Ardennes

The Ardennes (/ɑːrˈdɛn/; Luxembourgish: Ardennen; also known as Ardennes Forest) is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges formed by the geological features of the Ardennes mountain range and the Moselle and Meuse River basins. Geologically, the range is a western extension of the Eifel and both were raised during the Givetian stage of the Devonian (419.2 ± 3.2 to about 358 million years ago) as were several other named ranges of the same greater range.

Primarily in Belgium and Luxembourg, but stretching into Germany and France (lending its name to the Ardennes department and the Champagne-Ardenne région), and geologically into the Eifel—the eastern extension of the Ardennes Forest into Bitburg-Prüm, Germany, most of the Ardenne proper consists of southeastern Wallonia, the southern and more rural part of the Kingdom of Belgium (away from the coastal plain but encompassing over half of the kingdom'’s total area). The eastern part of the Ardennes forms the northernmost third of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, also called "Oesling" (Luxembourgish: Éislek), and on the southeast the Eifel region continues into Rhineland-Palatinate (German state).

Ardennes (department)

Ardennes (French pronunciation: ​[aʁ.dɛn]) is a department in the Alsace-Champagne-Ardenne-Lorraine region of northeastern France named after the Ardennes area. Its prefecture is the town Charleville-Mézières. The inhabitants of the department are known as Ardennais or Ardennaises.

Geography

Summary

The department is surrounded by the French departments of Aisne to the west, Marne to the south, Meuse to the east and by the Belgian province of Namur to the north.

It is traversed in its northern part by the winding valley of the Meuse and it is in this part of the department that the majority of people and activities are focused. Charleville-Mézières and Sedan are the main urban centres.

The department is part of the Academy of Reims and under the jurisdiction of the Court of Appeal of Reims. The INSEE and Post Code is 08.

General geographic data

With an area of 5,229 square kilometres (2,019 square miles), the Ardennes was the smallest of the four departments that made up the region Champagne-Ardenne. It nevertheless presents a degree of geographical diversity.

Ardennes horse

The Ardennes or Ardennais is one of the oldest breeds of draft horse, and originates from the Ardennes area in Belgium, Luxembourg and France. They are heavy-boned with thick legs and are used for draft work. The Ardennes is found in many colors, although black horses are very rare and are not allowed to be registered with the breed registry. Their history reaches back to Ancient Rome, and throughout the years blood from several other breeds has been added to the Ardennes, although only the Belgian breed had any significant impact. The first Ardennes were imported to the United States in the early 20th century, and the first breed registry was established in Europe in 1929. The horses have been used throughout history as war horses, both as cavalry mounts and to draw artillery, and are used today mainly for heavy draft and farm work, meat production and competitive driving events. They have also been used to influence or create several other horse breeds throughout Europe and Asia.