or REIMS, a town of France, the largest, but not the capital of the department of Marne, stands in a plain amid vine-covered hills, on the Vesle, an affluent of the Aisne, 27 miles N.N.W. of Chalons, and 82 E.N.E. of Paris. It is encircled by a moat and ramparts, which have been planted with trees, and now form an agreeable public walk. The four ancient gates once bore the names of Mars, Venus, Ceres, and Bacchus; the first of them consists of a triumphal arch, whose graceful Corinthian columns contrast beautifully with the Gothic structures about it. A modern gate was opened beside it in the sixteenth century, and another was opened in honour of Louis XVI. in 1774. Though one of the oldest towns in France, the streets of Rheims do not in general present that picturesque appearance which often accompanies antiquity; some of them indeed are quite modern. The houses, seldom more than one or two storeys high, have a very dull and uniform aspect. The great glory of the place is the cathedral of the metropolitan see of France, which is considered by many to be the most magnificent church north of the Alps. It was built by Robert de Coucy (1212–41), but its towers are still unfinished, so as to detract from the perfection of the building. Nothing is more striking about the exterior than the unity and harmony of the whole, notwithstanding the many statues and other ornaments with which it is profusely embellished. The interior has much resemblance to that of Westminster Abbey, only it is bolder and simpler, much more so than the exterior; but the exceedingly brilliant painted glass in the windows throws over the whole "a dim religious light," which supplies the place of more elaborate decorations. There are few monuments in the cathedral now; the most remarkable being a white marble sarcophagus of Jovinus, an ancient prefect of Rheims. The abbey of St Remi is older than the cathedral, having been built partly in the eleventh and Rhenanus partly in the twelfth century; partly too at later epochs, so that it is a curious medley of different styles. Much injury, now quite repaired, was done to it at the Revolution: archbishops and nobles were torn up from its vaults; and the Sainte Ampoule, the heaven-descended oil-flask for anointing the regal heads of France, was publicly broken in pieces, though a fragment of it mysteriously re-appeared at the coronation of Charles X. The town-hall is a handsome modern building, with a statue of Louis XIII in front. A theatre, college, public library, and various schools are among the establishments of the town. The chief manufacture is that of woollen cloth, which has its centre here; hosiery, soap, candles, biscuits, and gingerbread are also produced; and dyeing, brewing, tanning, &c., are carried on. The principal article of trade is the wine of Champagne; but besides this, agricultural produce, woollen and cotton stuffs are exported here. Besides being the see of an archbishop, Rheims contains courts of law and a chamber of commerce. Previous to the invasion of Julius Caesar the town was called Durocortorum, and was the capital of the Remi, a native tribe, from whom the modern name is derived. Under the Romans it was a place of much importance, the capital of Belgica Secunda, adorned with fine buildings, and probably the seat of a school of learning. Christianity is said to have been introduced and the cathedral founded in the fourth century. Soon after, the barbarian hordes invaded Gaul; but in 496 Clovis and his Franks were converted and baptized here. The cathedral of Rheims has been the scene of the consecration of most of the French monarchs, from Philip Augustus in 1179, till that of Charles X. Of these ceremonies, probably none had been more interesting than that which took place in 1429, when Charles VII. was crowned here; Joan of Arc, bearing her sacred banner, kneeling with tears of joy before the sovereign whom she had restored to his throne. The town was taken by the Russians in 1814, but before they had been in possession many hours Napoleon came down upon them, and gained here one of his last successes before victory deserted his standards. Rheims is celebrated as the birthplace of the statesman Colbert and the Abbé Pluche.

Pop. (1856) 48,350.