Bordeaux France

Located in the southwest of France is Bordeaux, an amazing city that should be part of your vacation to France. Why?

Victor Hugo, the internationally acclaimed French poet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman human rights campaigner, and perhaps the most influential proponent of the Romantic movement in France, found the city so beautiful that he once said, “Take Versailles, add Antwerp, and you have Bordeaux.”

With its population surpassing one million in 2006, Bordeaux is a city of southwest France built on a bend of the Garonne River and is thus divided into two parts: the right bank to the East and the left bank to the West. Bordeaux is also the capital of the Aquitaine region, a major economic and cultural center, as well as a busy port accessible to oceangoing ships. The city contains a diverse range of people and culture—much of the population is French, but there are substantial groups of Italians, Spaniards, Portuguese, English, Germans and North Africans.

Although Bordeaux has important shipyards and as well as other heavy industries and is known to be Europe’s main military space and aeronautics research and construction complex, its chief basis of wealth is the notable trading center for its famous red and white wine production since the eighth century. And the city is considered the world’s wine capital and proudly hosts Vinexpo, the wine industry’s biggest worldwide annual event. With a yearly production of over 700 million bottles, Bordeaux produces large quantities of everyday wine as well as the most expensive ones.

Between 30,000 and 90,000 years ago the area of Bordeaux was inhabited by the Homo Neanderthalensis, whose remains have been found at a famous cave known as Pair-non-Pair, near Bourg sur Gironde, just north of Bordeaux. Named Burdigala at around 300 BC, Bordeaux was the chief town of the Bituriges Vivisci, a Celtic people and under Roman rule it was the capital of the Aquitania province. As part of the inheritance of Eleanor of Aquitaine, Bordeaux became English in 1154 when her husband was crowned to the English throne as Henry II. Bordeaux then enjoyed immense prosperity through a thriving trade with the English until it was united with France upon the English defeat in the Hundred Years’ War (1453). As a Girondin center, it suffered severely in the French Revolution. The 18th century was the golden age of Bordeaux and many of its downtown buildings (about 5,000), including those on the quays, are from this period. During the Franco-Prussian War in 1870, the French government was transferred to Bordeaux and again in the beginning of World War I in 1914 and still again at the onset of World War II.

The Bordeaux University was founded in 1441 by archbishop Pey Berland, was removed under the French revolution in 1793, and reinstated by Napoleon I in 1808. With its nearly 100,000 students it is renowned for its research units in crop science, new materials and nanotechnology, and has one of the largest campuses of Europe.

Bordeaux’s main attractions and the pride and joy of its inhabitants are: Place de la Bourse; the church of St. Pierre; Façade of the Church of the Holy Cross; the Palace of Galienus; Place de la Bourse; and Edouard Manet, its harbor. In truth, however, with its countless cathedrals, churches, chateaus, bridges, museums, and city squares, everywhere you look in Bordeaux is an attraction and a sight of great beauty to behold.
Bordeaux is a city where exquisite loveliness and fine wine stream in equal measures.

Posted in France Vacation Guide