RE: "Alsace Lorraine in North West Germany near Cologne" "Would any one on this list know if when France controlled the area Northwest of Cologne in period 1792 to 1806 or maybe later was that area known as Alsace Lorraine then?" To my knowledge, the area northwest of Cologne (German = Koln) has never been part of either Alsace (German = Elzass) or Lorraine (German = Lothringen). It may have been under the control of Napoleon's France subsequent to 1804. RE: " Surnames:? Thiery, Metz, Bles, Delese" OR -- place names? Metz is the capital of Lorraine. Thiery is a commune in the arrondissement of Nice in the region of Alpes-Maritime.