Trois-Rivières

Trois-Rivières is a city located in Quebec (Canada), at the mouth of the Saint-Maurice River. It is on the north shore of the Saint Lawrence River, halfway between Quebec City and Montreal. With 139,163 inhabitants according to the last census in 2021, it is the most populous city in the administrative region of Mauricie, making it the regional capital. Founded in 1634, it is the second oldest city in Quebec. In 2009, the city of Trois-Rivières was designated the Cultural Capital of Canada.

The name Trois-Rivières, which dates back to the end of the 16th century, has been described as a "sham," notably by the French military engineer Louis Franquet: it actually refers to the three channels or branches of the delta that the Saint-Maurice River forms around several islands, including two main ones at its outlet into the Saint Lawrence River, Île La Poterie and Île Saint-Quentin. The city occupies a location known to the French since 1535, when Jacques Cartier, during a voyage along the St. Lawrence, stopped there to plant a cross on Saint-Quentin Island. However, the name "Trois-Rivières" was not used for the first time until 1599, the year François Gravé visited the area, as recounted by Samuel de Champlain in his Voyages, who confirmed the name in 1603 in his pamphlet entitled "Des Sauvages."

Trois-Rivières is located in the St. Lawrence Lowlands, at the confluence of the Saint-Maurice and the St. Lawrence Rivers. Southwest of the city is Lake Saint-Pierre, a recognized Ramsar site and World Biosphere Reserve.

Located on the north shore of the St. Lawrence, the city's territory is roughly rectangular, oriented southwest to northeast, 26 km long and 17 km wide. It is bordered by the municipalities of Saint-Étienne-des-Grès and Yamachiche to the west, Notre-Dame-du-Mont-Carmel and Saint-Maurice to the north, Champlain to the east and finally the Saint-Laurent River to the south.