'Alsace' (,
pronounced /alzas/;
Alsatian and ,
pre-1996 German: ''Elsaß'') is one of the 26
regions of France, located on the eastern border of
France, on the west bank of the Upper
Rhine, adjacent to
Germany and
Switzerland. Its capital and largest city is
Strasbourg. Alsace, previously a part of the
Holy Roman Empire, changed hands between
France and
Germany several times between the
17th and
20th century.
In the course of the 17th century, the entirety of Alsace was gradually annexed under
King Louis XIV of France and made one of the
provinces of France. Alsace is frequently (although now informally) mentioned in conjunction with
Lorraine, because possession of these two ''régions'' (as
Alsace-Lorraine) was often contested in the
19th and 20th century, following a division among the successors of
Charlemagne in the
9th century.
Although it was a German dialect-speaking region for several periods in its history, all Alsatians today speak French. About 25% of the local population is fluent in Alsatian (as a
mother tongue) or German (as a
second language).
Geography
Lac Blanc
Alsace has an area of 8,283 km², making it the smallest
''région'' of
metropolitan France. It is almost four times longer than it is wide, corresponding to a plain between the
Rhine in the east and the
Vosges mountains in the west.
It includes the
''départements'' of
Haut-Rhin and
Bas-Rhin (known previously as
Sundgau and
Nordgau). It borders
Germany on the north and the east,
Switzerland and
Franche-Comté on the south, and
Lorraine on the west.
It contains many
forests, primarily in the Vosges and in
Bas-Rhin (Haguenau Forest). Several
valleys are also found in the ''région''. Its highest point is the ''
ballon de Guebwiller'' in
Haut-Rhin, which reaches a height of 1426m.
Alsace has a semi-
continental climate with cold and dry winters and hot summers. There is little precipitation because the
Vosges protect it from the west. The city of
Colmar has a
sunny microclimate; it is the second driest city in France, with an annual precipitation of just 550 mm, making it ideal for ''
vin d'Alsace'' (''Alsatian wine'').
History
Roman Alsace
Traditional Alsatian rural life
In prehistoric times, Alsace was inhabited by nomadic hunters, but by
1500 BC,
Celts began to settle in Alsace, clearing and cultivating the land. By
58 BC, the
Romans had invaded and established Alsace as a center of
viticulture. To protect this highly valued industry, the Romans built fortifications and military camps that evolved into various communities which have been inhabited continuously to the present day. While part of the
Roman Empire, Alsace was part of
Germania Superior.
Frankish Alsace
Main articles: Duchy of Alsace
With the
decline of the Roman Empire, Alsace became the territory of the
Alemanni. The Alemanni were agricultural people, and their language formed the basis of the modern-day Alsatian dialect.
Clovis and the
Franks drove the Alemanni out of Alsace during the
5th century, culminating with the
Battle of Tolbiac, and Alsace became part of the
Kingdom of Austrasia. Under Clovis'
Merovingian successors the inhabitants were Christianized. Alsace remained under Frankish control until the
Frankish realm was, following the
Oaths of Strasbourg of
842, formally dissolved in
843 at the
Treaty of Verdun; the grandsons of
Charlemagne, formally known as the founder of the Frankish realm, divided the realm into three parts. The
Low Countries, Alsace, and Lorraine formed the new Frankish Middle realm which was ruled by the youngest grandson
Lothar I. Lothar died early in
855 and his realm was divided into three parts. The part known as
Lotharingia, or Lorraine, was given to Lothar's son. The rest was shared between Lothar's brothers
Charles the Bald (ruler of the
West Frankish realm) and
Ludwig the German (ruler of the
East Frankish realm). The Kingdom of Lotharingia was short-lived, however; the region that was to become Alsace fell to the
Holy Roman Empire as part of the Duchy of
Swabia in the
Treaty of Meersen in 870.
Alsace within the Holy Roman Empire
At about this time the entire region began to fragment into a number of
feudal secular and ecclesiastical lordships, a situation which lasted into the 17th century and was a common process in Europe. Alsace experienced great prosperity during the
12th and
13th centuries under these
Hohenstaufen emperors.
Frederick I set up Alsace as a province (a ''
procuratio'', not a ''
provincia'') to be ruled by
ministeriales, a non-noble class of civil servants. The idea was that such men would be more tractable and less likely to alienate the
fief from the crown out of their own greed. The province had a single provincial court (
Landgericht) and a central administration with its seat at
Hagenau.
Frederick II designated the
Bishop of Strasbourg to administer Alsace, but the authority of the bishop was challenged by Count
Rudolph of Habsburg, who received his rights from Frederick II's son
Conrad IV. Strasbourg began to grow to become the most populous and commercially-important town in the region. In 1262, after a long struggle with the ruling bishops, its citizens gained the status of
free imperial city. A stop on the
Paris-
Vienna-
Orient trade route, as well as a port on the Rhine route linking
southern Germany and
Switzerland to the
Netherlands,
England and
Scandinavia, it became the political and economic center of the region. Cities such as
Colmar and
Hagenau also began to grow in economic importance and gained a kind of autonomy within the "Decapole" or "Dekapolis", a federation of ten free towns.
The prosperity of Alsace was terminated in the 14th century by a series of harsh winters, bad harvests, and the
Black Death. These hardships were blamed on
Jews, leading to the
pogroms of 1336 and 1339 . An additional natural disaster was the
Rhine rift earthquake of 1356 , one of Europe's worst. Prosperity returned to Alsace under
Habsburg administration during the
Renaissance.
La Petite France, Strasbourg
German central power had begun to decline following years of imperial adventures in Italian lands, ceding hegemony in Europe to
France, which had long since centralized power. France began an aggressive policy of expanding eastward, first to the
Rhône and
Meuse Rivers, and when those borders were reached, aiming for the Rhine. In 1299, the French proposed a marriage alliance between
Philip IV of France's sister and
Albert I of Germany's son, with Alsace to be the dowry; however, the deal never came off. In 1307, the town of
Belfort was first chartered by the Counts of
Montbéliard. During the next century, France was to be militarily shattered by the
Hundred Years' War, which prevented for a time any further tendencies in this direction. After the conclusion of the war, France was again free to pursue its desire to reach the Rhine and in 1444 a French army appeared in Lorraine and Alsace in 1444. It took up winter quarters, demanded the submission of
Metz and
Strasbourg and launched an attack on Basel.
In 1469, following the
Treaty of St. Omer, Upper Alsace was sold for money by Archduke
Sigismund of Austria to
Charles of Burgundy. Although Charles was the nominal landlord, taxes were paid to
Frederick III, Holy Roman Emperor. The latter was able to use this tax and a dynastic marriage to his advantage to gain back full control of Upper Alsace (apart from the free towns, but including Belfort) in 1477 when it became part of the demesne of the
Habsburg family, who were also rulers of the empire. The town of
Mulhouse joined the
Swiss Confederation in 1515, where it was to remain until 1798.
By the time of the
Protestant Reformation in the 16th century, Strasbourg was a prosperous community, and its inhabitants accepted
Protestantism in 1523.
Martin Bucer was a prominent Protestant reformer in the region. His efforts were countered by the
Roman Catholic Habsburgs who tried to eradicate heresy in Upper Alsace. As a result, Alsace was transformed into a mosaic of Catholic and Protestant territories. On the other hand,
Mömpelgard (Montbéliard) to the southwest of Alsace, belonging to the Counts of
Württemberg since 1397, remained a Protestant enclave in France until 1793.
Incorporation into France
This situation prevailed until 1639 when most of Alsace was conquered by France to prevent it falling into the hands of the
Spanish Habsburgs, who wanted a clear road to their valuable and rebellious possessions in the
Spanish Netherlands. This occurred in the greater context of the
Thirty Years' War (1618-1648). Beset by enemies and to gain a free hand in Hungary, the Habsburgs sold their
Sundgau territory (mostly in Upper Alsace) to France in 1646, which had occupied it, for the sum of 1.2 million
Thalers. Thus, when the hostilities finally ceased in 1648 with the
Treaty of Westphalia, most of Alsace went to France with some towns remaining independent. The treaty stipulations regarding Alsace were
Byzantine and confusing; it is thought that this was purposely so that neither the French king or the German emperor could gain tight control, but that one would play off the other, thereby assuring Alsace some measure of autonomy. Supporters of this theory point out that the treaty stipulations were authored by Imperial plenipotentiary
Isaac Volmar, the former Chancellor of Alsace. The transfer of most of Alsace to France at the
Peace of Westphalia in 1648 marked its start, along with
Lorraine, as a contested territory between France and Germany (
French-German enmity).
Because warfare had caused large numbers of the population (mainly in the countryside) to die or to flee away, numerous immigrants arrived from Switzerland, Germany,
Austria, Lorraine,
Savoy and other areas after 1648 and until the mid-18th century. Between 1671-1711
Anabaptist refugees came from Switzerland, notably from
Bern. Strasbourg became a main center of the early Anabaptist movement.
France consolidated her hold with the 1679
Treaties of Nijmegen, which brought the towns under her control. In 1681, France occupied Strasbourg in an unprovoked action. These territorial changes were reinforced at the 1697
Treaty of Ryswick which ended the
War of the Grand Alliance, although the Holy Roman Empire did not accept and sign the document until 1697. However, Alsace had a somewhat exceptional position in the Kingdom of France. The German language was still used in local government, school, and education and the German (Lutheran)
University of Strasbourg was continued and attended by students from Germany. The
Edict of Fontainebleau, which legalized the suppression of
French Protestantism, was not applied in Alsace. In contrast to the rest of France, there was a relative religious tolerance, although the French authorities tried to promote Catholicism and the Lutheran
Strasbourg Cathedral had to be handed over to the Catholics in 1681. There was a customs boundary along the
Vosges mountains against the rest of France while there was no such boundary against Germany. For these reasons Alsace remained marked by German culture and economically oriented towards Germany until the
French Revolution.
French Revolution
The year 1789 brought the French Revolution and with it the first division of Alsace into the départements of
Haut- and
Bas-Rhin. Alsatians played an active role in the French Revolution. On
July 21,
1789, after receiving news of the
Storming of the Bastille in Paris, a crowd of people stormed the Strasbourg city hall, forcing the city administrators to flee and putting symbolically an end to the feudal system in Alsace. In
1792,
Rouget de Lisle composed in Strasbourg the Revolutionary marching song ''
La Marseillaise'', which later became the antemn of France. ''La Marseillaise'' was played for the first time in April of that year in front of the mayor of Strasbourg
Philippe-Frédéric de Dietrich. Some of the most famous generals of the French Revolution also came from Alsace, notably
Kellermann, the victor of
Valmy, and
Kléber, who led the armies of the French Republic in
Vendée.
At the same time, some Alsatians were in opposition to the
Jacobins and sympathetic to the invading forces of
Austria and
Prussia who sought to crush the nascent revolutionary republic. Many of the residents of the
Sundgau made "pilgrimages" to places like
Mariastein Abbey, near
Basel, in Switzerland, for baptisms and weddings. When the
French Revolutionary Army of the Rhine was victorious, tens of thousands fled east before it. When they were later permitted to return (in some cases not until 1799), it was often to find that their lands and homes had been confiscated. These conditions led to emigration by hundreds of families to newly-vacant lands in the
Russian Empire in 1803-4 and again in 1808. A poignant retelling of this tale based on what he had himself witnessed can be found in
Goethe's ''Hermann und Dorothea''.
In response to the restoration of
Napoleon I of France, in 1814 and 1815, Alsace was occupied by foreign forces, including over 280,000 soldiers and 90,000 horses in Bas-Rhin alone. This had grave effects on trade and the economy of the region since former overland trade routes were switched to newly-opened
Mediterranean and
Atlantic seaports.
The population grew rapidly, from 800,000 in 1814 to 914,000 in 1830 and 1,067,000 in 1846. The combination of factors meant hunger, housing shortages and a lack of work for young people. Thus, it is not surprising that people left Alsace, not only to Paris, where the Alsatian community grew in numbers, with famous members such as
Baron Haussmann, but also to far away places like Russia and the
Austrian Empire to take advantage of new opportunities offered there. Austria had conquered lands in Eastern Europe from the
Ottoman Empire and offered generous terms for colonists in order to consolidate their hold on the lands. Many Alsatians also began to sail for the
United States, where after 1807 slave importation had been banned and new workers were needed for the cotton fields.
Between France and Germany
Main articles: Alsace-Lorraine
France was defeated by the
Kingdom of Prussia in the
Franco-Prussian War (1870-71). At the end of the war and the ensuing Prussian-led
unification of Germany,
Otto von Bismarck annexed Alsace and northern Lorraine to the new
German Empire in 1871. The imperial territory of
Alsace-Lorraine was administered directly by the imperial government in
Berlin, and was granted some measure of autonomy in 1911. Between 100,000 to 130,000 Alsatians (of a total population of about a million and a half) chose to remain French citizens and immigrated to France, many of them resettling in
French Algeria.
Alsace remained a part of Germany until the end of
World War I, when Germany ceded the region to France under the
Treaty of Versailles. Although U.S. President
Woodrow Wilson insisted that the ''région'' was self-ruling by legal status, as its constitution had stated it was bound to the sole authority of the
Kaiser and not to the German state, France tolerated no plebiscite, as granted by the
League of Nations to some eastern German territories at this time, because Alsatians were considered by the French public at large as fellow Frenchmen liberated from German rule. A self-proclaimed government of Alsace-Lorraine declared independence as the "Republic of Alsace-Lorraine", but French troops entered Alsace less than a week later. At the sight of cheering Alsatian crowds welcoming back the French army, Wilson and the other allies dropped their suggestions of organizing a plebiscite.
An Alsatian woman in traditional costume.
After World War I, the establishment of German identity in Alsace was reversed, as Germans who had settled in Alsace since 1871 were expelled. Policies forbidding the use of
German and requiring that of
French were introduced. However, in order not to antagonize the Alsatians, the region was not considered to be subject to some changes in French law from 1871 to 1919, such as the 1905 Law of
Separation of Church and State.
German stamps of
Hindenburg mention "Elsaß" (produced in 1940).
The ''région'' was effectively annexed by Germany in 1940 during
World War II and reincorporated into the
Greater German Reich. Alsace was merged with
Baden, and Lorraine with the
Saarland. The annexation, while putting a halt to the anti-German discrimination in the ''région'', subjected it to the cruel
Nazi dictatorship, which was loathed by most of the people. The German government never negotiated or declared a formal annexation, however, in order to preserve the possibility of an agreement with the West. France regained control of the war-torn area in 1944 and resumed its policy of promoting the
French language with uncompromising vigor. For instance, from 1945 to 1984 the use of German in newspapers was restricted to a maximum of 25%.
In more recent years, as nationalistic emotions have receded, Alsatian is now being promoted by local authorities again as an element of the region's identity. Alsatian is now taught in schools (but not mandatory) as one of the regional languages of France. German is also taught as a foreign language in local
kindergartens and
schools.
Timeline
| Year(s) | Event | Ruled by | Official language |
|---|
| 5400–4500 BC | Bandkermikor/Linear Pottery cultures | — | None |
| 2300–750 BC | Bell Beaker cultures | — | None; Proto-Celtic spoken |
| 750–450 BC | Halstatt early Iron Age culture (early Celts) | — | None; Old Celtic spoken |
| 450–58 BC | Celts/Gauls firmly secured in entire Gaul, Alsace; trade with Greece is evident (Vix) | Celts/Gauls | None; Gaulish variety of Celtic widely spoken |
| 58 / 44 BC–AD 260 | Alsace and Gaul conquered by Caesar, Provinciated to Germania Superior | Roman Empire | Latin; Gallic widely spoken |
| 260–274 | Postumus founds breakaway Gallic Empire | Gallic Empire | Latin, Gallic |
| 274–286 | Rome reconquers the Gallic Empire, Alsace | Roman Empire | Latin, Germanic (only in Argentoratum) |
| 286–378 | Diocletian divides the Roman Empire into Western and Eastern sectors | Roman Empire |
| around 300 | Beginning of Germanic migrations to the Roman Empire | Roman Empire |
| 378–395 | The Visigoths rebel, precursor to waves of German, and Hun invasions | Roman Empire |
| 395–436 | Death of Theodosius I, causing a permanent division between Western and Eastern Rome | Western Roman Empire |
| 436–486 | Germanic invasions of the Western Roman Empire | Roman Tributary of Gaul |
| 486–511 | Lower Alsace conquered by the Franks | Frankish Realm | Old Frankish, Latin |
| 531–614 | Upper Alsace conquered by the Franks | Frankish Realm |
| 614–795 | Totality of Alsace to the Frankish Kingdom | Frankish Realm |
| 795–814 | Charlemagne begins reign, Charlemagne crowned Emperor of the Romans on December 25, 800 | Frankish Empire | Old Frankish |
| 814–847 | Death of Charlemagne | Carolingian Empire | Old Frankish, Old High German |
| 847–870 | Treaty of Verdun gives Alsace and Lotharingia to Lothar I | Middle Francia (Carolingian Empire) | Frankish, Old High German |
| 870–889 | Treaty of Mersen gives Alsace to East Francia | East Francia (German Kingdom of the Carolingian Empire) | Frankish, Old High German |
| 889–962 | Carolingian Empire breaks up into five Kingdoms, Magyars and Vikings raid Alsace | Kingdom of Germany | Old High German, Frankish |
| 962–1618 | Otto I crowned Holy Roman Emperor | Holy Roman Empire | Old High German, German, Alemannic spoken widely |
| 1618–1674 | Louis XIV annexes portions of Alsace during the Thirty Years War | Holy Roman Empire | German |
| 1674–1871 | Louis XIV's annexes Alsace during the Thirty Years' War, leading to many years of French rule | Kingdom of France | Official :French Alsatian and German tolerated, but strongly forbidden in official circles. |
| 1871–1918 | Franco-Prussian war causes French cession of Alsace to German Empire | German Empire | German |
| 1919–1940 | Treaty of Versailles ''reverts'' Alsace to France | France | French |
| 1940–1944 | Nazi Germany conquers Alsace | Nazi Germany | German |
| 1945–present | Reversion to French control | France | French |
Politics
Alsace is one of the most conservative ''régions'' of France. It is one of just two ''régions'' in
metropolitan France where the conservative right won the
2004 ''région'' elections and thus controls the
General Council. Conservative leader Nicolas Sarkozy got his best score in Alsace (over 65%) in the second round of the
French presidential elections of 2007. The president of the General Council is
Adrien Zeller, a member of the
Union for a Popular Movement. The frequently changing status of the ''région'' throughout history has left its mark on modern day politics in terms of a particular interest in
national identity issues.
Alsace is also one of the most pro-
EU regions of France. It was one of the few French regions that voted 'yes' to the
European Constitution in 2005.
Economy
According to
INSEE, Alsace had a
gross domestic product of 44.3 billion euros in 2002. With a GDP per capita of €24,804, it was the second-place ''région'' of France, losing only to
Île-de-France. 68% of its jobs are in the
services; 25% are in
industry, making Alsace one of France's most
industrialised ''régions''.
Alsace is a ''région'' of varied economic activity, including:
★
viticulture (mostly in the centre of the ''région'', between
Sélestat and
Colmar);
★
hop harvesting and
brewing (half of French beer is produced in Alsace, especially in the vicinity of Strasbourg, notably in
Kronenbourg,
Schiltigheim and
Obernai);
★ forestry development
★ automobile industry (
Mulhouse)
★
life sciences, as part of the
Alsace Biovalley and
★
tourism
★ Alsace has many international ties and 35% of firms are foreign companies (notably
German,
Swiss,
American,
Japanese and
Scandinavian).
★ 570 million tons of
potassium chloride and
phosphates have been mined in the past century and a
museum of the industry can be found in
Wittelsheim.
Demographics
Alsace's population increased to 1,734,145 in 1999. It has regularly increased over time, except in wartime, by both natural growth and
migration. This growth has even accelerated at the end of the
20th century.
INSEE estimates that its population will grow 12.9% to 19.5% between 1999 and 2030.
With a density of 209/km², Alsace is the third most densely populated ''région'' in
metropolitan France.
Transport
The road network
Most major car journeys are made on the
A35 autoroute (with intermittent areas of
dual carriageways), which links Saint-Louis on the Swiss border to Lauterbourg on the German border.
The
A4 toll-road (towards Paris) begins 20 km northwest of
Strasbourg and the
A36 toll-road towards Lyon, begins 10 km west from
Mulhouse.
Spaghetti-junctions (built in the
1970s and
1980s) are prominent in the comprehensive system of motorways in Alsace, especially in the outlying ares of Strasbourg and Mulhouse. These cause a major buildup of traffic and are the main sources of pollution in the towns, notably in Strasbourg where the motorway traffic of the A35 was 170,000 per day in 2002.
At present, plans are being considered for building a new
dual carriageway west of Strasbourg, which would reduce the buildup of traffic in that area by picking up north- and southbound vehicles and getting rid of the buildup outside of Strasbourg. The line plans to link up the interchange of
Hoerdt to the north of Strasbourg, with
Innenheim in the southwest. The opening is envisaged at the end of 2011, with an average usage of 41,000 vehicles a day. Estimates of the French Works Commissioner however, raised some doubts over the interest of such a project, since it would pick up only about 10% of the traffic of the A35 at Strasbourg.
To add to the buildup of traffic, the neighbouring German state of
Baden-Württemberg plans to impose a tax on heavy-goods vehicles using their roads. Thus, HGVs travelling from north Germany to Switzerland or southern Alsace would most probably bypass the A5 on the Alsace-Baden-Württemberg border and use the untolled, French A35 instead.
The train network
Place de l'Homme de Fer Tram Station
is the rail network serving Alsace. Its network is articulated around the city of Strasbourg. It's one of the most developed rail network in France, financially sustained partly by the French railroad
SNCF, and partly by the ''région'' Alsace.
Because the Vosges are surmountable only by the
Col de Saverne, it has been suggested that Alsace needs to open up and get closer to France in terms of its rail links. Different plans are due to be implemented:
★ the
TGV Est (Paris - Strasbourg); (was brought into service June 2007);
★ the
TGV Rhine-Rhône or a
Dijon-Mulhouse line (to start in construction in 2006, with anticipated completion in 2011);
★ an interconnection with the German
InterCityExpress, as far as
Kehl and/or
Ottmarsheim;
★ a tram-train system in Mulhouse (May 2006), then Strasbourg (2011).
However, the abandoned Maurice-Lemaire tunnel towards
Saint-Dié-des-Vosges was rebuilt as a toll-road.
The river network
The River Network
Port traffic of Alsace exceeds 15 million tonnes, of which about three quarters is centred on Strasbourg, which is the second busiest French fluvial harbour. The enlargement plan of the Rhine-Rhône channel, intended to link up the
Mediterranean Sea and
Central Europe (Rhine,
Danube,
North Sea and
Baltic Sea) was abandoned in 1998 for reasons of expense and land erosion, notably in the Doubs valley.
Air traffic
There are two
international airports in Alsace:
★ the international airport of Strasbourg in
Entzheim;
★ the international
EuroAirport Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg, which is the seventh largest French airport in terms of traffic.
The city is also two hours away from one of the biggest European airports, Frankfurt Main.
Religion
St Étienne church (Mulhouse)
Most of the Alsatian population is
Roman Catholic, but largely because of the ''région's''
German influence, a significant
Protestant community also exists. Unlike the rest of France, the
Alsace-Moselle ''région'' still adheres to the
Napoleonic
Concordat of 1801, which provides public subsidies to the
Roman Catholic,
Lutheran, and
Calvinist churches, as well as to
Jewish synagogues; public education in these faiths is offered. This divergence in policy from the French majority is due to the ''région'' having been administered by
Imperial Germany when the 1905 law separating the French church and state was instituted (for a more comprehensive history, see:
Alsace-Lorraine). Controversy erupts periodically on the appropriateness of this legal disposition, as well does the exclusion of other religions from this arrangement.
Following the
Protestant Reformation, the principle of ''
cuius regio, eius religio'' led to a certain amount of religious diversity in the highlands of northern Alsace. Landowners, who as "local lords" had the right to decide which religion was allowed on their land, were eager to entice populations from the more attractive lowlands to settle and develop their property. Many accepted without discrimination Catholics, Lutherans, Calvinists, Jews and
Anabaptists. Multiconfessional villages appeared, particularly in the region called
Crumpled Alsace (fr: Alsace bossue). Alsace became one of the French regions boasting a thriving Jewish community, and the only region with a noticeable amount of Anabaptists. The schism of the
Amish under the lead of
Jacob Amman from the
Mennonites happened in 1693 in
Sainte-Marie-aux-Mines. Ultra-catholic
Louis XIV tried in vain to force them out of Alsace. When
Napoleon imposed military conscription without religious exception, most emigrated to the American continent.
From 1707 on, following the taking of control over Alsace by the Catholic
kingdom of France, the
simultaneum was instaured, by which many Reform and Lutheran churches were forced to allow time-slots for the Catholic Church. About 50 such "simultaneous churches" still exist in 21th century Alsace, while Catholic services are held nowadays only occasionally.
Culture
Historically part of the Holy Roman Empire, the ''région'' has passed between French and German control numerous times, resulting in a rich cultural blend.
Language
Although German was the official language for a part of the Middle-Age Era, the language spoken in Alsace nowadays, is
standard French.
The traditional language of the ''région'' is
Alsatian, an
Alemannic dialect of
Upper German and thus closely related to
Swiss German. Some
Frankish dialects of
West Middle German are also spoken in the extreme north of Alsace. Neither Alsatian nor the Frankish dialects have any form of official status,
as is customary for
regional languages in France, although both are now recognized as
languages of France and can be chosen as subjects in
lycées.
Since 1945, the influence of
standard French has been ever increasing in Alsace, and today Alsace is largely a French-speaking area. More often assumed to be a bilingual area (French/Alsatian), Alsace is actually evolving fast toward situation of total French monolingualism. This situation is documented in ''Le declin du dialecte alsacien,'' a study funded by the General Council of Alsace and carried out in twenty secondary schools by
Calvin Veltman and M.N. Denis. People above 70 still speak Alsatian at home, but the younger generations use French even at home, and the vast majority of people below 30 do not understand Alsatian anymore. This situation has provoked a sort of desire to preserve the traditional Alsatian language, which is perceived as endangered by French, a situation paralleled in other ''régions'' of France with regional languages such as
Brittany or
Occitania. Alsatian is now taught in French high schools, but the overwhelming presence of French media make the survival of Alsatian uncertain among younger generations.
The linguistic situation of Alsace can be summed up like this: the ''région'' is fast evolving toward a situation where
standard French is the only language used at home and at work, whereas an increasing number of people have a good knowledge of
standard German as a foreign language learned in school.
Additionnally, it can be underlined that the local language, Alsatian, has also been influenced by
Yiddish, the language formerly spoken by
Ashkenazi Jews. Witness to that is the language used in ''
The Nanny'' specifically by
Fran, to use some words in Alsatian, like the way she calls the biscuits and cookies her mother makes.
Cuisine
''Tarte Flambée''
Alsatian
cuisine, strongly influenced by the Germanic culinary traditions, is marked by the use of
pork in various forms. Traditional dishes include ''
baeckeoffe'', ''
tartes flambées'' (''flammekueche''), ''
choucroute'', and ''
fleischnackas''. The south of Alsace, also called
Sundgau, is characterized by ''
carpe frite''.
The festivities of the year's end involve the production of a great variety of biscuits and small cakes called ''
bredalas'' as well as ''
pain d'épice'' (
gingerbread), especially from
Gertwiller, which are given to children starting on
Saint Nicholas Day.
Riesling Grapes
A
wine-producing ''région'',
Alsace wines are primarily white. Its wines, which have a strong Germanic influence, are called ''
vins d'Alsace''. It produces some of the world's most noted dry
rieslings and is the only ''région'' in France to produce mostly
varietal wines identified by the names of the
grapes used (wine from
Burgundy is also mainly varietal, but not normally identified as such), typically from grapes also used in
Germany. The most notable example is
gewurztraminer.
Alsace is also the main
beer-producing ''région'' of France, thanks primarily to
breweries in and near
Strasbourg. These include those of
Kronenbourg,
Fischer,
Heineken,
Météor, and
Kanterbräu.
Hops are grown in
Kochersberg and in northern Alsace.
Schnapps is also traditionally made in Alsace, but it is in decline because home
distillers are becoming less common and the consumption of traditional, strong, alcoholic beverages is decreasing.
Alsatian food is synonymous with conviviality, the dishes are substantial and served in generous portions and it has one of the richest regional kitchens. The gastronomic symbol of the ''région'' is undoubtedly
Sauerkraut.
The word "''Sauerkraut''" in Alsatian has the form "''Sûrkrût (Saurkraut)''", which means "sour cabbage" as its
German equivalent. This word was included into the
French language as ''choucroute''.
To make it, the cabbage is finely shredded, layered with salt and juniper and left to ferment in wooden barrels. Sauerkraut can be served with poultry, pork, sausage or even fish.
Traditionally it is served with pork, Strasbourg sausage or frankfurters, bacon, smoked pork or smoked Morteau or Montbéliard sausages or a selection of pork products. Served alongside are often roasted or steamed potatoes or dumplings.
Additionally, Alsace is known for its fruit juices and mineral waters.
A Jewish influence can also be noted in its goods, and in the names of them, through the Yiddish language.
Architecture
The traditional habitat of the Alsatian lowland consists of houses constructed with walls in half-timbering and cob and roofing in flat tiles. This type of construction can be seen in other areas of France, but their particular abundance in Alsace is owed to several reasons:
#The proximity to the
Vosges where the wood can be found.
#Wood was used more than stone because it resisted
earthquakes better, due to its greater flexibility.
#During periods of war and bubonic plague, villages were often burned down, so to prevent the collapse of the upper floors, stone ground floors were built and the upper floors built in half-timberings to prevent the spread of fire.
#During most of the part of its history, a great part of Alsace was flooded by the Rhine every year. Half-timbered houses were easy to knock down and to move around during those times (a day was necessary to move it and a day to rebuilt it in another place).
However, half-timbering was found to increase the risk of fire, which is why from the 19th century, it began to be rendered. In recent times, villagers started to paint the rendering white in accordance with Beaux-Arts movements. To discourage this, the ''régions's'' authorities gave financial grants to the inhabitants to paint the rendering in various colors, in order to return to the original style and many inhabitants accepted (more for financial reasons than by firm belief).
Symbolism
The
stork is a main feature of Alsace and was the subject of many
legends told to children. The bird practically disappeared around 1970, but re-population efforts are continuing. They are mostly found on roofs of houses, churches and other public buildings in Alsace.
Tourism
Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg
The main entrance from the Schoenenbourg fort of the
Maginot Line★
Château du Haut-Kœnigsbourg
★ Musée de l'automobile de Mulhouse
★ Ungersheim open air museum
★ Cité du train museum in Mulhouse
★ The
EDF museum in Mulhouse
★ Christmas markets in
Kaisersberg, Strasbourg, Mulhouse and
Colmar
★ Departmental Centre of the History of Families (CDHF) in
Guebwiller
★
Struthof concentration camp
★
Schoenenbourg fort of the
Maginot line
★ Mount Ste Odile: see
Odile
★ Alsace Wine Route
★ Musée de la déportation in Schirmeck, near the Struthof, the only deportation camp on the French territory during WWII
★ Mémorial d'Alsace-Lorraine, reminding both areas history in Schirmeck
Administration
Main articles: Alsace Regional Council
Famous Alsatians
:''See also :
Famous people of Strasbourg''
Major communities
★
Bischheim
★
Colmar
★
Guebwiller
★
Haguenau
★
Illkirch-Graffenstaden
★
Illzach
★
Lingolsheim
★
Mulhouse
★
Saint-Louis
★
Saverne
★
Schiltigheim
★
Sélestat
★
Strasbourg
★
Wittenheim
Sister province
Province of
Gyeongsangbuk-do,
South Korea
See also
★
Alsace-Lorraine
★
Elsässisches Fahnenlied, anthemn of 1911
Literature
★ ''Das Elsass. Ein literarischer Reisebegleiter'', 251 S., mehr. Abb. Insel Verlag, Frankfurt a. M. 2001. ISBN 3-4583-4446-2 − Elsässische Impressionen von fünfzig Schriftsteller/-innen aus fünf Jahrhunderten
★ Assall, Paul: ''Juden im Elsass'', 252 S., zahlr. SW-Abb. Rio Verlag, Zürich. ISBN 3-907668-00-6
★ Erbe, Michael (Hrsg.): ''Das Elsass''. Historische Landschaft im Wandel der Zeiten'', 198 S., Ill., Kohlhammer, Stuttgart 2002. ISBN 3-17-015771-X
★ Faber, Gustav: ''Elsass''. Artemis-Cicerone Kunst- und Reiseführer, München 1989 (vergriffen)
★ Gerson, Daniel: ''Die Kehrseite der Emanzipation in Frankreich. Judenfeindschaft im Elsass 1778 bis 1848'', 332 S. Klartext, Essen 2006. ISBN 3-89861-408-5
★ Haeberlin, Marc: ''Elsass, meine große Liebe'', 279 S., zahlr. Farbfotos. Orselina, La Tavola 2004. ISBN 3-9099-0908-6
− Rezension über das „Schlaraffenland“ Elsass
★ ''Straßburg Belagerung 1870", 198 S., mit zeitgenössischen Bildern und Anekdoten um das Elsaß und seine wechselvolleGeschichte,BoD Norderstedt 2007, ISBN 978-3-8334-5147-8
★ Mehling, Marianne (Hrsg.): ''Knaurs Kulturführer in Farbe Elsaß'', 259 S., überw. ill. Droemer Knaur, München 1984. (vergriffen)
★ Schreiber, Hermann: ''Das Elsaß und seine Geschichte, eine Kulturlandschaft im Spannungsfeld zweier Völker'', 358 S., ill. Weltbild, Augsburg 1996. (vergriffen)
★
Ungerer, Tomi (2004): ''Elsass. Das offene Herz Europas'', DNA, 48 S., 40 farb. Abb. Édition La Nuée Bleue, Straßburg. ISBN 2-7165-0618-3
★ Ungerer, Tomi / Brison, Danièle / Schneider, Tony: ''Die elsässische Küche. 60 Rezepte aus der Weinstube L'Arsenal'', ill. von Tomi Ungerer, 120 S., 60 Abb., gebunden. Édition DNA, Straßburg 1994. ISBN 2-7165-0341-9
★ Vogler, Bernard / Lersch, Hermann: ''Das Elsass'', 127 S., 240 meist farb. Abb. Éditions Ouest-France, Morstadt 2000. ISBN 3-8857-1260-1
− Rezension
References
Footnotes
External links
★
Official website of Alsace
★
ABC of France The Official Website for the Alsace, Burgundy and Champagne-Ardenne Regions
★
Tourisme-Alsace.com Infos from the Alsace Tourism Board
★
Alsace.net: Directory of Alsatian Websites
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