Marne
Marne is a mapped river in the YearMaps hydrographic index. River courses organise settlement, agriculture and frontier-making more durably than any political boundary, and this reach is indexed against the dams, lakes and cities within its catchment.
- Feature Class
- River
- Coordinates
- 49.05°, 4.02°
About Marne
The Marne (; French pronunciation: [maʁn] ) is a river in France, an eastern tributary of the Seine in the area east and southeast of Paris. It is 514 kilometres (319 mi) long. The river gave its name to the departments of Haute-Marne, Marne, Seine-et-Marne, and Val-de-Marne.
The Marne starts in the Langres plateau, runs generally north then bends west between Saint-Dizier and Châlons-en-Champagne, joining the Seine at Charenton just upstream from Paris. Its main tributaries are the Rognon, the Blaise, the Saulx, the Ourcq, the Petit Morin and the Grand Morin.
Near the town of Saint-Dizier, part of the flow is diverted through the artificial Lake Der-Chantecoq. This ensures both flood prevention and the maintenance of minimum river flows in periods of drought.
The Marne is famous as the site of two eponymous battles during World War I. The first battle was a turning point of the war, fought in 1914. The second battle was fought four years later, in 1918.
Encyclopedic summary adapted from Wikipedia: Marne (river) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Marne in Depth
History
The Gauls worshipped a goddess known as Dea Matrona ("divine mother goddess") who was associated with the Marne.
The Marne was navigable as a free-flowing river until the 19th century. It had one gated 500 m shortcut, the Canal de Cornillon in Meaux, which was built in 1235, the oldest canal in France. Canalisation was started in 1837 and completed to Épernay in 1867. It included a number of canals to bypass the most extravagant meanders.
In World War I, the Marne was the scene of two notable battles. In the First Battle of the Marne (September 1914), the military governor of Paris, General Joseph Gallieni, took the initiative in driving the Germans back from the capital, rendering their war-plan inoperative.
Sections adapted from Wikipedia: Marne (river) (CC BY-SA 4.0).
Marne: Key Facts
| Length | 514 km |
|---|---|
| Average discharge | 100 m³/s |
| Drainage basin | 12,800 km² |
| Source | Marne River spring |
| Mouth | Seine |
| Drainage system | Marne basin |
| Tributaries | Thérouanne, Suize, Grand Morin, Beuvronne, Blaise, Coole, Ourcq |
Facts from Wikidata Q41983 (CC0).
Major River Dossiers
Hand-written studies of the great river systems of history.
Connected Reaches
Nearby watercourses in the same drainage network.
Water Bodies in the Catchment
Settlements Along the Reach
Hydraulic Infrastructure Nearby
Surrounding Terrain
Marne: Quick Answers
- Where is Marne?
- Marne is located in France, at 49.0493° N, 4.0197° E.
- Are there dams on the Marne?
- No dam on the Marne is recorded in the YearMaps dam index, which covers major structures only.