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Strassburg (Town and fortress of France)

a town and fortress of France, in Alsace; capital of the territory of Alsace-Lorraine; on the Ill; about 2 miles W. of the Rhine, to which its glacis extends; 250 miles E. by S. of Paris, and about 370 miles S. W. of Berlin. By means of canals which unite the Ill with the Rhine, Rhone, and Marne, it is brought into communication with the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. It has always been regarded as a place of strategical importance, and strong fortifications and a pentagonal citadel were erected by Vauban in 1682- 1684. Since the siege of 1870 by the Germans these have been considerably altered and strengthened, the new system of defense adopted including 14 detached forts situated from 3 to 5 miles from the center of the town. The streets in the older parts are irregular and quaint of aspect, but since the removal of part of the old fortifications the modern portions have greatly expanded. The chief building is the cathedral, a structure which presents the architectural styles of the centuries from the 11th to the 15th, in which it was built, but whose main element is Gothic. It is surmounted by towers 466 feet high, has a splendid W. façade, with statues and great rose window, fine painted glass windows, and a famous astronomical clock, made in 1547-1580. The other notable buildings are the Church of St. Thomas, the Tem- STRASSBURG ple-Neuf or Neukirche, the old Episcopal palace, the town hall, the new university building, opened in 1884, and the new imperial palace. palace. The old Episcopal palace contains the university and town library, numbering 600,000 volumes.

There are statues to Gutenberg and General Kléber, in squares correspondingly named, besides others. Its industries are very varied, and include tanning, brewing, machine making, woolen and cotton goods, cutlery, musical instruments, artificial flowers, gloves, chemicals, and the preparation of its celebrated pâtés de foie gras. Strassburg, under the name of Argentoratum, is supposed to have been founded by the Romans, who erected it as a barrier against the incursions of the Germans, who ultimately possessed it. In the 6th century the name was changed to Strassburg, and in the beginning of the 10th century it became sul subject to the emperors of Germany. United to France in 1681, it was ceded with the territories of Alsace and Lorraine to Germany in 1871. By the Treaty of Versailles in 1919, Alsace and Lorraine were restored to France. Pop. about 198,000.