View source for Ardennes

{{Short description|Low mountain range in Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany and France}}
{{about|the region in Europe}}
{{redirect-distinguish|Forest of Ardennes|Forest of Arden}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}
{{Infobox forest
| name = Ardennes
| iucn_category =
| photo = Frahan JPG01.jpg
| photo_caption = Landscape of Frahan inside<br>the bend of the [[Semois]]
| photo_width =
| map_caption =
| map_width =
| location = [[Wallonia]], [[Belgium]];<br />[[Éislek]], [[Luxembourg]];<br />[[Ardennes (department)|Ardennes]] [[Departments in France|department]] and [[Grand Est]] [[Regions of France|region]], [[France]];<br />[[Eifel]], [[Germany]]
| nearest_city =
| coordinates = {{coord|50|15|N|5|40|E|display=inline, title}}
| area = {{convert|11200|km2|mi2}}
| established =
| visitation_num =
| visitation_year =
| governing_body = {{lang|fr|Parc National de Champagne/Ardennes|italic=no}} <br />{{lang|fr|Parc National de Furfooz|italic=no}}
| world_heritage_site =
| url =
}}

The '''Ardennes''',{{efn|{{IPAc-en|ɑːr|ˈ|d|ɛ|n}} {{respell|ar|DEN}}; {{langx|fr|Ardenne}} {{IPA|fr|aʁdɛn||fr-Paris--Ardennes.ogg}}; {{langx|nl|Ardennen}} {{IPA|nl|ɑrˈdɛnə(n)||nl-Ardennen.ogg}}; {{langx|de|Ardennen}} {{IPA|de|aʁˈdɛnən||de-Ardennen.ogg}}; {{langx|wa|Årdene}} {{IPA|wa|ɑːʀdɛn|}}; {{langx|lb|Ardennen}} {{IPA|lb|ɑʁˈdænən|}}.}} also known as the '''Ardennes Forest''' or '''Forest of Ardennes''', is a region of extensive forests, rough terrain, rolling hills and ridges primarily in [[Belgium]] and [[Luxembourg]], extending into [[Germany]] and [[France]].

Geologically, the range is a western extension of the [[Eifel]]; both were raised during the [[Givetian]] age of the Devonian (382.7 to 387.7 million years ago), as were several other named ranges of the same greater range.<ref>The [[Global Boundary Stratotype Section and Point|defining stratotype]] for the geological period is an outcropping in [[Givet]] in the Ardennes.</ref>

The Ardennes proper stretches well into Germany and France (lending its name to the [[Ardennes (department)|Ardennes]] [[Departments of France|department]] and the former [[Champagne-Ardenne]] [[Regions of France|region]]) and geologically into the Eifel (the eastern extension of the Ardennes Forest into [[Bitburg-Prüm]], Germany); most of it is in the southeast of [[Wallonia]], the southern and more rural part of Belgium (away from the coastal plain but encompassing more than half of the country's total area). The eastern part of the Ardennes forms the northernmost third of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, also called "[[Éislek]]" ({{langx|de|Oesling}}). On the southeast the Eifel region continues into the German state of the [[Rhineland-Palatinate]].<!-- Do NOT include "Vlaamse Ardennnen" (translated from Dutch "Flemish Ardennes"), which is a totally separate area in the West of Belgium, south of Ghent-->

The trees and rivers of the Ardennes provided the [[charcoal]] industry assets that enabled the great industrial period of Wallonia in the 18th and 19th centuries, when it was arguably the [[History of Wallonia#Second industrial power of the world|second great industrial region]] of the world. The greater region maintained an industrial eminence into the 20th century, after coal replaced charcoal in [[metallurgy]]. The strategic position of the Ardennes has made it a battleground for European powers for centuries; it was the site of major battles during both World Wars.

==Geography==
[[File:Hohe Acht im linksrheinischen Teilgebirge.jpg|upright=1.25|thumb|Morphologically connected mountains of Ardennes and Eifel, framed by the rivers Semois, Meuse, [[Moselle River|Moselle]] and Rhine. The highest elevation is the [[Hohe Acht]] at 746.9 m above sea level. NHN]]
[[File:BelgicaI GermaniaI.jpg|thumb|Arduenna silva between Maas und Rhein]]
[[File:Régions naturelles de Belgique.jpg|upright=1.25|thumb|The Ardennes in Belgium]]<!-- This map is next to totally useless in the English-language Wikipedia. It is impossible, unless you have foreknowledge of the geography of this area, to use this map and judge how these small areas relate to the rest of Belgium or the nearby areas of the Ardennes in Germany, Luxembourg, and France. Using the French names, rather than the English names, of these areas only adds to the confusion. 
-->
Much of the Ardennes is covered in dense forests, with the hills averaging around {{convert|350|-|400|m|ft|abbr=on}} in height but rising to over {{convert|694|m|ft|abbr=on}} in the boggy moors of the [[High Fens]] region of south-eastern [[Belgium]]. The region is typified by steep-sided valleys carved by swift-flowing rivers, the most prominent of which is the [[Meuse]]. Its most populous cities are [[Verviers]] in Belgium and [[Charleville-Mézières]] in France, both exceeding 50,000 inhabitants. The Ardennes is otherwise relatively sparsely populated, with few of the towns exceeding 10,000 inhabitants. (Exceptions include Belgium's [[Eupen]] and [[Bastogne]].)

The [[Eifel]] range in [[Germany]] adjoins the Ardennes and is part of the same geological formation, although they are conventionally regarded as being two distinct areas.{{citation needed|date=March 2025}}

=== High ranging summits ===
* [[Signal de Botrange]] {{convert|694|m|ft|abbr=on}}, [[Liège Province]], Belgium - highest point in the Ardennes, highest point in the [[Benelux]] countries
* [[Weißer Stein (Eifel)|Weißer Stein]] {{convert|abbr=on|692|m}}, [[Mühringen|Mürringen]], [[Liège Province]], Belgium
* [[Baraque Michel]] {{convert|abbr=on|674|m}}, Liège Province, Belgium
* [[Baraque de Fraiture]], {{convert|abbr=on|652|m}}, highest point of the Plateau des Tailles, [[Luxembourg (Belgium)|Luxembourg Province]], Belgium
* Lieu-dit (= hamlet) Galata, {{convert|abbr=on|589|m}}, highest point on the Plateau de [[Saint-Hubert, Belgium|Saint-Hubert]], Luxembourg Province, Belgium
* [[Kneiff]], {{convert|abbr=on|560|m}}, highest point in the nation of [[Luxembourg]] (Grand Duchy of Luxembourg)
* [[Buurgplaatz]], {{convert| abbr=on|559|m}}, Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
* [[Napoléonsgaard]], {{convert|abbr=on|547|m}}, near [[Rambrouch]], Grand Duchy of Luxembourg
* [[Croix Scaille]] {{convert|abbr=on|504|m}}, on the border of the provinces of [[Namur Province|Namur]], Belgium, and [[Champagne (province)|Champagne]], France

==Geology==
The Ardennes are the remnants of a [[mountain range]] formed during the [[Hercynian orogeny]]; in France similar formations are the [[Armorican Massif]], the [[Massif Central]], and the [[Vosges Mountains|Vosges]]. The low interior of such former mountains often contains coal, plus iron, zinc and other metals in the sub-soil. This geologic fact explains the greatest part of the geography of Wallonia and its history. In the North and West of the Ardennes lie the valleys of the [[Sambre]] and [[Meuse]] rivers, forming an arc ([[Sillon industriel]]) going across the most industrial provinces of [[Wallonia]], for example [[Hainaut Province]], along the river [[Haine]] (the etymology of Hainaut); the [[Borinage]], the ''Centre'' and [[Charleroi]] along the river Sambre; [[Liège Province]] along the river Meuse.

The region the Ardennes are part of has been uplifted further in the last few hundred thousand years by a [[mantle plume]], as measured from the present elevation of old river terraces, with the largest amount of uplift concentrated in the east, where the Ardennes connect with the Eifel, where the same mantle plume is also responsible for volcanic activity.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=https://docs.google.com/uc?id=0B_xuyENh5ksFMGFmYjhmYmEtYWRjYi00YmE2LWFkYTUtZGQ4Njc3ODQ1ZjFi&export=download&hl=en|title=Garcia-Castellanos, D., S.A.P.L. Cloetingh & R.T. van Balen, 2000. Modeling the middle Pleistocene uplift in the Ardennes-Rhenish Massif: Thermo-mechanical weakening under the Eifel?|journal= Global and Planetary Change|volume= 27|pages= 39–52|doi=10.1016/S0921-8181(01)00058-3|url-access=subscription}}</ref>

This geological region is important in the history of Wallonia because this former mountain is at the origin of the economy, the history, and the geography of Wallonia. "Wallonia presents a wide range of rocks of various ages. Some geological stages internationally recognized were defined from rock sites located in Wallonia: e.g., [[Frasnian]] ([[Couvin|Frasnes-lez-Couvin]]), [[Famennian]] ([[Famenne]]), [[Tournaisian]] ([[Tournai]]), [[Visean]] ([[Visé]]), [[Dinantian]] ([[Dinant]]), and [[Namurian]] ([[Namur]])".<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.naturalsciences.be/institute/structure/geology/gsb_website/research/geoheritage/geoheritage|title=Geological Heritage &#124; Geology and Tourism in Belgium|date=15 October 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141015222158/http://www.naturalsciences.be/institute/structure/geology/gsb_website/research/geoheritage/geoheritage |archive-date=15 October 2014}}</ref> Except for the Tournaisian, all these rocks are within the Ardennes geological area.

==Economy==
The Ardennes includes the greatest part of Belgium's [[Luxembourg (Belgium)|Luxembourg Province]] (not to be confused with the neighbouring Grand Duchy of Luxembourg), the south of [[Namur Province]], and [[Liège Province]], plus a very small part of [[Hainaut Province]], as well as the northernmost third of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, called "[[Éislek]]" ({{langx|de|Oesling}}) and the main part of the French [[Ardennes (department)|Ardennes department]].

Before the 19th century industrialization, the first furnaces in these four Belgian provinces (all in the [[Wallonia]] region) and in the French Ardennes used charcoal for fuel, made from harvesting the Ardennes forest. This industry was also in the extreme south of present-day Luxembourg Province (which until 1839 was part of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg), in the region called [[Gaume]]. The most important part of the Walloon steel industry, using coal, was built around the coal mines, mainly in the region around the cities of [[Liège]], Charleroi, [[La Louvière]], the [[Borinage]], and further in the [[Walloon Brabant]] (in [[Tubize]]). Wallonia became the second industrial power area of the world (after Great Britain) in proportion to its territory and to its population (see further).

The rugged terrain and the harsh climate of the Ardennes limits the scope for [[agriculture]]; arable and dairy farming in cleared areas form the mainstay of the agricultural economy. The region is rich in timber and minerals, and Liège and the city of [[Namur]] are both major industrial centres. The extensive forests have an abundant population of [[wild game]]. The scenic beauty of the region and its wide variety of outdoor activities, including hunting, cycling, walking and canoeing, make it a popular tourist destination.

==Etymology==
The region takes its name from the vast ancient forest known as ''Arduenna Silva'' in the [[Roman Gaul|Roman Period]]. ''Arduenna'' probably derives from a [[Gaulish language|Gaulish]] cognate of the [[Brythonic languages|Brythonic]] word ''ardu-'' as in the {{langx|cy|ardd}} ("high") and the [[Latin]] ''arduus'' ("high", "steep").<ref>{{Vasmer|рост}}</ref> The second element is less certain, but may be related to the Celtic element ''*windo-'' as in the Welsh ''wyn''/''wen'' ("fair", "blessed"), which tentatively suggests an original meaning of "forest of blessed/fair heights".{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

The Ardennes probably shares this derivation with the numerous ''Arden'' place names in Britain, including the [[Arden, Warwickshire|Forest of Arden]].{{citation needed|date=December 2023}}

==History==
[[File:RocherBayardDinant.JPG|thumb|upright|Bayard Rock, Dinant, on the right bank of the [[Meuse]]. According to a legend, a magic horse jumped from the top of this rock to the left bank of the river, carrying the [[Four Sons of Aymon]] fleeing [[Charlemagne]].]]

The modern Ardennes region covers a greatly diminished area from the forest recorded in Roman times.

A song about Charlemagne, the [[Old French]] 12th-century [[chanson de geste]] ''[[The Four Sons of Aymon|Quatre Fils Aymon]]'', mentions many of Wallonia's rivers, villages and other places. In [[Dinant]] the rock named ''Bayard'' takes its name from [[Bayard (legend)|Bayard]], the magic bay horse which, according to legend, jumped from the top of the rock to the other bank of the Meuse.

On their [[Viking raids into the Rhineland#Raids in the winter of 881/882|pillaging raids in the years 881 and 882]], the [[Vikings]] used the old Roman roads in the Ardennes, attacking the abbeys of Malmedy and Stavelot and destroying [[Prüm Abbey]] in the [[Eifel]].<ref name="Eifel">[[Regino of Prüm]], ''Chronik'', ad a. 882.</ref>

The strategic position of the Ardennes has made it a battleground for European powers for many centuries. Much of the Ardennes formed part of the Duchy (since 1815, the Grand Duchy) of Luxembourg, a member state of the Holy Roman Empire, which changed hands numerous times between the powerful dynasties of Europe. In 1793 revolutionary France annexed the entire area, together with all other territories west of the [[Rhine river]]. In 1815, the [[Congress of Vienna]], which dealt with the political aftermath of the [[Napoleonic Wars]], restored the previous geographical situation, with most of the Ardennes becoming part of the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. After the [[Belgian Revolution|revolution of 1830]], which resulted in the establishment of the Kingdom of Belgium, the political future of the Ardennes became a matter of much dispute between Belgium, Luxembourg and the Netherlands, as well as involving the contemporary [[great power]]s of [[July Monarchy|France]], [[Kingdom of Prussia|Prussia]], and [[United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland|Great Britain]]. As a result, in 1839, the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg ceded the westernmost 63% of its territory (being also the main part of the Ardennes) to the new [[Kingdom of Belgium]], which is now its [[Luxembourg (Belgium)|Luxembourg Province]].<ref>Gilbert Trausch, Le Luxembourg à l'époque contemporaine, p 15 to 25, publ. Bourg-Bourger, Luxembourg 1981</ref>

In the 20th century, leading military strategists generally considered the Ardennes to be unsuitable for large-scale military operations, due to its difficult terrain and narrow communication lines. However, in [[World War I]] as well as [[World War II]], Germany successfully gambled on making a rapid passage through the Ardennes to attack a relatively lightly defended part of France. The Ardennes became the site of three major battles during the world wars: the [[Battle of the Ardennes]] (August 1914) in World War I, and the [[Battle of France]] (1940) and the [[Battle of the Bulge]] (1944–1945) in World War II. Many of the towns of the region suffered severe damage during the two world wars and its various battles.

{{multiple image
 | align     = center
 | direction = horizontal
 | header    = 1914
 | header_align = center
 | image1    = Bataille des Frontières.svg
 | width1    = 375
 | caption1  = The [[Battles of the Frontiers]] (1914) involved a series of skirmishes between the French and the German armies. The French forces carried out a counter-offensive ("[[Plan XVII]]"), attacking the flank of the westward-advancing German army executing its [[Schlieffen Plan]].
 | image2    = קרב הארדנים 1914.jpg
 | width2    = 400
 | caption2  = The [[Battle of the Ardennes]] (1914) was the second of the Battles of the Frontiers. After the advancing German left wing defeated French forces in Lorraine, France launched another attack just north of Lorraine, advancing temporarily into the Ardennes.
}}
Allied generals in [[World War II]] believed that the region was impenetrable to massed vehicular traffic and especially armoured tanks, so the area was effectively "all but undefended"{{citation needed|date=February 2018}} during the war. The German Army twice used this region to invade northern France and southern Belgium, via Luxembourg in the [[Battle of France]] and the later [[Battle of the Bulge]].

In 1939 and 1940, [[Nazi Germany]]'s military strategists selected the forest as the primary route of their [[mechanised forces]] in the [[Battle of France|Invasion of France]]. The forest's great size could conceal the [[armoured division]]s, and because the French did not suspect that the Germans would make such a risky move, they did not consider a breakthrough there, or imagine that it would take at least 15 days for an army to pass through the forest. German forces, primarily under the command of [[Erich von Manstein]], carried out the plan in two days, and managed to slip numerous divisions past the [[Maginot Line]] to attack France from the north, and rout the French forces. In May 1940 the German army crossed the [[Meuse]], despite the resistance of the [[French Army]]. Under the command of [[Heinz Guderian#Second World War|General Heinz Guderian]],<ref>{{cite book|last= Frieser|first= Karl|title= The Blitzkrieg Legend|year= 2005|publisher= Naval Institute Press|location= Annapolis, MD|pages= 100–197}}</ref> the German armoured divisions crossed the river at Dinant and at [[Sedan, France]]. This was a crucial step in the push towards Paris, and [[Battle of France|France fell on 25 June 1940]].

{{multiple image
 | align     = center
 | direction = horizontal
 | header    = 1940
 | header_align = center
 | image1    = 10May-16May1940-Fall Gelb.svg
 | width1    = 375
 | caption1  = [[Battle of France]] (1940) The Germans execute [[Erich Von Manstein]]'s plan for [[Manstein Plan|''Fall Gelb'']]. Armoured divisions cross the [[Meuse]] (16 May), (principally in [[Dinant]]), [[Sedan, France|Sedan]] and the Ardennes. The Ardennes are located just to the east of the red shading which marks the extent of the German advance. On 16 May General [[Maurice Gamelin]] said he could no longer protect [[Paris]] because he had lost the Ardennes.
 | image2    = 16May-21May1940-Fall Gelb.svg
 | width2    = 375
 | caption2  = [[Battle of France]] (1940) The Wehrmacht advances further, particularly accelerating through the [[Battle of Gembloux (1940)|Gembloux gap]] northwest of the Ardennes, in the week of 21 May (red shading), quickly reaching [[Abbeville]], near the English Channel. This cut off the Allied troops of the North (some French divisions, the [[Belgian Army]] and the [[British Expeditionary Force (World War II)|British Expeditionary Force]]). In this way, the German armies won the first stage of the Battle of France.
}}
At the other end of the war, the Ardennes area came to prominence again during the [[Battle of the Bulge]]. The German Army, which had been forced to retreat for some time, launched a surprise attack in December 1944 in an attempt to recapture [[Antwerp]] and to drive a wedge between the advancing British and American forces in northern France. After a fierce battle the [[Allies of World War II|Allied]] forces blocked the German advance on the river Meuse at Dinant.

{{multiple image
 | align     = center
 | direction = horizontal
 | header    = 1944
 | header_align = center
 | image1    = Battle of the Bulge progress.svg
 | width1    = 475
 | caption1  = [[Battle of the Bulge]]. In 1944, the Germans counterattacked across the Ardennes and the [[Meuse]] valley but they were eventually thwarted after fierce battles. Their most advanced position was the "nose" of the salient, just in front of [[Dinant]] and the Meuse river. They had wanted to move northeast and reach [[Antwerp]] and the [[North Sea]].
 | image2    = Wacht am Rhein map (Opaque).svg
 | width2    = 267
 | caption2  = The salient was mainly in the Ardennes, its "nose" being just to the west of it, in the [[Condroz]]. Areas above {{convert|400|m}} (shown in the darkest shade of brown) form the heart of the Ardennes.
}}
In the postwar period, the Ardennes has become a weekend retreat that is popular among Belgians as well as people from neighbouring countries. The tourist industry offers an extensive and varied range of activities and types of accommodation.

{{Gallery
|title=
|width=370 | height=140 |align=center
|footer=
|File:0 Botassart - Tombeau du Géant (1)JPG.jpg|Panorama of Botassart or ''Le Tombeau du Géant'' (Giant's Tomb) along the [[Semois]]
|File:Meuse, in the french ardennes.JPG|View of the [[Meuse]] in the French Ardennes
}}

==See also==
* [[Flemish Ardennes]], an unconnected region in East Flanders
* [[Jambon sec des Ardennes]]
* [[Regional Natural Park of the Ardennes]]

==Notes==
{{Notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}

===Sources===
* Gerrard, John, ''Mountain Environments: An Examination of the Physical Geography of Mountains'', MIT Press, 1990

==External links==
{{Wikivoyage}}
*{{Commons category-inline|Ardennes}}
{{Natural regions of Belgium}}
{{Mountains of France}}
{{Regions of the Rhenish Massif}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Ardennes| ]]
[[Category:Areas of Belgium]]
[[Category:Forests of Belgium]]
[[Category:Forests of France]]
[[Category:Forests of Luxembourg]]
[[Category:History of Wallonia]]
[[Category:Landforms of Ardennes (department)]]
[[Category:Landforms of Hainaut (province)]]
[[Category:Landforms of Liège Province]]
[[Category:Landforms of Luxembourg (Belgium)]]
[[Category:Landforms of Namur (province)]]
[[Category:Landforms of Nord (French department)]]
[[Category:Landforms of Wallonia]]
[[Category:Mountain ranges of Belgium]]
[[Category:Mountain ranges of Grand Est]]
[[Category:Mountain ranges of Hauts-de-France]]
[[Category:Mountain ranges of Luxembourg]]
[[Category:Natural regions of Belgium]]
[[Category:Old-growth forests]]
[[Category:Regions of Wallonia]]
[[Category:Rhenish Massif]]
[[Category:International mountains of Europe]]