The Charente (; oc, Charanta ) is a long river in southwestern France. Its source is in the

Haute-Vienne Haute-Vienne (; oc, Nauta Vinhana, ; English: Upper Vienne) is a department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region in southwest-central France. Named after the Vienne River, it is one of the twelve departments that together constitute Nouvelle-Aquitai ...

département In the administrative divisions of France, the department (french: département, ) is one of the three levels of government under the national level (" territorial collectivities"), between the administrative regions and the communes. Ninety ...

'' at Chéronnac, a small village near

Rochechouart Rochechouart (, ; oc, Rechoard, link=no, earlier ''La Ròcha Choard'') is a commune in the Haute-Vienne department, region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, west central France. It is a subprefecture of the department. The name of the town comes from Lati ...

. It flows through the departments of

Charente Charente (; Saintongese: ''Chérente''; oc, Charanta ) is a department in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, south western France. It is named after the river Charente, the most important and longest river in the department, an ...

, Vienne and

Charente-Maritime Charente-Maritime () is a department in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region on the southwestern coast of France. Named after the river Charente, its prefecture is La Rochelle. As of 2019, it had a population of 651,358 with an area of 6,864 square kil ...

. The river flows into the

Atlantic Ocean The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe ...

near Rochefort.

Navigation

The Charente was described by the French king

François 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 ...

as 'the most beautiful river in the kingdom', and was navigable in its natural state until mills were erected at many locations in the 14th century. Some locks were built but through navigation remained impossible for centuries. Improvements to the navigation were projected under Louis XVI in 1772, but work was interrupted by the Revolution. The project was revived under the Restoration and canalisation completed in 1835. The waterway was abandoned in 1957. The ''départements'' took over operation in 1963, and recreational vessels have now taken possession of the waterway throughout the 164 km to the town of

Angoulême Angoulême (; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Engoulaeme''; oc, Engoleime) is a commune, the prefecture of the Charente department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of southwestern France. The inhabitants of the commune are known as ''Angoumoisins ...

. The historic towns of

Cognac Cognac ( , also , ) is a variety of brandy named after the commune of Cognac, France. It is produced in the surrounding wine-growing region in the departments of Charente and Charente-Maritime. Cognac production falls under French appella ...

, Jarnac, Saintes and Rochefort make the river a popular destination for boaters, mainly in rental boats, with moorings provided at most towns and villages along the route. The locks are .Charente (amont et aval)
Fluviacarte

Tributaries

Tributaries A tributary, or affluent, is a stream or river that flows into a larger stream or main stem (or parent) river or a lake. A tributary does not flow directly into a sea or ocean. Tributaries and the main stem river drain the surrounding drain ...

include the rivers

Antenne The Antenne ( French: ''l’Antenne'') is a 49.0 km long river in the Charente-Maritime ''département'', in southwestern France. Its source is in the commune of Fontaine-Chalendray. It flows into the Charente near Cognac Cognac ( , a ...

, Boëme,

Né A birth name is the name of a person given upon birth. The term may be applied to the surname, the given name, or the entire name. Where births are required to be officially registered, the entire name entered onto a birth certificate or birth reg ...

, Coran, Seugne, Bramerit,

Boutonne The Boutonne () is a long river in the Deux-Sèvres and Charente-Maritime departments in western France. Its source is in the village of Chef-Boutonne (french: head of the Boutonne). It flows generally southwest. It is a right tributary of th ...

, Arnoult, Touvre and Bonnieure. The river Boutonne is navigable over a distance of 31 km to Saint-Jean-d'Angély, but a barrier at the confluence prevents access except under exceptional conditions.

En route

Towns and villages include Vergeroux, Soubise, Rochefort and Tonnay-Charente on the tidal river, and Saint-Savinien, Taillebourg, Saintes,

, Jarnac, Saint-Simon and

on the navigable river, while Montignac-Charente and Civray are on the river's upper course.

References

External links

River Charente and River Boutonne
with maps and details for navigation, by the author of ''Inland Waterways of France'', referenced above
Navigation details for 80 French rivers and canals
(French waterways website section) {{DEFAULTSORT:Charente (River) Rivers of France Rivers of Charente Rivers of Charente-Maritime Rivers of Haute-Vienne Rivers of Vienne Rivers of Nouvelle-Aquitaine

Navigation

Tributaries

En route

See also

References

External links