The 'Ardre' is a fifth order river in France which flows into the
Vesle (left tributary) thence into the
Aisne,
Oise and
Seine.
Geography
The river lies to the west of
Reims and flows on bearing of about 310° from the Parc Régional de la Montagne de Reims to enter the
Vesle at
Fismes (Latitude 49° 18' 28" N Longitude 03° 40' 53" E).
It rises at an altitude of about 270 metres and descends over a course of about 31 kilometres, to about 80m in Fismes. It is crossed by the
Paris to Reims motorway, A4/E50 about half way along the river's length.
It's geology is comparable with that of the lower Thames valley and south Hampshire. Though the chalk of the Champagne plateau is not far away, towards Reims, the immediate surroundings are of middle Eocene but the river has cut down into lower Eocene clay deposits like those at
Chichester. Consequently, the landscape is much more wooded than that typical of
Champagne.
History
The Ardre became a footnote in British military history as the river down the valley of which the
British 51st and
62nd Divisions, with atached New Zealanders, fought in cooperation with French V Army forces on each flank and with Italian artillery support, in July 1918, during the
Second Battle of the Aisne.
References
★ Anon ''Carte géologique de la France à l'échelle du millionième'' (2003) ISBN 2-7159-2158-6
★ Anon ''Michelin France 2002 Tourist and Motoring Atlas'' (2001) ISBN 2-06-100128-9
External link
★
62nd Division on the Ardre (based on this reference book).
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