REIMS AND EPERNAY,Marne,Valley of the Seine,Antique Map

HISTORICAL MAP CHART

REIMS (RHEIMs), a city of north-eastern France, chief town of an arrondissement of the department of Marne, 98 m. E.N.E. of Paris, on the Eastern railway. Reims is situated in a plain on the right bank of the Vesle, a tributary of the Aisne, and on the canal which connects the Aisne with the Marne. South and west rise the montagne de Reims and vine-clad hills. Reims is limited S.W. by the Vesle and the canal, N.W. by promenades which separate it from the railway and in other directions by boulevards lined with fine residences. Beyond extend large suburbs, the chief of which are Crs to the N.E., Coutures to the E., Laon to the N. and Vesle to the W. Of its squares the principal are the Place Royale, with a statue of Louis XV., and the place du Parvis, with an equestrian statue of Joan of Arc. The rue de Vesle, the chief street, continued under other names, traverses the tOwn from S.W. to N.W., passing through the Place Royale. The oldest monument in Reims is the Mars Gate (so called from a temple to Mars in the neighborhood), a triumphal arch 108 ft. in length by 43 in height, consisting of three archways flanked by columns. It is popularly supposed to have been erected by the Remi in honor of Augustus when Agrippa made the great roads terminating at the town, but probably belongs to the 3rd or 4th century. In 1874 the construction of a chain of detached forts was begun in the vicinity, Reims being selected as one of the chief defences of the northern approaches of Paris. The ridge of St Thierry is crowned with a fort of the same name, which with the neighboring work of Chenay closes the west side of the place. To the north the hill of Brimont has three works guarding the Laon railway and the Aisne canal. Farther east, on the old Roman road, lies the fort de Fresnes. Due east the hills of Arnay are crowned with five large and important works which cover the approaches from the upper Aisne. Forts Pompelle and Montbr close the south-east side, and the Falaise hills on the Paris side are open and unguarded. The perimeter of the defences is not quite 22 m., and the forts are a mean distance of 6 m. from the centre of the city.

1890s Wood Engraving, Antique Map

Approximate Overall Size: 7 X 10 1/2 inches

CONDITION: Book Plate INTEXT MAP - Excellent Condition. Beautiful with excellent detail. There is Text on Front and Back Side.