Thann (; Alsatian: ''Dànn'', , german: Thann) is a

commune A commune is an alternative term for an intentional community. Commune or comună or comune or other derivations may also refer to: Administrative-territorial entities * Commune (administrative division), a municipality or township ** Communes of ...

in the northeastern French department of

Haut-Rhin Haut-Rhin (, ; Alsatian: ''Owerelsàss'' or '; german: Oberelsass, ) is a department in the Grand Est region of France, bordering both Germany and Switzerland. It is named after the river Rhine. Its name means ''Upper Rhine''. Haut-Rhin is th ...

, in

Grand Est Grand Est (; gsw-FR, Grossa Oschta; Moselle Franconian/ lb, Grouss Osten; Rhine Franconian: ''Groß Oschte''; german: Großer Osten ; en, "Great East") is an administrative region in Northeastern France. It superseded three former administra ...

.Commune de Thann (68334)
INSEE It is the '' sous-préfecture'' of the arrondissement of Thann-Guebwiller and part of the canton of Cernay. Its inhabitants are known as ''Thannois''.

Geography

Thann is situated at the foot of the

Vosges mountains The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single ...

, where the valley of the river Thur enters the

Upper Rhine Plain The Upper Rhine Plain, Rhine Rift Valley or Upper Rhine Graben ( German: ''Oberrheinische Tiefebene'', ''Oberrheinisches Tiefland'' or ''Oberrheingraben'', French: ''Vallée du Rhin'') is a major rift, about and on average , between Basel in the ...

. The Thur runs through the middle of the town.

History

In 1635, during the

Thirty Years' War The Thirty Years' War was one of the longest and most destructive conflicts in European history, lasting from 1618 to 1648. Fought primarily in Central Europe, an estimated 4.5 to 8 million soldiers and civilians died as a result of battle ...

, Thann was taken by imperialist forces. A mercenary among those troops described it as a "beautiful city, which lies on a mountain and is strongly fortified."

Demographic evolution

Transport

Thann is 43 km from Colmar and 21 km from

Mulhouse Mulhouse (; Alsatian: or , ; ; meaning '' mill house'') is a city of the Haut-Rhin department, in the Grand Est region, eastern France, close to the Swiss and German borders. It is the largest city in Haut-Rhin and second largest in Alsace a ...

. The town is also well situated for the French autoroute network such as the A35 and A36. The RN66 (''Route Nationale 66'') passes through Thann, providing an east-west route between

and

Épinal Épinal (; german: Spinal) is a commune in northeastern France and the prefecture of the Vosges department. Geography The commune has a land area of . It is situated on the river Moselle, south of Nancy. Épinal station has rail connecti ...

. * Thann and the Thur valley are served by regular TER trains on a branch line running from

to Kruth. * A new

tram-train A tram-train is a type of light rail vehicle that meets the standards of a light rail system (usually an urban street running tramway), but which also meets national mainline standards permitting operation alongside mainline trains. This all ...

service of the Mulhouse tramway links Thann to the city centre of

Architectural heritage

Despite sustaining heavy damage in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

and

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...

, Thann contains several old buildings and monuments of significance.

La Collégiale Saint-Thiébaut

Situated in the centre of the old town, the church known as the ''Collégiale'' is good example of the style of

Gothic architecture Gothic architecture (or pointed architecture) is an architectural style that was prevalent in Europe from the late 12th to the 16th century, during the High and Late Middle Ages, surviving into the 17th and 18th centuries in some areas. It ...

that flourished in the Rhine valley in the late Middle Ages. The Cathedrals of Strasbourg and

Freiburg Freiburg im Breisgau (; abbreviated as Freiburg i. Br. or Freiburg i. B.; Low Alemannic: ''Friburg im Brisgau''), commonly referred to as Freiburg, is an independent city in Baden-Württemberg, Germany. With a population of about 230,000 (as o ...

in Germany are also built in a similar style. The building owes its name ''"La collégiale"'' to the college of monks who moved to Thann from the nearby town of Saint-Amarin in 1442. Construction of the collégiale took more than 200 years, from the end of the 13th Century through the 15th Century, and was completed in 1516 with the 78m tall spire. For an extensive study of the Thann collegiate church, circumstances of its erection, issues of patronage, and unique sculptural programs, see Assaf Pinkus, Workshops and Patrons of St. Theobald in Thann (Waxmann Verlag: Muenster, Berlin, New York, 2006).

La Tour des Sorcières (The Witches' Tower)

This was a tower in the old town walls, and built in 1411. The bulbous roof dates from 1628. Today the interior houses a museum dedicated to winemaking.

Le Château de l'Engelbourg (Engelbourg Castle)

The ruins of the Engelbourg Castle sit on a hill to the north of the old town. The castle was constructed in the 13th century by the

Counts of Ferrette The County of Ferrette (or Pfirt) was a feudal jurisdiction in Alsace in the Middle Ages and the early modern period. It roughly corresponds with the Sundgau and comprised the lordships of Ferrette (Pfirt), Altkirch, Thann, Belfort, Rougemont ...

to control the entrance to the valley and ensure the paying of tolls by those wishing to cross the

Vosges The Vosges ( , ; german: Vogesen ; Franconian and gsw, Vogese) are a range of low mountains in Eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single ...

by way of the Thur valley and the col de Bussang. The castle was destroyed on the orders of

Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Ver ...

. During demolition, one of towers overturned and cracked into sections, one of which forms a large stone ring known locally today as The Witch's Eye (''L'œil de la sorcière'').

Education

The town is served by 4 ''écoles maternelles''; 3 ''écoles élémentaires''; 2 ''collèges'' (Collège Charles Walch and Collège Rémy Faesch); and 2 ''lycées'' (Lycée Professionel Charles Pointet an
Lycée Scheurer-Kestner
.

Tourism

* Thann is the southern terminus of the route des Vins d'Alsace. The northern side of the town is overlooked by the Rangen vineyard, one of the few vineyards in

Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...

to be classed ''

grand cru Cru is a wine term used to indicate a high-quality vineyard or group of vineyards. It is a French word which is traditionally translated as "growth", as is the past participle of the verb "croître" (to grow); it literally means 'grown'. The ...

''. * Thann is well situated for access to the .

People

Ernst Robert Curtius Ernst Robert Curtius (; 14 April 1886 – 19 April 1956) was a German literary scholar, philologist, and Romance language literary critic, best known for his 1948 study ''Europäische Literatur und Lateinisches Mittelalter'', translated in Eng ...

, literary critic * Jean-Baptiste-Joseph Gobel

Twin towns

* -

Gubbio Gubbio () is an Italian town and ''comune'' in the far northeastern part of the Italian province of Perugia (Umbria). It is located on the lowest slope of Mt. Ingino, a small mountain of the Apennines. History The city's origins are very ancient. ...

Italy Italy ( it, Italia ), officially the Italian Republic, ) or the Republic of Italy, is a country in Southern Europe. It is located in the middle of the Mediterranean Sea, and its territory largely coincides with the homonymous geographical ...

* - Tonneins,

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian Oceans. Its metropolitan area ...