Norwich bulletin., 1916-06-21
THE WAR PRIMER By National Geographic Society

Foul, the scene of a recent German air raid, is the subject of today'S war geography bulletin of the National Geographic Society, issued from its Washington headquarters, which says:
 From the beginning of the Chris tian era Toul, known in Roman days as Tullum, has been the victim of raids. It had been sacked by GothS, Burgundians, Huns, and Vandals be- fore it was taken by the ranks in the middle of the fifth century. In the meantime it's people had been convert ed to christianity by the Irish monk, St. Mansuy, in the fourth century, and it played an important part in the an- nals of the church until it's bishopric, after nearly fourteen centuries, was suppressed during the early days of the Napoleonic era
 "The history of Foul recalls one of the most sanguinary fratricidal strifes of the early years of the seventh cen tury, centering around the strong willed Brunhilda. daughter of a Visi- goth ruler who married Sigebert, a F'rankish king reigning at Metz. The fame of this wedding, sung by Fort ! unatus, an Italian poet, kindled the 1 jealousy of Chilperic, Sigebert's s brother who shortly thereafter married Rrunhilda's sister. The new bride be- ] ing murdered at the behest of Chil- peric's favorite, war between the ! IWOz EUIOlASIS OCSu11SOs AllCI O1SS- bert's assassination, Brunhilda escap- ed from the clutches of Chilperic 1 through the machinations of a new 1 husband, the son of her conQueror | Following her own sons death, Brun- hilda spurred her two grandsons to wal with each other, Theuderich Il de- feating Theudebert at Tolbiac and Foul, and putting him to death, in 612 1 This unnatural grandmother met a | horrible fate a few months later, when she fell into the hands of the son o1 Fredegond, the woman who had inspired Chilperic to assassinate his wife Brunhilda's sister. This royal strife breeder was condemned to be dragged at the heels of a wild horse until death ] released her from the torture.
 '"Toul was a free German town dur ing the middle ages until 1852 wher Henry II of France seized it togeth. CT with Metz and Ver6un, the three towns comprising the territory knowr as Trois-E -Eveches. This victory of tht French was one of the factors in de. termining Charles V. to abdicate leaving his imperial throne to hi:
 brother Ferdinand and his Spanish Netherlands possessions to his sol
 Philip. During this century Foul wal
 twice seourged by the plague Whicl
 swept over Europe.
 Tn the Franco -Prussian war O
 1870 Foul played an honorable part LoE ASte MaJoF Auchs eOmu1ano1nl
 2.000 intrepid troops, wfthstood siege of 40 days duration, capitu1at
 ing~1enly after 13,000 men, employing
 100 guns, had ,bombarded the city fo 12 days. Four years after this wa
 France began to build new forts t
 take the place of Vauban's defense constructed in 1To0. At the outbreal
 of the present struggle the ring o : forts surrounding this town made i
 the most formidable French fortres
 on the Meuseoe-Moselle frontier. In times of peace this city of 1000 , inhabitants Is noted for its poreclains
 It is situated between the- Marne
 Rhine canal and the Moselle, the lat
 ter flowing to the east of the toWI . which is IA miles west of Nancy. i an airline, Verdun lies 45 miles to tn ! northwest