Dept. des Ardennes

Title

Dept. des Ardennes

Description

Very beautiful hand-colored map showing the Ardennes with the towns of Givet, Charleville-Mézières, Rethel, and Grand Pré in France. Also includes an index, coat of arms, flora, fauna, and typical regional objects. Pré

ca. 1850

Artist

Lemercier / Levasseur (1800-1870)

Cadastre of the War and Bridge Department by V. Levasseur, Geographer Engineer attached to the Cadastre and the City of Paris. Huge Parisian firm of lithographic printers founded by Joseph Rose Lemercier (1803-1887), who began as the foreman for Langlumé in 1825. Working on his own account from 1827, 1829-36 in partnership with Bénard association formed in 1837 according to IFF catalogue for Joseph Lemercier. The firm was still active in 1841.

Historical Description

Champagne is a landscape and historical province in north-eastern France. Its historical capital is the city of Troyes. In ancient times, Champagne was the settlement area of the Celtic Catalauni. After the conquest of Gaul (58-51 BC) by Gaius Julius Caesar, it became part of the Roman province of Gallia Belgica. Alongside Saint-Denis, Reims became the most important religious center in France. Until 1825, all French kings were crowned and anointed in Reims Cathedral. During the Middle Ages, Champagne was a county whose counts were among the most powerful princes in France. Thanks to the great fairs in Reims and Troyes, the region became one of the most economically important in Europe. In the 18th and 19th centuries, the textile and metal industries developed here, losing some of their importance after 1930 and all of it after 1970.