Alsace facts for kids
Alsace (Alsatian and German: Elsass, pre-1996 German: Elsaß) was an administrative region of France. It is now part of the administrative region of Grand Est. Alsace was on the eastern border of France. It was on the west bank of the Upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland.
The departments in Alsace were Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin.
Before the region merged with Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine in 2014, data from INSEE stated that about 1.8 million people lived there as of 2013. Its capital was Strasbourg, the largest city. It changed hands between France and Germany many times. The people living there had an attitude and set of social values that was closer to the German ones, than the French. Language, cuisine, music, dress and customs were Germanic, and very close to the Swabian ones across the Rhine. The overall culture was generally more German than French, being somewhere between German and French.
Alsace was part of the Holy Roman Empire and was still inhabited by people speaking a dialect of Upper German. In the 17th century, all of Alsace was annexed (in steps) under King Louis XIV of France. He made it one of the provinces of France.
The Treaty of Verdun had divided the empire of Charlemagne in the 9th century, eventually causing Alsace to be frequently mentioned in conjunction with Lorraine, because the possession of these two régions (as Alsace-Lorraine) was often contested in the 19th and 20th centuries.
Images for kids
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Seal of Albert IV, Count of Habsburg (d.1239), inscribed in Latin (with abbreviations): SIGILLUM ALBERTI (COMIS) DE HABESB(URG) ET LANGRAVII ALSACTIAE ("seal of Albert of Habsburg, Count of Habsburg and Landgrave of Alsace")
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Petite France, Strasbourg
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Louis XIV receiving the keys of Strasbourg in 1681
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Traditional costumes of Alsace
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An Alsatian woman in traditional costume, photographed by Adolphe Braun in the 1870's.
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German stamps of Hindenburg marked with "Elsaß" (1940)
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Topographic map of Alsace
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The Grand Ballon, southern face, seen from the valley of the Thur
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Official logo of the European Collectivity of Alsace
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Colmar's old town
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Riesling Grapes
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Alsatian stork
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Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg
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Colmar petitevenise
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The main entrance of the Ouvrage Schoenenbourg from the Maginot Line
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Ponts Couverts, Strasbourg
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Place de l'Homme de Fer Tram Station
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Statue of Martin Schongauer by Frédéric Bartholdi in front of the Unterlinden Museum, Colmar
See also
In Spanish: Alsacia para niños
