Chinon

Chinon is a French commune. It is in the west of the Indre-et-Loire department in the Centre-Val de Loire region, to the southwest of Paris, and is a subprefecture in the department. It is also the capital of the arrrondissement of Chinon and the administrative centre of the Chinon canton.

Chinon
Subprefecture and commune
The Château de Chinon, and the Vienne river
Coat of arms
Location of Chinon
Chinon Show map of France Chinon Show map of Centre-Val de Loire
Coordinates: 47°10′04″N 0°14′37″E
Country	France
Region	Centre-Val de Loire
Department	Indre-et-Loire
Arrondissement	Chinon
Canton	Chinon
Government
• Mayor (2014-2020)	Jean-Luc Dupont[1]
Area 1	39.02 km2 (15.07 sq mi)
Population  (2014)	8,073
• Density	210/km2 (540/sq mi)
Demonym	Chinonais / Chinonaises
Time zone	UTC+01:00 (CET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+02:00 (CEST)
INSEE/Postal code	37072 /37500
Elevation	27–112 m (89–367 ft) (avg. 37 m or 121 ft)
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km2 (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.

Chinon is in the valley of the Loire river, registered as a UNESCO World Heritage Site since 2000.

History

The historic town of Chinon is on the banks of the Vienne river about 10 kilometres (6 mi) from where it joins the Loire.

Geography

The city of Chinon is along the Vienne river, near the confluence with the Loire river. The commune has an area of 39.0 km² (15.1 sq mi).^[2] Its average altitude is 70 m (230 ft); at the city hall, the altitude is 50 m (160 ft).^[3]

The distances from Chinon to other cities are:

• Paris, the national capital - 286 km (178 mi);
• Tours, the departmental capital - 47 km (29 mi);
• Strasbourg - 739 km (459 mi);
• Reims - 420 km (260 mi);
• Bordeaux - 342 km (213 mi);
• Toulouse - 578 km (359 mi);
• Montpellier - 692 km (430 mi);
• Lyon - 516 km (321 mi);
• Nantes - 180 km (110 mi);
• Marseille - 825 km (513 mi).

Chinon and its neighboring communes

The commune of Chinon is surrounded by the communes:

Climate

The climate of Chinon, in the Köppen climate classification, is Cfb - Oceanic climate with template summers.

Population

The inhabitants of Chinon are known, in French, as Chinonais (women: Chinonaises).^[4]

With a population of 8,073,^[5] Chinon has a population density of 207 inhabitants/km².

Evolution of the population in Chinon

Administration

Chinon is a subprefecture of the Indre-et-Loire department, the capital of the arrondissement of Chinon and the administrative centre (French: chef-lieu) of the canton of Chinon, with 34,893 inhabitants (2014).

It is part of the intercommunality Chinon, Vienne et Loire (French: Communauté de communes Chinon, Vienne et Loire).

Gallery

Chinon: View of the castle and of the old city across the Vienne river.

• 
  The Château de Chinon, and the Vienne river.
• 
  Street in Chinon.
• 
  Chinon: view from the castle.
• 
  Chinon: the Saint-Maurice church.
• 
  The Château de Chinon.

Related pages

• Arrondissements of the Indre-et-Loire department
• Communes of the Indre-et-Loire department