Lorraine

Historically, Lorraine includes the portion of the empire of Charlemagne that fell in ad 843 to Lothair I, Holy Roman Emperor, by the Treaty of Verdun. It consisted of the lands between the Schelde, Meuse, and Rhine rivers, called Lotharingia, Lothringen, or Lorraine. In 954 it was divided into two duchies; in the 12th century it became one duchy that was united with the rest of France in 1766. The district between Metz and the Vosges, later called German Lorraine, was ceded to Germany in 1871 after the Franco-Prussian War. It reverted to France after World War I, was annexed (1940-1944) by Germany, and was then liberated. See Alsace-Lorraine.