Bordeaux

Bordeaux is a city in the Gironde department of France. It is on the Garonne River near the Atlantic Ocean. About 1,150,000 people live in the area around the city. Bordeaux has a temperate oceanic climate (Cfb in the Koeppen climate classification). It is famous for wines made in the region near the city. Bordeaux is also famous for its art.Bordeaux is classified as a “City of Art and History”. The city is home to 362 monuments historiques. Some buildings date back to Roman times. It is a UNESCO World Heritage Site.In about 300 BC Bordeaux was the settlement of a Celtic tribe. They named the town Burdigala. The Romans began rule of the city around 60 BC. Later it became capital of Roman Aquitaine. In the 400s the city was looted by the Vandals, Visigoths, and Franks. After the Battle of Poitiers, Duke Eudes was able to hold only a small part of Aquitaine where Bordeaux was located. It became one of the last cities to fall under King Pepin the Short. Bordeaux once again became an important city after the marriage of Duchess Eléonore of Aquitaine with Count Henri Plantagenet. He became King Henry II of England only months after their marriage.<br /> In 1653 Bordeaux was added to the Kingdom of France, when the army of Louis XIV entered the city. In 1870 the French government moved to Bordeaux for a time. This was at the beginning of the Franco-Prussian war against Prussia. The temporary move happened again during World War I and again very briefly during the World War II.<br />