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Bordeaux (Bordèu in Gascon) is a port city in the south-west of France, and is the préfecture (administrative capital) of the Gironde département and the Aquitaine région. Its inhabitants are called Bordelais. The population of the metropolitan area (in French: aire urbaine) at the 1999 census was 925,253. Bordeaux is also the name of the wine produced in the region surrounding the city.
1 Geography
The city is built on an arc of the river Garonne, and is thus divided into two parts: the right bank to the East and left bank in the West.
1.1 History
- Bordeaux was founded around 300 BC under the Roman name Burdigala
- The city was plundered by the troops of Abd er Rahman in 732, after he had defeated Duke Eudes and before he was killed during the Battle of ToursThe Battle of Tours (more often called the Battle of Poitiers was fought on October 10, 732 between forces under the Frankish leader Charles Martel and an Islamic army led by Emir Abd er Rahman. During the battle, the Franks defeated the Islamic army and on October 10October 10 is the 283rd day of the year (284th in Leap years). There are 82 days remaining. Events 680 Battle of Karbala: Shia Imam Husayn bin Ali, the grandson of the Prophet Muhammad, was decapitated by forces under Caliph Yazid I. This is commemorated.
- From the 12th to the 15th century, Bordeaux was an English King's fief
- The 18th century was its golden age, because of the trades with the West Indies. Hotels on the quays are from this period.
- During WWI, the French government withdrew to the city.
2 Economy
The Bordeaux region is home to many of the most prestigious wine
producers in the world.
Both red and white wines are made in Bordeaux. Red Bordeaux is called claretClaret is the English name for red wine from the Bordeaux region of France, along the valleys of the rivers Gironde, Garonne and Dordogne. The Plantagenet kingdom, covering England and much of France from 1152 to 1453, encouraged wine trade and the develo in EnglandEngland is the largest, the most populous, and the most densely populated of the four " Home Nations" which make up the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK). Occupying the south-eastern portion of the island of Great Britain, England.
Red Bordeaux is generally made from a blend of grapes and may be made from Cabernet SauvignonCabernet Sauvignon is a variety of red grape mainly used for wine production, and is the most widely-planted of the world's great grape varieties. The principal grape in many Bordeaux wines, it is grown in most of the world's major wine regions, although, Cabernet FrancCabernet Franc is a red wine grape variety similar to and a parent of Cabernet Sauvignon. A cross of it with Sauvignon Blanc resulted in Cabernet Sauvignon. Cabernet Franc tends to be softer and has less tannins than Cabernet Sauvignon, although the two c, Merlot, Petit Verdot, and Malbec. White Bordeaux is made from Sauvignon Blanc, Semillon, and Muscadelle .
The Bordeaux wine region is divided into subregions including Saint-Emilion, Pomerol, Médoc, and Graves. : The area's five 'premier cru' (first growth) red wines (four from Médoc and one, Chateau Haut-Brion, from Graves), established by the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855 are among the most sought after and expensive wines in the world:
Sauternes is a subregion of Graves famous for its intensely sweet, white, dessert wines such as Chateau d'Yquem.
Notables born in Bordeaux include:
- Bertrand Andrieu (1761-1822), engraver
- Jean Anouilh (1910-1987), dramatist
- Yvonne Arnaud (1892-1958), actress
- René Clément (1913-1996), actor, director, writer
- Damia (1899-1978), singer
- Lili Damita (1901-1994), actress
- Eugène Goossens (1867-1958) conductor, violinist
- François Mauriac (1885-1970), writer, Nobel laureate
- Edouard Molinaro (born 1928), film director, producer
- Michel de Montaigne (1533-1592), philosopher
- St. Paulinus of Nola (354-431), educator, religious figure
- Pierre Rode (1774-1830), violinist
