AUBE  , a

department of north-eastern France, bounded N. by the department of Marne, N.W. by Seine-et-Marne, W. by Yonne, S. by Yonne and Cote-d'Or, and E. by Haute-Marne; it was formed in 1790 from Basse-Champagne, and a small portion of Burgundy . Area, 2326 sq. m . Pop . (1906) 243,670 . The department belongs to the Seine basin, and is watered chiefly by the Seine and the Aube . These rivers follow the general slope of the department, which is from south-east, where the Bois du Mont (1200 ft.), the highest point, is situated, to north-west . The southern and eastern districts are fertile and well wooded . The remainder of the department, with the exception of a more broken and picturesque district in the extreme north-west, forms part of the sterile and monotonous plain known as Champagne Pouilleuse . The climate is mild but damp . The annual rainfall over the greater part varies from 24 to 28 in.; but in the extreme south-east it at times reaches a height of 36 in . Aube is an agricultural department; more than one-third of its surface consists of arable land of which the chief products are wheat and oats, and next to them rye, barley and potatoes; vegetables are extensively cultivated in the valleys of the Seine and the Aube . The vine flourishes chiefly on the hills of the south-east; the wines of Les Riceys, Bar-sur-Aube, Bouilly and Laines-aux-Bois are most esteemed .

The

river valleys abound in natural pasture, and sainfoin, lucerne and other forage crops are largely grown; cattle-raising is an important source of wealth, and the cheeses of Troyes are well known . There are excellent nurseries and orchards in the neighbourhood of Troyes, Bar-sur-Seine, Wry-our-Seine and Brienne . Chalk, from which blanc de Troyes is manufactured, and clay are abundant; and there are peat workings and quarries of building-stone and limestone . The spinning and weaving of cotton and the manufacture of hosiery, of both of which Troyes is the centre, are the main industries of the department; there are also a large number of distilleries, tanneries, oil works, tile and brick works, flour-mills, saw-mills and dye-works . The Eastern railway has works at Romilly, and there are iron works at Clairvaux and wire-drawing works at Plaines; but owing to the absence of coal and iron mines, metal working is of small importance . The exports of Aube consist of timber, cereals, agricultural products, hosiery, wine, dressed pork, &c.; its imports include wool and raw cotton, coal and machinery, especially looms . The department is served by the Eastern railway, of which the main line to Belfort crosses it . The river Aube is navigable for 28 m . (from Arcis-sur-Aube to its confluence with the Seine); the Canal de la Haute-Seine extends beside the Seine from Bar-sur-Seine to Marcilly (just outside the department) a distance of 46 m.; below Marcilly the Seine is canalized . Aube is divided into 5 arrondissements with 26 cantons and 446 communes . It falls within the educational circumscription (academie) of Dijon and the military circumscription of the XX. army corps; its court of appeal is in Paris . It constitutes the diocese of Troyes and part of the archiepiscopal province of Sens .

The

capital of the department is Troyes; of the arrondissements the capitals are Troyes, Bar-sur-Aube, Arcis-sur-Aube, Bar-sur-Seine and Nogent-sur-Seine . The architecture of the department is chiefly displayed in its churches, many of which possess stained glass of the 16th century . Besides the cathedral and other churches of Troyes, those of Mussy-sur-Seine (13th century), Chaource (16th century) and Nogent-sur-Seine (15th and 16th centuries), are of note . The abbey buildings of Clairvaux are the type of the Cistercian abbey .