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Thann (; Alsatian: ''Dànn'', , ) is a commune in the northeastern French department of
Haut-Rhin Haut-Rhin (); Alsatian: ''Owerelsàss'' or '; , . is a department in the Grand Est region, France, bordering both Germany and Switzerland. It is named after the river Rhine; its name means Upper Rhine. Haut-Rhin is the smaller and less pop ...
, in
Grand Est Grand Est (; ) is an Regions of France, administrative region in northeastern France. It superseded three former administrative regions, Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne and Lorraine, on 1 January 2016 under the provisional name of Alsace-Champagne-A ...
.Commune de Thann (68334)
INSEE
It is the ''
sous-préfecture A subprefecture is an administrative division of a country that is below prefecture or province. Albania There are twelve Albanian counties or prefectures, each of which is divided into several districts, sometimes translated as subprefectures ...
'' of the arrondissement of Thann-Guebwiller and part of the
canton of Cernay The Cantons of France, canton of Cernay is an administrative division of the Haut-Rhin departments of France, department, northeastern France. Its borders were modified at the French canton reorganisation which came into effect in March 2015. Its se ...
. Its inhabitants are known as ''Thannois''.


Geography

Thann is situated at the foot of the
Vosges mountains The Vosges ( , ; ; Franconian (linguistics), Franconian and ) is a range of medium mountains in Eastern France, near its France–Germany border, border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the bor ...
, where the valley of the river Thur enters the
Upper Rhine Plain The Upper Rhine Plain, Rhine Rift Valley or Upper Rhine Graben ( German: ''Oberrheinische Tiefebene'', ''Oberrheinisches Tiefland'' or ''Oberrheingraben'', French: ''Vallée du Rhin'') is a major rift, about and on average , between Basel in the ...
. The Thur runs through the middle of the town.


History

In 1635, during the
Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War, fought primarily in Central Europe between 1618 and 1648, was one of the most destructive conflicts in History of Europe, European history. An estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died from battle, famine ...
, Thann was taken by imperialist forces. A mercenary among those troops described it as a "beautiful city, which lies on a mountain and is strongly fortified."


Transport

Thann is 43 km from
Colmar Colmar (; ; or ) is a city and commune in the Haut-Rhin department and Alsace region of north-eastern France. The third-largest commune in Alsace (after Strasbourg and Mulhouse), it is the seat of the prefecture of the Haut-Rhin department ...
and 21 km from
Mulhouse Mulhouse (; ; Alsatian language, Alsatian: ''Mìlhüsa'' ; , meaning "Mill (grinding), mill house") is a France, French city of the European Collectivity of Alsace (Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region of France). It is near the Fran ...
. The town is also well situated for the French autoroute network such as the A35 and A36. The RN66 (''Route Nationale 66'') passes through Thann, providing an east–west route between
Mulhouse Mulhouse (; ; Alsatian language, Alsatian: ''Mìlhüsa'' ; , meaning "Mill (grinding), mill house") is a France, French city of the European Collectivity of Alsace (Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region of France). It is near the Fran ...
and
Épinal Épinal (; ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in northeastern France and the prefecture of the Vosges (department), Vosges Departments of France, department. Geography The commune has a land area of . It is situated on the river Moselle, so ...
. * Thann and the Thur valley are served by regular TER trains on a branch line running from
Mulhouse Mulhouse (; ; Alsatian language, Alsatian: ''Mìlhüsa'' ; , meaning "Mill (grinding), mill house") is a France, French city of the European Collectivity of Alsace (Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region of France). It is near the Fran ...
to
Kruth Kruth (; ) is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Grand Est in north-eastern France. Its railway station is the terminus of a TER service to Mulhouse. Geography Climate Kruth has a humid continental climate (Köppen climate classificati ...
. * A new
tram-train A tram-train or dual-system tram is a type of light rail vehicle that both meets the standards of a light rail system, and also national mainline standards. Tramcars are adapted to be capable of running on streets like an urban tramway but a ...
service of the
Mulhouse tramway The Mulhouse tramway (; ) is a tram network in the France, French city of Mulhouse in Alsace, France. It commenced service in 2006, and now comprises three purely tram lines, plus one hybrid tram-train line. Tram services The three pure tram ...
links Thann to the city centre of
Mulhouse Mulhouse (; ; Alsatian language, Alsatian: ''Mìlhüsa'' ; , meaning "Mill (grinding), mill house") is a France, French city of the European Collectivity of Alsace (Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region of France). It is near the Fran ...
.


Demographic evolution


Architectural heritage

Despite sustaining heavy damage in
World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...
and
World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
, Thann contains several old buildings and monuments of significance.


La Collégiale Saint-Thiébaut

Situated in the centre of the old town, the church known as the ''Collégiale'' is good example of the style of
Gothic architecture Gothic architecture is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High Middle Ages, High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It evolved f ...
that flourished in the
Rhine valley Rhine Valley (German: ''Rheintal'' ) is the valley, or any section of it, of the river Rhine in Europe. Particular valleys of the Rhine or any of its sections: * Alpine Rhine Valley ** Chur Rhine Valley (or Grisonian Rhine Valley; , or sometimes ...
in the late Middle Ages. The Cathedrals of
Strasbourg Strasbourg ( , ; ; ) is the Prefectures in France, prefecture and largest city of the Grand Est Regions of France, region of Geography of France, eastern France, in the historic region of Alsace. It is the prefecture of the Bas-Rhin Departmen ...
and
Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau or simply Freiburg is the List of cities in Baden-Württemberg by population, fourth-largest city of the German state of Baden-Württemberg after Stuttgart, Mannheim and Karlsruhe. Its built-up area has a population of abou ...
in Germany are also built in a similar style. The building owes its name ''"La collégiale"'' to the college of monks who moved to Thann from the nearby town of Saint-Amarin in 1442. Construction of the collégiale took more than 200 years, from the end of the 13th Century through the 15th Century, and was completed in 1516 with the 78m tall spire. For an extensive study of the Thann collegiate church, circumstances of its erection, issues of patronage, and unique sculptural programs, see Assaf Pinkus, Workshops and Patrons of St. Theobald in Thann (Waxmann Verlag: Muenster, Berlin, New York, 2006).


La Tour des Sorcières (The Witches' Tower)

This was a tower in the old town walls, and built in 1411. The bulbous roof dates from 1628. Today the interior houses a museum dedicated to winemaking.


Le Château de l'Engelbourg (Engelbourg Castle)

The ruins of the Engelbourg Castle sit on a hill to the north of the old town. The castle was constructed in the 13th century by the Counts of Ferrette to control the entrance to the valley and ensure the paying of tolls by those wishing to cross the
Vosges The Vosges ( , ; ; Franconian and ) is a range of medium 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 single geomorphological unit and ...
by way of the Thur valley and the col de Bussang. The castle was destroyed on the orders of
Louis XIV LouisXIV (Louis-Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was King of France from 1643 until his death in 1715. His verified reign of 72 years and 110 days is the List of longest-reign ...
. During demolition, one of towers overturned and cracked into sections, one of which forms a large stone ring known locally today as The Witch's Eye (''L'œil de la sorcière'').


L'Hôtel de Ville

The Hotel de Ville was originally conceived as a hospital, but was opened as a town hall in 1793.


Education

The town is served by four ''écoles maternelles''; three ''écoles élémentaires''; two ''collèges'' (Collège Charles Walch and Collège Rémy Faesch); and two ''lycées'' (Lycée Professionel Charles Pointet and Lycée Scheurer-Kestner).


Tourism

* Thann is the southern terminus of the route des Vins d'Alsace. The northern side of the town is overlooked by the Rangen vineyard, one of the few vineyards in
Alsace Alsace (, ; ) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in the Grand Est administrative region of northeastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine, next to Germany and Switzerland. In January 2021, it had a population of 1,9 ...
to be classed '' grand cru''. * Thann is well situated for access to the .


People

*
Ernst Robert Curtius Ernst Robert Curtius (; 14 April 1886 – 19 April 1956) was a German literary scholar, philologist, and Romance languages literary critic, best known for his 1948 study ''Europäische Literatur und Lateinisches Mittelalter'', translated in E ...
, literary critic * Emmanuel Fernandes, politician * Jean-Baptiste-Joseph Gobel


Twin towns

* -
Gubbio Gubbio () is an Italian town and ''comune'' in the far northeastern part of the Italian province of Perugia (Umbria). It is located on the lowest slope of Mt. Ingino, a small mountain of the Apennine Mountains, Apennines. History Prehistory The ol ...
,
Italy Italy, officially the Italian Republic, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe, Western Europe. It consists of Italian Peninsula, a peninsula that extends into the Mediterranean Sea, with the Alps on its northern land b ...
* -
Tonneins Tonneins (; ) is a town in the Lot-et-Garonne Departments of France, department of south-western France. It stands above the river Garonne, between Marmande to the west and Agen to the east, and is the first major town below the confluence of t ...
,
France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...


See also

*
Communes of the Haut-Rhin department The following is a list of the 366 Communes of France, communes of the French Departments of France, department of Haut-Rhin. The communes cooperate in the following Communes of France#Intercommunality, intercommunalities (as of 2025):


References


External links


Official site of Thann town council (in French)

Tourist Office of the Pays de Thann (in French)
{{authority control Communes of Haut-Rhin Subprefectures in France