for "Gaul of Narbonne", from its chief settlement) was a Roman province located in what is now Languedoc and Provence, in Southern France. It was also known as Provincia Nostra ("Our Province"), because it was th ...
by the Romans, it moved quickly to become the largest crossroad behind
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 ...
. With its growing importance, Valence gained the status of Roman colony. Over the centuries, the town grew and grew. Today, many vestiges of the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
,
Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) , from , with the same meanings. is a period in European history marking the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and covering the 15th and 16th centuries, characterized by an effort to revive and surpass ide ...
, but also from the 17th century, 18th century and 19th century are visible in the city centre. The city is historically attached to the Dauphiné, of which it forms the second largest city after Grenoble and is today part of the network of
French Towns and Lands of Art and History Since 1985, the French Ministry of Culture and Communication has pursued a policy of preserving and promoting France's heritage. Historic towns and districts have been designated ''Villes et Pays d'Art et d'Histoire'' ("Towns and Lands of Art and ...
. Formerly the duchy of Valentinois, it was ruled by the Duke of Valentinois, a title which is still claimed by the Sovereign Prince of Monaco, though he has no actual administrative control over the area. Monuments in Valence include the , built between 1528 and 1532 by Antoine de Dorne, the Saint-Apollinaire Cathedral, built between 1063 and 1099 under the leadership of Bishop Gontard and also the designed by the architect Eugène Poitoux. The city has many , most of which are in . Inscribed on the list of floral towns and villages of France, Valence is one of the seventeen municipalities of the Rhône-Alpes region to be labeled "four flowers" by the '' Concours des villes et villages fleuris'', i.e. the maximum level.


Geography


Location

By its geographical location, Valence is one of the points of compulsory passage between Paris and the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
. Its position at the centre of the meridian axis of the Rhone Valley places the city at the mouth of the Valley of the Isère (path to the
Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
), in the west of the historical province of Dauphiné, within the natural and historic region of the Valentinois, and the boundary of the department of Ardèche (from which it is separated by 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 ...
). The city is surrounded by several mountain ranges, including 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 10,0 ...
and the Ardèche hills to the west, and the
Vercors Massif The Vercors Massif is a range in France consisting of rugged plateaus and mountains straddling the ''départements'' of Isère and Drôme in the French Prealps. It lies west of the Dauphiné Alps, from which it is separated by the rivers D ...
in the French Prealps to the east. Valence is to the southeast of Paris, equidistant () south of
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 ...
and southwest of Grenoble, north of
Avignon Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label= Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the commune had ...
, north of
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
, north of
Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the department of Hérault. In 2018, 290,053 people l ...
, south-west of
Saint-Étienne Saint-Étienne (; frp, Sant-Etiève; oc, Sant Estève, ) is a city and the prefecture of the Loire department in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Saint-Étienne is the ...
, to the east of Le Puy-en-Velay, north of Montélimar, to the east of Privas and to the west of
Die Die, as a verb, refers to death, the cessation of life. Die may also refer to: Games * Die, singular of dice, small throwable objects used for producing random numbers Manufacturing * Die (integrated circuit), a rectangular piece of a semicondu ...
. Located a few kilometres south of the 45th parallel, the city is often referred to as the "gateway to Southern France." ''"À Valence le Midi commence"'' t Valence the Midi commences say people from the north. The agglomeration is based on four alluvial terraces ranging on the left bank of the Rhone: *The lowest, which is closest to the river, where the districts of fishermen and sailors were. *The intermediate terrace, safe from the floods of the river, which grew into the historic city, first within its walls, then expanded outside. *The third terrace, highly urbanised in the second half of the 20th century. *The highest, called the plateau of Lautagne which has developed as a centre of technological activities since the end of the 20th century on the edge of grain and vegetable farms. Administratively, the commune is located in the south of the
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 the northern half of 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 (of which it is the prefecture), and in the south-west of the
Arrondissement of Valence The arrondissement of Valence is an arrondissement of France in the Drôme department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. It has 101 communes. Its population is 292,801 (2016), and its area is . Composition The communes of the arrondissement of ...
(of which it is the capital). Moreover, Valence is the
chef-lieu An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...
of four cantons, Valence-1, Valence-2, Valence-3 and Valence-4, the city is therefore divided into four at the cantonal level. The commune is part of the
Communauté d'agglomération Valence Romans Agglo Communauté d'agglomération Valence Romans Agglo is the ''communauté d'agglomération'', an intercommunal structure, centred on the cities of Valence and Romans-sur-Isère. It is located in the Drôme department, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes re ...
, which includes 56 communes since its inception on 1 January 2017, and Valence is the most populous city. Valence was previously part of two intercommunalities: (Intercommunal Union of Services of the Valentinoise Agglomeration, better known under the name of "Valence Major") which includes seven Drôme and Ardèche communes (Bourg-lès-Valence, Cornas, Guilherand-Granges, Portes-lès-Valence, Saint-Marcel-lès-Valence, Saint-Péray and Valence) from 1990 to 2009, and of the agglomeration community of which consisted of eleven communes from 2009 to 2014.


Neighbouring Communes


Relief and geology

The area of the commune is , representing ; the altitude varies between . The granitic base, cut by the Rhône in the Saint-Vallier/Tain-l'Hermitage pass, is covered by of sediments in the Valence trough. In the
Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...
, a molasse formed of detrital rocks due to the erosion of the
Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...
and 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 10,0 ...
, was deposited in a shallow sea. Its thickness can reach . During the
Pliocene The Pliocene ( ; also Pleiocene) is the epoch in the geologic time scale that extends from 5.333 million to 2.58loess Loess (, ; from german: Löss ) is a clastic, predominantly silt-sized sediment that is formed by the accumulation of wind-blown dust. Ten percent of Earth's land area is covered by loess or similar deposits. Loess is a periglacial or aeoli ...
formation. During the Quaternary, between glacial periods,
moraine A moraine is any accumulation of unconsolidated debris ( regolith and rock), sometimes referred to as glacial till, that occurs in both currently and formerly glaciated regions, and that has been previously carried along by a glacier or ice sh ...
s were swept away by the meltwater in the interglacial stages and were carved by the rivers. Thus, nested terraces were formed. These nested terraces of Isère and Rhône eventually filled the gap of Valence. The Drôme des Collines, which integrates Valence, formed at the end of the Miocene. Under the effect of the Alpine thrust, the area was covered by a lake and fluvio-lacustrine molasse formed with a few ripples in the plain of Valence. The confluence of the Isère and Rhône and fluvial erosion caused by their waters, in the Quaternary, formed four superimposed terraces which are located in Valence.


Hydrography

Valence is watered by 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 ...
river, the commune is on the left bank. One of its tributaries also crosses the city: The , a -long river, formed by the joining of most of the city's channels, among others.


Plain of Valence

The city gave its name to a well-defined geographical region: The Valentinois. Over more than three-quarters of its territory, this region corresponds to the plain of Valence, shaped by successive beds of 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 ...
which are abandoned fertile sedimentary deposits. Indeed, this plain, perfectly bounded by the Rhône Valleys to the west, the Isère in the north, and the Drome to the south, gives the appearance of a cheerful orchard with
peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, n ...
,
apricot An apricot (, ) is a fruit, or the tree that bears the fruit, of several species in the genus '' Prunus''. Usually, an apricot is from the species '' P. armeniaca'', but the fruits of the other species in ''Prunus'' sect. ''Armeniaca'' are al ...
and
cherry A cherry is the fruit of many plants of the genus ''Prunus'', and is a fleshy drupe (stone fruit). Commercial cherries are obtained from cultivars of several species, such as the sweet ''Prunus avium'' and the sour '' Prunus cerasus''. The n ...
trees, alternating with cereal and vegetable crops. Large farms, conquered one by one by the inhabitants of Valence, punctuate this agricultural area, barely broken by rivers and canals for irrigation, with groves and woods on its margins. To the east, the Monts du Matin extend as a long barrier of pleasant hills, dominated by the limestone prow of the Vercors. To the south, beyond the Drôme Valley, the plain ends at the foot of the massif carrying the vast forest of Marsanne, topped by wind turbines. To the north, beyond the Isère Valley, the Romanais continues, geologically, Valence plain. The lower
Miocene The Miocene ( ) is the first geological epoch of the Neogene Period and extends from about (Ma). The Miocene was named by Scottish geologist Charles Lyell; the name comes from the Greek words (', "less") and (', "new") and means "less recen ...
molasse in the north of the plain was covered by outwash
alluvium Alluvium (from Latin ''alluvius'', from ''alluere'' 'to wash against') is loose clay, silt, sand, or gravel that has been deposited by running water in a stream bed, on a floodplain, in an alluvial fan or beach, or in similar settings. ...
of the Isère, whose terraces today still mark the shape of the Valentinois. The view from the ruins of the
Château de Crussol The Château de Crussol is a mostly-ruined 12th century limestone castle in the ''commune'' of Saint-Péray that dominates the valley of Rhône, just opposite Valence in the Ardèche ''département'', Rhône-Alpes ''région'' of France. Locati ...
, in front after the first sharp turns in the road on leaving the , the plain of Valence appears as it is, a large flat surface, bordered by two reliefs which are unobscured. It is also a very large area because of the same formation of physical organisation, one of successive terraces. Only the habitat and crops bring variation, due to the different nature of these terraces. Today the plain of Valence is organised around the Valence infrastructure whose urban sprawl gradually extends across its whole area. A number of communes however retain their village identity and their rural character, protecting them from changing into dormitory towns. These are ancient agricultural villages, especially those that precede the first villages on the side of Vercors. Their names evoke an initial high placement to readily give a defensive view of the plain of Valence: Montélier, Montvendre,
Montéléger Montéléger (; oc, Montalagier) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Drôme department The following is a list of the 363 communes of the Drôme Drôme (; Occitan: ''Drom ...
,
Montoison Montoison (; oc, Monteison) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population Personalities * Paulin Gagne (8 or 9 June 1808 – August 1876), French poet, essayist, lawyer, politician, inventor and eccentric, was bor ...
,
Montmeyran Montmeyran (; oc, Montmairan) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Drôme department The following is a list of the 363 communes of the Drôme Drôme (; Occitan: ''Droma''; ...
and Beaumont-lès-Valence. However, the territories corresponding to the plain of Valence and the Valentinois do not include west of the agglomeration, which is located in the neighbouring department of Ardèche.


Climate

Valence enjoys a
humid subtropical climate A humid subtropical climate is a zone of climate characterized by hot and humid summers, and cool to mild winters. These climates normally lie on the southeast side of all continents (except Antarctica), generally between latitudes 25° and 40° ...
, whose main characteristic is an almost constant wind which blows and dries the Rhône corridor. Dubbed the " mistral" when it comes from the north, it brings good weather and coolness in the summer, but an impression of freezing cold in winter. When it comes from the south, it usually announces the arrival of stormy disturbances. It is then called ''le vent du midi ou le vent des fous''
he midi wind or the uncaring wind He or HE may refer to: Language * He (pronoun), an English pronoun * He (kana), the romanization of the Japanese kana へ * He (letter), the fifth letter of many Semitic alphabets * He (Cyrillic), a letter of the Cyrillic script called ''He'' in ...
because, for some people, it makes the atmosphere painful to bear, especially in the summer. The climate is semi-continental with
Mediterranean The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
influences. The Gotheron weather station of
Saint-Marcel-lès-Valence Saint-Marcel-lès-Valence (, literally ''Saint-Marcel near Valence''; oc, Sant Marçau de Valença) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population Geography The commune of Saint-Marcel-lès-Valence borders the cit ...
, located from the centre of Valence, recorded an average temperature of 12.3 °C and of precipitation over the period from 1966 to 2004. The annual sunshine in Valence is 2,500 hours/year (average 1970–1994). However, there are large variations from one year to another, depending on the dominant influence (in turn Mediterranean and semi-continental). During the period from 1994 to 2004, the following years were remarkable: Lack of sunshine in 1996 (1,712 hours), low precipitation () and high temperatures in 1997, significant rainfall in 1999 () and in 2002 (). There was significant sunshine (approx. 2,500 hours) from 1999 to 2002, accompanied by higher than average temperatures. Frost in April 2003 which affected peach production, followed by a summer heatwave in 2003, with exceptional sunshine for the year (2,781 hours), and a rainfall deficit in 2004 (). Valence is located in the Rhône Valley where the wind regime is regular, both from the south (mistral) and north. Adding in the course of the Rhône which is linear from Lyon to Valence, this circumstance has allowed navigable sailing on the Rhône from Valence.


Vegetation

The vegetation in the plain of Valence is mid-European with a supra-Mediterranean floor ( pedunculate oak, oak found in the coldest places, and thickets of hornbeam) mingled with thermophilic species such as
downy oak ''Quercus pubescens'', the downy oak or pubescent oak, is a species of white oak (genus ''Quercus'' sect. ''Quercus'') native to southern Europe and southwest Asia, from northern Spain (Pyrenees) east to the Crimea and the Caucasus. It is also fou ...
, or even
evergreen oaks Live oak or evergreen oak is any of a number of oaks in several different sections of the genus ''Quercus'' that share the characteristic of evergreen foliage. These oaks are not more closely related to each other than they are to other oaks. ...
on exposed slopes with draining soils. Found also in the south of the Drôme Valley where the Mediterranean influence finally prevails ( to the South) are spontaneous populations of
thyme Thyme () is the herb (dried aerial parts) of some members of the genus ''Thymus'' of aromatic perennial evergreen herbs in the mint family Lamiaceae. Thymes are relatives of the oregano genus '' Origanum'', with both plants being mostly indigen ...
, lavender, Euphorbia characias, Spanish broom ( Genista hispanica), cane of Provence ( Arundo donax), as well as Aleppo pines on the western face of the massif of Crussol. Due to the exposure and the nature of the soil, the Ardèche hills offer landscapes of garrigue and Mediterranean Oak (Quercus Ilex) from Tournon which is located north of Valence (hills of
Cornas Cornas is a commune in the département of Ardèche in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southern France. The name is Celtic for "burnt land." Population Economy The region is famous for wine, which is designated Cornas AOC. See also *C ...
,
Château de Crussol The Château de Crussol is a mostly-ruined 12th century limestone castle in the ''commune'' of Saint-Péray that dominates the valley of Rhône, just opposite Valence in the Ardèche ''département'', Rhône-Alpes ''région'' of France. Locati ...
and
Soyons Soyons (; oc, Soions) is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardèche department The following is a list of the 335 communes of the Ardèche department of France. The communes co ...
). The hills (mostly limestone) have a double vegetation: Mediterranean on the southern side and Sub-continental on the northern side. Formerly, the cultivation of olive trees was previously on the well-exposed heights of Tain-l'Hermitage ( to the north), but they were replaced by the culture of the vine at first, and then by that of apricot, peach and other fruits which are still very present in the region, even though more than of fruits (mainly apricots, cherries, peaches and kiwis) disappeared from the Drôme landscapes due to an outbreak of sharka and a bacterial infection forcing wilt since 2003.


Communication and transport

The central railway station of Valence is the
Gare de Valence-Ville Valence-Ville station ( French: ''Gare de Valence-Ville'') is a railway station serving the town Valence, Drôme department, southeastern France. It is situated on the Paris–Marseille railway, and is the southern terminus of a branch line to G ...
, located just south of the town centre. The station offers connections to Lyon, Grenoble, Avignon, Gap and several regional destinations. In 2001 the
Gare de Valence TGV Gare de Valence TGV (IATA: XHK) is a railway station in Valence, France which offers regular TGV services. The station, located in eastern Valence ( Alixan), is about ten kilometres north-east from the town centre, allowing through trains to pas ...
opened along with the
LGV Méditerranée The LGV Méditerranée (French: ''Ligne à Grande Vitesse''; English: Mediterranean high-speed line) is a French high-speed rail line running between Saint-Marcel-lès-Valence, Drôme and Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, also featuring a connect ...
, a
high-speed rail High-speed rail (HSR) is a type of rail system that runs significantly faster than traditional rail, using an integrated system of specialised rolling stock and dedicated tracks. While there is no single standard that applies worldwide, lines ...
line extending south from Valence to
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
. The station is only south of the end of the
LGV Rhône-Alpes The LGV Rhône-Alpes (French: ''Ligne à Grande Vitesse''; English: high-speed line) is a French high-speed rail line situated in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region which extends the LGV Sud-Est southwards. Opened to service in 1994, the line b ...
, giving Valence much shorter journey times to northern destinations as well, with a journey to Paris taking 2h11. The TGV station is located 10 km northeast of the town. A bikesharing scheme called Libélo started in March 2010, offering 200 bicycles for long-term hire and 180 for short-term hire, in 18 locations around the city. Charges are collected by smart card or credit card.


Road network

The city occupies a key position, at the centre of the . Located on a crossroads of road networks, it is known to be a point of passage (cf. the Valence Autoroute Area) of the holidaymakers who head to the Côte d'Azur. The A7 autoroute (commonly known as the ''autoroute du soleil'' otorway of the sun connects it to
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 ...
( to the north),
Avignon Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label= Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the commune had ...
( to the south), then to
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
( south). The A49 autoroute connects it to Grenoble ( to the northeast). The
A41 autoroute The A41 autoroute, also known as ''l'autoroute alpine'', is a French motorway. The road passes through the French Alps connecting the city of Grenoble with the A40 autoroute, A40 near Geneva. It is made of two sections separated by the N201 and A4 ...
connects it to Savoy ( Chambéry and Annecy; and respectively) and
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...
(Switzerland) to the northeast (via the A49). On the other hand, relations with the cities of 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 10,0 ...
( Le Puy-en-Velay and
Clermont-Ferrand Clermont-Ferrand (, ; ; oc, label= Auvergnat, Clarmont-Ferrand or Clharmou ; la, Augustonemetum) is a city and commune of France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, with a population of 146,734 (2018). Its metropolitan area (''aire d'attrac ...
) are more difficult as the roads are very winding. For example, the shortest route to reach
Saint-Étienne Saint-Étienne (; frp, Sant-Etiève; oc, Sant Estève, ) is a city and the prefecture of the Loire department in eastern-central France, in the Massif Central, southwest of Lyon in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. Saint-Étienne is the ...
passes through the Col de la République (ex-) at altitude.


Underground project of the A7

In Valence, the A7 autoroute runs along 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 ...
and thus crosses the city by cutting the river. An underground project of the autoroute up to the city is being studied. The city of Valence was cut off from its river during the construction of the A7 motorway in the 1960s. The idea is born to bury the fast axis semi-covered trenches over a distance of about . This project to bury the motorway should make the banks of the Rhône available to Valence. However, the project would not be completed prior to at least 2025. The studies, which will be soon carried out, should enable a decision on the exact length of motorway involved, the technical choices and the financial cost. According to a preliminary study, the construction costs should culminate in an amount of €500 million, of which the cost will be shared between the State, the company , the department of Drôme and the city of Valence.


Valence ring road

The périphérique ( ring road) of Valence consists of the A7 autoroute, Route nationale 7 and the . It is located on the European routes E15 (A7) and E713 (RN 532). Forming a half-loop, the Valence ring road covers a little more than and connects the commune of
Bourg-lès-Valence Bourg-lès-Valence (; oc, Lo Borg de Valença) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. It is a suburb of Valence. The archaeologist and Hellenist Fernand Courby (1878–1932) was born in Bourg-lès-Valence. In 2014–2019 ...
to the north (up to the toll of Valence Nord) in the city quarter of to the south (to the toll of Valence Sud exit), thus bypassing the major part of the city whilst ensuring the city is served to the east. It also allows easy access to the
Valence TGV station Gare de Valence TGV (IATA: XHK) is a railway station in Valence, France which offers regular TGV services. The station, located in eastern Valence (Alixan), is about ten kilometres north-east from the town centre, allowing through trains to pass ...
in the north, by the . The ring road of Valence features motorway except in two singular points. The portion of the A7 autoroute in the centre is the legacy of the 1960s when the city turned back to its river. It is even doubled by urban roads, the D2007N. Plans to form a complete loop, connecting the current ring road to a western bypass of Valence, on the right bank of 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 ...
, are under consideration. The east ring road is of more recent design and it ensures the continuity of the RN 7, which offers a free alternative to the A7. This section also provides the extension of the A49 autoroute right to Valence. A road-doubling project of the A7 and A49 autoroutes was considered to relieve the ring road of its transit traffic but was abandoned, even though this axis was granted to the society of the (ASF) and acquisitions had been completed. The west bypass is gradually emerging and it relates directly to the department of Ardèche. It is materialised by a second bridge (Lônes Bridge) on the Rhône (D 96 and D 534) coming to relieve the Mistral Bridge located in the city centre. This bypass is to develop because it is located in the core trunk with the D86, the main axis of the right bank of the Rhône. The bypass of the communes of Guilherand-Granges, Saint-Péray and
Cornas Cornas is a commune in the département of Ardèche in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southern France. The name is Celtic for "burnt land." Population Economy The region is famous for wine, which is designated Cornas AOC. See also *C ...
is programmed, which ensures its realisation by 2025. It will then require the construction of a third bridge over the Rhône in the north of the metropolitan area (in Bourg-lès-Valence) to complete the ring road that will then form a complete loop: This project is at the stage of preliminary studies and it seems that a passage on the present dam of the CNR is retained in order to minimise the cost.


The bridges of Valence

Frédéric Mistral Bridge. During antiquity, the existence of a bridge providing, as in Vienne, the link between the two shores, is likely. Indeed, as early as 1388, the toponym "Pont Péri" éri Bridgeis carried by a sector of the quarter of Basse-Ville lying in the extension of the east-west axis of the ancient city. In addition, A. Blanc would have discovered, still in this same extension, piles of oak, closer perhaps to a pier. He also mentioned the "tour de Constance" onstance Tower on the Valence shore, a construction already known in the Middle Ages and which bore all the floods of the Rhône. In any case, the existence of a link between the two banks is in no doubt and a crossing point could even have existed at the site of Valence from the prehistoric time. Whether or not that existed, this ancient bridge was not replaced until the nineteenth century. The different successive bridges of Valence, in chronological order, are: *The Seguin Bridge built from 1827 (two years after that of Tain- Tournon, which was the first bridge of this type installed in France) and delivered to traffic in 1830. *The stone bridge, dating from 1905, destroyed 19 June 1940 by French engineers to slow the advance of the German troops. In August 1940, Rhone is again passable by boat and then a ferry to traille. A temporary bridge was then installed by the engineers. This bridge was again damaged on 18 August 1944 during a bombing by the Allied forces. *A temporary suspended walkway installed in 1949 and which was in use until 1967. *The
Frédéric Mistral Joseph Étienne Frédéric Mistral (; oc, Josèp Estève Frederic Mistral, 8 September 1830 – 25 March 1914) was a French writer of Occitan literature and lexicographer of the Provençal form of the language. He received the 1904 Nobel P ...
Bridge, completed in 1967, is still in service. It joins the commune of Guilherand-Granges (Ardèche) to the city centre of Valence (Drôme). *Finally, the Bridge was inaugurated on 18 December 2004, located at the south of the city, is the "second bridge" of Valence, long expected to alleviate the problems of movement between the two banks of the Rhone. It connects the communes of Guilherand-Granges and
Soyons Soyons (; oc, Soions) is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardèche department The following is a list of the 335 communes of the Ardèche department of France. The communes co ...
(Ardèche) in the southern districts of Valence. During long periods where no bridge was available, a
reaction ferry A reaction ferry is a cable ferry that uses the reaction of the current of a river against a fixed tether to propel the vessel across the water. Such ferries operate faster and more effectively in rivers with strong currents. Some reaction ferri ...
could cross the Rhone River. On the right bank, in Guilherand-Granges, an old pile used by this ferry is still erect.


Public transport

The region has a bus network called ''Citéa'' which covers the Valence agglomeration (located across the departments of
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.
and Ardèche) and the
romano Romano may refer to: Food * Pecorino Romano, a hard, salty Italian cheese * Romano cheese, an American English and Canadian English term for a class of cheeses Places Italy Municipalities in the Metropolitan City of Rome, Latium * Arcinazzo Ro ...
- peageoise town (about north of Valence). The network is managed by ''Valence Romans Déplacements'' and controlled by the
Communauté d'agglomération Valence Romans Agglo Communauté d'agglomération Valence Romans Agglo is the ''communauté d'agglomération'', an intercommunal structure, centred on the cities of Valence and Romans-sur-Isère. It is located in the Drôme department, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes re ...
and its operation is entrusted to VTV (''Véolia Transport Valence'') from 2012 (the former CTAV network to July 2006). Given the large extent of the Citéa network, the latter is divided into two sectors, Valence and
Romans-sur-Isère Romans-sur-Isère (; Occitan: ''Rumans d'Isèra''; Old Occitan: ''Romans'') is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Geography Romans-sur-Isère is located on the Isère, northeast of Valence. There are more than 50,000 ...
. The territory covered by the network is . It consists of 64 communes located in and around the towns of Valence and Romans-sur-Isère and is inhabited by nearly 220,000 people. Fourth urban network of the Rhône-Alpes region, it has 20 regular lines, over 200 stops and a fleet of 220 bus. The is a transport document which consists of a smartcard which allows not only to travel on any Citéa network (charging its transport tickets), but also to combine travel with other modes of transport in the region such as the TER Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes ( Transport express régional), networks of transit of Saint Etienne (
STAS Stas or STAS may refer to: People * Stas (given name), a reduced form of Stanislav, Anastasius or Eustachius * Stas (surname) * Stasia "Stas" Irons, musician Other uses * School of Technology and Applied Sciences, Kerala, India * Short Term Air ...
), Grenoble () or Lyon ( TCL), or even rent-a-bike in free service.


Railway

Valence has two SNCF railway stations. (Gare)


Gare de Valence-Ville

Valence has two SNCF railway stations. Commissioned in 1865, the role of the Valence-Ville railway station has refocused on regional transport since the 2001 commissioning of the
gare de Valence TGV Gare de Valence TGV (IATA: XHK) is a railway station in Valence, France which offers regular TGV services. The station, located in eastern Valence ( Alixan), is about ten kilometres north-east from the town centre, allowing through trains to pas ...
, or simply Valence-TGV. It is the point of departure of the trains in the direction of Grenoble, Chambéry, Annecy and
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...
. Valence-Ville railway station was also the origin of the relationship which serves , , , , Gap, and Briançon. The passenger building of Valence-Ville railway station has been in service in April 1866. It was designed by
Louis-Jules Bouchot Louis Jules César "Louis-Jules" Bouchot (12 August 1817 – 15 August 1907) was a 19th-century French architect responsible in particular for the construction of the Nice and Milan railway stations. Biography Louis-Jules Bouchot was born 12 a ...
, architect of
Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A neph ...
. The facade of the main body, in stone, is inspired by the
Petit Trianon The Petit Trianon (; French for "small Trianon") is a Neoclassical style château located on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France. It was built between 1762 and 1768 during the reign of King Louis XV of France. ...
of
Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...
. The main façade on the ''Rue du Pavilion Central'' has been registered as an historic monument since 11 October 1982.


Gare de Valence TGV

Valence TGV railway station, on the Lyon-Marseilles
LGV Méditerranée The LGV Méditerranée (French: ''Ligne à Grande Vitesse''; English: Mediterranean high-speed line) is a French high-speed rail line running between Saint-Marcel-lès-Valence, Drôme and Marseille, Bouches-du-Rhône, also featuring a connect ...
line, is located north-east of the city centre, in the commune of
Alixan Alixan (; oc, Aleissan) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Valence TGV station, in the west of the commune, has rail connections to Valence, Grenoble, Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Montpellier and several other destinations ...
. Prior to its opening in 2001, the high speed
TGV The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
trains stopped in Valence-Ville railway station. Trains reached Paris in 2 hours 36 minutes. At the opening of the TGV station, a service of fifty TGVs per day was planned with eight of these TGVs continuing to serve Valence-Ville. Valence TGV station rail connections regularly connect to 35 cities, including
Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...
,
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
,
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 ...
,
Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and fr ...
,
Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the No ...
,
Nice Nice ( , ; Niçard: , classical norm, or , nonstandard, ; it, Nizza ; lij, Nissa; grc, Νίκαια; la, Nicaea) is the prefecture of the Alpes-Maritimes department in France. The Nice agglomeration extends far beyond the administrative ...
,
Montpellier Montpellier (, , ; oc, Montpelhièr ) is a city in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. One of the largest urban centres in the region of Occitania, Montpellier is the prefecture of the department of Hérault. In 2018, 290,053 people l ...
,
Nantes Nantes (, , ; Gallo: or ; ) is a city in Loire-Atlantique on the Loire, from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with a population of 314,138 in Nantes proper and a metropolitan area of nearly 1 million inhabita ...
,
Le Havre Le Havre (, ; nrf, Lé Hâvre ) is a port city in the Seine-Maritime department in the Normandy region of northern France. It is situated on the right bank of the estuary of the river Seine on the Channel southwest of the Pays de Caux, very ...
,
Reims Reims ( , , ; also spelled Rheims in English) is the most populous city in the French department of Marne, and the 12th most populous city in France. The city lies northeast of Paris on the Vesle river, a tributary of the Aisne. Founded b ...
,
Avignon Avignon (, ; ; oc, Avinhon, label= Provençal or , ; la, Avenio) is the prefecture of the Vaucluse department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region of Southeastern France. Located on the left bank of the river Rhône, the commune had ...
, Besançon,
Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label= Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label= Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the ...
,
Dijon Dijon (, , ) (dated) * it, Digione * la, Diviō or * lmo, Digion is the prefecture of the Côte-d'Or department and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in northeastern France. the commune had a population of 156,920. The earlie ...
, Barcelona and
Brussels Brussels (french: Bruxelles or ; nl, Brussel ), officially the Brussels-Capital Region (All text and all but one graphic show the English name as Brussels-Capital Region.) (french: link=no, Région de Bruxelles-Capitale; nl, link=no, Bruss ...
. In 2003, 60 daily TGVs served the station, with 1.8 million passengers. In 2008, the station was served by 58 daily TGVs, carrying 2.2 million passengers.


Inland waterway

The contains 478 berths: It is the first river port of France. Built in 1973, at the initiative of the (CCI of Drôme), around a pool of , it is included in a leisure park of . The quality of the services offered allowed it to obtain the blue flag of Europe, in 2005. Created in 1978 and operated by the , the in the Drôme (more often called Port of Valence) is located for its part, on the territory of the commune of Portes-lès-Valence, just to the south of the city of Valence. It spread over and has in addition to the port itself, an industrial zone with of area of warehouses, including customs, a grain terminal, a 'wood' centre, and the storage sheds ( all products). Its strategic location on the Rhône (in the heart of the
Rhône-Alpes Rhône-Alpes () was an administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it is part of the new region Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes. It is located on the eastern border of the country, towards the south. The region was named after the river Rhône ...
region, close to Isère, Savoy and
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
) allows it to serve the countries of the
Mediterranean Basin In biogeography, the Mediterranean Basin (; also known as the Mediterranean Region or sometimes Mediterranea) is the region of lands around the Mediterranean Sea that have mostly a Mediterranean climate, with mild to cool, rainy winters and wa ...
and the Middle East. As of July 2013, the
Compagnie Nationale du Rhône The Compagnie Nationale du Rhône (CNR) is a French electricity generation company, mainly supplying renewable power from hydroelectric facilities on the Rhone. Operations Established in 1933, as of 2009 the company derives most of its power fr ...
(CNR) began a campaign of work, with a cost of €14 million, to develop the port to make it a place of exchange at the European level.


Air

Valence-Chabeuil Airport Valence - Chabeuil Airport is an airport in France, located about east of Valence (in the Drôme department, Rhone-Alpes region) and approximately south-southeast of Paris. The airport was a pre- World War II French Air Force (Armée de l' ...
, located in the commune of
Chabeuil Chabeuil (; oc, Chabuelh) is a commune of the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population Notable people * Lauriane Doumbouya, French-born First Lady of Guinea (2021 - present) See also *Communes of the Drôme department The fo ...
, is co-managed by the and the Chamber of commerce and industry of Drôme. It is open to commercial national traffic, to private aircraft, using IFR and VFR but welcomes more regular routes since the decision of the Valence-Paris service, which has run since 1969. The airport has three runways: one of in concrete, and two smaller, and . The terminal has two gateways for access to aircraft. The aircraft parking area is . Passengers have at their disposal a 150-space car park and a hotel area. A flying club, as well as a helicopter company are installed at the airport. Grenoble-Isère Airport is located north-east of Valence along the A49 and offers flights to several European cities including London, Bristol, Dublin, Rotterdam and Warsaw. Lyon-Saint-Exupéry Airport is north of Valence via the A7 motorway and offers international flights. The airport is considered to be the second airport in the province after Nice-Côte d'Azur Airport and connects Lyon with most capitals and major European cities. More than 100 cities are connected one or more times a week, some up to five times per day, such as London. In 2013, the Lyon-Saint-Exupéry airport processed more than 8.5 million passengers.


Self-service bicycles

Since 28 March 2010, the city has a system of self-service rent-a-bike and long-term hire called Libélo. It includes 160 bikes on the Smoove key concept spread over 18 then 20 stations and 200 rental bikes for long duration in Valence, Guilherand-Granges and
Bourg-lès-Valence Bourg-lès-Valence (; oc, Lo Borg de Valença) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. It is a suburb of Valence. The archaeologist and Hellenist Fernand Courby (1878–1932) was born in Bourg-lès-Valence. In 2014–2019 ...
. Unlike most other bike sharing systems, its management is not delegated to a business, or related to an advertising market but provided by the transport company of Valence (subsidiary of
Transdev Transdev, formerly Veolia Transdev, is a French-based international private-sector company which operates public transport. It has operations in 17 countries and territories as of November 2020. History The group was formed by the merger of ...
) in partnership with the Citéa transit network.


Urban planning


Urban morphology

The old centre is based on the Roman foundation on a grid plan, occupation of the banks of the Rhone is sparse, probably because of instability. The orientation of the streets of the Roman city, orientation still quite widespread in the streets of the old town, is identical to those of the ancient
cadastre A cadastre or cadaster is a comprehensive recording of the real estate or real property's metes-and-bounds of a country.Jo Henssen, ''Basic Principles of the Main Cadastral Systems in the World,'/ref> Often it is represented graphically in a cad ...
s of the surrounding countryside. The grid plan follows a dual orientation, varying neighbourhoods, the dual orientation which corresponds to two modules of this plan: One of about 360 Roman feet (), the other 420 feet, which sometimes breaks down into 120 feet spacing. This second module describes the angle of the ''Rue de l'Équerre''; exactly a square ''actus'' (i.e. a square with a side of 120 Roman feet); the Saint-Apollinaire Cathedral occupies two square ''actus''. The presence of the Roman
amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
near the Porte Neuve (New Gate) is detectable only in the design of the streets of the cadastre from 1807. The first alluvial terrace, at altitude, was fully occupied by the western part of the communal territory in the 1960s. The city of Valence then expanded eastward, on the Riss terrace, at an altitude of approximately . To the south, the Lautagne plateau, at an altitude of , determines a narrow groove between this advance from the terrace of la Léore and the Rhône, which has limited the development of the city in that direction. At the end of the 20th century, the city was again cut off from the Rhône by the construction of the A7 autoroute. Port areas are alone in the south towards Portes-lès-Valence. The Valence agglomeration stretches on the right bank of the Rhône, but is limited by the edge of the Vivarais plateau. However, it includes the communes of Guilherand-Granges, Saint-Péray,
Cornas Cornas is a commune in the département of Ardèche in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southern France. The name is Celtic for "burnt land." Population Economy The region is famous for wine, which is designated Cornas AOC. See also *C ...
and
Soyons Soyons (; oc, Soions) is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardèche department The following is a list of the 335 communes of the Ardèche department of France. The communes co ...
. To facilitate the expansion of the town to the east, a large expressway was built (it is used by the RN7), where the
Valence-Chabeuil Airport Valence - Chabeuil Airport is an airport in France, located about east of Valence (in the Drôme department, Rhone-Alpes region) and approximately south-southeast of Paris. The airport was a pre- World War II French Air Force (Armée de l' ...
has been in operation since 1969.


Quarters

The city of Valence is made of twenty quarters (with an average of 3,500 people per quarter). They are all different from the other: The northern quarters are rather popular and residential (Polygone, Fontbarlettes, le Plan and la Chamberlière) and even rural (Thodure), while the southern quarters are generally inhabited by the middle class and pensioners (, Hugo-Provence, Laprat, les Baumes, Mannet, Valence Sud and Lautagne), although there is a popular district (Valensolles), the central quarters are commercial and animated (Centre-ville, Gare, Victor Hugo) and also for tourists during the summer (, Basse ville, l'Épervière) and the east quarters are areas with residential character (Baquet, Grand Charran, Petit Charran, Châteauvert, Danton and Briffaut), however the Martins quarter is rather rural. Some districts are represented by a , which makes for a very lively micro-local fabric. A Quarter Committee is an association of people who play a role with regard to public institutions, and who allow an exchange of information between people and municipal services. In this way, residents can participate in the direction of development projects of their quarters according to their aspirations. To avoid a trip to the city hall, the city of Valence has created five city hall branches in outlying quarters. The mayoral branches of Fontbarlettes, le Plan, Centre-Ville, Valence Sud and the Chamberlière are placed at the disposal of the inhabitants and are in charge of certain administrative services delegated by the Central Council.


Housing

In 2009, the total number of dwellings in the municipality was 34,661, while it was 32,376 in 1999. Among this housing, 88.4% were primary residences, 1.0% of secondary residences and 10.6% vacant housing. These dwellings were 24.1% detached houses and 74.7% of apartments.LOG T2 – Categories and types of housing. The proportion of primary residences, as properties of their occupants, was 43.1%, up slightly from 1999 (41.1%). The share of social housing (empty rented
HLM An habitation à loyer modéré (HLM, , ), is a form of low-income housing in France, Algeria, Senegal, and Quebec. It may be public or private, with rent subsidies. HLMs constitute 16% of all housing in France.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 ...
. One of the city's major projects is the reclamation of the banks, disfigured by the passage of the A7 motorway over . When he was Mayor of Valence, Member of Parliament
Patrick Labaune Patrick Labaune (born 13 June 1951, in Paris) is a member of the National Assembly of France. He represents the Drôme department, and is a member of Les Républicains. He is president President most commonly refers to: *President (corpora ...
had defended a bypass with an eastern route. Thus advocating the "removal the A7", when elected, specifically a burial of the motorway in semi-covered trenches. The project would have been validated by the company of the (ASF), but the mayor refuses for now to give a price, which would be some €500 million according to experts. Other projects will be launched to create a green route, on the banks, through the municipalities of Valence and
Bourg-lès-Valence Bourg-lès-Valence (; oc, Lo Borg de Valença) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. It is a suburb of Valence. The archaeologist and Hellenist Fernand Courby (1878–1932) was born in Bourg-lès-Valence. In 2014–2019 ...
. In addition to a renovation of the tourist facilities on the site of the , the city wants to transform the Îles ''quartier'' into an ecodistrict, with positive energy housing. This project could lead to the removal of family gardens there. However, there is a building plot and the gardens will be resettled on fertile lands of the plateau of Lautagne. Like the Îfles quarter, a new quarter is planned in the south of the city on the brownfield site of the Hugo-Provence area, in place of the former Cime building (destroyed in 2013), with the construction of 200 housing units (half social, half private), shops and a hotel. The first part should be delivered before 2015. One of the major issues of the municipality is the opening up of the Hauts-de-Valence, which is subject to a program of
urban renewal Urban renewal (also called urban regeneration in the United Kingdom and urban redevelopment in the United States) is a program of land redevelopment often used to address urban decay in cities. Urban renewal involves the clearing out of blighte ...
of €117 million, jointly funded by the city and the (ANRU). It includes the demolition of 417 houses in the working-class districts of the Plan and Fontbarlettes and their reconstruction by the end of 2014 throughout the city. The project also includes an opening up and connection of these areas to the rest of the city. Shared public spaces will be created on Roosevelt and Kennedy boulevards. At an estimated €100 million cost, the last big project supported by the city concerns the creation of a city of sports and culture on the former military wasteland of Latour-Maubourg. It will host the new Jean-Pommier pool, a municipal exhibition hall, a media hub with the headquarters of the radio station and the ''
Le Dauphiné libéré ''Le Dauphiné libéré'' is a provincial daily French newspaper known for its emphasis on local news and events. The paper is published in Grenoble, France. History and profile Founded in 1945, it takes the name from the former province of ...
'' newspaper, and finally a centre of higher education. The renovated buildings will house a students' halls, Maestris private school, nursing school and the , which has created a public establishment of cultural co-operation with that of Grenoble. In addition to the space of the wasteland, the city will have the land released by the relocation of the prison, in 2015. It has also launched a study to establish a new palais des congrès in the area.


History

The
demonym A demonym (; ) or gentilic () is a word that identifies a group of people (inhabitants, residents, natives) in relation to a particular place. Demonyms are usually derived from the name of the place (hamlet, village, town, city, region, province, ...
corresponding to Valence is ''Valentinois'', but " Valentinois" also designates a geographical area, and one of the old provinces of France, with its capital Valence having been part of the province of Dauphiné. The word ''valence'' comes from Latin ''valentia'', meaning "strength or capacity". Known in Roman times as ''Valentia Julia'', the city had been the capital of the , and the seat of a celebrated school prior to the Roman conquest. It became a colony under
Augustus Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pr ...
, and was an important town of Viennensis Prima under Valentinian I. It was the seat of a bishopric perhaps as early as the 4th century. In the 5th century, control of Valentia passed from the Romans to the Alans and other
barbarians A barbarian (or savage) is someone who is perceived to be either uncivilized or primitive. The designation is usually applied as a generalization based on a popular stereotype; barbarians can be members of any nation judged by some to be les ...
: in 413, the
Goths The Goths ( got, 𐌲𐌿𐍄𐌸𐌹𐌿𐌳𐌰, translit=''Gutþiuda''; la, Gothi, grc-gre, Γότθοι, Gótthoi) were a Germanic people who played a major role in the fall of the Western Roman Empire and the emergence of medieval Euro ...
under
Ataulf Athaulf (also ''Athavulf'', ''Atawulf'', or ''Ataulf'' and ''Adolf'', Latinized as ''Ataulphus'') ( 37015 August 415) was king of the Visigoths from 411 to 415. During his reign, he transformed the Visigothic state from a tribal kingdom to a maj ...
besieged and captured the brother of the usurper
Jovinus :''Jovinus is a Roman cognomen, most often used for a 5th-century Roman usurper emperor. This article is about the Roman usurper. For the saint, see Saint Jovinus. For the Frankish duke, see Jovinus of Provence.'' For the 4th century Roman gener ...
,
Sebastianus Sebastianus (died 413), a brother of Jovinus, was an aristocrat of southern Gaul. After Jovinus usurped the throne of the western Roman Emperor Honorius in Gaul in 411, he named Sebastianus as Augustus (co-emperor) in 412. Coins bearing Sebast ...
, at Valentia on behalf of the emperor Honorius. In 440, Alans led by Sambida were given deserted lands in Valentia by the Romans. Three years later, Aetius settled the Burgundians in the region, under King Gondioc which became part of the Kingdom of the Burgundians. His son, Chilperic II, ruled Valence from 473 to 493 when he was slain by his brother Gundobad. Chilperic's daughter Clotilde married Clovis, the
King of the Franks The Franks, Germanic-speaking peoples that invaded the Western Roman Empire in the 5th century, were first led by individuals called dukes and reguli. The earliest group of Franks that rose to prominence was the Salian Merovingians, who c ...
, in 493. Clovis's son
Childebert I Childebert I (c. 496 – 13 December 558) was a Frankish King of the Merovingian dynasty, as third of the four sons of Clovis I who shared the kingdom of the Franks upon their father's death in 511. He was one of the sons of Saint Clo ...
attacked the Burgundians in 534, adding their territory to the Frankish Kingdom. The city then fell successively under the power of the
Franks The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools ...
, the Arabs of Spain, the sovereigns of
Arles Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province ...
, the emperors of Germany, the counts of Valentinois, the
counts of Toulouse The count of Toulouse ( oc, comte de Tolosa, french: comte de Toulouse) was the ruler of Toulouse during the 8th to 13th centuries. Originating as vassals of the Frankish kings, the hereditary counts ruled the city of Toulouse and its surroundin ...
, as well as its own bishops, who struggled to retain the control of the city they had won in the fifth century. These bishops were often in conflict with the citizens and the counts of Valentinois and to strengthen their hands against the latter the pope in 1275 united their bishopric with that of
Die Die, as a verb, refers to death, the cessation of life. Die may also refer to: Games * Die, singular of dice, small throwable objects used for producing random numbers Manufacturing * Die (integrated circuit), a rectangular piece of a semicondu ...
. The citizens put themselves under the protection of the dauphin, and in 1456 had their rights and privileges confirmed by Louis XI and put on an equal footing with those of the rest of Dauphiné, the bishops consenting to recognize the suzerainty of the dauphin. In the 16th century Valence became the centre of Protestantism for the province in 1563. The town was fortified by
King Francis I Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin once ...
. It became the seat of a celebrated university in the middle of the 15th century; but the revocation of the
Edict of Nantes The Edict of Nantes () was signed in April 1598 by King Henry IV and granted the Calvinist Protestants of France, also known as Huguenots, substantial rights in the nation, which was in essence completely Catholic. In the edict, Henry aimed pr ...
in 1685 struck a fatal blow at its industry, commerce and population.


Toponymy

The conquest of
Gaul Gaul ( la, Gallia) was a region of Western Europe first described by the Romans. It was inhabited by Celtic and Aquitani tribes, encompassing present-day France, Belgium, Luxembourg, most of Switzerland, parts of Northern Italy (only during ...
by
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, an ...
made the Rhône corridor a major north-south communication axis, linking with the new Roman possessions around the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
. Many settlements were founded, including ''Valentia'', a Latin name meaning ''La Vaillante''
rave A rave (from the verb: '' to rave'') is a dance party at a warehouse, club, or other public or private venue, typically featuring performances by DJs playing electronic dance music. The style is most associated with the early 1990s dance mu ...
''La Vigoureuse'' trong in the territory of the . The town named ''Valença'' in Occitan, ''Valènço'' in literary Provençal and ''Valinço'' in local Provençal.


Heraldry


Antiquity


At the end of prehistory

The city of
Massalia Massalia ( Greek: Μασσαλία; Latin: Massilia; modern Marseille) was an ancient Greek colony founded ca. 600 BC on the Mediterranean coast of present-day France, east of the river Rhône, by Ionian Greek settlers from Phocaea, in Wester ...
, long on good terms with Rome, asked it for help against the Salyes who had ravaged its territory. The intervention of the Romans, from 125 BC, assured its safety but the war continued against the Allobroges, among whom the Salyes people had found refuge. In August 121 BC, the army of Quintus Fabius Maximus Allobrogicus, Quintus Fabius Maximus crushed them at the Battle of the Isère River (confluence of 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 ...
and Isère) according to Strabo (''Geographica'', IV, 1, 11). Orosius noted that Gaius Marius, who was sent by Rome to stop the Cimbri and the Teutons, had established his camp not far from the confluence of the Rhône and the Isère. The excavations on the upper part of the plateau of Lautagne ( south of the centre of Valence) revealed the presence of devices of a defensive nature dating from the 1st century BC: Thus the foundation of the city could have come from a Roman military camp. Even under the Roman domination, the Allobroges tribe established themselves north of Isère, and repeatedly rebelled against the Roman occupation. The was the last to take place, identifiable with the modern commune of
Soyons Soyons (; oc, Soions) is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardèche department The following is a list of the 335 communes of the Ardèche department of France. The communes co ...
(''Solo'' by Livy, Epitome of Livy, Epitome 103) in 62 BC.


The selection of the site

The city of ''Valentia'' was established on a terrace on the left bank of 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 ...
river, south of the confluence of the Isère and from the Drôme (river), Drôme. This geographical situation is understood by the crossing of several routes of transport and communications: *''Valentia'' had a privileged place in north-south trade through the Rhône and at the ''Via Agrippa''. *''Valentia'' was part of east-west routes since the different paths, which traversed the plain from the Isère Valley and the Drôme (), converged on the city. The ''Rhône'' was crossed at Valence on a ferry, by Ford (crossing), ford or over a bridge.


The ancient city

The city of Valence, as many Gallo-Roman culture, Gallo-Roman cities, received an orthonormal plan. The orientation of the urban streets network successively followed cadastres "A" inclined N, 12°30'E and "B", inclined N, 23°E, in the Valence plain. We know the ''Decumanus Maximus, decumanus'' of the city thanks to the discovery of a pavement and a sewer a few metres north of the city hall. The ''cardo'' of the urban network was the ''Via Agrippa'' that crossed the city in a straight line from the southern gate of the city to the old gate and Tower of Aion, north of the city, which later became "Tourdeon" (now destroyed). It was along the ''Via Agrippa'' that a ''Forum (Roman), forum'' was located, probably surrounded by a , ''curia'', a ''Roman temple, temple'', etc., of which the location is unknown. To the south of the presumed forum site, between the ''Rue du Théâtre'' and ''Rue Vernoux'' the ruins of the ''thermae'' were discovered. This thermal water supply, and more generally that of the city of ''Valentia'', was thanks to the numerous springs in the vicinity. The site of Valence still presents a dense network of streams and canals born of the overflow of water which escapes in sources at the foot of the terraces, forming, in the east, a curved line from the source of the Treuil up to the Fountain of Malcontents, and near the Rhône and the lower town, a quasi-parallel line to the river from the Saint-Pierre source until the descent of the ''Boulevard Gambetta''. Thus, the Chony quarter (in the current commune of
Bourg-lès-Valence Bourg-lès-Valence (; oc, Lo Borg de Valença) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. It is a suburb of Valence. The archaeologist and Hellenist Fernand Courby (1878–1932) was born in Bourg-lès-Valence. In 2014–2019 ...
), were found remains of pipes that belonged to the aqueduct that brought water from the source of the Treuil to Valence. All around the current cathedral were discovered fragments of architecture probably belonging to a large temple. The city had entertainment facilities: *A circus (building), circus whose memory would be preserved in the name of the Cire quarter ("Siry" in the Middle Ages). *An
amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
, was on the edge of the Rhône, outside of the enclosure or near the New Gate. *A Côte Sainte-Ursule theatre: Three surveys have revealed the orchestra, traces of large markets and large wall elements. It was located at the northern edge of the city. *An Odeon (building), odeon whose curvature would be materialized by the ''Rue du Croissant''. In fact, the foundations of an odeon were found during the construction of the new museum, in the and its outline is materialised on the ground at the entrance to the museum. The city was surrounded by Curtain wall (fortification), ramparts from the early Roman Empire. This was constructed between 15 BC and 15 AD. In 1869, excavations to the south of the old town revealed the existence of a monumental gate defended by two protruding towers. The façade, or at least the pillars which were observed during the excavation, was covered with a large piece of sandstone and adorned with a frieze of military trophies: shields, leggings and breastplates. Houses settled around the city, outside the city walls. *To the east of the city of ''Valentia'', not far from the (in the direction of
Die Die, as a verb, refers to death, the cessation of life. Die may also refer to: Games * Die, singular of dice, small throwable objects used for producing random numbers Manufacturing * Die (integrated circuit), a rectangular piece of a semicondu ...
and Gap, Hautes-Alpes, Gap), in the current ''Rue Faventines''. *To the west, in the Nonniers quarter, in the commune of Guilherand-Granges (right bank of the Rhône, facing Valence): A bridge or a ferry connecting the banks of the river. The ancient port was perhaps on the territory of the current commune of Bourg-les-Valence. Numerous tombs were crowded at the exit of the city, along the tracks: Several burial grounds were discovered in the east and south of the ancient city.


Late antiquity

During the first centuries of the Christian era, Valence became an important road junction on maps and routes, and the late Roman Empire, this city retained its privileged position. However, as early as the 4th century, ''Valentia'' faced many raids but the city within the ramparts retained its monumental adornments competing according to Ammianus Marcellinus (''Histoires'', XV, 11, 14), with
Arles Arles (, , ; oc, label= Provençal, Arle ; Classical la, Arelate) is a coastal city and commune in the South of France, a subprefecture in the Bouches-du-Rhône department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in the former province ...
and Vienne. At the dawn of the 5th century, the city lived in shelter of the ramparts erected under the late Roman Empire (still a visible construction in the 19th century). The Visigoths seized Valence in 413 AD; the Burgundians were masters of the Rhône basin at the end of the 5th century; the Valence people fell to the Franks, Frankish Kingdom in 533 AD. These successive Migration Period, invasions removed almost all traces of Romanisation. During this troubled period, the city converted its ancient walls into stronger fortifications: Roman gates were bricked up, thus doing away with the two main axes of the city and lasting restructuring of the urban network. The rural inhabitants settled on small hills of the plain, giving rise to a large number of villages:
Montoison Montoison (; oc, Monteison) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population Personalities * Paulin Gagne (8 or 9 June 1808 – August 1876), French poet, essayist, lawyer, politician, inventor and eccentric, was bor ...
,
Montmeyran Montmeyran (; oc, Montmairan) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Drôme department The following is a list of the 363 communes of the Drôme Drôme (; Occitan: ''Droma''; ...
, Montélier, Montvendre,
Montéléger Montéléger (; oc, Montalagier) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Population See also *Communes of the Drôme department The following is a list of the 363 communes of the Drôme Drôme (; Occitan: ''Drom ...
, etc.


Middle Ages

Around 800, a new Cathedral of Saint-Estève (of St. Stephen) was built instead of the baptistery, with a Choir (architecture), choir that was oriented to the west. It was constructed symmetrically to the Evangelist Church. It housed numerous relics: Those of saints Apollinaire, Cyprien, Corneille, Félix, Fortunat, Achillée and a fragment of the True Cross. The episcopal district also included housing for the canons, grouped around a court cemetery, and a round church, Notre-Dame-la-Ronde. At the beginning of the 9th century, perhaps before, the Roman wall was raised with walls constructed from pebbles. In 890, the widow of King Boso of Provence had their son, Louis the Blind, Louis III, crowned King of Provence in Valence. In 1029, the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Vienne, Archbishop of Vienne invested Guigues III of Albon, Guigues III the Old of the County of Viennois. It belonged to the family of the Counts of Albon, which held the region for decades, frequently occupying the county and the Roman Catholic Diocese of Valence, Diocese of Valence. The region still suffered the raids of the Saracens at the end of the 9th and the 10th century. The Rhône was sometimes presented as the border between the Kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire which made Valence part, until the 15th century, but it was especially a link between the countries bordering it. The Diocese of Valence, as the rival principality, the County of Valentinois and Diois, extended on both sides. It was also an important commercial axis, especially for salt, which would benefit the city which guards traces of the name of Rue "Saunière", formerly the name of one of the four gates of Valence, the one which gave access to the south. The city also benefitted from its position at a point of change in the regime of winds in the Rhône Valley: In the Middle Ages, vessels ascended the river only by being hauled to the col, by sweat (by men). North of Valence, the rise could be done under sail (but not always). At the end of the 15th century, it was even the capital of hauling along the towpath, because beside this advantage due to the wind, it was a one-day stop from Lyon, and a crossroads into the mountains. Finally, the rise of the Rhône was particularly difficult at Valence, which caused forced stops. Several Valentinois were specialised in the brokerage of haulers. The haulers pulled either a big boat or boat trains, with teams from a few dozen to several hundred men. Each man drew a mass of about a ton. This mode of hauling regressed at the end of the 15th century, to be replaced by hauling by horses, except for local hauling. The city, safe from the flooding of the river and protected by its ramparts, was a step on the road for pilgrimages to Santiago de Compostela, Compostela. Religious life flourished, the Saint-Apollinaire Cathedral was built as well as the Abbey of the canons of . Two major characters vied for power over the city: The Bishop and the Duke of Valentinois, Count of Valentinois. Economic growth translated into the development of towns, especially on the side of the Rhône: The Rivière (Riperia) said today, less poetically, as "Basse-Ville". The new city, north of the former Pomperi gate and Bourg-Saint-Pierre, formed around the Abbey of Saint-Pierre, which spawned the current commune of
Bourg-lès-Valence Bourg-lès-Valence (; oc, Lo Borg de Valença) is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. It is a suburb of Valence. The archaeologist and Hellenist Fernand Courby (1878–1932) was born in Bourg-lès-Valence. In 2014–2019 ...
. Elsewhere, on the middle terrace, habitat outside-the-walls was associated with religious foundations: The commandery of the Hospitallers, the Tourdeon gate, the Abbey of Saint-Félix, the Saint-Sulpice gate, the Faventines Templar Commandery, the Benedictine Priory of Saint-Victor in the south near the former ''Via Agrippa'' and, perhaps, further to the south, a Leper colony, leprosarium whose memory is retained through the channel of la Maladière. After the disappearance of the County of , incorporated into the , the dauphin may have imposed homage to the Bishop and Abbot of Saint-Ruf (free abbot, with immunity from Royal taxes and so forth): Valence was therefore incorporated into the province of Dauphiné. On the death of Louis II, who was the last count, the Valentinois was sold in 1419 by his heirs, his daughter Louise de Poitiers (widow of and Villars) and close relatives to Charles, dauphin and King of France (Charles VII of France, Charles VII). The County of Valentinois was attached to the in 1424. The second half of the 15th century and the beginning of the 16th century were a golden age for the medieval city, materialised by the and the . Founded on 26 July 1452 by the dauphin Louis, future Louis XI, the University of Valence grew quickly. Renowned professors from various countries, as Jacques Cujas forged its reputation by teaching the law, theology, medicine and arts. After his coronation, Louis XI confirmed its preference by mailing the letters patent for the university on 12 October 1461. In March 1480, the King still supported his preferred university. The dauphin Louis made numerous stays in Valence where, as a sign of allegiance, he donated a gate to the city, the Saunière gate and a few houses nearby. It made for a "delphinal palace", later occupied by the religious order of the Recollects. As Louis XI, he allowed a market in the town of Valence, in 1476, during his stay in the city and confirmed tax privileges for the city of Valence. This era ended abruptly in 1562 during the occupation of the city by the troops of the Protestant François de Beaumont, baron des Adrets, Baron des Adrets: All the religious buildings of Valence were partially or completely destroyed.


Early Modern era

François Rabelais studied at Valence in 1532, before settling in Lyon, a great cultural centre where the library trade blossomed. A strategic location in the Rhône Valley, Valence had been militarised since its origin and had 7,100 inhabitants in the 1700s, who bore responsibility for housing soldiers. To reduce this burden a municipal deliberation was offered in 1714: a barracks was constructed in the current ''Rue Bouffier'', a temporary camp which quickly became inadequate to accommodate the 12,000 men and 20,000 horses stationed there. The city invested 190,000 French livre, livres for the installation of a new barracks in the Rollin quarter, north of the Roman road. Charles IX of France, Charles IX passed through the town during his Charles IX's grand tour of France, royal tour of France (1564–1566), accompanied by the Cour de France, Court and the nobles of the Kingdom: His brother the Henry III of France, Duke of Anjou, Henry IV of France, Henri de Navarre and the Charles de Bourbon (cardinal), Cardinals of Bourbon and Charles, Cardinal of Lorraine, Lorraine. It was in Valence that the saga of Louis Mandrin ended in May 1755, the smuggler who challenged the Ferme Générale and redistributed the proceeds of his theft from it. After spending several days in the city prison, Mandrin was Capital punishment, sentenced to death: It was conducted on the where the scaffold was erected, his death ensued on the breaking wheel. His body was exposed after his death, during three days, and many people flocked to pay him a last tribute, as his popularity increased. The death of Mandrin on the wheel of Valence marked the end of his actions, but also the beginning of a legend, as the man had marked the minds of his contemporaries. Napoleon, Napoleon Bonaparte was assigned in the city from 1785 to 1786 in the La Fère artillery regiment. He made many future visits. He would indeed return repeatedly to Valence. It included crossing the city on 12 October 1799, during the return of the expedition to Egypt, and offered to his former landlady who came to welcome him at the posthouse, a cashmere of India (offered to the Sisters of the Blessed Sacrament), a compass and a powder spoon (available at the Museum of Valence in 1862). He also met the future Cardinal Giuseppe Spina, Spina, who would negotiate on behalf of Pope Pius VII in the Concordat of 1801, on the same day.


French Revolution

After the convening of the Estates-General of 1789, Estates-General, agitation and anxiety grew until the storming of the Bastille, news of which reached the region around 20 July, causing hope but also increasing concerns of a reactionary plot of aristocrats. The Great Fear arose in the region of a rumor, and spread by degrees, at a blistering pace according to local networks, putting all the villages in motion for their defence. Once the peak of fear passed, a latent anxiety remained, the village communities realised that in an emergency, they were in fact isolated and practically reduced to their own devices. National Guard (France), National guards were formed quickly, including in Valence, but communities found it insufficient, and they constituted local federations of mutual assistance, bypassing the old provincial divisions. In the region, it was Largentière which called for a Fête de la Fédération on 23 August,
Romans-sur-Isère Romans-sur-Isère (; Occitan: ''Rumans d'Isèra''; Old Occitan: ''Romans'') is a commune in the Drôme department in southeastern France. Geography Romans-sur-Isère is located on the Isère, northeast of Valence. There are more than 50,000 ...
in September, La Voulte-sur-Rhône, La Voulte gathered 12,000 National Guardsmen to the ''Champs de l'Étoile'' on 29 November. Valence invited the surrounding communities on 31 January and brought together 16,000 guards of 293 communes. The region had other celebrations of federation in the winter and spring, culminating in the Fête de la Fédération of 14 July 1790, celebrated in Paris and simultaneously in 250 cities in France, including Valence. The university disappeared in 1792 to be reborn at the end of the 20th century. It is now in the 21st Century part of the Community Grenoble Alpes University. This community played another role during the final years of the French Revolution. On August 29, 1799, six weeks after his arrival at this community, the then longest ever reigning Roman Catholic Church's 250th Pope Pius VI died here in exile from his Vatican, then within the 754–1798 Papal States, but now within the 1st Republic of France's created 1798–1799 Roman Republic. After some political intrigue covering more than two years, it will not be until December 24, 1801, that the then late pope's body will finally leave Valence and return to the Vatican.


20th century


Armenian community

After the Armenian genocide of 1915, many Armenians took refuge in France in the 1920s. The community remembers how Valence employers travelled to Marseille to recruit 150 of the first arrivals in 1922. By 1926 827 Armenians had settled in Valence, and 1,670 by 1931 – from Bursa, Malatya and Elazığ, Harput. If the Armenians were popular among their employers, they encountered the distrust of the Valence people. It was a group with a very high proportion of young adults, children and the elderly who suffered most from the genocide and from the journey into exile. They worked mainly as labourers, or founded small businesses (25% of employed persons). Very quickly, an "Armenian quarter" developed between ''Boulevard Vauban'', ''Rue Farnerie'', ''Rue Madier-Montjau'', and the ''Boulevard d'Alsace'', 40% populated by Armenians. The entire old town, with dilapidated buildings, abandoned and inexpensive, became involved in this process. In 1956 the group had 2,500 people, or 6% of the population of Valence, and represented the fourth-largest Armenian community in France (after those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille). The community's very strong identity (with newspapers, cinemas, dance halls, Armenian Sports Union) was dispersed, with the "Armenian village" on the ''Rue de Fontlozier''. It showed signs of rapid integration: In 1946, half of the 2,000 Armenians of Valencia opted for French citizenship. In 1947, 200 Armenians of Valence took advantage of the offer to return to the Soviet countries, which proved to be a failure. The strong community welcomed new refugees, escaping from political turmoil in Syria during the 1950-60s, and Lebanon during the Lebanese Civil War, Civil war in 1970-80s. 7,500 people in Valence belonged to this community,Krikor Amirzayan
Valence, la ville arménienne
''Association des communautés arméniennes'', retrieved 2013-12-16.
which makes the Armenian community of Valence one of the largest in France: the Armenian National Union is also based in Valence. This strong presence has passed into the Street or road name, odonymy: a street and a square of the old Armenian quarter make reference to it: the ''Rue d’Arménie'' and the ''Place Missak Manouchian''. The cultural life of the community is very active, with 28 associations, including the Evangelical Church, the Armenian courts, and the House of Armenian culture.


World War II

After the invasion of Poland by Germany, on 1 September 1939, France and the United Kingdom declared war on Germany on 3 September 1939. Germany invaded France, Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands on 10 May 1940. During World War II, Valence suffered several Allies of World War II, allied aerial bombardments, intended to destroy the bridge over the Rhône. On 15 August 1944, bombs destroyed several quarters and buildings in the city, including the hospital, killing 280 people. From the era of the prefecture, there remained only the gate, which has been carefully preserved since. Four days later, on 19 August 1944, a German train loaded with nitroglycerin exploded, largely destroying the quarter of La Palla and causing 335 casualties among civilians, the military and the resistance fighters. On 2 August 1944, south of Valence, bombings of the railway depot and yard of Portes-lès-Valence destroyed 51 locomotives, with 12 victims and 58 wounded among the railway workers and the population. The northern part of Valence, almost completely razed to the ground, was rebuilt and today one finds many administrative buildings in this area such as the , the general treasury, social security, the post office and the police headquarters. Drôme was one of the departments where the French Resistance, Resistance was the most active. In 1943, the Resistance was organised and grew, and many Drôme people were called and committed themselves to the cause. With the introduction of the Service du travail obligatoire, STO, young men were required to go to work in Germany. Many of them refused this situation and went into hiding in the countryside or joined the Maquis (World War II), Maquis. Resistance developed throughout the entire department in small units. The Drôme terrain was conducive to the installation of camps. The population supported increasing resistance.


Politics and administration


Municipal administration

The city of Valence is a territorial collectivity administered by a City council (France), municipal council which is the deliberative assembly of the commune and which aims to regulate by its deliberations the business of the municipality. The municipal council elects the Mayor (France), mayor. As for any commune whose population is between 60,000 and 79,999 inhabitants, this council has 49 members (mayor, 14 deputies and 34 municipal councillors) elected by direct universal suffrage for a renewable term of six years. The current mayor of Valence is Nicolas Daragon, a member of the Union for a Popular Movement, UMP elected in 2014. The current council was elected in April 2014. The Seat of local government, City Hall of Valence employs more than 1,700 municipal officers (permanent and non-permanent jobs) representing more than 100 trades and all exercising a public service mission, ranging from the maintenance of roads, maintenance of parks, the management of cultural and sports coaching schools, etc. Following the 2014 French municipal elections, 2014 municipal elections, the composition of the City council (France), municipal council of Valence is as follows:


List of mayors


Cantons

Capital of the department of Drôme, the city of Valence is divided into four cantons, of which it is
chef-lieu An administrative center is a seat of regional administration or local government, or a county town, or the place where the central administration of a commune is located. In countries with French as administrative language (such as Belgium, Lu ...
. The cantonal division of Valence has evolved since the creation of the departments in 1790. Established in 1801, the canton of Valence was divided into two in 1964, and then three in 1973 and finally into four in 1984. The cantonal redistricting of 2015 led to the creation of four new cantons each containing a fraction of the commune of Valence and whole communes.


Political trends and outcomes


Intercommunality and intercommunal trade unions

Valence is the largest city of Communauté d'agglomération Valence Romans Agglo, Valence Romans Agglo, an Agglomeration communities in France, agglomeration community with 51 communes of the region. It is responsible for several areas of skills, including local public transport, economic development, sanitation and environment, sports complexes and public libraries management.


Population and society


Demography

In 2018, the municipality had 64,726 inhabitants. Its Unité urbaine, agglomeration had 132,556 inhabitants (10 communes, of which 3 in Ardèche) and its functional area (France), metropolitan area had 254,254 inhabitants (71 communes across Drôme and Ardèche).


Worship and humanist associations

Valence has two Catholic parishes, which depend on the Roman Catholic Diocese of Valence, Diocese of Valence, Deanery of Valence: Notre-Dame-des-Peuples of Valence and Saint Émilien of Valence. The Jewish community has a synagogue in Valence. The Armenian community, comprising over 10% of the population, has its own church, Saint Sahag (Isaac) and in November 2017 launched the construction of an Armenian-language daily-school. Protestants also have a place of worship in Valence, through the Reformed Church of France, as well as the Evangelicalism, Evangelical Protestant Church and the The Salvation Army, Salvation Army.


Cultural events and festivities

*''Valence fête le printemps'' [Valence spring festival]: Celebrating agricultural productions *''Boulevards de chines'' [Boulevard of china]: Flea markets and antiques *''Festival de Valence'' [Festival of Valence]: Free concerts in the city *''Les Féeries d'Hiver'' [Winter extravaganza]: Show and Fireworks


Health

Valence has two hospitals, a public and a private. Many health professionals are installed on the commune, including 58 physicians, 67 nurses, 80 Physical therapy, physiotherapists. Since 2009, Valence is a member of the World Health Organization, WHO city health network, through its commitments for the promotion of good nutrition practices, Valence is also very active in the National Programme of Health and Nutrition (PNNS).


Central Hospital of Valence

The ''Centre Hospitalier de Valence'' [Central Hospital of Valence] (CHV) employed 2,570 people in 2013. It includes all clinical specialties (medicine, Oncology, surgery, obstetrics and gynaecology, paediatrics, psychiatry, care and rehabilitation, long stay, etc.). It has a maternity hospital where approximately 2,326 babies (including 20.9% deliveries by caesarean section and 60.6% deliveries under epidural) are born each year. The Central Hospital of Valence has a capacity of 740 beds. In 2011, nearly 67,000 people were presented as emergencies; the operating block has practised more than 10,000 interventions, nearly 29 interventions per day. In the maternity ward of the hospital, over 2,000 children were born. The Woman-Mother-Child Centre welcomes paediatrics, neonatology and obstetrics, infant surgery, gynaecology and the hospitalisation units for woman and child. The Medical and Tumour Pathologies Centre welcomes gastro-enterology, haematology, oncology, haemovigilance, pulmonology – infectious diseases, dermatology, alcohol addiction, and palliative care. The Geriatrics and Rehabilitation Centre brings together the geriatric mobile team, the USLD, the EHPAD, the geriatric SSR, and rehabilitation. The Surgery and Anesthesia Centre block welcomes orthopaedics, ENT, the ophthalmology, gynecological surgery, urology, neurosurgery, anesthesia, and an operating room. The Medicine and Specialties Centre includes cardiology, neurology, department of medicine, multipurpose medicine and dietetics. After the opening of the radiology building, a surgical building of 263 beds and places opened its doors in June 2011.


Drôme Ardèche Private Hospital

The ''Hôpital Privé Drôme Ardèche'' [Drôme Ardèche Private Hospital] (HPDA) is a complex created in 2005 from the joining of the ''Clinique Pasteur'' [Pasteur clinic] (located on the neighboring commune of Guilherand-Granges) and the ''Clinique Générale de Valence'' [Valence General clinic] (located in the quarter of Chaffit in Valence). It has 361 beds and places spread across the two sites. Its Emergency Department, located on the site of Pasteur, is open 7 days a week and 24 hours a day. In 2013, the Drôme Ardèche Private Hospital staff consists of 150 doctors and liberal surgeons, 180 nurses, 140 caregivers, 20 midwives, 16 childcare auxiliaries, 110 other hospital workers and porters, 45 other paramedic personnel, and 80 administrative and technical personnel.


Emergency services and civil security

The Fire service in France, firefighters of the Drôme department ( 26) includes 2,735 staff (316 professional firefighters and 2,419 volunteers); its headquarters (which also houses the board of directors) is located at 235 ''Route de Montélier'' in Valence. Under the direction of Commander Laurent Blanchard, the firefighters of the Drôme took part in 28,551 interventions in 2013. The main rescue centre (known as "CSP", commonly referred to as the ''sapeurs-pompiers de Valence'' [firefighters of Valence]) is under the responsibility of Captain Fabien Thepaut. It is the most important fire station, centre of intervention of the department and is located at 57 ''Rue de Chantecouriol'', Hugo-Provence Quarter in Valence. There are also seven assistance intervention centres (CIS) in the Valence agglomeration (CIS of Beaumont-lès-Valence, Chabeuil, Étoile-sur-Rhône, Montélier, Portes-lès-Valence, Saint-Marcel-lès-Valence and Saint-Péray). The 26 is an emergency medical assistance service which has the mission to receive and treat emergency calls on the territory of Drôme. Its mission is to provide pre-hospital assistance to victims of accidents or sudden illnesses in critical condition.


Education


School education

*10 collèges (Paul-Valery, Camille-Vernet, Sainte-Anne, Jean-Zay, etc.) *4 classical lycées (Camille-Vernet [artistic options: Cinema, art, music, Russian], , Institution Saint-Victor, Émile Loubet [artistic options: Theatre, dance, Chinese]) *6 vocational lycées (La Providence, Victor-Hugo, etc.) *1 lycée of technical training (Jules-Algoud industrial lycée) *1 tertiary versatile lycée *1 industrial technology lycée *


Higher education

The city of Valence is now developing its high level educational role in the Drôme/ Ardèche area. The Site de Valence is part of the Community Grenoble Alpes University (formerly Université Joseph Fourier, UJF, UPMF, including the Institut universitaire de technologie, and Stendhal University, Stendhal). Valence is also home to the Institut National Polytechnique de Grenoble, INPG engineering school (ESISAR). Many other and more specialized schools are also located in Valence. *Joseph Fourier University: science, technology, health, STAPS, *Pierre Mendès-France University: *Stendhal University: letters, languages *École nationale supérieure d'ingénieurs des systèmes avancés et réseaux, ESISAR (École nationale supérieure in advanced systems and networks) of Grenoble Institute of Technology, Grenoble INP *Lycée Camille-Vernet: Classe préparatoire aux grandes écoles, CPGE scientific and economic *Higher technology Institute Montplaisir: CPGE economic and trade * * (EGC) *Institute for hospital nursing education *La Poudrière – Animation film school * (ISTM)


Sport

*Basketball: ''Valence Bourg Basket'' is a basketball club created on 6 May 2011 and located in Bourg-lès-Valence. *Cycling: Valence was finish city of the 11th stage of the 1996 Tour de France, with the victory of the Colombian Chepe González, José Jaime González. Valence will also be the finish for Stage 15 of the 2015 Tour de France on 19 July. *American football: the , created in 2002, evolve in France's Division 3 Championship. *Association football, Football: AS Valence, Association Sportive de Valence (ASV) replaced ASOA Valence, which went into judicial liquidation in August 2005, the new team plays in the Championnat de France Amateur, CFA from the 2011–12 Championnat de France amateur, 2011–2012 season. *Golf: The ''Golf Club de Valence'' covers approximately of woods and greenery in the commune of Charpey (east of the city); the place bears the name of ''Golf de Valence – St Didier'', and offers a course of 18 holes with a length of , par 71. Situated in Bourg-lès-Valence, the ''Golf des Chanalets'' offers an 18-hole course, with a length of , par 71, and opens onto large 360° panoramas of the plain of Valence with the Rhône, Ardèche and Vercors summits. *Handball: played in the from the season. *Ice hockey: The team was founded in 1976 and played in . *Judo: The ''CSF Judo Valence'' club was established in 1950. It now has 164 licensees including 17 black belts. Three graduate teachers of state and two volunteer teachers supervise the youngest to most senior courses. *Roller in-line hockey: ''Valence Roller Hockey'' has a team playing in the Championship of France N2 and counts an international junior among its players. *Rugby union: Valence is the primary home of ROC La Voulte-Valence, which currently plays in the third division of French rugby, Fédérale 1. The current club was created in 2010 when the city's former club, Valence Sportif, merged with nearby La Voulte Sportif, from La Voulte-sur-Rhône. *Squash (sport), Squash: The ''Squash Club de Valence'' has a team which plays in the championnat de France national 1 with flag-carrier Grégoire Marche, European champion junior and no. 79 world. *The Stade Georges Pompidou, Georges Pompidou Stadium is the main stadium of Valence with a capacity of 14,380 places. It is also the stadium where the athletics competitions take place. *Triathlon: ''Valence Triathlon'' has a men's team and a women's team which is in the French second division.
Ken Shin Kan
is a Japanese sword school which aims to promote and teach the techniques of Japanese sword are: naginata, iaido, , and kendo. The club has no less than 80 licensees of all disciplines.
Valence ACE volleyball Club
offers trainings in youth and adult recreation and competition volleyball. The club has more than 130 licensees.


Economy

The focal point of major north-south European routes and door to the for the east-west corridor in the direction of Italy and
Switzerland ). Swiss law does not designate a ''capital'' as such, but the federal parliament and government are installed in Bern, while other federal institutions, such as the federal courts, are in other cities (Bellinzona, Lausanne, Luzern, Neuchâtel ...
, the territory of the Valence agglomeration has developed around innovative companies, offering a higher education, centres of excellence and an economic supply of land. The development of the economy of Valence is favoured by the proximity of cities such as
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 ...
and
Geneva Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaking part of Switzerland. Situa ...
and, through transport routes, major European capitals. The economic development of Valence can also count on a wealthy producer territory of food processing, hi-tech with the presence of large groups of electronics or aerospace, many innovative SMEs and a university centre of importance of film and knowledge with the presence of major animation studios internationally recognised for the quality of their productions. The Valence agglomeration by its geographical and strategic position at the crossroads of the main European flows, enjoys exceptional and multimodal infrastructure: The railway marshalling yard, the : River services and vessels along the Rhone by the canal from the Rhône to the Mediterranean and by access to the Freycinet northward, access to the A7 motorway and a branch towards the Isère and Italy (A49) a railway siding giving access to Europe-Mediterranean traffic and Italy. Valence is the seat of the , which manages the , the and
Valence-Chabeuil Airport Valence - Chabeuil Airport is an airport in France, located about east of Valence (in the Drôme department, Rhone-Alpes region) and approximately south-southeast of Paris. The airport was a pre- World War II French Air Force (Armée de l' ...
. According to Institut national de la statistique et des études économiques, INSEE in 2005, the percentage of the distribution of the labour force by sector of activity was: * Food (List of culinary fruits, fruits, vegetables, wines) * Metallurgy * Mechanical engineering * Electronics / Electronic Banking / Automation The industries of the city include metallurgical products, textiles, leather goods, jewelry and munitions, and it also serves as a processing and trade centre for the surrounding agricultural region. Some of the big hi-tech companies settled here are leaders in their domains like Thales Group, Thales (Former Thomson-CSF, electronic systems for avionics and defence), Crouzet Automatismes, Crouzet/Schneider Electric, Schneider (Automatic systems), SAGEM (former Alcatel-Lucent, Alcatel space (Aerospatial systems)), Ascom (company), Ascom Monetel (Automatic tax payment systems), etc. The Maison Pic is a world-renowned three Michelin star restaurant and hotel, established in 1889.


Areas of economic activities

The commercial area of the Couleures has approximately eighty public brands in the fields of equipment, the home, sport, and the individual. The two sectors of Briffaut (east and west), in east Valence, count 320 companies (200 on the sector of Briffaut East including an automotive hub combining various concessions and associated services; and 120 businesses of Briffaut West). The technoparks include one hundred companies. The plateau of Lautagne, located at the south of the city, brings together 40 technology companies with high added value. An extension of was scheduled the second half of 2008. The Auréats zone is the oldest industrial site in Valence, it covers and 180 companies (on the Valence side). The Cime activity centre, housed in the former premises of Tézier, gathers 86 service enterprises. The site is currently undergoing conversion work.


Businesses and shops

At the end of 2015, 8,183 establishments were installed on the commune of Valence: 71% in the tertiary trade, and 16% of establishments in public administration (school, health, etc.). Industry represents only 4% of establishments in the commune. 92% of its establishments employ less than 10 employees.


Income and taxation of the population

The declared taxable average net income was €19,609, in 2009. Only 46% of households were taxed the same year.


Employment

In 2017, 45,489 people had a job, of which 90.5% was salaried employment. The rate of unemployment in the city is 18.2%.


Local culture and heritage


Sites and monuments

Many monuments of Valence are protected as historical monuments. Many of these monuments are in the quarter of . The best known of Valence's monuments to its notable inhabitants include those to Émile Augier the dramatist by the duchess of Uzès (1897), and to Jean Étienne Championnet, General Championnet.


Vieux Valence

Vieux Valence [Old Valence] is a quarter in the old city of Valence, based primarily around the and also including the lower town district. It is expected the 19th century so that the city's ramparts, replaced by boulevards in 1860. Valencia then grows in range around its ancient centre. In this area that formerly comprised the historic centre of the city of Valencia, there are: Saint-Apollinaire Cathedral is a Romanesque art, Romanesque cathedral, which was built in the 11th century. It was the Bishop Gontard (1063–1099) who drove construction of this edifice which is now the oldest in the city. Several blocks of stone from the Saint-Apollinaire Cathedral were reused from the Gallo-Roman buildings of the city of ''Valentia''. The Valence Cathedral, Cathedral of St. Apollinaris, which has an architecturally notable apse, and was consecrated in 1095 by pope Pope Urban II, Urban II. It suffered extensive damage in the French Wars of Religion, but it was restored in the first decade of the 17th century. The porch and the stone tower above it were rebuilt in 1861. The church contains the monument of Pope Pius VI, Pius VI, who died at Valence in 1799. The library and the museum containing Roman antiquities, sculptures, and a picture gallery are housed in the old ecclesiastical seminary. The , built between 1528 and 1532 by Antoine de Dorne, Consul in Valence, royal Professor at the University, the Renaissance architecture, Renaissance façade with several heads carved representing the winds, fortune, time and even theology. This House, marking the transition from the Gothic architecture, Gothic to the Renaissance style, owes its name to the many heads that adorn its facade. The corridor is decorated with busts of List of Roman emperors, Roman emperors. The building has been classified as a historical monument since 1944. The is the only museum of its kind in
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.
, its collections bring together paintings, drawings, sculptures, decorative arts from the 16th century to the 20th century. Created in 1850 and installed in the former bishopric since 1911, it houses a hundred drawings by Hubert Robert with lots of sanguine. The work to expand the museum (which began in 2009) was completed in December 2013. The new layout of the museum consists of 35 rooms, spread over five floors: On the ground floor are archaeological collections which are continued on the fifth and fourth floors, then going back in time, down to the lower levels. The layout permits easy circulation by stairs and elevators, and privileged with natural lighting, opening many views over the city and the Rhône, while highlighting the architecture of the former bishopric. The , a building of Renaissance architecture, Renaissance inspiration, which is probably the funerary monument of Nicolas Mistral, Canon of the Saint-Apollinaire Cathedral, seems to have been built in 1548, from a stone engraved with an inscription to that effect. This monument was transformed, after the French Revolution, Revolution, into a drinking establishment. It was bought by the city of Valence around 1830 and is part of the first monuments registered national Monument historique, historical monuments inventory after a visit by Prosper Mérimée in Drôme. The , a 13th-century house, keeps a medieval aspect despite the restorations of the 19th century. It probably, belonged originally to a rich clothier. The ground floor was devoted to artisanal production and trade, while the floors sheltered the housing of the craftsman. The ''Maison de la Pra'', a 15th-century mansion, property of Claude Frère, a rich merchant who was first president of the . The lantern of the staircase stands on the ancient walls between the Tower of the Cathedral and the belfry of Saint John, in the heart of the old town. The , dating from the 16th century, has a remarkable staircase tower. The ''Maison Dupré-Latour'' is a former mansion that was built by the Genas family, traders enriched by the salt trade. In 1760, the building was bought by François Dupré-Latour whose name would remain attached to the building and whose descendants continue to live there. In 1993, the building was transferred to the city and has been classified as an historical monument since 1927. The moorish house known as ''Mauresque à Ferlin'', after the name of its owner, was built in 1858 and of oriental inspiration. The (11th century and 12th century) and its 19th-century Romanesque Revival gatehouse. This church of the old town is perched at the highest point of the city, signs of its age. It would be one of the first places of Christian worship then emerging in Valence. The temple of the , former chapel of a Roman priory. The Order of the Canons Regular of was born in Avignon, where a small community of clerics became one of the spearheads of the reform of the clergy in the Rhone valley and beyond. The importance acquired by the canons of Saint-Ruf generated tensions with the cathedral chapter, which led to the transfer of the head of order (i.e. the mother abbey) in Valence. The ''église Notre-Dame'' [Church of Our Lady], located on ''Rue Berthelot''. Built in the mid-nineteenth century, offices there are now led by the Priestly Fraternity of St. Peter according to the extraordinary form of the Tridentine Mass, Roman rite. The Italian theatre dates back to 1837. The site is that of the former Saint Mary of the Visitation convent. Initially, the desire was to erect a city hall. After long drawn-out construction decisions, the city took advantage of a windfall from a private initiative for the construction of a theatre. The Italian room was built between 1886 and 1887 by the architect Ange Madona. The domed ceiling is treated in trompe-l'œil; it recalls the Temple of Arts and depicts four genres (drama, comedy, opera and vaudeville). Completely renovated in the 1990s, the theatre of the city is one of the jewels of the 19th century architecture in Valence. It has 390 seats, a rehearsal room, and a dance studio. The is a former abbey of Benedictine women which was founded in 1632 by the transfer of the Abbey of St. John the Evangelist, from the village of
Soyons Soyons (; oc, Soions) is a commune in the Ardèche department in southern France. Population See also *Communes of the Ardèche department The following is a list of the 335 communes of the Ardèche department of France. The communes co ...
( Ardèche) as a result of the Wars of Religion. It was registered as an historical monument from 1926. The city hall, located on the ''Place de la Liberté'' in the heart of the city centre, was inaugurated in 1894. Its architecture is special, because it has a Belfry (architecture), belfry, a secular steeple symbolising the independence of the city against the Catholic Church, a classical facade and a roof of tiles of different colors. It hosts the activities of the town hall, with the offices of the mayor, city council and administrative services. The is a place of history and memory that addresses the original news around major themes: Migration, the memory of conflicts and the history of peoples and cultures. Indeed, Valence has one of the largest Armenian communities in France. The Armenian heritage centre is installed in the former Faculty of Law at the heart of the pedestrian centre of Valence, close to the historic Valence quarter of Armenian origin (concentrated around the ''Rue Bouffier'', ''Rue Armenia'' and ''Rue Belle Image''). The ''ancienne préfecture'', near the ''Place Saint-Jean'', where remains only the monumental entrance gate. The rest was destroyed in a bombing raid during World War II on 15 August 1944. It has been at this place since the end of the 18th century. Previously, at the abbatial palace of . The is lined by colorful facades. It is from the 5th century, when the episcopal district was created, that the Place des Clercs began to gain importance. Shops settled, markets took place and did justice. In the
Middle Ages In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire ...
there were two churches: The cathedral from the 11th century and Notre-Dame de la Ronde which was older (a remaining column is currently in the public toilets). The Wars of Religion significantly deteriorated these buildings. The "côtes", picturesque mounts of the upper town. There are traces of the walls at the top of the Côte Sainte-Ursule and at the bottom of Côte Sylvante; they served to protect the city from invasions, epidemics or flooding caused by the Rhône. They were widely used in medieval times by the people (boatmen, carters, mule, etc.) who used these stairs to go to the small streets and squares of the upper town. The Côte Sainte-Ursule meanwhile was less used; it separated the properties of two monasteries. It is set at the location of the Roman theatre and probably served as an exit. One may also include the Côtes Saint-Martin, Saint-Estève, des Chapeliers and la Voûte.


In the city

The "Boulevards de Valence", a wide promenade, traced on the former location of the ramparts and tree-lined with Georges-Eugène Haussmann, Hausmannian-style buildings, which had a renovation from 2004 to 2009. The bandstand built in 1860 on the esplanade of the Champ de Mars served as the model the designer Raymond Peynet to immortalize his love, and which carries the name of . It is classified a historical monument since 1982. The , designed by the architect Eugène Poitoux and dating from 1887, is located in the city centre, on the boulevards. In 2005, the fountain was renovated and moved a few metres, in order to better integrate into the perspective of the renovated boulevards and in 2006, a copy of the winged genius, which was destroyed in 1954 by lightning which struck the column, was replaced at the top of the column. , a public garden of created in 1905, and opened by president Émile Loubet, bears the name of Théodore Jouvet, donor of the land, and includes more than 700 trees of various species. This park also has a pet shop, a small train, and a rose garden. Valence-Ville station, has a façade which was inspired by the
Petit Trianon The Petit Trianon (; French for "small Trianon") is a Neoclassical style château located on the grounds of the Palace of Versailles in Versailles, France. It was built between 1762 and 1768 during the reign of King Louis XV of France. ...
at Versailles. The passenger building of today, which was commissioned in April 1866, was designed by
Louis-Jules Bouchot Louis Jules César "Louis-Jules" Bouchot (12 August 1817 – 15 August 1907) was a 19th-century French architect responsible in particular for the construction of the Nice and Milan railway stations. Biography Louis-Jules Bouchot was born 12 a ...
, architect of
Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A neph ...
. The main façade on the ''Rue du Pavillon Central'' has been registered as an historic monument since 11 October 1982. The esplanade of the , which before the conversion work of 2001 was a car park dotted with plane trees, is today a wide tree-lined esplanade, where one can see beyond the Rhône to the
Château de Crussol The Château de Crussol is a mostly-ruined 12th century limestone castle in the ''commune'' of Saint-Péray that dominates the valley of Rhône, just opposite Valence in the Ardèche ''département'', Rhône-Alpes ''région'' of France. Locati ...
, at the forefront of the Ardèche mountains. The Philolaus water tower (first studies of the sculptor in 1963), built between 1969 and 1971, is located in , between the quarters of le Plan and Fontbarlettes, east of the city. It consists of two twisted towers with high clean lines, and high, which combine functionality and artistic research. In 1981, he received the "prix du quartier de l'Horloge" [prize of the quarter of the clock] for the best work of urban art in the 1970s. The water tower sculpture was distinguished by the label "20th century" in 2003 and was the subject of a stamp in 2013. Championnet 2004-08-15 027.jpg, Statue of Jean Étienne Championnet, Championnet on the MaisonDrapier-Valence.jpg, The Valence-côte.jpg, A "côte" of Valence, on leaving the ''place de la Pierre'' (Basse ville) Valence-cote3.jpg, The côte Saint-Martin. In the distance, the ruins of the
Château de Crussol The Château de Crussol is a mostly-ruined 12th century limestone castle in the ''commune'' of Saint-Péray that dominates the valley of Rhône, just opposite Valence in the Ardèche ''département'', Rhône-Alpes ''région'' of France. Locati ...
(Ardèche) Valence-cote2.jpg, Stairs of the côte Saint-Martin La porte sylvante.JPG, The Sylvante gate Haut de la côte sylvante.JPG, The top of the côte Sylvante. Côte sous la cathédrale.JPG, Côte Saint-Estève under the cathedral


The Valence channels

A unique ecological and natural heritage in France, channels accompany Valence since Ancient Rome, Roman times. The name of Valence comes from three Celtic words: "val" (water), "len" (plain) and "ty" (House) and would mean "water-rich inhabited place". At the time these rivers allowed the inhabitants to satisfy many needs and activities: Fishing, irrigation, washing, soaking, driving force for flour mills, oil, fuller and silk. They are now a place to walk for many inhabitants. It is in the neighborhoods east of Valence, at the foot of a terrace, the ''terrasse du séminaire'', that the channels (with a total length of , or when counting secondary irrigation channels) originate. Very quickly, the Valence people strove to channel these waters forming unhealthy marshes. In the 13th century, the regulation and the use of the channels was the privilege of the monasteries of Saint-Ruf and Saint-Victor, who decided the location of the mills. Indeed, the water used for irrigation, drinking water and washhouses, was also a valuable source of energy for the economic development of the era. The main (''Charran'', ''Thon'', ''Moulins'' and ''Malcontents'') cross the city from east to west before joining to form the which then flows into 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 ...
. In the 19th century, the channels lost their significance and would even be a little forgotten, hidden by urbanisation, high-rise buildings and roads. In recent years, the municipality has undertaken a development work of paths, bordered by poplars and willows, along these channels. Green routes have been signposted along the canals of ''des Malcontents'', ''de la Grande Marquise'', ''de Thibert'', '' du Charran'' and ''de Californie''. Channels which still continue to water gardens. The municipality also wants to promote gentle travel along the banks of the channels.


Parks and green spaces

Located in the city centre between and the Lycée Emile Loubet, the esplanade is a large walk of planted with tilia, lime trees, with the in its centre. Under this terrace lies the city garden or . It bears the name of Théodore Jouvet, a generous donor who gave, to the city of Valence, the amount required for the purchase of the land and whose statue is placed near the Belvedere (structure), belvedere from the Belle Époque. This garden occupies the slopes which connect the lower town and the . It is crossed by small streams and adorned with statues. The central park, it is also one of the most important monumental and civic ensembles of Valence: The war memorial, monument to the dead of the Valence commune, obelisk-shaped, was built after World War I; the general Jean Étienne Championnet, Championnet, a native son, also had his statue here, which was removed in May 1944 and hidden, to prevent it from being melted by the German military administration in occupied France during World War II, occupying Germany. The meeting of physician Gilbert Dreyfuse with Louis Aragon, his contact in the French Resistance, Resistance, was told by the poet after war in a small article, published in 2001. Covering an area of , is the largest in the city. It lies in the quarter of Fontbarlettes. The park has many trees, including 400 cedars near a natural space in the shape of an
amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
. This park of Valence offers a fitness trail, playgrounds for children, and a wide body of water on which is reflected the two futuristic water towers. Built between 1969 and 1971 by the Greek sculptor Philolaos (sculptor), Philolaus at the initiative of the urban architect , the water tower is a sculpture-architecture labelled and consists of two twisted towers, the tallest measuring high. The Saint-Ruf Park is the park of the former prefecture and is located in Vieux Valence. It offers views of Ardèche and the Château de Crussol, ruins of Crussol. It connects the historic centre to the old town. It was on this hillside, which is particularly well sited for sunset, that the Free Commune of Saint-Jean planted its vineyards. At the entrance to the park is the portal of the abbatial palace of the . Located in the quarter of Valensolles, is a landscaped park of which channels a country stream, from a natural source. It features lawns which are accessible to all, a children's playground and a space for bowling. Not far lies the Recreation Park of l'Épervière. In addition to its , this park includes a body of water of , protected by a long breakwater. In its leisure and relaxation area, the park contains restaurants, a campsite, a hotel, a swimming pool, a tennis court, billiards, bowling, walks, and offers river cruises. Public green areas of Valence total (more than 10% of the area of the commune). The city's main parks are: * * *Benjamin-Delessert Park *The Recreation Park of l'Épervière * *Park of the Trinitaires *Park of the Polygone *Itchevan Park *Châteauvert Park *Saint-Ruf Park In 2014, the municipality of Valence has the label "flowery city" with "4 flowers" awarded by the National Council of flowery cities and villages of France to the Concours des villes et villages fleuris, competition of flowery cities and villages.


Gastronomy

Dragees.jpg, Dragées de Valence Suisse biscuit.JPG, The
*The , a Valence specialty, is a shortcrust pastry biscuit shaped as a man. Sometimes improperly referred to as "Puppet", the Suisse of Valence is flavoured with orange blossom, it contains powder almond and small pieces of candied orange peel. The name, shape and decoration of this biscuit are inspired by the uniform of the Swiss Guard#Pontifical Swiss Guard, Swiss Guards of Pope Pope Pius VI, Pius VI who died in Valence. The Suisse is traditionally eaten during the Easter holidays and particularly during the festival of Palm Sunday. *The Dragée de Valence is a confection of praline or of chocolate coated in sugar made in the purest tradition, to celebrate the solemn events of life such as baptisms, communions and weddings. The materials used are graded and regular almonds coming mainly from France (Ferraduelle), but also of Spain (Longuette, Planeta) or Sicily (Avola). These varieties are the only ones which allow the obtainment of a very pleasing dragée. *The fruits which are commonly found in the Valence region include
peach The peach (''Prunus persica'') is a deciduous tree first domesticated and cultivated in Zhejiang province of Eastern China. It bears edible juicy fruits with various characteristics, most called peaches and others (the glossy-skinned, n ...
es, apples, pears, apricots, Common fig, figs and many red fruits such as cherry, cherries, blackberry, blackberries, Prunus cerasus, wild cherries or raspberry, raspberries. *The chef Anne-Sophie Pic (three stars in the Michelin Guide) is a restaurateur of haute cuisine and a . A graduate of the ISG Business School, she is the owner of the "Maison Pic" located at 285 ''Avenue Victor-Hugo'' in Valence. She is the first chef to receive three stars in the Michelin Guide. The Maison Pic has existed since 1889 and four personalities have succeeded there, two women and two men, all from the Pic family. André Pic, her grandfather, gained three stars from 1934. her father, Jacques Pic, gained three stars from 1973. *Baptiste Poinot, chef of the Flavours (a star in the Michelin Guide). The flavours are taste sensations perceived by the nose as well as by the taste buds at the time of the placing food in the mouth. Flavours, it is also the name of the star restaurant, established in January 2006 in Valence by Baptiste Poinot. *Masashi Ijishi, chef of La Cachette (one star in the Michelin Guide).


Garrison town

Since installation in 1773 an artillery regiment, the 1st Artillery Regiment (France), Regiment of la Fère, Valence was the place of confinement of numerous military units. *The long occupied the Bacquet barracks *1852–1873, a School of Applied Artillery (France), school of artillery, installed by Napoleon, Bonaparte under the French Consulate, Consulate and then abolished in 1828, since restored. *The , 1906–1914, was stationed in the Chareton barracks which was destroyed during World War II. *In 1948, the moved to the La Tour-Maubourg Quarter, and then, in 1951, Bacquet barracks. In 1955, the 477th GAAL was attached to the 404th RAA, which was dissolved in 1964. *10th and 12th batteries of 155 of the , 1914 *, 1939–1940 *In 1879, the settled in the newly built barracks, on the ''Avenue de Romans''. *1st Parachute Hussar Regiment, 1906 *, 1939–1940 :* :* :* Since 1984, the 1st Spahi Regiment has been installed at the barracks of the Bacquet Quarter.


Twin towns – sister cities

Valence is Sister city, twinned with: * Asti, Italy (1966) * Batroun, Lebanon (2005) * Biberach an der Riss, Germany (1967) * Gedera, Israel (1997) * Ijevan, Armenia (1996) * Pushkin, Saint Petersburg, Pushkin, Russia (2017) * Tendring District, Tendring, England, United Kingdom (1969) In addition, Valence has a friendship declaration with: * Stepanakert, Republic of Artsakh (2015)


Notable people

*Felix, Fortunatus, and Achilleus, Saint Félix (?–212), priest, founder of the first Church of Valence, martyred here. A primary school in downtown bears his name. *Laurent Joubert (1520–1583), physician to King Henry III of France *Jacques Cujas (1522–1590), Professor at the University of Valence in 1557–1559 and 1567–1575 *Balthazar Baro (1596–1650), poet and playwright *Louis Mandrin (1725–1755), smuggler, died here *Jean-Denis de Montlovier (1733–1804), lawyer and man of letters *Pierre Choderlos de Laclos (1741–1803), novelist, official and army general, established an artillery school here *Alexandre Camille Taponier (1749–1831), general of division *Napoleon (1769–1821), military and political leader, served here in the youth in the 1st Artillery Regiment (France), La Fère Artillery Regiment *Pope Pius VI, Pius VI (1717–1799), Pope, died here *Jean-Étienne Championnet (1762–1800), general, his statue by Victor Sappey stands on the Champ de Mars *Jean-Pierre, Count of Montalivet, Jean-Pierre Bachasson (1766–1823), Count of Montalivet, peer of France and statesman, Minister of the Interior of Napoleon and mayor of Valence. His statue stands on the ''Place Montalivet''. *Jean-Joseph Farre (1816–1887), general and Minister of War * (1822–1871), politician, a boulevard of the city is named after him and his statue is installed in front of the station *Louis Gallet (1835–1898), poet, novelist and librettist *Louis Le Cardonnel (1862–1936), priest and poet *Jules Nadi (1872–1928), politician *René Alphonse Higonnet (1902–1983), engineer and co-inventor of the phototypesetting process *Paul-Jacques Bonzon (1908–1978), writer, died here *Paul Ricœur (1913–2005), philosopher *Catherine Langeais (1923–1998), television presenter and actress *Marc Aryan (1926–1985), French-Belgian singer-songwriter *Jean-Claude Lamy (born 1941), writer and journalist *Louis Nicollin (1943–2017), entrepreneur and chairman of Montpellier HSC *Jacques Tardi (born 1946), comics artist *Alain Robert (born 1962), urban climber, grew up here *Éric Boisset (born 1965), children writer *Anne-Sophie Pic (born 1969), master chef, 3 Michelin stars *Jean-François Piège (born 1970), master chef, 2 Michelin stars *Guillaume Gille (born 1976), handballer *Jean-Pascal Yao (born 1977), footballer *Sébastien Chabal (born 1977), rugby union player *Bertrand Gille (handballer), Bertrand Gille (born 1978), handballer *Florent Peyre (born 1980), comedian and humorist *Guillaume Bonnafond (born 1987), cyclist *Axel Domont (born 1990), cyclist *Dionysos (French band), Dionysos (formed 1993), rock band


In popular culture


Valence and its kiosque

A since 1982 and designed by the architect Eugène Poitoux, the is a bandstand which inspired Raymond Peynet in 1942 with his famous "lovers". These "lovers" would travel the world and adorn many objects. Raymond Peynet worked on that momentum for many newspapers. After becoming famous, Peynet returned to Valence in April 1966, to baptise the kiosk which now bears his name. The lovers of Peynet inspired the song of Georges Brassens. They were broken down into stamps in 1985 in France, Cancellation (mail), cancelled by the post office of Saint-Valentin in Indre, each on 14 February, in postcards, dolls, in books, on medals, in statues (such as the one in Hiroshima in Japan). The little couple is sought by collectors around the world. Japan has two Peynet museums (Karuizawa, Nagano, Karuizawa and Sakutō, Okayama, Sakuto), while in Hiroshima, a statue of the Lovers faces the Hiroshima Peace Memorial, memorial of the atomic bombing. There is also a kiosque and a museum dedicated to the artist in the small commune of Brassac-les-Mines. Isabelle Bard, the mother of Peynet, was born in Puy-de-Dôme.


Valence in film

The following list covers films which were fully or partially shot in Valence. *1968: directed by Alex Joffé, with Bourvil, Robert Hirsch (actor), Robert Hirsch, and Michel de Ré. *1974: ''Going Places (1974 film), Going Places'' directed by Bertrand Blier, with Gérard Depardieu, Patrick Dewaere, Miou-Miou and Jeanne Moreau. *1992: ''Riens du tout'' directed by Cédric Klapisch, with Fabrice Luchini, Daniel Berlioux, and Olivier Broche. *1994: ''Les Braqueuses'' directed by Jean-Paul Salomé, with Catherine Jacob (actress), Catherine Jacob, Clémentine Célarié, and . *1996: ''Les Grands Ducs'' directed by Patrice Leconte, with Jean-Pierre Marielle, Philippe Noiret, Jean Rochefort and Michel Blanc. *1999: directed by , with Agnès Jaoui and Serge Riaboukine. *2001: directed by Françoise Decaux-Thomele, with Clémentine Célarié, Sophie Guillemin, Catherine Mouchet and Édith Scob. *2005: ''Je vous trouve très beau'' directed by Isabelle Mergault, with Michel Blanc, Medeea Marinescu and Wladimir Yordanoff. *2008: ''Passe-passe'' directed by Tonie Marshall, with Nathalie Baye, Édouard Baer and Guy Marchand. *2009: directed by Hubert Gillet, with Michèle Laroque, and Catherine Mouchet. *2011: ''All Our Desires'' directed by Philippe Lioret, with Vincent Lindon, Marie Gillain and . * 2014: ''Three Hearts (film), Three Hearts'' directed by Benoît Jacquot with Benoît Poelvoorde, Charlotte Gainsbourg, Chiara Mastroianni and Catherine Deneuve.


Gallery

Valence-MaisonDupre-Latour-RuePerollerie.jpg, alt=The Maison Dupré-Latour, The Valence kiosque Peynet.jpg, alt=Kiosque Peynet on the Champ-de-Mars, on the Champ de Mars Valence...(décembre 2012) 004-001.JPG, alt=The bell tower of the Saint-Apollinaire Cathedral, Bell tower of the Saint-Apollinaire Cathedral Porte de l'ancienne préfecture.JPG, alt=gate of the former prefecture, Gate of the former prefecture Chateau Crussol coucher de soleil.jpg, alt=View of the facade of the Château de Crussol from the Champ de Mars, View of the
Château de Crussol The Château de Crussol is a mostly-ruined 12th century limestone castle in the ''commune'' of Saint-Péray that dominates the valley of Rhône, just opposite Valence in the Ardèche ''département'', Rhône-Alpes ''région'' of France. Locati ...
from the esplanade of the
Résidence du marquis de Veynes,côte des chapeliers.JPG, Côte des Chapeliers, home of the Marquis of Veynes. Côte des chapeliers.JPG, alt=Côte des chapeliers, Côte des Chapeliers Valence-Sculpture-JardinMusee.jpg, Sculpture in the garden of the Port Epervière Valence 26-04-2005.jpg, alt=The port de l'Épervière,


See also

*Communes of the Drôme department *
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.
* * * * *


Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * *


References


Bibliography

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External links


Official website

Office of Tourism

Nariné Simonian concert at the Notre-Dame de Valence church
{{DEFAULTSORT:Valence, Drome Communes of Drôme Prefectures in France Populated places on the Rhône Populated riverside places in France Valence, Drôme, Armenian diaspora communities Dauphiné