Meurthe-et-Moselle (French pronunciation: [mœʁt e mɔzɛl] ) is a département in the Grand Est region of France, named after the rivers Meurthe and Moselle. Its prefecture and largest city is Nancy and it borders the departments of Meuse to the west, Vosges to the south, Moselle and Bas-Rhin and it borders the Belgian province of Luxembourg and the country of Luxembourg by the canton of Esch-sur-Alzette to the north. It had a population of 733,760 in 2019.[3]

Meurthe-et-Moselle
Prefecture building of the Meurthe-et-Moselle department, in Nancy
Prefecture building of the Meurthe-et-Moselle department, in Nancy
Flag of Meurthe-et-Moselle
Coat of arms of Meurthe-et-Moselle
Location of Meurthe-et-Moselle in France
Location of Meurthe-et-Moselle in France
Coordinates: 48°40′N 06°10′E / 48.667°N 6.167°E / 48.667; 6.167
CountryFrance
RegionGrand Est
PrefectureNancy
SubprefecturesVal de Briey
Lunéville
Toul
Government
 • President of the Departmental CouncilChaynesse Khirouni[1] (PS)
Area
 • Total
5,246 km2 (2,025 sq mi)
Population
 (2021)[2]
 • Total
732,486
 • Rank33rd
 • Density140/km2 (360/sq mi)
Time zoneUTC+1 (CET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+2 (CEST)
Department number54
Arrondissements4
Cantons23
Communes591
^1 French Land Register data, which exclude estuaries, and lakes, ponds, and glaciers larger than 1 km2

History

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Meurthe-et-Moselle was created in 1871 at the end of the Franco-Prussian War from the parts of the former departments of Moselle and Meurthe which remained French territory.

The current boundary between Meurthe-et-Moselle and Moselle was the border between France and Germany from 1871 to 1919 and again between 1940 and 1944. The only subsequent change took place in 1997 and involved the incorporation, for administrative reasons, of the little commune of Han-devant-Pierrepont which had previously fallen within the Meuse department.[4]

Geography

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Meurthe-et-Moselle is part of the administrative region of Grand Est and the traditional region of Lorraine and is surrounded by the departments of Meuse, Vosges, Bas-Rhin, and Moselle, and by the nations of Luxembourg and Belgium by the salient of the arrondissement of Val-de-Briey. It is one of two departments in France which border with Luxembourg. Parts of Meurthe-et-Moselle belong to the Lorraine Regional Natural Park.

The department extends for 130 km from north to south and is between 7 and 103 km wide.

Its chief rivers are the Moselle, the Meurthe, the Chiers, and the Vezouze.

Economy

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The economy was highly dependent on mining until the 1960s. There are iron, salt, and lime extraction sites. The urban area around Nancy has an economy based largely on services, research, and higher education.

Demographics

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The inhabitants of the department are known as Meurthe-et-Mosellans. The area around Nancy has become highly urbanized, whereas the Saintois in the south is quite rural.

Population development since 1801:

Historical population
YearPop.±% p.a.
1801338,115—    
1831415,568+0.69%
1841444,603+0.68%
1851450,423+0.13%
1861428,643−0.49%
1872365,137−1.45%
1881419,317+1.55%
1891444,150+0.58%
1901484,722+0.88%
1911564,730+1.54%
1921503,810−1.13%
1931592,632+1.64%
YearPop.±% p.a.
1936576,041−0.57%
1946528,805−0.85%
1954607,022+1.74%
1962678,078+1.39%
1968705,413+0.66%
1975722,588+0.34%
1982716,846−0.11%
1990711,822−0.09%
1999713,779+0.03%
2006725,303+0.23%
2011733,124+0.21%
2016733,821+0.02%
Figures before 1872 refer to the Meurthe department. Sources:[5][6]

Principal towns

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The most populous commune is Nancy, the prefecture. As of 2019, there are 10 communes with more than 10,000 inhabitants:[3]

Commune Population (2019)
Nancy 105,058
Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy 29,942
Lunéville 17,867
Toul 15,633
Longwy 14,774
Villers-lès-Nancy 14,525
Pont-à-Mousson 14,497
Laxou 14,366
Saint-Max 10,019
Villerupt 10,003

Politics

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The president of the Departmental Council is Chaynesse Khirouni, elected in July 2021.

Presidential elections 2nd round

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Election Winning Candidate Party % 2nd Place Candidate Party %
2022 Emmanuel Macron LREM 54.42 Marine Le Pen FN 45.58
2017[7] Emmanuel Macron LREM 60.66 Marine Le Pen FN 39.34
2012 François Hollande PS 53.06 Nicolas Sarkozy UMP 46.94
2007 Nicolas Sarkozy UMP 51.12 Ségolène Royal PS 48.88
2002[7] Jacques Chirac RPR 81.72 Jean-Marie Le Pen FN 18.28
1995[8] Lionel Jospin PS 51.99 Jacques Chirac RPR 48.01

Current National Assembly Representatives

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Constituency Member[9] Party
Meurthe-et-Moselle's 1st constituency Carole Grandjean La République En Marche!
Meurthe-et-Moselle's 2nd constituency Laurent Garcia MoDem
Meurthe-et-Moselle's 3rd constituency Xavier Paluszkiewicz La République En Marche!
Meurthe-et-Moselle's 4th constituency Thibault Bazin The Republicans
Meurthe-et-Moselle's 5th constituency Dominique Potier Socialist Party
Meurthe-et-Moselle's 6th constituency Caroline Fiat La France Insoumise

Tourism

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See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Répertoire national des élus: les conseillers départementaux". data.gouv.fr, Plateforme ouverte des données publiques françaises (in French). 4 May 2022.
  2. ^ "Téléchargement du fichier d'ensemble des populations légales en 2021" (in French). The National Institute of Statistics and Economic Studies. 28 December 2023.
  3. ^ a b Populations légales 2019: 54 Meurthe-et-Moselle, INSEE
  4. ^ Décret no 96-709 du 7 août 1996 portant modification des limites territoriales de départements, d'arrondissements et de cantons, Légifrance
  5. ^ "Historique de Meurthe-et-Moselle". Le SPLAF.
  6. ^ "Évolution et structure de la population en 2016". INSEE.
  7. ^ a b "Présidentielles".
  8. ^ "Résultats de l'élection présidentielle de 1995 par département - Politiquemania".
  9. ^ Nationale, Assemblée. "Assemblée nationale ~ Les députés, le vote de la loi, le Parlement français". Assemblée nationale.
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