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85-607: The project became part of the Finance Act in January 1878. Freycinet, being close to Léon Gambetta and Léon Say , the Minister of Finance, organised a meeting between them all to prepare the political terrain. A first law was voted in on 18 May 1878, creating the Compagnie des Chemins de Fer de l'État ("State Railway Company"), by acquisition of several other companies. On 8 June, a report

170-680: A bridge over the river. By 600 BC the Loire had already become a very important trading route between the Celts and the Greeks . A key transportation route, it served as one of the great "highways" of France for over 2000 years. The Phoenicians and Greeks had used pack horses to transport goods from Lyon to the Loire to get from the Mediterranean basin to the Atlantic coast. The Romans successfully subdued

255-452: A budget of US$ 18 million, mainly funded by government and public bodies, such as the Établissement Publique Loire (EPL), a public institution which had formerly advocated large-scale dam projects on the river. Studies of the palaeo-geography of the region suggest that the palaeo-Loire flowed northward and joined the Seine , while the lower Loire found its source upstream of Orléans in

340-479: A competing line to the PO's. The PO line served Tours , Poitiers , and Angoulême , while the État decided to serve Chartres , Courtalain , Saumur , Niort , and Saintes , almost parallel to the competing line. Thanks to purchases and exchanges made in 1878 with the PO, by 1884, the État operated: Courtalain - Bessé-sur-Braye was opened in 1885 as well as Château-sur-Loir - Saumur - Cavignac . At La Grave d'Ambarès

425-507: A decline in trade on the river. Proposals to develop a fully navigable river up to Briare came to nothing. The opening of the Canal latéral à la Loire in 1838 enabled navigation between Digoin and Briare to continue, but the river level crossing at Briare remained a problem until the construction of the Briare aqueduct in 1896. At 662.69 metres (2,174.2 ft), this was the longest such structure in

510-628: A discharge rate of 863 m /s (30,500 cu ft/s), which is an average over the period 1967–2008. The discharge rate varies strongly along the river, with roughly 350 m /s (12,000 cu ft/s) at Orléans and 900 m /s (32,000 cu ft/s) at the mouth. It also depends strongly on the season, and the flow of only 10 m /s (350 cu ft/s) is not uncommon in August–September near Orléans. During floods, which usually occur in February and March but also in other periods,

595-608: A global nature, such as the expansion of the Mediterranean gull in Europe. The Loire has been described as "constantly under threat of losing its status as the last wild river in France". The reason for this is its sheer length and possibility of extensive navigation, which severely limits the scope of river conservation. The Federation, a member of the IUCN since 1970, has been very important in

680-481: A junction with the PO was built, and État trains linked Paris and Bordeaux on 11 July 1886. The last line portion was the hardest to build. On 1 July 1893, an extension via Lormont was opened, Three years later, on 1 August 1896 Bordeaux-État was opened, welcoming trains from Paris . The État's line was 610 km while the PO's was 582 km. These were the only competing lines in France. This lasted until 1938, date of

765-415: A navigable channel on the river, as it was critical to transportation. River traffic increased gradually, with a toll system being used in medieval times. Today some of these toll bridges still remain, dated to over 800 years. During the 17th century, Jean-Baptiste Colbert instituted the use of stone retaining walls and quays from Roanne to Nantes , which helped make the river more reliable, but navigation

850-466: A wide range of variations, from the early medieval to the late Renaissance periods. They were originally created as feudal strongholds, over centuries past, in the strategic divide between southern and northern France; now many are privately owned. The name "Loire" comes from Latin Liger , which is itself a transcription of the native Gaulish ( Celtic ) name of the river. The Gaulish name comes from

935-523: A ‘Natura 2000’ site under European Union environmental legislation. The WWF were particularly important in changing the perception of the French authorities in support for dam building to environmental protection and sustainable management of its river basin. In 1992, they aided the ‘Loire Nature’ project, which received funds of some $ US 9 million under the EU's ‘LIFE’ programme until 1999, embarking upon restoration to

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1020-418: Is 164 species, of which 54 are water birds, 44 species are common for managed forests, 41 to natural forests, 13 to open and 12 to rocky areas. This avifauna has been rather stable, at least between the 1980s and 2000s, with significant abundance variations observed only for 17 species. Of those, five species were growing in population, four declining, and other eight were fluctuating. Some of these variations had

1105-538: Is a 300 km (190 mi) stretch in the western reach of the river starting with Orléans and terminating at Nantes , 56 km (35 mi) short of the Loire estuary and the Atlantic Ocean. The tidal stretch of the river extends to a length of 60 km (37 mi) and a width of 3 km (1.9 mi), which has oil refineries, the port of Saint-Nazaire and 40,000 hectares (99,000 acres) of wetland whose formation

1190-536: Is common in the upper streams, whereas the flounder ( Platichtys flesus ) and flathead mullet ( Mugil spp.) tend to stay near the river mouth. The tributaries host brown trout ( Salmo trutta ), European bullhead ( Cottus gobio ), European brook lamprey ( Lampetra planeri ), zander ( Sander lucioperca ), nase ( Chondrostoma nasus and C. toxostoma ) and wels catfish ( Siluris glanis ). The endangered species include grayling ( Thymallus thymallus ), burbot ( Lota lota ) and bitterling ( Rhodeus sericeus ) and

1275-609: Is dated to 7500 BC (caused by inundation by sea waters on the northern bank of the estuary), and the beaches of Le Croisic and La Baule along the coastline. Its main tributaries include the rivers Maine , Nièvre and the Erdre on its right bank, and the rivers Allier , Cher , Indre , Vienne , and the Sèvre Nantaise on the left bank. The largest tributary of the river is the Allier , 410 km (250 mi) in length, which joins

1360-419: Is identified as temperate maritime climate, and is characterised by the lack of dry seasons and by heavy rains and snowfall in winter, especially in the upper streams. The number of sunny hours per year varies between 1400 and 2200 and increases from northwest to southeast. The Loire Valley, in particular, enjoys a pleasant temperate climate. The region experiences a rainfall of 690 mm (27.2 in) along

1445-722: Is the longest river in France and the 171st longest in the world. With a length of 1,006 kilometres (625 mi), it drains 117,054 km (45,195 sq mi), more than a fifth of France's land, while its average discharge is only half that of the Rhône . It rises in the southeastern quarter of the French Massif Central in the Cévennes range (in the department of Ardèche ) at 1,350 m (4,430 ft) near Mont Gerbier de Jonc ; it flows north through Nevers to Orléans , then west through Tours and Nantes until it reaches

1530-490: The Bay of Biscay (Atlantic Ocean) at Saint-Nazaire . Its main tributaries include the rivers Nièvre , Maine and the Erdre on its right bank, and the rivers Allier , Cher , Indre , Vienne , and the Sèvre Nantaise on the left bank. The Loire gives its name to six departments: Loire , Haute-Loire , Loire-Atlantique , Indre-et-Loire , Maine-et-Loire , and Saône-et-Loire . The lower-central swathe of its valley straddling

1615-496: The Canal du Nivernais to the Canal latéral à la Loire . As of 2017 , the following sections are navigable: The French language adjective ligérien is derived from the name of the Loire, as in le climat ligérien ("the climate of the Loire Valley"). The climate is considered the most pleasant of northern France, with warmer winters and, more generally, fewer extremes in temperatures, rarely exceeding 38 °C (100 °F). It

1700-662: The Neolithic period (6,000 to 4,500 BC), all of the recent Stone Age in Europe . Then came the Gauls , the local tribes during the Iron Age period of 1500 to 500 BC. They used the Loire as a key trading route by 600 BC, using pack horses to link its trade, such as the metals of the Armorican Massif , with Phoenicia and Ancient Greece via Lyon on the Rhône. Gallic rule ended in

1785-641: The Orléans . Reine claude ( Prunus domestica italica ) tree species was planted in the gardens of the Château. Asparagus was also brought from northwestern France. The river flows through the continental ecoregions of Massif central and Paris Basin south and in its Lower course partly through South Atlantic and Brittany . With more than 100 alga species, the Loire has the highest phytoplankton diversity among French rivers. The most abundant are diatoms and green algae (about 15% by mass) which mostly occur in

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1870-633: The Pays de la Loire and Centre-Val de Loire regions was added to the World Heritage Sites list of UNESCO on December 2, 2000. Vineyards and châteaux are found along the banks of the river throughout this section and are a major tourist attraction. The human history of the Loire river valley is thought by some to begin with the Middle Palaeolithic period of 90–40 kya (thousand years ago), followed by modern humans (about 30 kya), succeeded by

1955-618: The War in the Vendée since they thought it was a more effective way of killing. Soon after the beginning of the 19th century, steam-driven passenger boats began to ply the river between Nantes and Orléans, making the upriver journey faster; by 1843, 70,000 passengers were being carried annually in the Lower Loire and 37,000 in the Upper Loire. But competition from the railway, beginning in the 1840s, caused

2040-428: The pike ( Esox lucius ), which is the major predator of the Loire, as well as eel, carp, rudd and salmon. The great Loire salmon, a subspecies of Atlantic salmon , is regarded as the symbolic fish of the river. Its population has decreased from about 100,000 in the 19th century to below 100 in the 1990s that resulted in the adoption of a total ban of salmon fishing in the Loire basin in 1984. A salmon restoration program

2125-561: The 10th century onwards with the defensive fortress like structures called the " keeps " or " donjons " built between 987 and 1040 by Anjou Count Foulques Nerra of Anjou (the Falcon). However, one of the oldest such structures in France is the Donjon de Foulques Nerra built in 944. This style was replaced by the religious architectural style in the 12th to 14th centuries when the impregnable château fortresses were built on top of rocky hills; one of

2210-423: The 367.5 km (228.4 mi) Cher , which joins the Loire near Cinq-Mars-la-Pile at 47°20′33″N 0°28′49″E  /  47.34250°N 0.48028°E  / 47.34250; 0.48028 and the 287 km (178 mi) Indre , which joins the Loire near Néman at 47°14′2″N 0°11′0″E  /  47.23389°N 0.18333°E  / 47.23389; 0.18333 . The geological formations in

2295-738: The 3rd century, Christianity spread through the river basin, and many religious figures began cultivating vineyards along the river banks. In the 5th century, the Roman Empire declined and the Franks and the Alemanni came to the area from the east. Following this there was ongoing conflict between the Franks and the Visigoths . In 408, the Iranian tribe of Alans crossed the Loire and large hordes of them settled along

2380-406: The Atlantic Ocean at 47°16′44″N 2°10′19″W  /  47.27889°N 2.17194°W  / 47.27889; -2.17194 between Saint-Nazaire and Saint-Brevin-les-Pins , connected by a bridge over the river near its mouth. Several départements of France were named after the Loire. The Loire flows through the following départements and towns: The Loire Valley in the Loire river basin,

2465-671: The Bald died, marking an end to the Carolingian dynasty . After considerable conflict in the region, in 898 Foulques le Roux of Anjou gained power. During the Hundred Years' War from 1337 to 1453, the Loire marked the border between the French and the English, who occupied territory to the north. One-third of the inhabitants died in the epidemic of the Black Death of 1348–9. The English defeated

2550-869: The Etat, authorising trials of the Micheline train. By 1933, the trains were used for expresses between Paris and Deauville . During the summer of 1937, the French Government ruled in favour of the nationalisation of the French railways. As a sign of disagreement, Dautry resigned, he was later elected into the SNCF 's managing council. Loire The Loire ( / l w ɑːr / LWAR , US also / l u ˈ ɑːr / loo- AR , French: [lwaʁ] ; Occitan : Léger [ˈledʒe] ; Arpitan : Lêre ; Breton : Liger ; Latin : Liger )

2635-528: The French in 1356 and Aquitaine came under English control in 1360. In 1429, Joan of Arc persuaded Charles VII to drive out the English from the country. Her successful relief of the siege of Orléans , on the Loire, was the turning point of the war. In 1477, the first printing press in France was established in Angers, and around this time the Chateau de Langeais and Chateau de Montsoreau were built. During

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2720-451: The Freycinet plan, with which the French industrialists had such difficulty – seemingly satisfied – was the cause of their abandoning, no doubt temporarily, those external markets they judged less profitable, confident of full order books – and at a greater level than they could meet. Their confidence in the future sustained their investments throughout the supply chain, from

2805-598: The Gaulish word liga , which means "silt, sediment, deposit, alluvium", a word that gave French lie , as in sur lie , which in turn gave English lees . Liga comes from the Proto-Indo-European root * legʰ- , meaning "to lie, lay" as in the Welsh word Lleyg , and also which gave many words in English, such as to lie, to lay, ledge, law, etc. The source of the river lies in the eastern Massif Central , in springs to

2890-497: The Gauls in 52 BC and began developing Cenabum, which they named Aurelianis . They also began building the city of Caesarodunum , now Tours , from AD 1. The Romans used the Loire as far as Roanne , around 150 km (93 mi) downriver from the source. After AD 16, the Loire river valley became part of the Roman province of Aquitania , with its capital at Avaricum . From

2975-457: The Loire and Naussac Dam on the Allier . The Villerest dam, built in 1985 a few kilometres (a few miles) south of Roanne , has played a key-role in preventing recent flooding. As a result, the Loire is a very popular river for boating excursions, flowing through a pastoral countryside, past limestone cliffs and historic castles . Four nuclear power plants are located on the river: Belleville , Chinon , Dampierre and Saint-Laurent . In 1700

3060-556: The Loire near the town of Nevers at 46°57′34″N 3°4′44″E  /  46.95944°N 3.07889°E  / 46.95944; 3.07889 . Downstream of Nevers lies the Loire Valley , a UNESCO World Heritage Site due to its fine assortment of castles. The second-longest tributary, the 372 km (231 mi) Vienne , joins the Loire at Candes-Saint-Martin at 47°12′45″N 0°4′31″E  /  47.21250°N 0.07528°E  / 47.21250; 0.07528 , followed by

3145-433: The Loire river basin can be grouped into two sets of formations, namely, the basement domain and the domain of sedimentary formations. The basement domain primarily consists of metamorphic and siliceous fragmented rocks with groundwater occurring in fissures. The sedimentary domain consists of limestone and carbonaceous rocks, that, where saturated, form productive aquifers. Rock outcrops of granite or basalt also are exposed in

3230-492: The Loire river basin, that is, about 57 species from 20 families. Many of them are migratory, with 11 species ascending the river for spawning. The most common species are the Atlantic salmon ( Salmo salar ), sea trout ( Salmo trutta ), shads ( Alosa alosa and Alosa fallax ), sea lamprey ( Petromyzon marinus ) European river lamprey ( Lampetra fluviatilis ) and smelt ( Osmerus eperlanus ). The European eel ( Anguilla anguilla )

3315-610: The Loire unnavigable for fish and water vessels as they were partially or completely dried up. The monarchy of France ruled in the Loire Valley for several centuries, giving it the name of "The Valley of Kings". These rulers started with the Gauls, followed by the Romans, and the Frankish dynasty . They were succeeded by the kings of France, who ruled from the late 14th century till the French Revolution ; together these rulers contributed to

3400-615: The Parsley frog ( Pelodites punctatus ), European tree frog ( Hyla arborea ), Common Frog ( Rana temporaria ), Agile Frog ( R. dalmatina ), Edible Frog ( R. esculenta ), Perez's Frog ( R. perezi ), marsh frog ( R. ridubunda ) and Pool Frog ( R. lessonae ). Newts of the Loire include the Marbled Newt ( Triturus marmoratus ), Smooth Newt ( T. vulgaris ), Alpine Newt ( T. alpestris ) and Palmate Newt ( T. helveticus ). The Loire hosts about 64% of nesting bird species of France, that

3485-628: The State itself: Freycinet had formed the State Railway Company with the law of 18 May 1878. In 1879, Freycinet became President of the Council of Ministers . He chose Henri Varroy to succeed him as Minister for Public Works and implement his plan. He brought in the engineer Alfred Picard , who was named Director of Railways in 1882. The implementation of the Freycinet Plan took until 1914, and it

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3570-511: The area between the rivers Loire and Garonne : Additional acquisitions included: On 18 November 1908, the État absorbed the Chemins de fer de l'Ouest and in 1934 took over the Paris-Orléans (PO) company's lines in southern Brittany . At its greatest extent its operating area comprised all the territory west of a line extending from Dieppe by way of Paris to Bordeaux . On 1 January 1938

3655-554: The banks of the river – and also as the "cradle of the French language". It is also noteworthy for its architectural heritage: in part for its historic towns such as Amboise , Angers , Blois , Chinon , Nantes , Orléans , Saumur , and Tours , but in particular for its castles, such as the Château d'Amboise , Château d'Angers , Château de Chambord , Château de Montsoreau , Château d'Ussé , Château de Villandry and Chenonceau , and also for its many cultural monuments, which illustrate

3740-401: The biggest of his constructions, the line was at the time the most modern line in France. Another one of his influences was the purchase of 600 new passenger cars. 50 of the cars were luxurious cars and were used on the new electrified line. As early as 1929, the Etat began experimenting with DMUs with a first order of Renault trains. In 1931, an agreement is reached between Michelin and

3825-578: The campaign to save the Loire river system from development. In 1986, the French government , the Loire-Brittany Water Agency and the EPALA settled an agreement on flood prevention and water storage programme in the basin, involving construction of four large dams, one on the Loire itself and three on the Allier and Cher. The French government proposed a construction of a dam at Serre de la Fare on

3910-445: The coast and 648 mm (25.5 in) inland. The Centre region of the Loire river valley accounts for the largest forest in France, the forest of Orléans (French: Forêt d'Orléans), covering an area of 38,234 hectares (94,480 acres), and the 5,440-hectare (13,400-acre) forested park known as the "Foret de Chambord". Other vegetation in the valley, mostly under private control, consists of tree species of oak , beech and pine . In

3995-463: The committee said that the Loire Valley is: "an exceptional cultural landscape, of great beauty, comprised of historic cities and villages, great architectural monuments – the Châteaux – and lands that have been cultivated and shaped by centuries of interaction between local populations and their physical environment, in particular the Loire itself." Architectural edifices were created in Loire valley from

4080-669: The confluence with the Allier. In the middle section of the river in the Loire Valley, numerous dikes built between the 12th and 19th century exist, providing mitigation against flooding. In this section the river is relatively straight, except for the area near Orléans , and numerous sand banks and islands exist. The lower course of the river is characterized by wetlands and fens, which are of major importance to conservation, given that they form unique habitats for migratory birds. The Loire flows roughly northward through Roanne and Nevers to Orléans and thereafter westward through Tours to Nantes , where it forms an estuary . It flows into

4165-515: The conservation of the Loire estuary and its surroundings, given that they are unique habitats for migrating birds. The estuary and its shoreline are also important for fishing, shellfish farming and tourism. The major commercial port at Nantes has caused severe damage to the ecosystem of the Loire estuary. In 2002, the WWF aided a second Loire Nature project and expanded its scope to the entire basin, addressing some 4,500 hectares (11,000 acres) of land under

4250-436: The construction of blast furnaces – the production of sheet metal and steel rails. Whirlwind politics at the time where the international market was in the doldrums[...]. The crisis which hit the metallurgy industries – then the abandoning of the great works and the general recession, was not transferred to a greater pugnacity – the outside world. Encumbered by investments which they could not quickly liquidise,

4335-478: The creation the SNCF , when the PO line was kept. Raoul Dautry became managing director of the Etat in 1928. His desires were to reconquer the railway company's clientele, especially due to the popularity of the car. Dautry began many modernisation projects, including infrastructure, stations and the opening of new lines (mainly Paris-Chartres by Gallardon ). The electrification of the Paris - Le Mans line represents

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4420-507: The development of the valley. The chronology of the rulers is presented; in the table below. The Loire Valley ( French : Vallée de la Loire ) lies in the middle stretch of the river, extends for about 280 km (170 mi) and comprises an area of roughly 800 km (310 sq mi). It is also known as the Garden of France – due to the abundance of vineyards , fruit orchards, artichoke , asparagus and cherry fields which line

4505-519: The enterprises lacked the necessary assets. Chemins de Fer de l%27%C3%89tat The Chemins de fer de l'État ("State Railways"), often referred to in France as the Réseau de l'État ("State Network"), was an early state-owned French railway company. The company was established by state order of the Third Republic on 25 May 1878 to take over ten small failing railway companies operating in

4590-424: The flow sometimes exceeds 2,000 m /s (71,000 cu ft/s) for the Upper Loire and 8,000 m /s (280,000 cu ft/s) in the Lower Loire. The most serious floods occurred in 1856, 1866 and 1911. Unlike most other rivers in western Europe, there are very few dams or locks creating obstacles to its natural flow. The flow is no longer partly regulated by three dams: Grangent Dam and Villerest Dam on

4675-501: The foot of Mount have been highlighted as river sources. The three streams converge to form the Loire, which descends the valley south of Mount through the village of Sainte-Eulalie itself. The Loire changed its course, due to tectonic deformations, from the original outfall into the English Channel to its new outfall into the Atlantic Ocean thereby forming today's narrow terrain of gorges, the Loire Valley with alluvium formations and

4760-669: The ideals of the Renaissance and the Age of the Enlightenment on western European thought and design. On December 2, 2000, UNESCO added the central part of the Loire valley, between Bouchemaine in Anjou and Sully-sur-Loire in Loiret , to its list of World Heritage Sites . In choosing this area that includes the French départements of Loiret, Loir-et-Cher , Indre-et-Loire , and Maine-et-Loire ,

4845-424: The impressive fortresses of this type is the Château d'Angers , which has 17 gruesome towers. This was followed by aesthetically built châteaux (to also function as residential units), which substituted the quadrangular layout of the keep. However, the exterior defensive structures, in the form of portcullis and moats surrounding the thick walls of the châteaux' forts were retained. There was further refinement in

4930-444: The long stretch of beaches along the Atlantic Ocean. The river can be divided into three main zones: In the upper basin the river flows through a narrow, incised valley, marked by gorges and forests on the edges and a distinct low population. In the intermediate section, the alluvial plain broadens and the river meanders and forks into multiple channels. River flow is particularly high in the river area near Roanne and Vichy up to

5015-615: The lower reaches. Their total mass is low when the river flow exceeds 800 m /s (28,000 cu ft/s) and become significant at flows of 300 m /s (11,000 cu ft/s) or lower which occur in summer. With decreasing flow, first species which appear are single-celled diatoms such as Cyclostephanos invisitatus , C. meneghiniana , S. Hantzschii and Thalassiosira pseudonana . They are then joined by multicellular forms including Fragilaria crotonensis , Nitzschia fruticosa and Skeletonema potamos , as well as green algae which form star-shaped or prostrate colonies. Whereas

5100-477: The marshy lands, ash , alder and willows are grown with duckweed providing the needed natural fertilizing effect. The Atlantic coast is home to several aquatic herbs, the important species is Salicornia , which is used as a culinary ingredient on account of its diuretic value. Greeks introduced vines . Romans introduced melons , apples , cherries , quinces and pears during the Middle Ages, apart from extracting saffron from purple crocus species in

5185-423: The middle course of the Loire in Gaul under King Sangiban . Many inhabitants around the present city of Orléans have names bearing witness to the Alan presence – Allaines. In the 9th century, the Vikings began invading the west coast of France, using longships to navigate the Loire. In 853 they attacked and destroyed Tours and its famous abbey, later destroying Angers in raids of 854 and 872. In 877 Charles

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5270-476: The non-native species are represented by the rock bass ( Ambloplites rupestris ). Although only one native fish species has become extinct in the Loire, namely the European sea sturgeon ( Acipenser sturio ) in the 1940s, the fish population is declining, mostly due to the decrease in the spawning areas. The latter are mostly affected by the industrial pollution, construction of dams and drainage of oxbows and swamps . The loss of spawning grounds mostly affects

5355-436: The port of Nantes numbered more inland waterway craft than any other port in France, testifying to the historic importance of navigation on France's longest river. Shallow-draught gabares and other river craft continued to transport goods into the industrial era, including coal from Saint-Étienne loaded on to barges in Orléans. However, the hazardous free-flow navigation and limited tonnages meant that railways rapidly killed off

5440-453: The projects the green light. This sparked public demonstrations by the WWF and conservation groups. In 1990, Loire Vivante met with the French Prime Minister and the government, successfully, as the government demanded that the EPALA embark upon major reforms in its approach to managing the river. Due to extensive lobbying, the proposal and the other dam proposals were eventually rejected in the 1990s. The gorges zone has since been protected as

5525-518: The region of Gien , flowing westward along the present course. At a certain point during the long history of uplift in the Paris Basin , the lower, Atlantic Loire captured the "palaeo-Loire" or Loire séquanaise (" Seine Loire"), producing the present river. The former bed of the Loire séquanaise is occupied by the Loing . The Loire Valley has been inhabited since the Middle Palaeolithic period from 40 to 90  ka . Neanderthal man used stone tools to fashion boats out of tree trunks and navigated

5610-446: The reign of François I from 1515 to 1547, the Italian Renaissance had a profound influence upon the region, as people adopted its elements in the architecture and culture, particularly among the elite who expressed its principles in their chateaus . In the 1530s, the Reformation ideas reached the Loire valley, with some people becoming Protestant. Religious wars followed and in 1560 Catholics drowned several hundred Protestants in

5695-407: The river Cher at Noyers and back into the Loire near Tours, was closed in 1955. The river is officially navigable as far as Bouchemaine , where the Maine joins it near Angers . Another short stretch much further upstream at Decize is also navigable, where a river level crossing from the Canal latéral à la Loire connects to the Canal du Nivernais . In 2022, a drought rendered parts of

5780-445: The river and spawn in the upper reaches of the Allier. The French government undertook this major plan, chiefly because pollution and overfishing had reduced approximately 100,000 salmon migrating annually to their spawning grounds in the headwaters of the Loire and its tributaries to just 67 salmon in 1996 on the upper Allier. The WWF, BirdLife International , and local conservation bodies have also made considerable efforts to improve

5865-425: The river bed in several stretches. The middle stretches of the river have many limestone caves which were inhabited by humans in the prehistoric era; the caves are several types of limestone formations, namely tuffeau (a porous type of chalk , not to be confused with tufa ) and Falun (formed 12 million years ago). The coastal zone shows hard dark stones, granite, schist and thick soil mantle. The river has

5950-403: The river's ecosystems and wildlife. That year, the Upper Loire Valley Farmers Association was also established through a partnership between SOS Loire Vivante and a farmers’ union to promote sustainable rural tourism. The French government adopted the Natural Loire River Plan (Plan Loire Grandeur Nature) in January 1994, initiating the decommissioning of three dams on the river. The final dam

6035-415: The river. During the Wars of Religion from 1562 to 1598, Orléans served as a prominent stronghold for the Huguenots but in 1568, Protestants blew up Orléans Cathedral . In 1572 some 3000 Huguenots were slaughtered in Paris in the St. Bartholomew's Day massacre . Hundreds more were drowned in the Loire by Catholics. For centuries local people used wooden embankments and dredging to try to maintain

6120-520: The river. Modern man inhabited the Loire valley around 30 ka. By around 5000 to 4000 BC, they began clearing forests along the river edges and cultivating the lands and rearing livestock. They built megaliths to worship the dead, especially from around 3500 BC. The Gauls arrived in the valley between 1500 and 500 BC, and the Carnutes settled in Cenabum in what is now Orléans and built

6205-1449: The rural areas, who were often hostile to the new régime. According to some analysts, the Freycinet Plan caused considerable upheaval and can be shown to have been a cause of difficulties in French industry at the end of the 19th century in the competitive international economy. Albert Broder, Professor of History at the University of Paris-XII, explains this forcefully: La forte demande suscitée via le plan Freycinet, and que les industriels Français ont du mal – satisfaire, semble avoir été – l'origine d'un abandon, sans doute considéré temporaire, des marchés extérieurs jugés moins rémunérateurs via les industriels, ces derniers confiants en des carnets de commandes remplis – des niveaux plus que satisfaisants. Leur confiance dans l'avenir suscite des investissements tout au long de la filière, de la construction de hauts fourneaux – la production de tôles and de rails d'acier. Politique contre-cyclique au moment où le marché international est en plein marasme [...]. La crise que connaissent les industries métallurgiques, – la suite de l'abandon des grands travaux and devant la récession qui se généralise, ne se traduit pas via une plus grande pugnacité – l'extérieur. Fragilisées via des investissements qu'elles ne peuvent rapidement amortir, les entreprises manquent de la trésorerie nécessaire The strong demand aroused by

6290-562: The south side of Mont Gerbier de Jonc at 44°50′38″N 4°13′12″E  /  44.84389°N 4.22000°E  / 44.84389; 4.22000 . This lies in the north-eastern part of the southern Cévennes highlands, in the Ardèche commune of Sainte-Eulalie of southeastern France. It is originally a mere trickle of water located at 1,408 m (4,619 ft) above sea-level . The presence of an aquifer under Mont Gerbier de Jonc gives rise to multiple sources, three of them located at

6375-471: The surviving traffic from the 1850s. In 1894 a company was set up to promote improvements to the navigation from Nantes to Briare. The works were authorised in 1904 and carried out in two phases from Angers to the limit of tides at Oudon. These works, with groynes and submersible embankments, survive and contribute to the limited navigability under present-day conditions. A dam across the Loire at Saint-Léger-des-Vignes provides navigable conditions to cross from

6460-467: The total biomass is low in the upper reaches, the biodiversity is high, with more than 250 taxa at Orléans. At high flows and in the upper reaches the fraction of the green algae decrease and the phytoplankton is dominated by diatoms. Heterotrophic bacteria are represented by cocci (49%), rods (35%), colonies (12%) and filaments (4%) with a total density of up to 1.4 × 10 cells per litre. Nearly every freshwater fish species of France can be found in

6545-636: The upper Loire which would have been an environmental catastrophe, as it would have inundated some 20 km (12 mi) of pristine gorges . As a result, the WWF and other NGOs established the Loire Vivante (Living Loire) network in 1988 to oppose this and arranged an initial meeting with the French Minister of the Environment. The French government initially rejected the conservation concerns and in 1989 gave

6630-475: The valley in 56 BC when Julius Caesar conquered the adjacent provinces for Rome . Christianity was introduced into this valley from the 3rd century AD, as missionaries (many later recognized as saints ), converted the pagans . In this period, settlers established vineyards and began producing wines. The Loire Valley has been called the "Garden of France" and is studded with over a thousand châteaux , each with distinct architectural embellishments covering

6715-484: The world for quite some time. The Canal de Roanne à Digoin was also opened in 1838. It was nearly closed in 1971 but, in the early 21st century, it still provides navigation further up the Loire valley to Digoin . The 261 km (162 mi) Canal de Berry , a narrow canal with locks only 2.7 m (8.9 ft) wide, which was opened in the 1820s and connected the Canal latéral à la Loire at Marseilles-lès-Aubigny to

6800-523: The État merged with all the other French railway companies to form the Société Nationale des Chemins de fer Français (SNCF), becoming that company's Région Ouest. The État then took a seat on the SNCF's Board of Directors, as did all the other companies until 1982 when all traces of the constituents of the SNCF disappeared. One of the PO 's flagship lines was Paris-Orléans-Bordeaux. The État wished to create

6885-418: Was completed fully. However, many chefs-lieux were only served by small meandering metre gauge railways, of somewhat mediocre quality. The 181 lines listed below are numbered and designated in conformance with the law of 17 July 1879, and represent a total of 8,848 kilometres (5,498 mi) of route. Beside the economic considerations, the plan had a political objective: to promote the Third Republic in

6970-421: Was decommissioned by Électricité de France at a cost of 7 million francs in 1998. The basis of the decision was that the economic benefits of the dams did not outweigh their significant ecological impacts, so the intention was to restore the riverine ecosystems and replenish great Loire salmon stocks. The Loire is unique in this respect as the Atlantic salmon can swim as far as 900 km (560 mi) up

7055-603: Was initiated in the 1980s and included such as measures as removal of two obsolete hydroelectric dams and introduction of juvenile stock. As a result, the salmon population increased to about 500 in 2005. Most amphibians of the Loire are found in the slow flow areas near the delta, especially in the floodplain, marshes and oxbows. They are dominated by the fire salamander ( Salamandra salamandra ), frogs and toads. The toads include Bufo bufo , Alytes obstetricans , Bombina variegata , Bufo calamita , Pelobates fuscus and Pelobates cultripes . The frogs are represented by

7140-399: Was published. The main objective of the Freycinet plan was to give every French person access the railway, so as to favour the economic development of the country and to open up remote areas. It was made law on 17 July 1879. The plan foresaw the construction of 8,700 kilometres (5,400 mi) of railway. They were built both by large private companies, mostly underwritten by the State, and by

7225-421: Was still frequently stopped by excessive conditions during flood and drought. In 1707, floods were said to have drowned 50,000 people in the river valley, with the water rising more than 3 m (9.8 ft) in two hours in Orléans . Typically passenger travel downriver from Orléans to Nantes took eight days, with the upstream journey against the flow taking fourteen. It was also a dumping ground for prisoners in

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