Nancy is the prefecture of the northeastern French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle, located in the Grand Est region (in the historical region of Lorraine). The city is situated on the left bank of the Meurthe. The metropolitan area of Nancy had a population of 508,793 inhabitants as of 2021, making it the 16th-largest functional urban area in France and Lorraine's largest. The population of the city of Nancy proper is 104,387 (2022). The origins of the city date back to the 11th century, when a fortified town was established by Gerard, Duke of Lorraine. Nancy developed into the ducal seat of the Duchy of Lorraine, a position it held until the duchy was annexed by France under King Louis XV in 1766 and replaced by a province, with Nancy maintained as capital. The city's Old Town (Vieille Ville), centered around the Ducal Palace of Nancy, reflects this long history, while the 18th-century Ville-Neuve bears witness to a period of ambitious urban planning under Stanislaus I of Poland. His patronage produced some of the city's most notable monuments, including the Place Stanislas, a large square built between 1752 and 1756 by architect Emmanuel Héré, today inscribed on the UNESCO World Heritage List. Following its rise to prominence in the Age of Enlightenment, it was nicknamed the "capital of Eastern France" in the late 19th century. Nancy became an important industrial and cultural hub in the 19th and early 20th centuries, especially during the Art Nouveau period. The École de...