| Sedan, France |
Article Index for Sedan |
Website Links For Sedan |
Information AboutSedan, France |
| CATEGORIES ABOUT SEDAN, FRANCE | |
| communes of ardennes | |
| subprefectures in france | |
| 1424 establishments | |
| settlements established in the 1420s | |
Sedan is a town and Commune in France , a '' Sous-préfecture '' of the Ardennes '' Département ''. The historic center is built on a peninsula formed by an arc of the Meuse River . A center of cloth production, begun under the patronage of Cardinal Mazarin , supported the town until the late 19th century. HISTORY In the 16th century Sedan was an asylum for Protestant refugees from the Wars Of Religion . Until 1651 , the Principality of Sedan belonged to the La Tour D'Auvergne family. Their most illustrious representative, Marshal Turenne , was born at Sedan on September 11 , 1611 . During the Franco-Prussian War , on September 2 , 1870 the French emperor Napoleon III was taken prisoner with 100,000 of his soldiers at the Battle Of Sedan . Due to this major victory, which also made the "Second Reich" of Germany possible, September 2 was declared "Sedan Day" (''Sedantag'') and a national German holiday in 1871. It remained a holiday until 1919 . During World War II the German troops first invaded neutral Belgium and crossed the Meuse River in Sedan. This allowed them to bypass the French fortification system, the Maginot Line . MISCELLANEOUS Births Sedan was the birthplace of:
Twin town SEE ALSO
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