DIGNE, the chief town of the department of Basses-Alpes, in France, about 70 miles north-east of Marseilles, in 44° 5' 32” N. lat. and 6° 14' 6" E. long. It is built on a spur of the mountains jutting out into a gorge traversed by the Bléonne, which in winter is a formidable torrent, but in summer is almost dry; and the neighbourhood is rich in orchards, which have long made the town famous in France for its preserved fruits and confections. The streets are narrow and tortuous, with the exception of the Boulevard Gassendi, at the upper end of which is a public garden, with a statue of the philosopher, who was born in the neighbouring village of Chantercier. The cathedral within the town is a buildingof very hybrid architecture, and is of less importance than the cathedral of Notre Dame, in the vicinity, which dates from the 12th century, and is numbered among the historic monuments of France. The thermal springs are not in much repute, and the bathing establishment is in a state of decay. Digne is identified with Dinia, the capital of the Avantici and Bodiontici. It early became an ecclesiastical see, and its bishops acquired the secular rank of barons of Lauzières. In the 16th century it suffered on four separate occasions from the Huguenot soldiery; and in mo.dern history it is known as the place from which Napoleon issued his proclamation of March 1815. Population in 1872, 5300 in the town and 6877 in the commune.