Saint-Dizier
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Location | |
Administration | |
---|---|
Country | France |
Region | Champagne-Ardenne |
Department | Haute-Marne (sous-préfecture) |
Arrondissement | Saint-Dizier |
Canton | Chief town of 4 cantons |
Mayor | François Cornut-Gentille (2001-2008) |
Statistics | |
Elevation | 146 m (avg.) |
Land area¹ | 47.69 km² |
Population² (1999) |
30,900 |
- Density | 647.9/km² (1999) |
Miscellaneous | |
INSEE/Postal code | 52448/ 52100 |
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. | |
2 Population sans doubles comptes: residents of multiple communes (e.g. students and military personnel) only counted once. | |
Saint-Dizier is a town and commune in the Haute-Marne department in the Champagne-Ardenne region of France. It has a population of 31,000 (2003 figure) and is a subprefecture of the department. Although Saint-Dizier is marginally the most populous commune in Haute-Marne, the préfecture (capital) resides in the somewhat smaller commune of Chaumont.
Contents |
[edit] Geography
Located approximately 120 miles east of Paris, halfway to Strasbourg, it is five miles from Western Europe's largest man-made lake, Lake Der-Chantecoq.
[edit] History
The town originated as a fortified settlement around a thirteenth century château, eventually becoming a royal fortress to guard the French kingdom's eastern approaches. The town was besieged and captured by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, in the summer of 1544. A fire in 1775 destroyed two-thirds of the town centre. The château was owned by the Orléans family until the French Revolution, was a base for German troops during World War II, and currently houses the Municipal Museum.
[edit] Famous People
Saint-Dizier is the birthplace of
- Baroque-era musicologist André Pirro
- Organist André Isoir
- Conductor Jean-Paul Penin
- Former world middleweight boxing champion Marcel Thil. A street is named in his honor.