356 ALSACE revolt of the Alsatian peasantry, the most vio- lent outbreak during the religious conflicts of the 16th century, was quelled May 17, 1525, by the bloody victory achieved by Duke Anthony III. over the peasants. Part of Alsace was allotted to France by the treaty of Westphalia (1648). Strasburg was seized by Louis XIV. in 1681, and the whole country came under French authority by the treaty of Ryswick in 1697, with the exception of Montbeliard and Miihlhausen, which were acquired by France ALSACE-LORRAINE subsequently. In 1814 Saarlouis and Saar- bruck were ceded to Prussia, and Landau and the adjoining localities to Bavaria. The French made strenuous efforts to Gallicize their Alsatian possessions, but German con- tinued to be the language of the masses, ex- cept in the large cities, where the speech and modes of life of the upper classes were gene- rally French. According to Bb'ckh, in his work on the German-speaking nationalities in Europe (Berlin, 1870), there are hardly 100,000 longitude, fate rtrow, 816 Watfungum out of the whole population who do not speak German. In the Franco-German war the re- covery of the old German possessions of Al- sace and Lorraine became a strong national aspiration. On July 22, 1870, the Rhine-bridge at Kehl, opposite Strasburg, was blown up by the Germans. Weissenburg was stormed by them Aug. 4, and the battle of Worth was fought Aug. 6. Strasburg surrendered Sept. 27, 1870 ; Schlettstadt, Oct. 24; Neu Breisach, Nov. 10; and Belfort, Feb. 16, 1871. Alsace was for- mally ceded to the German empire by the treaty of peace of Frankfort, concluded May 10, 1871. W. Menzel, A. Schmidt, and Wagner wrote in 1870 on Alsace and Lorraine. Among recent French historians of Alsace are Boyer (Paris, 1862) and Baquol (3d ed., Paris, 1866). ALSACE-LORRAINE (Ger. Elsaw-Lothringen), a division of the German empire, officially designated as the German Reich sland (imperial territory), and composed of Alsace and those portions of Lorraine conquered from France in
Page:The American Cyclopædia (1879) Volume I.djvu/380
This page needs to be proofread.
