The Dauphiné or Dauphiné Viennois is a former province in southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of Isère, Drôme, and Hautes-Alpes. The Dauphiné (also called Dauphiny in ancient English) was an independent state from 1040 to 1349, under the rule of the Counts of Albon, before joining the Kingdom of France. As a French province, it maintained its autonomy until 1457.
The historical capital is Grenoble and the other main towns are Vienne, Valence, Montélimar, Gap and Romans-sur-Isère.
Its inhabitants are called Dauphinois.
Le Dauphiné Libéré is a famous regional French newspaper, and organized the Critérium du Dauphiné Libéré (now known as the Critérium du Dauphiné) cycle stage race prior to 2010.
Read more about Dauphiné: Geography, Demography, Gastronomy, Further Reading