Differdange (; or locally ; ) is a commune with town status in south-western

Luxembourg Luxembourg, officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, is a landlocked country in Western Europe. It is bordered by Belgium to the west and north, Germany to the east, and France on the south. Its capital and most populous city, Luxembour ...

, west from the country's capital. It lies near the borders with

Belgium Belgium, officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a country in Northwestern Europe. Situated in a coastal lowland region known as the Low Countries, it is bordered by the Netherlands to the north, Germany to the east, Luxembourg to the southeas ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

and it is located in the canton of Esch-sur-Alzette. With a population of over 30,000, Differdange is the country's third largest city. It is also the main town of the commune, and other towns within the commune include Lasauvage, Niederkorn, Fousbann, and Oberkorn. Differdange is an industrial town that was home to much of Luxembourg's steel production, much of its development occurred during its heyday. Today, Differdange still remains an important industrial center, with

ArcelorMittal ArcelorMittal S.A. is a Luxembourg-based multinational steel manufacturing corporation, headquartered in Luxembourg City. It is ranked second on the list of steel producers behind Baowu, and had an annual crude steel production of 58 millio ...

, the world's largest steel producer, retaining the ARBED steel plant in the town. Differdangeopkornsign

Notable landmarks in Differdange include the Maison de Soins de Differdange, an ancient

Cistercian The Cistercians (), officially the Order of Cistercians (, abbreviated as OCist or SOCist), are a Catholic religious order of monks and nuns that branched off from the Benedictines and follow the Rule of Saint Benedict, as well as the contri ...

abbey An abbey is a type of monastery used by members of a religious order under the governance of an abbot or abbess. Abbeys provide a complex of buildings and land for religious activities, work, and housing of Christians, Christian monks and nun ...

dating back to 1235 and the

Differdange Castle Differdange Castle (Luxembourgish: ''Schlass Déifferdeng''; ; German language, German: ''Schloss Differdingen''), located on a hill in the centre of Differdange in southern Luxembourg, was built in 1577 although an earlier fortified castle of Dif ...

, located on a hill in the centre of the town, which dates from 1577 and is now used by

Miami University Miami University (informally Miami of Ohio or simply Miami) is a public university, public research university in Oxford, Ohio, United States. Founded in 1809, it is the second-oldest List of colleges and universities in Ohio, university in Ohi ...

. As such, Differdange is home to Miami University's Dolibois European Center, the university's European campus branch where students study abroad. Differdange is also home to football team FC Differdange 03 and

FC Progrès Niederkorn Football Club Progrès Niederkorn is a professional football club based in Niederkorn, Luxembourg. History During the German occupation of Luxembourg, the club played in the Gauliga Moselland under the name of FK Niederkorn, where it finishe ...

Populated places

*Differdange (commune seat) * Lasauvage * Niederkorn * Oberkorn * Fousbann

History

The Cistercian Era

The era of the

cathedrals and abbeys was in full swing during the thirteenth century and Differdange did not deviate from this pattern. In 1235, Alexandre de Soleuvre founded the abbey of Differdange, which he donated to the order of Cîteaux. Initially, the Cistercian abbey welcomed only sisters from the nobility of Luxembourg. Subsequently, women from the

Lorraine Lorraine, also , ; ; Lorrain: ''Louréne''; Lorraine Franconian: ''Lottringe''; ; ; is a cultural and historical region in Eastern France, now located in the administrative region of Grand Est. Its name stems from the medieval kingdom of ...

region of France and the present province of Luxembourg in Wallonia also made their vows at Differdange. In 1552, the abbey was plundered and sacked by French soldiers. However, it was during the French invasion of Luxembourg that the abbey and the town experienced real raids and innumerable rampages. The last

abbess An abbess (Latin: ''abbatissa'') is the female superior of a community of nuns in an abbey. Description In the Catholic Church (both the Latin Church and Eastern Catholic), Eastern Orthodox, Coptic, Lutheran and Anglican abbeys, the mod ...

to direct the convent was Marie-Madeleine de Gourcy, who held office until 1796. After her mandate, the Order was then formally dissolved. The Abbey of Differdange was auctioned off in 1797 and subsequently be bought by the commune of Differdange in 1929. In 1981 following its purchase by government of Luxembourg, the Differdange Abbey was transformed into a hospital and health center.

The Renaissance Era

The

is one of the only remaining landmarks from the

Renaissance The Renaissance ( , ) is a Periodization, period of history and a European cultural movement covering the 15th and 16th centuries. It marked the transition from the Middle Ages to modernity and was characterized by an effort to revive and sur ...

period in the area. Although it has no known origin since all traced manuscripts have disappeared, squire listed was Wilhelm de Differdange, named in documents dating from 1310. The castle is probably the earliest example in Luxembourg of a château built entirely in the Renaissance style. It was intended as a residence and a fortification. Differdange's descendants were extinguished in 1400 with the death of his last grandson. In 1552, the castle underwent a disastrous fire, It was eventually restored and occupied by Anna of Isenburg. In 1794, the

French Revolutionary Army The French Revolutionary Army () was the French land force that fought the French Revolutionary Wars from 1792 to 1802. In the beginning, the French armies were characterised by their revolutionary fervour, their poor equipment and their great nu ...

committed atrocities in Differdange and slaughtered many unarmed civilians before pillaging and burning the city.

The Iron City

Beginning in 1830, Luxembourg's steel industry evolved from and artisan stage to an industrial stage. In 1896, two blast furnaces were erected in Differdange with the name of ''"Société Anonyme des Hauts-Fourneaux de Differdange"''. Subsequently, eight other blast furnaces were built, allowing the production of steel beams known at the time as ''"Differdinger"''. On August 4, 1907, Differdange received its town status by William IV of Luxembourg. During the 20th century, the industrial boom was at its peak, and the population of Differdange rose from less than 4,000 in 1890 to almost 18,000 by 1930. In 1967, the ''"Société des Hauts-Fourneaux and Aciererie de Differdange"'' merged with several steel companies in Belgium and France to form ARBED, Luxembourg's largest steel company, which had numerous factories in Differdange.

Geography

The town is located in the plateau of the river Chiers, a tributary of the river

Meuse The Meuse or Maas is a major European river, rising in France and flowing through Belgium and the Netherlands before draining into the North Sea from the Rhine–Meuse–Scheldt delta. It has a total length of . History From 1301, the upper ...

which takes its source in the section of Oberkorn. Differdange has an altitude of 293 meters, the highest point of the municipality being at 427,1m at ''Koufeld''. The commune spreads over 2,215

hectare The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. ...

s. Its territory borders France, through the department of

Meurthe-et-Moselle Meurthe-et-Moselle () 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, ...

in the basin of

Longwy Longwy (; older , ; ) is a Communes of France, commune in the Departments of France, French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle, Lorraine, administrative region of Grand Est, northeastern France. The inhabitants are known as ''Longoviciens''. In ...

Transport

* Differdange railway station * Oberkorn railway station * Niederkorn railway station

Population

Notable people

* Émile Krieps (1920–1998), a resistance leader, soldier, and politician * Jean Portante (born 1950), a writer of novels, stories, plays, journalistic articles and poetry; resides in Paris * Josiane Kartheiser (born 1950), a journalist, novelist, and writer * Nico Helminger (born 1953), an author of poetry, novels, plays and libretti for operas * Georges Hausemer (1957–2018), a writer of short stories, novels, travelogues and non-fictional works *

Jean-Claude Hollerich Jean-Claude Hollerich (born 9 August 1958) is a Luxembourgish Catholic prelate who has served as Archbishop of Luxembourg since 2011. He was the president of the Commission of the Bishops' Conferences of the European Union (COMECE) from March 20 ...

S.J. (born 1958), archbishop of the

Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Luxembourg The Catholic Archdiocese of Luxembourg (; ; ; ) is an archdiocese of the Latin Church of the Catholic Church in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, comprising the entire Grand Duchy. The diocese was founded in 1870, and it became an archdiocese in 1 ...

since 2011 and Cardinal of the Catholic Church

Politics

* Nicholas Muller (1836–1917), banker & US Representative from New York * Yvonne Useldinger (1921–2009), a politician * Marcelle Lentz-Cornette (1927–2008), schoolteacher and politician * Fred Sunnen (1939–2014), a politician * Johny Lahure (1942–2003), a politician and minister * Félix Braz (born 1966), a politician, former Deputy Prime Minister

Sport

* Michael Maurer (1904–1983), a boxer who competed in the

1924 Summer Olympics The 1924 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the VIII Olympiad () and officially branded as Paris 1924, were an international multi-sport event held in Paris, France. The opening ceremony was held on 5 July, but some competitions had al ...

* Fernand Ciatti (1912–1989) a boxer, competed at the

1936 Summer Olympics The 1936 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XI Olympiad () and officially branded as Berlin 1936, were an international multi-sport event held from 1 to 16 August 1936 in Berlin, then capital of Nazi Germany. Berlin won the bid to ...

* Paul Anen (1918–1978) a fencer, competed at the 1948 and

1952 Summer Olympics The 1952 Summer Olympics (, ), officially known as the Games of the XV Olympiad (, ) and commonly known as Helsinki 1952, were an international multi-sport event held from 19 July to 3 August 1952 in Helsinki, Finland. After Japan declared in ...

* Jean-Fernand Leischen (1919–2017) a fencer, competed in three

Summer Olympics The Summer Olympic Games, also known as the Summer Olympics or the Games of the Olympiad, is a major international multi-sport event normally held once every four years. The inaugural Games took place in 1896 in Athens, then part of the King ...

* Josy Stoffel (1928–2021), gymnast, competed in 5 consecutive

in 1948, 1952, 1956, 1960 & 1964 * Rudy Kugeler (born 1928), a fencer, competed in the team épée at the

1960 Summer Olympics The 1960 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XVII Olympiad () and commonly known as Rome 1960 (), were an international multi-sport event held from 25 August to 11 September 1960 in Rome, Italy. Rome had previously been awar ...

* Fernand Backes (born 1930), a boxer, competed at the

* François Konter (1934–2018), a footballer, played 77 games for the national side * Roger Menghi (born 1935), a fencer, competed in the individual épée event at the

1976 Summer Olympics The 1976 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XXI Olympiad () and officially branded as Montreal 1976 (), were an international multi-sport event held from July 17 to August 1, 1976, in Montreal, Quebec, Canada. Montreal ...

* Roby Hentges (born 1940), a former cyclist, competed in the individual road race at the

* Alain Anen (born 1950), a fencer, competed in the individual and team épée events at the

1972 Summer Olympics The 1972 Summer Olympics (), officially known as the Games of the XX Olympiad () and officially branded as Munich 1972 (; ), were an international multi-sport event held in Munich, West Germany, from 26 August to 11 September 1972. It was the ...

* Fiona Steil-Antoni (born 1989), a Luxembourgish chess player.

Twin towns — sister cities

Differdange is twinned with: *

Ahlen Ahlen (; Westphalian language, Westphalian: ''Aulen'') is a Town#Germany, town in North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany, 30 km southeast of Münster. Ahlen is part of the Warendorf (district), District of Warendorf and is economically the most impo ...

, Germany * Chaves, Portugal *

Fiuminata Fiuminata is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of Macerata in the Italian region Marche, located about southwest of Ancona and about southwest of Macerata. The municipal seat is in the '' frazione'' of Massa. Fiuminata borders the ...

, Italy *

, France *

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

, United States * Waterloo, Belgium

References

External links

*
Commune of Differdange official website
{{Authority control Cities in Luxembourg Communes in Esch-sur-Alzette (canton) Towns in Luxembourg Miami University