Bouches-de-la-Meuse - Definition

Bouches-de-la-Meuse is the name of a département of the First French Empire in the present Netherlands. It is named after the mouth of the river Meuse. It was formed in 1810, when the Kingdom of Holland was annexed by France. Its territory corresponds more or less with the present Dutch province South Holland. Its capital was The Hague. The département was subdivided into the following arrondissements and cantons:

• The Hague, cantons: Alphen aan den Rijn, Katwijk, The Hague (4 cantons) and Voorburg.
• Brielle, cantons: Brielle, Goedereede, Sommelsdijk.
• Dordrecht, cantons: Dordrecht (2 cantons), Oud-Beijerland, Ridderkerk and Strijen.
• Gorinchem, cantons: Culemborg, Gorinchem and Sliedrecht.
• Leiden, cantons: Leiden (3 cantons), Noordwijk and Woubrugge.
• Rotterdam, cantons: Delft (2 cantons), Gouda, Haastrecht, Hillegersberg, Naaldwijk, Rotterdam (4 cantons), Schiedam and Vlaardingen.

After Napoleon was defeated in 1814, the département became part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands.