Place:Metz, Moselle, France

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NameMetz
Alt namesBornysource: Family History Library Catalog
Divodurumsource: GRI Photo Archive, Authority File (1998) p 13200; Webster's Geographical Dictionary (1988) p 754
Divodurum Mediomatricumsource: Webster's Geographical Dictionary (1988) p 754
Le Sablonsource: Family History Library Catalog
Mediomatricasource: Webster's Geographical Dictionary (1988) p 754
Metissource: Webster's Geographical Dictionary (1988) p 754
Plantièressource: Family History Library Catalog
TypeCommune
Coordinates49.117°N 6.183°E
Located inMoselle, France
Contained Places
Former municipality
Magny
source: Getty Thesaurus of Geographic Names
source: Family History Library Catalog


the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Metz (, , then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand Est region. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany and Luxembourg, the city forms a central place of the European Greater Region and the SaarLorLux euroregion.

Metz has a rich 3,000-year history, having variously been a Celtic oppidum, an important Gallo-Roman city, the Merovingian capital of Austrasia, the birthplace of the Carolingian dynasty, a cradle of the Gregorian chant, and one of the oldest republics in Europe. The city has been steeped in Romance culture, but has been strongly influenced by Germanic culture due to its location and history.

Because of its historical, cultural and architectural background, Metz has been submitted on France's UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List. The city features noteworthy buildings such as the Gothic Saint-Stephen Cathedral with its largest expanse of stained-glass windows in the world, the Basilica of Saint-Pierre-aux-Nonnains being the oldest church in France, its Imperial Station Palace displaying the apartment of the German Kaiser, or its Opera House, the oldest one working in France. Metz is home to some world-class venues including the Arsenal Concert Hall and the Centre Pompidou-Metz museum.

A basin of urban ecology, Metz gained its nickname of The Green City, as it has extensive open grounds and public gardens. The historic city centre is one of the largest commercial pedestrian areas in France.

A historic garrison town, Metz is the economic heart of the Lorraine region, specialising in information technology and automotive industries. Metz is home to the University of Lorraine, Georgia Tech Lorraine, and a centre for applied research and development in the materials sector, notably in metallurgy and metallography, the heritage of the Lorraine region's past in the iron and steel industry.

History

the text in this section is copied from an article in Wikipedia

Metz has a recorded history dating back over 2,000 years. Before the conquest of Gaul by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, it was the oppidum of the Celtic Mediomatrici tribe.[1] Integrated into the Roman Empire, Metz became quickly one of the principal towns of Gaul with a population of 40,000,[2] until the barbarian depredations and its transfer to the Franks about the end of the 5th century.[1] Between the 6th and 8th centuries, the city was the residence of the Merovingian kings of Austrasia.[3] After the Treaty of Verdun in 843, Metz became the capital of the Kingdom of Lotharingia and was ultimately integrated into the Holy Roman Empire, being granted semi-independent status.[1] During the 12th century, Metz became a republic and the Republic of Metz stood until the 15th century.[4]

With the signature of the Treaty of Chambord in 1552, Metz passed into the hands of the Kings of France.[1] As the German Protestant Princes who traded Metz (alongside Toul and Verdun) for the promise of French military assistance, had no authority to cede territory of the Holy Roman Empire, the change of jurisdiction was not recognised by the Holy Roman Empire until the Treaty of Westphalia in 1648. Under French rule, Metz was selected as capital of the Three Bishoprics and became a strategic fortified town.[1] With creation of the departments by the Estates-General of 1789, Metz was chosen as capital of the Department of Moselle.[1]

Although largely French-speaking, after the Franco-Prussian War and according to the Treaty of Frankfurt of 1871, the city became part of the German Empire, being part of the Imperial Territory of Alsace-Lorraine and serving as capital of the Bezirk Lothringen.

Metz remained German until the end of the First World War, when it reverted to France. However, after the Battle of France during the Second World War, the city was annexed by Nazi Germany.[1] In 1944, the attack on the city by the U.S. Third Army removed the city from German rule and Metz reverted one more time to France after World War II.

During the 1950s, Metz was chosen to be the capital of the newly created Lorraine region. With the creation of the European Community and the later European Union, the city has become central to the Greater Region and the SaarLorLux Euroregion.[5]

External links

  • For more information, see the FR Wikipedia article Metz.

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This page uses content from the English Wikipedia. The original content was at Metz. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with WeRelate, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.