The Dauphiné (UK: /ˈdoʊfɪneɪ, ˈdɔːf-/ DOH-fin-ay, DAW-, US: /ˌdoʊfiːˈneɪ/ DOH-fee-NAY,[1] French: [dofine]; Occitan: Daufinat or Dalfinat; Arpitan: Dôfenât or Darfenât), formerly known in English as Dauphiny, is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of Isère, Drôme and Hautes-Alpes.

In the 12th century, the local ruler Count Guigues IV of Albon (c. 1095–1142) bore a dolphin on his coat of arms and was nicknamed le Dauphin (French for 'dolphin').

In 1349, the Dauphiné was transferred from the last non-royal Dauphin (who had great debts and no direct heir) to the future king of France, Charles V, through the purchase of lands.

The terms of the transfer stipulated that the heir apparent of France would henceforth be called le Dauphin and included significant autonomy and tax exemption for the Dauphiné region, most of which it retained only until 1457, though it remained a province until the French Revolution.

The historical capital is Grenoble and the other main towns are Vienne, Valence, Montélimar, Gap and Romans-sur-Isère.

Under the Ancien Régime, the province was bordered in the North by the River Rhône which separated the Dauphiné from the Bresse ("Brêsse") and Bugey ("Bugê").

Vivaro-Alpine dialect was still spoken there until the 20th century: The province offers a range of terrain, from the alpine summits of the High-Dauphiné (the Barre des Ecrins is 4,102 meters at its highest point), the Prealps (Vercors and Chartreuse), and the plains of the Drôme, which resemble the landscapes of Provence.

The territories combined under his personal rule became a sovereign mountain principality within the Holy Roman Empire.

Furthermore, the cities of Voiron and la Côte-Saint-André were parts of the County of Savoy, while the Dauphins had the Faucigny and territories in Italy.

The significant debts of Humbert II and the death of his son and heir led to the sale of his lordship to King Philip VI in 1349, by the terms of the treaty of Romans, negotiated by his protonotary, Amblard de Beaumont.

The Emperor Sigismund negotiated with King Henry V of England to give the Dauphiné to an English prince.

The Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts (1539), on the other hand, which made French the official language of France, since it was not issued by the king as dauphin was not recognised in the Dauphiné.

Charles VIII, Louis XII and Francis I stayed often in Grenoble, but the people of the province suffered the exactions of the soldiers.

The cruel execution of Charles du Puy-Montbrun, leader of the Protestants, by the king of France, led to more violence and struggles between the two parties.

After the accession of Henry IV to the throne of France, Lesdiguières allied with the governor and the lieutenant general of Dauphiné.

The enactment of the Edict of Nantes (1598) restored some civil rights to the Huguenots and brought peace for a short time, but the wars resumed soon afterward.

The revocation of the Edict of Nantes by Louis XIV in 1685 caused the departure of 20,000 Protestants from Dauphiné, weakening the economy of the province.

The 18th century was a period of economic prosperity for the region, with the development of the industry (glove-making in Grenoble, silk mills in the Rhône valley).

In part because the economy of the city was dependent on its Parliament, the local people attacked the royal troops by throwing tiles from roofs to prevent the expulsion of the magistrates.

This event allowed the sitting of the Assembly of Vizille, which instigated the meeting of the old Estates General, thus beginning the Revolution.

During the French Revolution, Dauphiné was highly represented in Paris by two illustrious notables from Grenoble, Jean Joseph Mounier and Antoine Barnave.

This century corresponds to a significant industrial development of Dauphiné, particularly in the region of Grenoble (glove-making reached its Golden Age at that time) and the Rhone Valley (silk mills).

The economic development of the region was highlighted by the organisation at Grenoble of the International Exposition of the "Houille Blanche" in 1925, visited by thousands of people.

The ski resort of l'Alpe d'Huez was constructed in 1936, and Jean Pomagalski created there the first platter lift in the world.

In 1968, Grenoble welcomed the Xth Olympic Winter Games, allowing a major transformation of the city, the development of infrastructure (airport, motorways, etc.)

The plains of Low Dauphiné and the large cities saw their population strongly increase during the 20th century (thanks to the industrial development and immigrant workers' arrival), while the mountainous regions of High-Dauphiné suffered from a pronounced exodus.

However it should be remembered that several cities of northern Dauphiné (Villeurbanne, Vénissieux, Bron and others) are included in the Lyon Metropolis.

A considerable part of the Isère department lies in the functional urban area of Lyon, including the cities Vienne, L'Isle-d'Abeau and Bourgoin-Jallieu.

Amongst its winners one saw many of the most famous cyclists, e.g.: Louison Bobet, Henry Anglade, Jacques Anquetil, Raymond Poulidor, Luis Ocaña, Eddy Merckx, Bernard Thévenet, Bernard Hinault, Greg LeMond (by disqualification of the first arrived Pascal Simon[24]), Phil Anderson, Luis Herrera, Charly Mottet, Miguel Indurain, Alexander Vinokourov, Tyler Hamilton, Alejandro Valverde, Bradley Wiggins and Chris Froome.

[25] Annually during a week in June, cycling fans in most European countries watch the prestigious road race in and around the Dauphiné area on live television.