Toul is between Commercy and Nancy, and the river Moselle and Canal de la Marne au Rhin.

Toul was annexed to France by King Henry II in 1552; this was recognized by the Holy Roman Empire in the Peace of Westphalia of 1648.

Those that exist today are the work of Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban, Louis XIV's military engineer.

The Roman fortified town of Grand is some 30 km away, with its great amphitheatre and temple to the Cult of Apollo.

The old town's architecture is dominated by past glories in various states of decay, including a major Gothic cathedral, which is in a poor condition and is being slowly restored.

Many of the houses were built as canonical residences in the Late Middle Ages and bear vestiges in the form of ornamental stonework.

The barges known as péniches still navigate these watercourses commercially, typically carrying steel, though in the summer much more of the water traffic is for pleasure.

However, the Paris-Strasbourg TGV line, completed in 2016, passes about 20 km north of Toul, approximately midway between Metz and Nancy.