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BAS-RHIN
GENERAL
INFORMATION
Bas-Rhin
is a French department within the Region of Alsace, named after the Rhine river
and can be literally translated as 'Base of the Rhine River'.
With Strasbourg as the capital and also
a very important French City, the European parliment is seated here.
The river Rhine has always been of
importance to the area, providing, communication, industry and historical
conflict.
Important production of hops for beer, cabbage.
HISTORY
The
département was created on March 4th 1790, during the French
Revolution.
In the
mid-1790's upon the French occupation of the left bank of the Rhine; the
département's northern boundary was extended north beyond the Lauter to the
Queich river to include the areas of Landau an der Pfalz, Bad Bergzabern, and
Worth an der Rhein. However, upon Napoleon’s second defeat in 1815, the
Congress of Vienna reassigned the areas north of the Lauter to Bavaria; and
those territories are now presently located in the neighboring German state of
Rhineland-Palatinate.
| The
département was temporarily incorporated into Germany twice: from 1871 (after
France's defeat in the Franco-Prussian War) until the end of World War I in
1918 and again briefly during World War II (from 1940 to 1945). |
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THINGS TO DO & SEE
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A land of deep forests inhabited by mysterious Celtic vestiges, the Vosges
mountains in Northern Alsace are ideal for hiking holidays and rambles.
As you make your way alongthe mountain
trails, you discover an astonishingly rich variety of historical and natural
attractions. Rambling through the vineyards and forests, you come across fifty
castles of the Mediaeval period, such as the famous Haut-Koenigsbourg, and also
the prestigious site of Mont Sainte Odile shrouded in legend and mystery.
Furtherdowntheridgesof the Vosges, the green valleys topped with mountain
meadows are home to lakes and waterfalls rushing out of steep rock faces shaped
by erosion, sleepy peat bogs and isolated hamlets nestling in the hillsides. In
the picturesque mountain or Mediaeval villages, towns and spas, the Romanesque
abbeys and local museums, lively village squares and colourful markets are all
invitations to rest a while. And gourmets will particularly appreciate the
local cuisine with delicacies for every season.
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There
are many activities to enjoy, such as rides in a horse-drawn carriage or small
boats, tours of towns by boat or mini-train, go-carting, paintball/lasergame,
leisure centres, animal parks, skating rinks and taking off for your very first
flight experience.
And
there are sports for all tastes and every age with horse-riding, climbing,
paragliding, hiking, cycling and mountain biking, river and water sports and
even skiing and snow-shoe rambling
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