> Alsace and Lorraine are the same place, called Alsace by the Germans and > Lorraine by the French. Alsace and Lorraine are most definitely NOT the same place. Different peoples, different dialects, different rulers, different histories. Lorraine fell to Richeleiu. Alsace fell to France, piecewise, as a result of very slick manipulation of treaties at the close of the Thirty Years War, and was disputed for centuries. In fact it was that very treaty that was the grain of sand in the oyster from which all the latter wars were partly born. The free city of Strasbourg was the last Alsatian property to fall by that treaty, due to the lack of action of a weak and feeble Emperor. Alsace was historically a German State. The Kings of France chipped away at the territory over centuries. There was much travel back and forth between the border by the people. Bits of Alsace were under the dominion of the house of Hesse. It's very possible your cousin has some foundation. But Alzey was part of the Palatinate. Not Hesse-Darmstadt, until very late in the history of the German States (1814). Alzey was, I believe part of the Bishopric of Strasbourg, which is in Alsace. Part of Alsace belonged to the House of Hesse-Kassel, for a time. But not Hess-Darmstadt. Hesse and the whole area has a very complex and twisted history. It's almost impossible to make any statement about the area that is true without qualifying the exact time period you are referring to. Brian > > Hessen is north and east of Alsace/Lorraine, and is well within the > borders of present day Germany. This state does not share a border with > France, and was only under French control as an occupied territory. > > I am sure if I have gotten this wrong, someone more knowledgeable will > correct me. > > Marleen Van Horne >