an arrondissement of the department of the Aisne in France, which extends over 456 square miles, and is divided into six cantons and 167 communes, containing 68,761 inhabitants. The capital, a city of the same name, is situated in a fine valley on the river Aisne. It has a cathedral with two towers, only one of which has been completed. The town, in 1836, contained 8124 inhabitants, employed chiefly in making linens and leather, and in spinning cotton by machinery.