BITCHE (Ger. Bitsch), town, France, department of Moselle, on the Horn, at the north foot of the Vosges between Hagenau and Sarreguemines. Pop. (1931) 2,792. The town, formed of the villages of Rohr and Kaltenhausen in the 17th century derives its name from the stronghold (mentioned in 1172 as Bytis Cas trum) on a rock some 25oft. above it. This had given its name to the countship of Bitsch, once belonging to the dukes of Lorraine. In 1297 it passed by marriage to Eberhard I. of Zweibrucken, whose line became extinct in 1569, when the count ship reverted to Lorraine. It passed with that duchy to France in 1766. The citadel on the site of the old castle was restored and strengthened in 1740. It was defended in 1793, 1815 and 1870. It was restored with the neighbouring regions to France in 1919. Industries include shoe-making and watch-making, and trade in grain and timber.