page_title: Grenoble
section_title: Geography
hierarchical_section_title: Grenoble / Geography
caption_attribution_description: Français&#160;: Vue sur l'agglomération Grenobloise depuis le sommet du Moucherotte (1901 m). Vue sur les massifs de Chartreuse, du Mont Blanc, de Belledonne et des Grandes Rousses.
context_page_description: Grenoble is the prefecture and largest city of the Isère department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region of Southeastern France. It lies at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. A significant European scientific centre, the city advertises itself as the "Capital of the Alps", due to its size and its proximity to the mountains.
  Grenoble's history goes back over 2,000 years, to a time when it was a small Gallic village. It became the capital of the Dauphiné in the 11th century. Industrial development increased the prominence of Grenoble through several periods of economic expansion over the last three centuries. This started with a booming glove industry in the 18th and 19th centuries, continued with the development of a strong hydropower industry in the late 19th to early 20th centuries and ended with a post-World War II economic boom symbolized by the holding of the X Olympic Winter Games in 1968.
  The city has grown to be one of Europe's most important research, technology and innovation centres, with one in five inhabitants working directly in these fields.
context_section_description: Grenoble is surrounded by mountains. To the north lies the Chartreuse, to the south and west the Vercors, and to the east the Belledonne range. Grenoble is regarded as the capital of the French Alps.
  Except for a few dozen houses on the slopes of the Bastille hill of Chartreuse, Grenoble is exclusively built on the alluvial plain of the rivers Isère and Drac at an altitude of 214 metres (702 ft). As a result, the city itself is extremely flat. Mountain sports are an important tourist attraction in summer and winter. Twenty large and small ski resorts surround the city, the nearest being Le Sappey-en-Chartreuse, which is about 15 minutes' drive away.
  Historically, both Grenoble and the surrounding areas were sites of heavy industry and mining. Abandoned mills and factories can be found in small towns and villages, and a few have been converted to tourist attractions, such as the coal mine at La Mure.
caption: Grenoble with the Dauphiné Alps
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