Touraine

Touraine
Touraine may also refer to Alain Touraine, French sociologist.
Touraine

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Country France
Time zone CET

The Touraine (French pronunciation: [tuʁɛn]) is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, the Touraine was divided between the departments of Indre-et-Loire, Loir-et-Cher and Indre.

Contents

Geography

Traversed by the Loire and its tributaries the Cher, the Indre and the Vienne, the Touraine makes up a part of the Paris Basin. It is well-known for its viticulture. The TGV, which connects Tours with Paris in less than an hour, has made the Touraine a place of residence for people who work in the capital but seek a different quality of life.

History

The Touraine takes its name from a Celtic tribe called the Turones, who inhabited the region about two thousand years ago. In 1044, the control of Touraine was given to the Angevins, who (as the House of Plantagenet) became kings of England in 1154, the castle Chinon being their greatest stronghold. In 1205, Philip II Augustus of France regained Touraine. At this time, Touraine was made into a royal duchy. In 1429, Saint Joan of Arc had a historic meeting with the future King of France Charles VII at Chinon. Throughout the late 15th and 16th centuries, Touraine was a favorite residence of French kings, and the dark and gloomy castles were converted to Renaissance châteaux; for this reason the region was titled "The Garden of France". These same châteaux became popular tourist attractions in modern times. The royal duchy became a province in 1584, and was divided into departments in 1790.

Sights

The Touraine is celebrated for its many châteaux: examples are those at Amboise, Azay-le-Rideau, Chaumont, Chenonceaux, Chinon, Langeais, Loches, Villandry and Blois.

Famous natives

Famous non-natives

Twin towns

See also

Coordinates: 47°24′N 0°41′E / 47.4°N 0.683°E / 47.4; 0.683

v · d · eKingdom of France Kingdom of France Historical Provinces of France
Provinces
Alsace • Angoumois • Anjou • Artois • Aunis • Auvergne • Basse-Navarre • Béarn • Beaujolais • Berry • Bourbonnais • Brittany • Burgundy • Champagne • Corsica • Dauphiné • Flanders and Hainaut • Foix • Forez • Franche-Comté • Gascony • Guyenne • Île-de-France • Languedoc • Limousin • Lorraine • Lyonnais • Maine • Marche • Montbéliard • Mulhouse • Nice • Nivernais • Normandy • Orléanais • Perche • Picardy • Poitou • Provence • Roussillon • Saintonge • Savoy • Touraine • Trois-Évêchés • Venaissin
 Provinces of France before the revolution



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Look at other dictionaries:

  • TOURAINE — Un des trente deux gouvernements que comptait la France d’Ancien Régime, la Touraine est une province dont l’origine remonte à l’époque gauloise: à son arrivée en Gaule, César signale le pays des Turones, bordé par les pays des Aulerci Cenomani… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • TOURAINE — TOURAINE, former province of W. central France whose territory corresponded to the present department of Indreet Loire. The earliest information on the presence of Jews in Touraine is from about 570. Gregory of Tours mentions their presence in… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Touraine — (spr. Turähn), altfranzösische Landschaft mit Herzogstitel, ziemlich dem jetzigen Departement Indre u. Loire entsprechend; sehr fruchtbar, bes. an Wein (die Touraine Weine), weiße u. rothe Franzweine, zum Theil sehr sein, die weißen gehen stark… …   Pierer's Universal-Lexikon

  • Touraine — (spr. turǟn ), ehemalige franz. Provinz, von Maine (im N.), Orléanais (NO.), Berry (O.), Poitou (S.) und Anjou (W.) begrenzt, hatte Tours zur Hauptstadt und umfaßt hauptsächlich das jetzige Depart. Indre et Loire. Sie bildete seit 941 eine… …   Meyers Großes Konversations-Lexikon

  • Touraine — (spr. turähn), alte franz. Landschaft, das jetzige Dep. Indre et Loire; 1356 1584 mit eigenen Herzögen; Hauptstadt Tours. – Vgl. Bourassé (1885) …   Kleines Konversations-Lexikon

  • Touraine — (Turähn), Landschaft des alten Frankreich, so ziemlich das jetzige Departement Indre Loire umfassend, mit der Hauptstadt Tours …   Herders Conversations-Lexikon

  • Touraine — Touraine, Alain VER Turena …   Enciclopedia Universal

  • Touraine — [to͞o rān′; ] Fr [ to͞o ren′] historical region of WC France: chief city, Tours …   English World dictionary

  • Touraine — 47°24′N 0°41′E / 47.4, 0.683 …   Wikipédia en Français

  • Touraine — /too ren /; Fr. /tooh rdden /, n. a former province in W France. Cap.: Tours. * * * Historical region, northwestern central France. It encompassed the former province of Touraine; its capital was at Tours. In Roman times it was inhabited by the… …   Universalium

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