Bordeaux history and civilization
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.
Antiquity
- Bordeaux was founded in the 3rd century BC under the Celtic name Burdigala.
- The city fell under Roman rule around 60 BC, its importance lying in the commerce of tin and lead towards Rome.
- Later it became capital of Roman Aquitaine, flourishing especially during the Severan dynasty (3rd century).
The Middle Ages
- In the late 6th century, the city reemerged as the seat of a county and an archdiocese within the Merovingian kingdom of the Franks. The city fell into obscurity as royal power waned in southern Gaul in the late 7th century.
- Eventually, the city was inherited by the Dukes of Gascony in the late 10th century.
- From the 12th to the 15th century, Bordeaux regained importance as part of the English realm, following the marriage of Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine with the French-speaking Count Henri Plantagenet, who became, within months of their wedding, King Henry II of England.
- In 1462 Bordeaux obtained a parliament, but regained importance only in the 16th century when it became a centre of distribution of sugar and slaves from West Indies along with the traditional wine.
The 18th century
- The golden age of Bordeaux is when many downtown buildings were built.
- In fact, Baron Haussmann, a long-time prefect of Bordeaux, used Bordeaux’s 18th century big-scale rebuilding as a model when he was asked by Emperor Napoleon III to transform a then still quasi-medieval Paris into a "modern" capital that would make France proud.
Contemporary Era
- When the first Empire collapses, the city is the first to welcome the princes of the house of Bourbon.
- Beginning in 1840, the city becomes again a major trading port to Africa.
- The French government withdraws to Bordeaux during the two World Wars as well.
(Source: Wiki)