| Donzère | |
| Commune Status: | Commune |
| Image Coat Of Arms: | Blason ville fr Donzère (Drôme).svg |
| Arrondissement: | Nyons |
| Canton: | Grignan |
| Insee: | 26116 |
| Postal Code: | 26290 |
| Mayor: | Marie Fernandez[1] |
| Term: | 2020 - 2026 |
| Coordinates: | 44.4558°N 4.7094°W |
| Elevation M: | 64 |
| Elevation Min M: | 54 |
| Elevation Max M: | 200 |
| Area Km2: | 32.06 |
Donzère (pronounced as /fr/; oc|Donzèra) is a commune of the Drôme department in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France.
It is a town located in the south of Drôme and on the left bank of the Rhône river, next to Montélimar.
The name of the town usually refers to the Donzère-Mondragon canal, which is an important artificial derivation of the Rhône. Donzère is also known for its gorge, which is the last shrinkage of the Rhône valley before its course joins the Mediterranean Sea.
For the anecdote, the "Robinet", place name of the Donzère gorge where the Rhône shrinks because of the cliffs, derives its name of a former landowner: Robin Berton nicknamed Robinet.
It is usually admitted by geographers and climatologists that the Donzère gorge, along about 3km (02miles), signals the northern boundary of the Mediterranean climate in the Rhône valley. So, Donzère marked during a long time the northern boundary of the olive groves, but in recent years and consequence of the global warming, this limit seems slightly back northward next to the Cruas gorge, on the north of Montélimar.
Somewhat protected from mistral thanks to its hills located in the north, the village opens on the plain of Tricastin where were born the Mediterranean ambiance and cultivations.
The privileged location of Donzère in the Rhône valley (high place of passage) surely explains its recent economic and demographic dynamism.