Saverne (french: Saverne, ; Alsatian: ; german: Zabern ) is a commune in the

Bas-Rhin Bas-Rhin (; Alsatian: ''Unterelsàss'', ' or '; traditional german: links=no, Niederrhein; en, Lower Rhine) is a department in Alsace which is a part of the Grand Est super-region of France. The name means 'Lower Rhine', referring to its lo ...

department in

Grand Est Grand Est (; gsw-FR, Grossa Oschta; Moselle Franconian/ lb, Grouss Osten; Rhine Franconian: ''Groß Oschte''; german: Großer Osten ; en, "Great East") is an administrative region in Northeastern France. It superseded three former administr ...

in north-eastern

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

. It is situated on the Rhine-Marne canal at the foot of a

pass Pass, PASS, The Pass or Passed may refer to: Places *Pass, County Meath, a townland in Ireland * Pass, Poland, a village in Poland * Pass, an alternate term for a number of straits: see List of straits *Mountain pass, a lower place in a mounta ...

over the

Vosges Mountains The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a singl ...

, and 45 km (27 mi) northwest of

Strasbourg Strasbourg (, , ; german: Straßburg ; gsw, label= Bas Rhin Alsatian, Strossburi , gsw, label= Haut Rhin Alsatian, Strossburig ) is the prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est region of eastern France and the official seat of the ...

. In 2018, the commune of Saverne had a population of 11,289, and its

urban area An urban area, built-up area or urban agglomeration is a human settlement with a high population density and infrastructure of built environment. Urban areas are created through urbanization and are categorized by urban morphology as cities ...

, of 18,740.

Geography

Saverne lies on the river Zorn, at the foot of the

. It is crossed by the

Marne–Rhine Canal The Canal de la Marne au Rhin (Marne–Rhine Canal) is a canal in north-eastern France. It connects the river Marne and the Canal entre Champagne et Bourgogne in Vitry-le-François with the port of Strasbourg on the Rhine. The original objecti ...

and the Paris–Strasbourg railway. The

A4 autoroute The A4 Autoroute, also known as autoroute de l'Est (), is a French '' autoroute'' that travels between the cities of Paris and Strasbourg. It forms parts of European routes E25 and E50. It is France's second longest after the A10 autorout ...

(Paris–Strasbourg) passes a few km north of the town.

Saverne station Saverne station ( French: ''Gare de Saverne'') is a French railway station located on the Noisy-le-Sec–Strasbourg railway. It is located within the commune of Saverne, in departement Bas-Rhin, in northeastern France. The station was put in op ...

has rail connections to Paris, Strasbourg, Metz, Nancy and several regional destinations.

History

Saverne ( la, Tres Tabernae Cesaris: Caesar's three taverns, so called because in the older days there were three taverns on the way to the Lorraine plateau where they would change oxen due to the steep incline) was an important place in the time of the

Roman Empire The Roman Empire ( la, Imperium Romanum ; grc-gre, Βασιλεία τῶν Ῥωμαίων, Basileía tôn Rhōmaíōn) was the post-Roman Republic, Republican period of ancient Rome. As a polity, it included large territorial holdings aro ...

, and, after being destroyed by the

Alamanni The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pre ...

, was rebuilt by the emperor Julian.

Ammianus Marcellinus Ammianus Marcellinus (occasionally anglicised as Ammian) (born , died 400) was a Roman soldier and historian who wrote the penultimate major historical account surviving from antiquity (preceding Procopius). His work, known as the ''Res Gestae ...

, '' Res Gestae'' XVI.11.11 With the settlement of the

Alemanni The Alemanni or Alamanni, were a confederation of Germanic tribes * * * on the Upper Rhine River. First mentioned by Cassius Dio in the context of the campaign of Caracalla of 213, the Alemanni captured the in 260, and later expanded into pres ...

, the town became part of the Germanosphere. After 870 AD the town belonged to

East Francia East Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the East Franks () was a successor state of Charlemagne's empire ruled by the Carolingian dynasty until 911. It was created through the Treaty of Verdun (843) which divided the former empire int ...

, which turned into the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

. During the

German Peasants' War The German Peasants' War, Great Peasants' War or Great Peasants' Revolt (german: Deutscher Bauernkrieg) was a widespread popular revolt in some German-speaking areas in Central Europe from 1524 to 1525. It failed because of intense oppositi ...

the town was occupied, in 1525, by the insurgents, who were driven out in their turn by Duke Anton of Lorraine. It suffered much from the ravages of the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of batt ...

, but the episcopal palace, then destroyed, was subsequently rebuilt. After 1680 the town was annexed by the French. The episcopal palace was in 1852 converted by Louis Napoleon into a place of residence for widows of knights of the

Legion of Honour The National Order of the Legion of Honour (french: Ordre national de la Légion d'honneur), formerly the Royal Order of the Legion of Honour ('), is the highest French order of merit, both military and civil. Established in 1802 by Napoleo ...

. Saverne was conquered by

Imperial Germany The German Empire (),Herbert Tuttle wrote in September 1881 that the term "Reich" does not literally connote an empire as has been commonly assumed by English-speaking people. The term literally denotes an empire – particularly a hereditary ...

after the Franco-Prussian War. It was returned to French control after

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was List of wars and anthropogenic disasters by death toll, one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, ...

. In 1913, the city was the theater of the infamous "

Saverne Affair The Zabern or Saverne Affair was a crisis of domestic policy which occurred in the German Empire at the end of 1913. It was caused by political unrest in Zabern (now Saverne) in Alsace-Lorraine, where two battalions of the Prussian were garris ...

". This event gave rise to the term ''Zabernism'' (from the German name of the town), meaning abuse of military authority, or unwarranted aggression.

Population

Sights

The emblem of the town is a unicorn. Legend has it that a unicorn's horn was found in one of the nearby castles in ruins. It is more likely that a

narwhal The narwhal, also known as a narwhale (''Monodon monoceros''), is a medium-sized toothed whale that possesses a large " tusk" from a protruding canine tooth. It lives year-round in the Arctic waters around Greenland, Canada and Russia. It is ...

's tooth was discovered and mistaken for a unicorn's horn. However, it gave its name to the local beer (fr: ''Bière de la Licorne'') and to the Karlsbräu brewery (f: ''Brasserie la Licorne'') making it. Its principal building, the

Rohan Castle Rohan may refer to: Places * Rohan, Morbihan, a French commune in Brittany * Château des Rohan (Mutzig), France * Żebbuġ, Malta, also known as Città Rohan ** De Rohan Arch, a commemorative arch in Żebbuġ * Palais Rohan, Bordeaux, France * ...

(''Château des Rohan''), is the former residence of the

bishops of Strasbourg {{Unreferenced, date=December 2009 These persons were bishop, archbishop or prince-bishop of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Strasbourg (including historically Prince-Bishopric of Strasbourg): Bishops and prince-bishops *Amandus *Justinus vo ...

, rebuilt by

Cardinal de Rohan Louis René Édouard de Rohan known as Cardinal de Rohan (25 September 1734 – 16 February 1803), ''prince de Rohan-Guéméné'', was a French Bishop of Strasbourg, politician, cardinal of the Roman Catholic Church, and cadet of the Rohan fa ...

in 1779, it was used by the Germans as barracks. It now houses the city museum with its large archeological collection of Roman and Celtic artifacts, a hostel, a small arts and crafts museum as well as the collection of 20th century and ethnological art donated by feminist journalist and politician

Louise Weiss Louise or Luise may refer to: * Louise (given name) Arts Songs * "Louise" (Bonnie Tyler song), 2005 * "Louise" (The Human League song), 1984 * "Louise" (Jett Rebel song), 2013 * "Louise" (Maurice Chevalier song), 1929 *"Louise", by Clan of ...

. Other sights include the 15th century former castle (''Château vieux'') and the adjacent 15th century

Roman Catholic Roman or Romans most often refers to: * Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD * Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a let ...

parish church of Notre-Dame-de-la-Nativité with fine

stained glass Stained glass is coloured glass as a material or works created from it. Throughout its thousand-year history, the term has been applied almost exclusively to the windows of churches and other significant religious buildings. Although tradition ...

and sculptures; a Gothic former

Franciscan , image = FrancescoCoA PioM.svg , image_size = 200px , caption = A cross, Christ's arm and Saint Francis's arm, a universal symbol of the Franciscans , abbreviation = OFM , predecessor = , ...

, then Récollets, monastery with a church and a

cloister A cloister (from Latin ''claustrum'', "enclosure") is a covered walk, open gallery, or open arcade running along the walls of buildings and forming a quadrangle or garth. The attachment of a cloister to a cathedral or church, commonly against ...

ornated by 17th-century frescoes; as well as several old houses, among which the heavily decorated ''Maison Katz'' stands out. In the vicinity are the ruined castles of Haut-Barr, Grand Geroldseck, Ochsenstein and

Greifenstein Greifenstein is a municipality in the Lahn-Dill-Kreis in Hesse, Germany. Its administrative seat is Beilstein. Greifenstein covers 67.43 km² on the eastern slope of the Westerwald range. It was named for the castle of the same name in ...

. Hence a road, immortalized by

Goethe Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (28 August 1749 – 22 March 1832) was a German poet, playwright, novelist, scientist, statesman, theatre director, and critic. His works include plays, poetry, literature, and aesthetic criticism, as well as tr ...

in ''Dichtung und Wahrheit'', leads across the

Vosges The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a singl ...

to Pfalzburg. The mountain pass (

Col de Saverne The Col de Saverne (Pass of Saverne or Saverne Pass, ) is a natural pass in the north of the Vosges mountains, near Saverne, which permits travel between the départements of Bas-Rhin and Moselle, and therefore between Alsace and Lorraine. Transp ...

) contains a vast botanical garden, the Jardin botanique du col de Saverne. Saverne is also known for its Rose Garden, locally known as ''La roseraie''. It is also the host of the International Contest of New Roses every year. The Garden itself blesses visitors with over 550 varieties of rose

Tour du telegraphe Chappe Saverne 02

An old semaphore tower, from the former

Landau Landau ( pfl, Landach), officially Landau in der Pfalz, is an autonomous (''kreisfrei'') town surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route") district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a university town (since 1990 ...

(and later

) to

Paris Paris () is the capital and most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), making it the 30th most densely populated city in the world in 2020. Si ...

semaphore line An optical telegraph is a line of stations, typically towers, for the purpose of conveying textual information by means of visual signals. There are two main types of such systems; the semaphore telegraph which uses pivoted indicator arms and ...

, can be seen in the vicinity. It was one of the 50 stations built by the

first French Empire The First French Empire, officially the French Republic, then the French Empire (; Latin: ) after 1809, also known as Napoleonic France, was the empire ruled by Napoleon Bonaparte, who established French hegemony over much of continental E ...

on this line which was the second of this kind in France.

Notable people

Paul Acker Paul-Théodore Acker (14 September 1874 – 27 June 1915) was a French-language writer of popular novels. Biography Paul Acker was born on 14 September 1874 in Saverne. A journalist, he contributed to ''Le Gaulois (France), Le Gaulois'', '' ...

(1874–1916), writer, author of popular novels * Émile Blessig (born 1947), politician * Jacques-Frédéric (1775–1833) and François Joseph Français (1768–1810), engineers and mathematicians of the revolutionary era * Robert Heitz (1895–1984), politician, writer and art critic, painter and French resistance * Louis François Marie Auguste Knoepffler (1864–1918), timber merchant, Mayor of Saverne and a member of the Landtag * Loïc Lambour (born 1986), artistic photographer *

Venerable The Venerable (''venerabilis'' in Latin) is a style, a title, or an epithet which is used in some Western Christian churches, or it is a translation of similar terms for clerics in Eastern Orthodoxy and monastics in Buddhism. Christianity Cat ...

Francis Libermann Francis Mary Paul Libermann (french: link=no, François-Marie-Paul Libermann; born Jacob Libermann; 14 April 1802 – 2 February 1852) was a 19th-century French Jewish convert to Catholicism, member of the Spiritan Congregation. He is best known ...

(1802–1852), the son of the

Chief Rabbi Chief Rabbi ( he, רב ראשי ''Rav Rashi'') is a title given in several countries to the recognized religious leader of that country's Jewish community, or to a rabbinic leader appointed by the local secular authorities. Since 1911, through a ...

of Saverne. He converted to

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

in 1826 and later became known as "The Second Founder of The

Holy Ghost Fathers , image = Holy Ghost Fathers seal.png , size = 175px , caption = The seal of the Congregation depicting the Immaculate Heart of Mary, and the Holy Spirit proceeding from the Trinity. , abbreviation ...

". * Erich Mercker (1891–1973), painter and speed skater * Franz Xaver Murschhauser (1663–1738), composer and organist * Gérard Oberlé (born 1945), writer and bibliographer * Georges Reeb (1920–1993), mathematician * Dieprand von Richthofen (1875–1946), President of the Senate to the Court of the Reich and anti-Semitic policy (DSP) * Adrien Zeller (1940–2009), French politician (UMP)

Geography

History

Population

Sights

Notable people

See also