Battle of Metz

Metz ( METS, French: [mɛs] , Latin: Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then Mettis) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand Est region. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany and Luxembourg, the city forms a central place of the European Greater Region and the SaarLorLux euroregion.Metz has a rich 3,000-year history, having variously been a Celtic oppidum, an important Gallo-Roman city, the Merovingian capital of Austrasia, the birthplace of the Carolingian dynasty, a cradle of the Gregorian chant, and one of the oldest republics in Europe. The city has been steeped in French culture, but has been strongly influenced by German culture due to its location and history.Because of its historical, cultural and architectural background, Metz has been submitted on France's UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List. The city features noteworthy buildings such as the Gothic Saint-Stephen Cathedral with its largest expanse of stained-glass windows in the world, the Basilica of Saint-Pierre-aux-Nonnains being the oldest church in France, its Imperial Station Palace displaying the apartment of the German Kaiser, or its Opera House, the oldest one working in France. Metz is home to some world-class venues including the Arsenal Concert Hall and the Centre Pompidou-Metz museum. A basin of urban ecology, Metz gained its nickname of The Green City (French: La Ville Verte), as it has extensive open grounds and public gardens. The historic city centre is one of the largest commercial pedestrian areas in France.A historic garrison town, Metz is the economic heart of the Lorraine region, specialising in information technology and automotive industries. Metz is home to the University of Lorraine, Georgia Tech Lorraine, and a centre for applied research and development in the materials sector, notably in metallurgy and metallography, the heritage of the Lorraine region's past in the iron and steel industry.

The Battle of Bellevue on 7 October 1870 was fought during the Franco-Prussian War and ended in a Prussian victory. The French forces under Marshal François Achille Bazaine attempted to break through the lines of the Prussians investing Metz. They were unsuccessful and were driven back into the city with a loss of 1,300 men, including 71 officers. The Prussians lost 1,800 men, including 79 officers.

The Museum of Metz (Musée de la Cour d'Or - Metz Métropole), in Metz, France, was founded in 1839. It is a labyrinthine organization of rooms, incorporating the ancient Petites Carmes Abbey, the Chèvremont granary, and the Trinitaires church. The institution is organized into four broad sections: The history and archeological museum, containing rich collections of Gallo-Roman finds — extension works to the museums in the 1930s revealed the vestiges of Gallo-Roman baths; The medieval department; The museum of architecture; The museum of fine arts. The museum recreates the world of the ancient and medieval city's inhabitants.

The Metzgau was a medieval Gaugrafschaft, a frankish management district, with the city of Metz as its center. The County of Metz originated from the Metzgau. North of the Metzgau down the Moselle lay the Moselgau, whose administrative seat was temporarily Metz, wherewith a territorial overlap with the Metzgau existed at least for some time.

The Hôtel de Ville (French pronunciation: [otɛl də vil], City Hall) is a municipal building in Metz, Moselle, northeast France, standing on the Place D'Armes. It was designated a monument historique by the French government in 1922.

The Frac Lorraine, also known as 49 Nord 6 Est, is a public collection of contemporary art of the Grand Est region in France. It is located in Metz.

The Diocese of Metz (Latin: Dioecesis Metensis; French: Diocèse de Metz) is a Latin Church ecclesiastical territory or diocese of the Catholic Church in France. In the Middle Ages it was a prince-bishopric of the Holy Roman Empire, a de facto independent state ruled by the prince-bishop who had the ex officio title of count. It was annexed to France by King Henry II in 1552; this was recognized by the Holy Roman Empire in the Peace of Westphalia of 1648. It formed part of the province of the Three Bishoprics. Since 1801 the Metz diocese has been a public-law corporation of cult (French: établissement public du culte). The diocese is presently exempt directly to the Holy See.

Eurométropole de Metz is the métropole, an intercommunal structure, centred on the city of Metz. It is located in the Moselle department, in the Grand Est region, northeastern France. It was created as a communauté d'agglomération in January 2014, and became a métropole in January 2018. Its area is 312.8 km2. Its population was 224,863 in 2019.

The County of Metz originated from the frankish Metzgau. In the second half of the 9th century it went to the Gerhardiner (de), which held at the same time the County of Paris. Over the Gerhardiner went the County—perhaps even in male lineage—to the Matfriede, which furthermore in 1047 received the title of Duke in Lorraine, namely Gerard IV, Duke of Alsace (c. 1030 – 1070), Seigneur of Châtenois (see also House of Châtenois). The County of Metz stood little time later under the high dignity of the Bishopric of Metz, to which it then integrated itself. From 1189 the city of Metz was a Free Imperial City of the German Holy Roman Empire.

The cantons of Metz are administrative divisions of the Moselle department, in northeastern France. Since the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015, the city of Metz is subdivided into 3 cantons. Their seat is in Metz.

Metz Cathedral, is the cathedral of the Catholic Diocese of Metz, the seat of the bishops of Metz. It is dedicated to Saint Stephen. The diocese dates back at least to the 4th century and the present cathedral building was begun in the early 14th century. In the mid-14th century, it was joined to the collegiate church of Notre-Dame, and given a new transept and late Gothic chevet, finished between 1486 and 1520. The cathedral treasury displays a rich collection assembled over the long centuries of the history of the Metz diocese and include sacred vestments and items used for the Eucharist.Metz Cathedral has the third-highest nave of cathedrals in France (41.41 meters (135.9 ft)), after the cathedrals of Amiens and Beauvais . It is nicknamed la Lanterne du Bon Dieu ("the Good Lord's lantern"), on account of its displaying the largest expanse of stained glass in the world, totalling 6,496 m2 (69,920 sq ft). The stained glass windows include works by Gothic and Renaissance master glass makers Hermann von Münster, Theobald of Lixheim, and Valentin Bousch. Later artistic styles are represented by Charles-Laurent Maréchal (Romanticism), Roger Bissière (Tachism), Jacques Villon (Cubism), and Marc Chagall.

The Place Saint-Jacques (St. James's square) is situated in the centre of Metz in front of the centre Saint-Jacques, a three-storey mall. It is located between rue Fabert and rue Ladoucette, in the heart of the historic and pedestrian centre, near the cathedral.