Rhône, << rohn, >> River is an important commercial waterway of France. It is famous for the beauty of its valley.
The river rises in the Rhône glacier of Switzerland, at an altitude of over 5,000 feet (1,500 meters). Glacial clay picked up by the river in the Swiss Alps makes the water of the Rhône appear almost milky. But as the Rhône passes through Lake Geneva, most of the clay drops to the bottom of the lake. The clear blue of the river, after leaving Lake Geneva, inspired the English poet Lord Byron to describe it as “the blue rushing of the arrowy Rhone.”
After the Rhône leaves Switzerland and enters France, it flows southwestward to Lyon. It then winds south and empties through a large delta into the Gulf of Lion, an arm of the Mediterranean Sea.
The Rhône is over 500 miles (800 kilometers) long, and navigable for about 300 miles (480 kilometers). Chief branches are the Saone, the Isere, and the Durance. Hydroelectric power plants along the Rhône generate electric power. Canals feed irrigation projects along the lower course of the river. A canal near the mouth of the Rhône connects the river with France’s largest Mediterranean port, Marseille.
Greek and Roman civilizations followed the Rhône to Lyon, and up its tributaries. Ruins of ancient settlements still stand in many towns along the river.
See also Provence .
