MEURTHE-ET-MOSELLE

dpartement, Lorraine rgion, northeastern France, created in 1871 from those parts of the dpartements of Meurthe and Moselle that remained in French possession after the Franco-Prussian War (187071). These dpartements originally had been constituted from a section of historical Lorraine (q.v.), and when the territories annexed by Germany in 1871 were restored to France following World War I, they were formed into the neighbouring dpartement of Moselle. Meurthe-et-Moselle extends from Vosges dpartement in the south to the Belgian and Luxembourg frontiers in the north and has at its centre the Moselle River valley and Nancy (q.v.), the departmental capital. The country is forested and hilly, rising to about 1,200 feet (370 m) in the southwest, where the hills are cut by the Meuse River valley, and to more than 2,000 feet in the southeast in the Vosges mountains. The Meurthe and Moselle rivers approach each other south of Nancy. The Moselle loops around the ancient cathedral city of Toul and receives the Meurthe north of Nancy. It flows past metallurgical works and through Pont--Mousson before leaving the dpartement. The wooded, hilly northern strip contains the greater part of the Briey iron-ore basin and embraces the heavily industrialized valleys of the Longwy iron-ore field, with its concentrations of blast furnaces and foundries. The area accounts for a sizable proportion of France's total iron and steel output. The prospect of the abandonment of iron mining weighs heavily on the local economy. Planners hope to substitute automobile-related industries. The Canal de la Marne au Rhin crosses the dpartement west-east through Nancy and the middle of the Dombasle-sur-Meurthe rock-salt deposits, which are exploited for heavy chemical industries. The climate in the dpartement is predominantly continental, with severe winters (averaging 20 to 30 days of snow) and hot summers. Forestry is important, and cereals, beets, and potatoes are grown, but there is a trend toward cattle raising to provide local markets with meat and dairy produce. Traditional local industries include brewing at Nancy, glassworks at Baccarat, and iron pipes at Pont--Mousson. The dpartement is divided into the arrondissements of Nancy, Briey, Toul, and Lunville, which has a fine 18th-century palace inspired by Versailles. Nancy is the administrative centre for education. Area 2,024 square miles (5,241 square km). Pop. (1992 est.) 709,700.