- Meuse
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For the river, see Meuse (river).
Meuse — Department —
Coat of armsLocation of Meuse in France Coordinates: 49°00′N 05°20′E / 49°N 5.333°ECoordinates: 49°00′N 05°20′E / 49°N 5.333°E Country France Region Lorraine Prefecture Bar-le-Duc Subprefectures Commercy
VerdunGovernment – President of the General Council Christian Namy Area1 – Total 6,211 km2 (2,398.1 sq mi) Population (1999) – Total 192,198 – Rank 88th – Density 30.9/km2 (80.1/sq mi) Time zone CET (UTC+1) – Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2) Department number 55 Arrondissements 3 Cantons 31 Communes 498 ^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2 Meuse (French pronunciation: [møz]) is a department in northeast France, named after the River Meuse.
Contents
History
Meuse is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from the former provinces of Barrois (area of Bar-le-Duc) and Three Bishoprics (area of Verdun).
The department was one of the great battlefields of World War I; an important battle was fought in 1916 at Verdun.
Geography
Meuse is part of the current region of Lorraine and is surrounded by the French departments of Ardennes, Marne, Haute-Marne, Vosges, Meurthe-et-Moselle, and Belgium on the north. Parts of Meuse belong to Parc naturel régional de Lorraine.
The important rivers are the following:
Demographics
The population has decreased sharply since the 19th century, with the rural exodus to the cities.
See also
- Cantons of the Meuse department
- Communes of the Meuse department
- Arrondissements of the Meuse department
External links
- (French) Prefecture website
- (French) General council website
- (English) Meuse Tourism Guide
- (French) Official Tourist Board website
- (English) Rhine-Meuse delta studies
- Bibliography on Water Resources and International Law Peace Palace Library
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