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HAVRE, LE

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Originally appearing in Volume V13, Page 83 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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HAVRE, LE , a seaport of See also:north-western See also:France, in the See also:department of See also:Seine-Inferieure, on the north See also:bank of the See also:estuary of the Seine, 143 M. W.N.W. of See also:Paris and 55 m. W. of See also:Rouen by the Western railway. Pop. (1906), 120,403. The greater See also:part of the See also:town stands on the level See also:strip of ground bordering the estuary, but on the N. rises an See also:eminence, la Cote, covered by the gardens and villas of the richer See also:quarter. The central point of the town is the See also:Place de l'hotel de ville in which are the public gardens. It is crossed by the See also:Boulevard de Strasbourg, See also:running from the See also:sea on the See also:west to the railway station and the See also:barracks on the See also:east. The See also:rue de Paris, the busiest See also:street, starts at the See also:Grand Quai, overlooking the See also:outer See also:harbour, and, intersecting the Place See also:Gambetta, runs north and enters the Place de l'hotel de ville on its See also:southern See also:side. The docks start immediately to the east of this street and extend over a large See also:area to the See also:south and south-east of the town. Apart from the See also:church of Notre-See also:Dame, dating from the 16th and 17th centuries, the See also:chief buildings of Havre, including the hotel de ville, the See also:law courts, and the See also:exchange, are of See also:modern erection. The museum contains a collection of antiquities and paintings.

Havre is the seat of a sub-See also:

prefect, and forms part of the maritime See also:arrondissement of See also:Cherbourg. Among the public institutions are a tribunal of first instance, a tribunal of See also:commerce, a See also:board of See also:trade arbitrators, a tribunal of maritime commerce, a chamber of commerce and a See also:branch of the Bank of France. There are lycees for boys and girls, See also:schools of commerce and other educational establishments. Havre, which is a fortified place of the second class, ranks second to See also:Marseilles among See also:French seaports. There are nine basins (the See also:oldest of which See also:dates back to 1669) with an area of about 200 acres and more than 8 m. of quays. They extend to the east of the outer harbour which on the west opens into the new outer harbour, formed by two breakwaters converging from the See also:land and leaving an entrance facing west. The chief docks (see Docx for See also:plan) are the Bassin See also:Bellot and the Bassin de l'See also:Eure. In the latter the See also:mail-steamers of the Compagnie Generale Transatlantique are berthed; and the Tancarville See also:canal, by which See also:river-boats unable to See also:attempt the estuary of the Seine can make the See also:port See also:direct, enters the harbour by this See also:basin. There are, besides, several repairing docks and a See also:petroleum See also:dock for the use of vessels carrying that dangerous commodity. The port, which is an important point of See also:emigration, has See also:regular See also:steam-communication with New See also:York (by the vessels of the Compagnie Generale Transatlantique) and with many of the other chief ports of See also:Europe, North, South and Central See also:America, the West Indies and See also:Africa. Imports in 1907 reached a value of £57,686,000. The chief were See also:cotton, for which Havre is the See also:great French See also:market, See also:coffee, See also:copper and other metals, cacao, cotton goods, See also:rubber, skins and hides, See also:silk goods, dye-See also:woods, See also:tobacco, oil-seeds, See also:coal, cereals and See also:wool.

In the same See also:

year exports were valued at £47,130,000, the most important being cotton, silk and woollen goods, coffee, hides, See also:leather, See also:wine and See also:spirits, rubber, tools and See also:metal See also:ware, earthen-ware and See also:glass, clothes and millinery, cacao and See also:fancy goods. In 1907 the See also:total See also:tonnage of See also:shipping (with cargoes) reached its highest point, viz. 5,671,975 tons (4018 vessels) compared with 3,816,340 tons (3832 vessels) in 1898. See also:Forty-two per cent of this shipping sailed under the See also:British See also:flag. France and See also:Germany were Great See also:Britain's most serious rivals. Havre possesses oil See also:works, See also:soap works, saw See also:mills, See also:flour mills, works for extracting dyes and See also:tannin from dye-woods, an important tobacco manufactory, chemical works and rope works. It also has metallurgical and See also:engineering works which construct commercial and See also:war-vessels of every See also:kind as well as engines and machinery, cables, boilers, &c. Until 1516 Havre was only a fishing See also:village possessing a See also:chapel dedicated to Notre-Dame de See also:Grace, to which it owes the name, Havre (harbour) de Grace, given to it by See also:Francis I. when he began the construction of its harbour. The town in 1562 was delivered over to the keeping of See also:Queen See also:Elizabeth by See also:Louis 1., See also:prince de See also:Conde, See also:leader of the See also:Huguenots, and the command of it was entrusted to See also:Ambrose See also:Dudley, See also:earl of See also:Warwick; but the See also:English were expelled in 1563, after a most obstinate See also:siege, which was pressed forward by See also:Charles IX. and his See also:mother, See also:Catherine cie' See also:Medici, in See also:person. The defences of the town and the harbour-works were continued by See also:Richelieu and completed by See also:Vauban. In 1694 it was vainly besieged by the English, who also bombarded it in 1759, 1794 and 1795. It was a port of considerable importance as See also:early as 1572, and despatched vessels to the See also:whale and See also:cod-fishing at See also:Spitsbergen and See also:Newfoundland.

In 1672 it became the entrep6t of the French East See also:

India See also:Company, and afterwards of the See also:Senegal and See also:Guinea companies. See also:Napoleon I. raised it to a war harbour of the first See also:rank, and under Napoleon III. works begun by Louis XVI. were completed. See A. E. Barely, Ilistoire de la See also:vine du Havre (Le Havre, 1880-1881).

End of Article: HAVRE, LE

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