Ill (France)

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

(Redirected from Ill, France)

For the river Ill in Austria see Ill (Austria).

Ill
Image:An der Ill.jpg The Ill at Strasbourg.
Origin	Jura mountains
Mouth	Rhine
Basin countries	France
Length	223 km
Source elevation	±570 m
Basin area	4,760 km²

The Ill ([il]) is a river in Alsace, in north-eastern France. It is a left-side, or western tributary of the Rhine.

It starts down from its source near the village of Winkel, in the Jura mountains, and then runs northward through Alsace, flowing parallel to the Rhine. It receives several tributaries from the Vosges mountains, including the Doller and the Thur. The Ill passes through Mulhouse, Colmar and Sélestat before meeting with the Rhine at Strasbourg.

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 the Petite-France district, where its waters were once used to power mills and tanneries.