The Sarthe () is a river in western France. Together with the river

Mayenne Mayenne () is a landlocked department in northwest France named after the river Mayenne. Mayenne is part of the administrative region of Pays de la Loire and is surrounded by the departments of Manche, Orne, Sarthe, Maine-et-Loire, and Ill ...

it forms the river

Maine Maine () is a state in the New England and Northeastern regions of the United States. It borders New Hampshire to the west, the Gulf of Maine to the southeast, and the Canadian provinces of New Brunswick and Quebec to the northeast and ...

, which is a tributary to the river

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

. Its source is in the

Orne Orne (; nrf, Ôrne or ) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.department, near

Moulins-la-Marche Moulins-la-Marche is a commune in the Orne department in north-western France. Heraldry See also *Communes of the Orne department The following is a list of the 385 communes of the Orne department of France. The communes cooperate in the f ...

. It flows generally southwest, through the following departments and towns: *

Orne Orne (; nrf, Ôrne or ) is a département in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne. It had a population of 279,942 in 2019.Le Mêle-sur-Sarthe, Alençon *

Sarthe Sarthe () is a department of the French region of Pays de la Loire, and the province of Maine, situated in the '' Grand-Ouest'' of the country. It is named after the river Sarthe, which flows from east of Le Mans to just north of Angers. It ha ...

Fresnay-sur-Sarthe Fresnay-sur-Sarthe (, literally ''Fresnay on Sarthe'') is a commune in the Sarthe department in the region of Pays de la Loire in north-western France. On 1 January 2019, the former communes Coulombiers and Saint-Germain-sur-Sarthe were merged ...

Beaumont-sur-Sarthe Beaumont-sur-Sarthe (, literally ''Beaumont on Sarthe''; pre- revolutionary name: ''Beaumont-le-Vicomte'') is a commune in the Sarthe department and Pays de la Loire region of north-western France. The residents of Beaumont are known in French ...

, Le Mans,

Sablé-sur-Sarthe Sablé-sur-Sarthe (, literally ''Sablé on Sarthe''), commonly referred to as Sablé, is a commune in the Sarthe department, in the Pays de la Loire region, western France. It is about 50 km northeast of Angers. Population Geography The ...

* Maine-et-Loire: Châteauneuf-sur-Sarthe, Tiercé,

Angers Angers (, , ) is a city in western France, about southwest of Paris. It is the prefecture of the Maine-et-Loire department and was the capital of the province of Anjou until the French Revolution. The inhabitants of both the city and the pr ...

Its main tributaries are the Loir and the

Huisne The Huisne () is a long river in France. It is a left tributary of the river Sarthe, which it meets in Le Mans. Its source is near the town of Pervenchères, in the Orne department. The Huisne flows through the following departments and towns: ...

from the left, and the

Vaige The Vaige () is a long river in the Mayenne and Sarthe departments in western France. This list is ordered from source to mouth: *In Mayenne, the Vaige has its source in Saint-Léger then waters the following villages: Vaiges, Saint-Georges-l ...

, the

Erve Erve (locally ) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Lecco in the Italy, Italian region Lombardy, located about northeast of Milan and about southeast of Lecco. As of 31 December 2004, it had a population of 758 and an area of .All d ...

and the

Vègre The Vègre () is an long river in the Sarthe department in western France. Its source is near Rouessé-Vassé. It flows generally south. It is a right tributary of the Sarthe Sarthe () is a department of the French region of Pays de la Loi ...

from the right.

Navigation

The Sarthe has 20 weirs and locks. The channel is well marked and navigation is straightforward, except for the risk of shoals in certain sections.

References

External links

{{Commons category, Sarthe River
River Sarthe
with further maps and expanded details (by the author of 'Inland Waterways of France')
Navigation details for 80 French rivers and canals
(French waterways website section) Rivers of France Rivers of Maine-et-Loire Rivers of Orne Rivers of Sarthe Rivers of Normandy Rivers of Pays de la Loire Pays de la Loire region articles needing translation from French Wikipedia