Marne: Champagne, Coronations, and the Great War
Marne is Champagne country. Reims and Epernay are the twin capitals of the champagne industry, which produces over 300 million bottles annually. Reims, the larger city, has a cathedral where French kings were crowned for a thousand years, from Clovis in 496 to Charles X in 1825. The cathedral was heavily damaged in World War I and painstakingly restored. Chalons-en-Champagne is the official prefecture, despite being smaller than Reims.
The Avenue de Champagne in Epernay, lined with the headquarters of Moet et Chandon, Perrier-Jouet, and other houses, sits above kilometres of chalk cellars carved into the hillside. These cellars, along with the vineyards and production sites, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Marne was also a crucial World War I battlefield; the two Battles of the Marne (1914 and 1918) were turning points. The department has about 580,000 residents.
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Marne is Champagne country. Reims and Epernay are the twin capitals of the champagne industry, which produces over 300 million bottles annually. Reims, the larger city, has a cathedral where French kings were crowned for a thousand years, from Clovis in 496 to Charles X in 1825. The cathedral was heavily damaged in World War I and painstakingly restored. Chalons-en-Champagne is the official prefecture, despite being smaller than Reims.
The Avenue de Champagne in Epernay, lined with the headquarters of Moet et Chandon, Perrier-Jouet, and other houses, sits above kilometres of chalk cellars carved into the hillside. These cellars, along with the vineyards and production sites, are a UNESCO World Heritage Site. The Marne was also a crucial World War I battlefield; the two Battles of the Marne (1914 and 1918) were turning points. The department has about 580,000 residents.
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