Vienne (river)

Vienne
The Vienne in Limoges.
Native name	La Vienne
Origin	Plateau de Millevaches
Mouth	Loire
Basin countries	France
Length	363 km
Source elevation	880 m
Avg. discharge	203 m³/s
Basin area	21,105 km²

The Vienne in wooded landscape near Peyrelevade, close to its source on the Millevaches Massif.

The Vienne (Occitan: Vinhana) is one of the most important rivers in south-western France, a significant left tributary of the lower Loire. It supports numerous hydro-electric dams, and it is the main river of the Limousin region and also of the eastern part of the Poitou-Charentes region.

Two French départements are named after the Vienne: the Haute-Vienne (87) in the Limousin region and the Vienne (86) in the Poitou-Charentes region.

Course

The Vienne rises as a spring in the department of the Corrèze, at the foot of Mont Audouze, on the Plateau de Millevaches, near Peyrelevade. It then flows roughly west to the city of Limoges where it once played a major role in the famous Limoges porcelain industry. A little way after Limoges it takes a turn to the north. En route to its confluence with the Loire, the Vienne is joined by the rivers Creuse and Clain. Finally, after a journey of 372 km it reaches the Loire at Candes-Saint-Martin in the department of Indre-et-Loire.

The Vienne flows through the following départements and towns:

• Corrèze: Peyrelevade
• Creuse
• Haute-Vienne: Eymoutiers, Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat, Limoges, Aixe-sur-Vienne, Saint-Junien
• Charente: Chabanais, Confolens
• Vienne: L'Isle-Jourdain, Lussac-les-Châteaux, Chauvigny, Châtellerault
• Indre-et-Loire: L'Île-Bouchard, Chinon

Tributaries include:

• The Creuse, which joins the Vienne north of Châtellerault
• The Clain, which flows through the city of Poitiers, and joins the Vienne in Châtellerault
• The Briance, which joins the Vienne in Condat-sur-Vienne
• The Taurion, which joins the Vienne north of Saint-Priest-Taurion

References

• http://www.geoportail.fr
• The Vienne at the Sandre database