| Main | Births etc |
|---|
Saint-Dizier | ||
|---|---|---|
 | ||
| ||
| Country | France | |
| Region | Grand Est | |
| Department | Haute-Marne | |
| Arrondissement | Saint-Dizier | |
| Government | ||
| • Mayor (2001–2008) | François Cornut-Gentille | |
Area 1 |
47.69 km2 (18.41 sq mi) | |
| 1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries. 2 Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once. | ||
Saint-Dizier (French pronunciation: [sɛ̃.di.zje]) is a commune in the Haute-Marne department in north-eastern 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.
Geography[]
Located approximately 120 miles (193 km) east of Paris, halfway to Strasbourg, it is five miles from Western Europe's largest man-made lake, Lake Der-Chantecoq.
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.
Notable 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.
See also[]
- Communes of the Haute-Marne department
- Saint-Dizier – Robinson Air Base
References[]
External links[]
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| This page uses content from the English language Wikipedia. The original content was at Saint-Dizier. The list of authors can be seen in the page history. As with this Familypedia wiki, the content of Wikipedia is available under the Creative Commons License. |