ARDENNES, a department of France on the N.E. frontier, deriving its name from that of the forest, and formed in 1790 from parts of Champagne, Picardy and Hainault. Pop. (1906) 317,505. Area, 2028 sq. m. It is bounded N. and N.E. by Belgium, E. by the department of Meuse, S. by that of Marne, and W. by that of Aisne. In shape it is quadrilateral with a cape-like prolongation into Belgium on the north. The slope of the department is from north-east to south-west, though its longest river, the Meuse, entering it in the south-east, pursues a winding course of 111 m. in a north-westerly, and afterwards through deep gorges in a northerly, direction. The other principal river, the Aisne, crosses the southern border and takes a northerly, then a westerly course, separating the region known as Champagne Pouilleuse from the more elevated plateau of Argonne which forms the central zone of the department and stretches to the left bank of the Meuse. The highest points of the department are found in the wooded highlands of the Ardennes which, with an altitude varying between 980 and 1640 ft., cover the north and north-east. The climate is comparatively mild in the south-west, but becomes colder and more rainy towards the north and north-east. Agriculture is carried on to most advantage in the Champagne and Argonne. Wheat and oats are the predominant cereals. Potatoes, rye, lucerne and other kinds of forage are also important crops. Pasturage is found chiefly on the banks of the Aisne and Meuse and on the plateau of Rocroi in the north. Horse-raising is carried on in the neighbourhood of Buzancy in the south, and at Bourg-Fièele in the north. Fruit-growing is confined to the west and central districts. The working of slate is very important, especially in the neighbourhood of Fumay, and quarries producing freestone, lime-stone and other minerals are found in several places. Flour-mills, saw-mills, sugar-works, distilleries and leather-works are scattered over the department, but iron-founding and various branches of metal-working which are active along the valley of the Meuse (Nouzon, &c.) are the chief industries. To these may be added wool-weaving, centred at Sedan, and minor industries such as the manufacture of basket-work, wooden shoes, &c. Coal and raw wool are prominent imports, while iron goods, cloth, timber, live-stock, alcohol and the products of the soil are exported. Various branches of the Eastern railway traverse the department. The Meuse is canalized within the department, and the Canal des Ardennes, uniting that river with the Aisne, and the lateral canal of the Aisne are together about 65 m. long. Ardennes is divided into five arrondissements: Mézières, Rocroi, Rethel, Vouziers and Sedan, with 31 cantons and 503 communes. The department forms part of the ecclesiastical province of Reims and of the circumscriptions of the appeal-court of Nancy and the VI. army corps. In educational matters, it is included in the academic (educational area) of Lille. Mézières, the capital, Charleville, Rocroi, Sedan and Rethel are the chief towns. Outside them its finest examples of architecture are the churches of Mouzon (13th century) and Vouziers (15th century).
ARDGLASS (“Green Height”): a small town of Co. Down, Ireland, in the east parliamentary division, at the head of a rocky bay, in a picturesque situation between two hills, 32 m. S. by E. of Belfast on a branch of the Belfast & Co. Down railway. Pop. (1901) 501. Soon after the Norman invasion it became of the first importance as a port, a fact attested by the remains of no fewer than five castles in close proximity, which give the town a picturesque aspect. There are also an ancient church crowning the eastern hill, and a curious fortified warehouse (called the New Works), dating probably from the 14th century, when a trading company was established here under a grant from Henry IV. Ardglass was a royal burgh and sent a representative to the Irish parliament. The chief industry is the herring fishery. Ships of 500 tons may enter the harbour at all times. In summer Ardglass is a frequented resort of visitors; good bathing and a golf links contribute to its attractions.
ARDITI, LUIGI (1822-1903), Italian musical composer and conductor, was born in Piedmont, and studied music at the Conservatoire in Milan, starting professionally as a violinist, and touring with Bottesini, the double-bass player, in the United States in 1847. He began composing at an early age, and in 1840 produced an overture, followed by an opera I Briganti in 1841, and other works. He paid frequent visits to America, conducting the opera in New York, where he produced his La Spia in 1856. In 1858 he became conductor of the opera at Her Majesty’s theatre in London, and both in London and abroad he became famous in this capacity, having the reputation of being Madame Patti’s favourite conductor. His vocal waltz Il Bacio was often sung by her. In 1896 he published his Reminiscences, and after a long and active musical life he died at Brighton on the 1st of May 1903.
ARDMORE, a township and the county-seat of Carter county, Oklahoma, U.S.A., just S. of the Arbuckle Mountains, about 120 m. S. by E. of Guthrie. Pop. (1900) 5681; (1907) 8759 (2122 being negroes, and 108 Indians); (1910) 8618. It is served by the Chicago, Rock Island & Pacific, the St Louis & San Francisco, and the Gulf, Colorado & Santa Fé railways. Ardmore is the market-town and distributing point for the surrounding agricultural region, which is the home of a large part of the Chickasaw and Choctaw nations. It is situated 890 ft. above the sea in a cotton and grain producing region, in which cattle are raised and fruit and vegetables grown; coal, oil, natural gas and rock asphalt (which is used for paving the streets of Ardmore) are found in the vicinity. Ardmore is an important cotton market, and has cotton gins, a cotton compress, machine shops, bridge works, foundries, bottling works and manufactories of cotton-seed oil, brick, concrete, flour, brooms, mattresses and dressed lumber. At Ardmore are the Saint Agnes Academy, a Catholic school for girls, and Saint Agnes College for boys, a conservatory of music, Hargrove College, and the Selvidge Commercial College. Near Ardmore is a summer school on the Chautauqua (q.v.) system. Ardmore was founded in 1887, and was incorporated in 1898.
ARDRES, a town of northern France in the department of Pas-de-Calais, 10½ m. by rail S.S.E. of Calaís’, with which it is also connected by a canal. Pop. (1906) 1269. The “Field of the Cloth of Gold,” where Henry VIII. of England and Francis I. of France met in 1520, was at Balinghem in the immediate neighbourhood. The town is an important market for cattle.