Sedan, Ardennes

Sedan (French pronunciation: ​[sə.dɑ̃]) is a commune in France, a sub-prefecture of the Ardennes department in northern France.

Geography

The historic centre is built on a peninsula formed by an arc of the Meuse River. It is around 10 kilometres (6 mi) from the Belgian border.

History

Sedan was founded in 1424. In the sixteenth century Sédan was an asylum for Protestant refugees from the Wars of Religion.

Until 1651, the Principality of Sedan belonged to the La Tour d'Auvergne family. It was at that time a sovereign principality. Their most illustrious representative, Marshal Turenne, was born at Sedan on 11 September 1611. With help from the Holy Roman Empire, it managed to defeat France at the Battle of La Marfée, though immediately afterwards it was besieged and its prince, Frédéric Maurice de La Tour d'Auvergne, duc de Bouillon, submitted to France. Only a year after that submission, it was annexed to France in return for sparing his life after he became involved in a conspiracy against France.