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Aisne

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Coordinates: 49°30′N, 3°30′E

Aisne

Coat of arms of the Aisne department
Location

Administration
Department number:	02
Region:	Picardie
Prefecture:	Laon
Subprefectures:	Château-Thierry Saint-Quentin Soissons Vervins
Arrondissements:	5
Cantons:	42
Communes:	816
President of the General Council:	Yves Daudigny
Statistics
Population	Ranked 46th
-1999	535,489
Population density:	73/km²
Land area¹:	7369 km²

¹ French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km².

Aisne is a department in the northern part of France named after the Aisne River.

1 History
2 Geography
3 Climate
4 Economy
5 Culture
6 See also
7 External links

History

Aisne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Île-de-France, Picardie, and Champagne. Most of the old-growth forests in the area were destroyed during battles in World War I. The French offensive against the Chemin des Dames in spring 1917 is sometimes referred to as the Second Battle of the Aisne.

Geography

Aisne borders the Ardennes Forest and Belgium to the northeast. The Aisne River crosses the area from east to west, where it joins the Oise River. The landscape is dominated by masses of rock which often have steep flanks. These rocks appear all over the region, but the most impressive examples are at Laon and the Chemin des Dames ridge. The principal cities in Aisne are :

Laon, pop. 26,000 (capital)
Saint-Quentin, pop. 60,000
Soissons, pop. 30,000
Château-Thierry
Tergnier, pop. 15,000

See also: List of the communes of the Aisne department.

Climate

There is an average of 500 to 750 mm precipitation annually.

Economy

Agriculture dominates the economy, especially cereal crops. Beet sugar is one of the most important industrial crops of the area. Silk, cotton, and wool weaving flourish in Saint-Quentin and other towns. Saint-Gobain is known for its production of mirrors, which started in the 17th century. Guise is the agricultural centre of the northern area of Aisne.

Culture

During World War I a number of significant architectural monuments were destroyed. Of the buildings that survived, the medieval churches in Laon, Braine, and Urcel are the most significant. The ruined castle of La Ferté-Milon escaped further damage during the war.