The Serein () is a
river
A river is a natural stream of fresh water that flows on land or inside Subterranean river, caves towards another body of water at a lower elevation, such as an ocean, lake, or another river. A river may run dry before reaching the end of ...
of eastern
France
France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...
. It is the main waterway of the
Chablis wine
Wine is an alcoholic drink made from Fermentation in winemaking, fermented fruit. Yeast in winemaking, Yeast consumes the sugar in the fruit and converts it to ethanol and carbon dioxide, releasing heat in the process. Wine is most often made f ...
district in
Burgundy
Burgundy ( ; ; Burgundian: ''Bregogne'') is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. ...
. It is long.
The Serein is not navigable.
Origin of the name
''Serein'' is the French word for "serene". This may reflect the placid nature of its course, or the strong monastic tradition in the area.
Geography
The Serein rises in the
Auxois hills at
Arconcey and flows north-north-west into the
Yonne
Yonne (, in Burgundian: ''Ghienne'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the river Yonne, which flows through it, in the country's north-central part. One of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté's eight con ...
at
Bassou. Both the
A6 Autoroute du Soleil and the Paris-Lyon railway line follow a similar route through the area.
Main tributaries of the Serein and their length
The Serein has the following tributaries over 10 km length:
*
Baigne (L) - 14 km
*
Soutain (L) - 13 km
*
Argentalet (L) - 26 km
*
Ru du Champ Millet (R) - 10 km
*
Ru de Vaucharme (L) - 16 km
''note: R=Right L=Left''
''Départements'' and towns crossed
From source to mouth:
*
Côte-d'Or
Côte-d'Or () is a département in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region of Northeastern France. In 2019, it had a population of 534,124. :
Arconcey,
La Motte-Ternant,
Époisses
*
Yonne
Yonne (, in Burgundian: ''Ghienne'') is a department in the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region in France. It is named after the river Yonne, which flows through it, in the country's north-central part. One of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté's eight con ...
:
Montréal
Montreal is the List of towns in Quebec, largest city in the Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Quebec, the List of the largest municipalities in Canada by population, second-largest in Canada, and the List of North American cit ...
,
L'Isle-sur-Serein,
Noyers,
Chablis,
Pontigny Abbey
Pontigny Abbey (), the church of which in recent decades has also been the cathedral of the Mission de France, otherwise the Territorial Prelature of Pontigny (), was a Cistercian monastery located in Pontigny on the River Serein, in the present ...
,
Bassou
History
The history of the area is dominated by the Church at
Pontigny and nearby
Auxerre
Auxerre ( , , Burgundian language (Oïl), Burgundian: ''Auchoirre'') is the capital (Prefectures in France, prefecture) of the Yonne Departments of France, department and the fourth-largest city in the Burgundy historical region southeast of Par ...
, whose remit extended to building the famous castle at Noyers.
See also
*
Chablis wine
Chablis () is by the northernmost Appellation d'origine contrôlée of the Burgundy region in France. Its cool climate produces wines with more acidity and less fruitiness than Chardonnay vines grown in warmer ones. These often have a "flinty" no ...
References
{{Authority control
Rivers of France
Rivers of Yonne
Rivers of Bourgogne-Franche-Comté