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Vosges department

Vosges
Department
Flag of Vosges
Flag
Coat of arms of Vosges
Coat of arms
Location of Vosges in France
Location of Vosges in France
Coordinates: 48°10′N 06°25′E / 48.167°N 6.417°E / 48.167; 6.417Coordinates: 48°10′N 06°25′E / 48.167°N 6.417°E / 48.167; 6.417
Country France
Region Grand Est
Prefecture Épinal
Subprefectures Neufchâteau
Saint-Dié-des-Vosges
Government
 • President of the General Council Christian Poncelet
Area
 • Total 5,874 km2 (2,268 sq mi)
Population (2013)
 • Total 375,226
 • Rank 64th
 • Density 64/km2 (170/sq mi)
Time zone CET (UTC+1)
 • Summer (DST) CEST (UTC+2)
Department number 88
Arrondissements 3
Cantons 17
Communes 507
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2


Vosges (French pronunciation: ​[voʒ]) is an eastern department of France named after the Vosges. It consists of 17 cantons and 507 communes, of which 234 are rural, including the commune of Domrémy-la-Pucelle, where Joan of Arc was born.

Joan of Arc was born in the village of Domrémy, then in the French part of the duchy of Bar, or Barrois mouvant, located west of the Meuse. The part of the duchy lying east of the Meuse was part of the Holy Roman Empire. The duchy of Bar later became part of the province of Lorraine. The village of Domrémy was renamed Domrémy-la-Pucelle in honour of Joan.

The Vosges department is one of the original 83 departments of France, created on February 9, 1790 during the French Revolution. It was made of territories that had been part of the province of Lorraine. In German it is referred to as Vogesen.

In 1793 the independent principality of Salm-Salm (town of Senones and its surroundings), enclosed inside the Vosges department, was annexed to France and incorporated into Vosges. In 1795 the area of Schirmeck was detached from the Bas-Rhin department and incorporated into the Vosges department. The Vosges department had now an area of 6,127 km² (2,366 sq. miles) which it kept until 1871.

In 1794 the Vosges was the site of a major battle between the forces of Revolutionary France and the Allied Coalition. See Battle of the Vosges.


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