Mülhausen
 
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Coordinates: 47°44′57″N, 07°20′24″E

Commune of Mulhouse

Old city core, Mulhouse
Location
Coordinates 47°44′57″N, 07°20′24″E
Administration
Country France
Region Alsace
Department Haut-Rhin (sous-préfecture)
Arrondissement Mulhouse
Canton Chief town of 4 cantons
Intercommunality Mulhouse Sud-Alsace
Mayor Jean-Marie Bockel
(1989-2008)
Statistics
Elevation 232 m–338 m
(avg. 240 m)
Land area¹ 22.18 km²
Population²
(1999)		 (Mulhousiens) 110,359
 - Density 4,976/km² (1999)
Miscellaneous
INSEE/Postal code 68224/ 68100, 68200
1 French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
2 Population sans doubles comptes: residents of multiple communes (e.g. students and military personnel) only counted once.
France

Mulhouse (French: Mulhouse, pronounced [myluz]; Alsatian: Milhüsa or Milhüse, pronounced [mɪlˈyːzə]; German: Mülhausen; i.e. house of mills) is a city and commune in eastern France, close to the Swiss and German borders. With 271,000 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2007 it is the largest city in the Haut-Rhin department, and the second largest in the Alsace region after Strasbourg. Its designated local development area consists of 16 communes, but its conurbation is substantially larger than that.

Contents

Administration

Mulhouse is the chief city of an arrondissement of the Haut-Rhin département, of which it is a sous-préfecture. Although the city is by far the most populous in Haut-Rhin, its préfecture (capital) resides in the smaller commune of Colmar.

History

Legends mention the origin of the town in 58 BC, but the first written records of Mulhouse date from the 12th century. It was part of the southern Alsatian county of Sundgau in the Holy Roman Empire. From 1354–1515 Mulhouse was part of the Décapole, an association of ten Free Imperial Cities in Alsace. The city joined the Swiss Confederation as an associate in 1515 and was therefore not annexed by France in the Peace of Westphalia in 1648 like the rest of the Sundgau. It was then considered a free republic associated with the Swiss Confederation until it joined "free" France on January 4, 1798, after a French blockade of the city during the French Directory period.

After the Franco-Prussian War and the unification of Germany, Mulhouse was annexed to the German Empire as part of the territory of Alsace-Lorraine (1870-1918). The city was occupied by French troops on 8 August 1914 at the start of World War I, but they were forced to withdraw two days later in the Battle of Mulhouse. Republic of Alsace-Lorraine was invaded and annexed by France after World War I. It was occupied and annexed by Nazi Germany after the Battle of France in 1940, until annexed to France at the close of the war in 1945.

The town's development was stimulated first by the expansion of the textile industry and tanning, and subsequently by chemical and engineering industries from the mid 18th century. Mulhouse was for a long time called the French Manchester. In consequence the town has enduring links with Louisiana, from which it imported cotton, and also with the Levant. The town's history also explains why its centre is relatively small.

Geography

Two rivers run through Mulhouse, the Doller and the Ill, both tributaries of the Rhine.

Districts

Medieval Mulhouse consists essentially of a lower and an upper town.

  • The lower town was formerly the quarter of merchants and craftsmen. It developed around the Place de la Réunion (which commemorates its reunion with France). Nowadays this area is pedestrianised.
  • The upper town developed from the 18th century on. Previously, several monastic orders were established there, notably the Franciscans, Augustinians, Poor Clares and Knights of Malta.
  • The Nouveau Quartier (New Town) is the best example of urban planning in Mulhouse, and was developed from 1826 on, after the town walls had been removed (as they were in many French towns). It is focused around the Place de la République. Its network of streets and its triangular shape are a good demonstration of the town's desire for a planned layout. The planning was undertaken by the architects G. Stolz and Félix Fries. This quarter was taken up by rich families and the owners of local industries, who tended to be liberal and republican in their opinions.
  • The Rebberg district consists of grand houses inspired by the colonnaded residences of Louisiana cotton planters. Originally, this was the town's vineyard (the word reb meaning vine). The houses here were built as terraces in the English style, a result of the town's close relationship with Manchester, where the sons of industrialists were often sent to study.
Place de la Réunion
Place de la Réunion

Principal places of interest

Hôtel de Ville (Rathaus), Mulhouse
Hôtel de Ville (Rathaus), Mulhouse
Société Industrielle building, Mulhouse
Société Industrielle building, Mulhouse

Principal economic activities

Transport

Mulhouse is served by Basel-Mulhouse-Freiburg International Airport.

Mulhouse has its own SNCF station with a direct connection to Basel in Switzerland.

Tram network
Tram network

Transport within Mulhouse is provided by a tram network, which opened on May 13, 2006[1] and is due to be further extended by 2008.

Miscellaneous

Births

Mulhouse was the birth place of:

Mayors of Mulhouse

  • Jean-Marie Bockel (since 1989)
  • Joseph Klifa (1981-1989)
  • Emile Muller (1956-1981)

Twin towns

External links

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