| Ill | |
|---|---|
 The Ill in the Petite France quarter of Strasbourg. The river's only lock can be seen right of centre. | |
 | |
 | |
| Location | |
| Country | France |
| Region | Grand Est |
| Physical characteristics | |
| Source | |
| • location | Jura mountains |
| • elevation | 570 m (1,870 ft) |
| Mouth | |
• location | Rhine |
• coordinates | 48°42′1″N7°55′52″E / 48.70028°N 7.93111°E /48.70028; 7.93111 |
| Length | 217 km (135 mi) |
| Basin size | 4,760 km2 (1,840 mi2) |
| Basin features | |
| Progression | Rhine→North Sea |
| Tributaries | |
| • left | Doller,Thur,Fecht,Bruche,Souffel |
TheIll (/ˈɪl/IL;Alemannic German:[ɪl],French:[il]) is ariver inAlsace, in north-easternFrance, and a left-bank, or western, tributary of theRhine. It is 217 km (135 mi) long.[1]
It starts down from its source near the village ofWinkel, in theJura mountains, with a resurgence nearLigsdorf, turns aroundFerrette on its east side, and then runs northward through Alsace, flowing parallel to the Rhine. Taking apart the Largue, also coming from the Jura mountains nearIllfurth, it receives several tributaries from the west bankVosges mountains after passing throughAltkirch: theDoller inMulhouse, theThur nearEnsisheim, the Lauch inColmar, theFecht inIllhaeusern, the Giessen inSélestat, the Andlau nearFegersheim, the Ehn nearGeispolsheim, theBruche next toStrasbourg and theSouffel upstream fromLa Wantzenau before meeting with the Rhine downstream fromGambsheim'slock. As the Ill nears the city of Mulhouse, most of its flow is diverted into a discharge channel leading to the Doller, protecting the historical center of the town fromfloods.
Flowing through the city of Strasbourg, the river forms part of the 17th-century fortifications and passes through a series of locks and channels in the picturesque old town, including thePetite France quarter, where its waters were once used to power mills andtanneries. One of these channels is theCanal du Faux-Rempart that, together with the main channel of the Ill, surrounds theGrande Île or historic centre of Strasbourg.
The Ill is currently navigable from a junction with theCanal de la Marne au Rhin for a distance of just under 10 kilometres (6.2 mi) upstream to a head of navigation at Nachtweid. This stretch of river passes through the centre ofStrasbourg, and makes connection with theCanal du Faux-Rempart, theCanal du Rhone au Rhine and the, no longer navigable,Canal de la Bruche. There is a singlelock, in thePetite France quarter of central Strasbourg.[2]
Navigation through the section of the central part of this section, through Petite France, is restricted to small pleasure craft in the downstream direction only; upstream traffic and commercial traffic must use an indirect route from theCanal de la Marne au Rhin to theCanal du Rhone au Rhine via thePort of Strasbourg. Passenger trip boats use this section in the opposite direction, completing their loop via theCanal du Faux-Rempart that is closed to all other traffic.[2]
Other stretches of the Ill, downstream of theCanal de la Marne au Rhin to the confluence with theRhine, and upstream of Nachtweid, are not navigable by powered craft, although they may be used bycanoes and similar craft.
| International | |
|---|---|
| National | |
| Other | |
