CHERBOURG, a naval station, fortified town, and seaport of France, in the department of La Manche, on the northern shore of the peninsula of Cotentin, at the mouth of the small River Divette, in 49° 38' N. lat., l 0 38' W. long. It stands on a bay formed by Cape Levi on the E. and Cape La Hogue on the W.,and is distant 75 miles from the Isle of Wight, 41 miles W. by N. from St Lo, and 212 in the same direction from Paris. The town in itself is small and unimportant. Its houses are built of stone and roofed with slate; but the streets are narrow, and the only public buildings of any interest are the tower (a remnant of the old fortifications), the church of La Trinité, in front of which is the colossal statue of Napoleon I. by Level; the Chapelle de Nôtre Dame du Voeu, formerly part of the abbey founded by the Empress Maude in the 12th century; the Hôtel de Ville, which contains the Henry Museum and the library; the bathing establishments, opened in 1827; and the theatre. The town is supplied with water from a reservoir completed in 1874 at Château d’Eau, about three quarters of a mile distant, and capable of containing upwards of 500,000 gallons. Cherbourg derives its chief importance from its naval and commercial harbours, which are distant from each other about half a mile. The former is cut out of the rock, and is capable of accommodating fifty men-of-war of the largest size. The depth of water at full tide is 50 feet, at low tide 25 feet. Connected with the harbour are the dry docks, the yards where the largest ships in the French navy are constructed, the magazines, the rope walks, and the various workshops requisite for a naval arsenal of the first class. The works are carefully guarded on every side by redoubts and fortifications, and are commanded by ...batteries on the surrounding hills sq completely that the harbour of Cherbourg may be pronounced one of the strongest in the world. The commercial harbour at the mouth of the Divette communicates with the sea by a canal 650 feet in length and 54 in width. It consists of two parts, an outer harbour 262 yards long by 218 wide, and a basin 446 yards long and 138 wide, in which the depth of water is 19 feet at low tide, and will be increased by the dredging operations commenced in 1874. Outside these harbours is the triangular bay, which forms the roads of Cherbourg. This bay is admirably sheltered by the land on every side but the north. To protect the shipping from the violence of the north winds the great digue, or breakwater, has been constructed. This immense work is 2½ miles in length; its breadth at the base is 262 feet, and at the summit 101 feet. Its foundation was formed by massy wooden frames, which were sunk and filled with stones; and it is now protected from the waves by a parallel line of large blocks weighing each 44 tons. The industrial activity of Cherbourg is considerable, its principal products being cotton yarn, refined sugar, soda, leather, and chemicals. A lace factory gives employment to nearly 400 women. The chief articles of export are farm and dairy produce, more especially potatoes, butter, and pigs; and the imports consist mainly of coal, iron, timber, and cotton. The population in 1846 was 22,460; in 1872 it amounted to 34,785.
Cherbourg is supposed by some investigators to occupy the site of the Roman station of Coriallum, but nothing definite is known about its origin. The name was long regarded as a corruption of Caesaris Burgus, or Caesar’s Borough, but there is at least as much probability that it is the same as the English Scarborough. The castle is mentioned in the 11th century, and the town certainly existed in the 10th. William the Conqueror supplied it with a hospital and a church; and Henry II. on several occasions chose it as his residence. In 1295, it was pillaged by an English fleet from Yarmouth; and in the 14th century it frequently suffered during the invasions of Normandy. Captured by the English in 1418 after a four months’ siege, it was recovered by Charles VII. of France in 1450. An attempt was made under Louis XIV. to construct a military port; but the fortifications were dismantled in 1689, and further damage was inflicted by the English in 1758 Louis XVI. commenced the construction of the breakwater, and his plans were afterwards carried out and extended by Napoleon I., who is said to have declared that he would renew at Cherbourg the wonders of Egypt, and raise his pyramid in the sea. It was left, however, to Louis Philippe, and particularly to Napoleon III., to complete his designs; and their successful realization was celebrated in 1858, in the presence of the Queen of England, against whose dominions they had at one time been mainly directed. Between 1783 and the close of 1857, 66,862,000 francs had been expended on the works.
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