A city in central France and the capital of the Loiret department. 124 kilometers southwest of Paris, on the banks of the Loire River. The population is approximately 103,000, including 220,000 in the suburbs (1982). From the 10th to the 11th century, it was the capital of France. During the Hundred Years' War, the French heroine Joan of Arc led the people to defeat the British occupying forces here in 1429. The north bank of the Loire River is the main area of ??the city. Part of the ancient city was severely damaged during World War II, but the eighteenth-century style was still preserved during reconstruction. The south bank has a market for flowers and horticultural products, famous for the production of Orleans roses. Water and land transportation hub. The industrial center includes automobiles, electrical equipment, tractors, aluminum smelting, textiles, food processing, electrical machinery and other departments. One of the important centers of scientific research and higher education.