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Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river
Garonne The Garonne (, also , ; Occitan, Catalan, Basque, and es, Garona, ; la, Garumna or ) is a river of southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux – ...
in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the
Nouvelle-Aquitaine Nouvelle-Aquitaine (; oc, Nòva Aquitània or ; eu, Akitania Berria; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Novéle-Aguiéne'') is the largest administrative region in France, spanning the west and southwest of the mainland. The region was created by ...
region, as well as the prefecture of the Gironde department. Its inhabitants are called ''"Bordelais"'' (masculine) or ''"Bordelaises"'' (feminine). The term "Bordelais" may also refer to the city and its surrounding region. The city of Bordeaux proper had a population of 260,958 in 2019 within its small municipal territory of , With its 27 suburban municipalities it forms the Bordeaux Metropolis, in charge of metropolitan issues. With a population of 814,049 at the Jan. 2019 census. it is the fifth most populated in France, after
Paris Paris () is the Capital city, capital and List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, most populous city of France, with an estimated population of 2,165,423 residents in 2019 in an area of more than 105 km² (41 sq mi), ma ...
,
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...
,
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
and
Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the N ...
and ahead of
Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pa ...
. Together with its suburbs and
exurb An exurb (or alternately: exurban area) is an area outside the typically denser inner suburban area, at the edge of a metropolitan area, which has some economic and commuting connection to the metro area, low housing density, and growth. It sh ...
s, except satellite cities of
Arcachon Arcachon ( ; ) is a commune in the southwestern French department of Gironde. It is a popular seaside resort on the Atlantic coast southwest of Bordeaux, in the Landes forest. It has a sandy beach and a mild climate said to be favourable for i ...
and
Libourne Libourne (; oc, label= Gascon, Liborna ) is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. It is the wine-making capital of northern Gironde and lies near Saint-Ém ...
, the Bordeaux metropolitan area had a population of 1,363,711 that same year (Jan. 2019 census), making it the sixth most populated in France, after Paris, Lyon, Marseille, Lille, and
Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pa ...
. Bordeaux is a world capital of wine: many castles and
vineyards A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineyards ...
stand on the hillsides of the Gironde, and the city is home to the world's main wine fair, Vinexpo. Bordeaux is also one of the centers of gastronomy and business tourism for the organization of international congresses. It is a central and strategic hub for the aeronautics, military and space sector, home to international companies such as Dassault Aviation,
Ariane Group ArianeGroup (formerly Airbus Safran Launchers) is an aerospace company based in France. A joint venture between Airbus and Safran, the company was founded in 2015 and is headquartered in Issy-les-Moulineaux. It consists of three core arms: aero ...
, Safran and Thalès. The link with aviation dates back to 1910, the year the first airplane flew over the city. A crossroads of knowledge through university research, it is home to one of the only two
megajoule laser The joule ( , ; symbol: J) is the unit of energy in the International System of Units, International System of Units (SI). It is equal to the amount of Work (physics), work done when a force of 1 Newton (unit), newton displaces a mass through ...
s in the world, as well as a university population of more than 130,000 students within the Bordeaux Metropolis. Bordeaux is an international tourist destination for its architectural and cultural heritage with more than 350 historic monuments, making it, after Paris, the city with the most listed or registered monuments in France. The "''Pearl of Aquitaine''" has been voted European Destination of the year in a 2015 online poll. The metropolis has also received awards and rankings by international organizations such as in 1957, Bordeaux was awarded the Europe Prize for its efforts in transmitting the European ideal. In June 2007, the
Port of the Moon The ''Port de la Lune'' (Port of the Moon) is the name given to the harbour of Bordeaux, dating to the Middle Ages, because of the shape of the river crossing the city. It is represented by a crescent on the coat of arms of Bordeaux, and by three ...
in historic Bordeaux was inscribed on the
UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. It ...
World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for ...
, for its outstanding architecture and urban ensemble and in recognition of Bordeaux's international importance over the last 2000 years. Bordeaux is also ranked as a Sufficiency city by the
Globalization and World Cities Research Network The Globalization and World Cities Research Network (GaWC) is a think tank that studies the relationships between world cities in the context of globalization. It is based in the geography department of Loughborough University in Leicestershire ...
.


History


5th century BC to 11th century AD

Around 300 BC, the region was the settlement of a
Celtic tribe Celtic, Celtics or Keltic may refer to: Language and ethnicity *pertaining to Celts, a collection of Indo-European peoples in Europe and Anatolia **Celts (modern) *Celtic languages ** Proto-Celtic language *Celtic music *Celtic nations Sports Fo ...
, the Bituriges Vivisci, named the town Burdigala, probably of Aquitanian origin. In 107 BC, the
Battle of Burdigala The Battle of Burdigala (the Roman name for Bordeaux, with stress on the 'i') was a battle of the Cimbrian War that occurred in the year 107 BC. The battle was fought between a combined Germanic-Celtic army including the Helvetian Tigurini unde ...
was fought by the Romans who were defending the
Allobroges The Allobroges (Gaulish: *''Allobrogis'', 'foreigner, exiled'; grc, Ἀλλοβρίγων, Ἀλλόβριγες) were a Gallic people dwelling in a large territory between the Rhône river and the Alps during the Iron Age and the Roman period. ...
, a
Gallic tribe The Gauls ( la, Galli; grc, Γαλάται, ''Galátai'') were a group of Celtic peoples of mainland Europe in the Iron Age and the Roman period (roughly 5th century BC to 5th century AD). Their homeland was known as Gaul (''Gallia''). They spo ...
allied to Rome, and the
Tigurini The Tigurini were a clan or tribe forming one out of four '' pagi'' (provinces) of the Helvetii. The Tigurini were the most important group of the Helvetii, mentioned by both Julius Caesar and Poseidonius, settling in the area of what is now th ...
led by
Divico Divico was a Celtic king and the leader of the Helvetian tribe of the Tigurini. During the Cimbrian War, in which the Cimbri and Teutons invaded the Roman Republic, he led the Tigurini across the Rhine to invade Gaul in 109 BC. He defeated a Roma ...
. The Romans were defeated and their commander, the
consul Consul (abbrev. ''cos.''; Latin plural ''consules'') was the title of one of the two chief magistrates of the Roman Republic, and subsequently also an important title under the Roman Empire. The title was used in other European city-states throu ...
Lucius Cassius Longinus, was killed in battle. The city came under
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
rule around 60 BC, and it became an important commercial centre for
tin Tin is a chemical element with the symbol Sn (from la, stannum) and atomic number 50. Tin is a silvery-coloured metal. Tin is soft enough to be cut with little force and a bar of tin can be bent by hand with little effort. When bent, t ...
and
lead Lead is a chemical element with the symbol Pb (from the Latin ) and atomic number 82. It is a heavy metal that is denser than most common materials. Lead is soft and malleable, and also has a relatively low melting point. When freshly cu ...
. During this period were built the amphitheatre and the monument ''Les Piliers de Tutelle''. File:Bordeaux - Pilliers de Tutelle.jpg, ''Les Piliers de Tutelle'' File:Bordeaux - Palais Gallien 2.jpg, The Roman amphitheatre In 276, it was sacked by the
Vandals The Vandals were a Germanic people who first inhabited what is now southern Poland. They established Vandal kingdoms on the Iberian Peninsula, Mediterranean islands, and North Africa in the fifth century. The Vandals migrated to the area betw ...
. The Vandals attacked again in 409, followed by the
Visigoths The Visigoths (; la, Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, Wisi) were an early Germanic people who, along with the Ostrogoths, constituted the two major political entities of the Goths within the Roman Empire in late antiquity, or what is ...
in 414, and the
Franks The Franks ( la, Franci or ) were a group of Germanic peoples whose name was first mentioned in 3rd-century Roman sources, and associated with tribes between the Lower Rhine and the Ems River, on the edge of the Roman Empire.H. Schutz: Tools, ...
in 498, and afterwards the city fell into a period of relative obscurity. In the late sixth century the city re-emerged as the seat of a county and an archdiocese within the
Merovingian The Merovingian dynasty () was the ruling family of the Franks from the middle of the 5th century until 751. They first appear as "Kings of the Franks" in the Roman army of northern Gaul. By 509 they had united all the Franks and northern Gauli ...
kingdom of the Franks Francia, also called the Kingdom of the Franks ( la, Regnum Francorum), Frankish Kingdom, Frankland or Frankish Empire ( la, Imperium Francorum), was the largest post-Roman barbarian kingdom in Western Europe. It was ruled by the Franks duri ...
, but royal Frankish power was never strong. The city started to play a regional role as a major urban center on the fringes of the newly founded Frankish
Duchy of Vasconia A duchy, also called a dukedom, is a medieval country, territory, fief, or domain ruled by a duke or duchess, a ruler hierarchically second to the king or queen in Western European tradition. There once existed an important difference between " ...
. Around 585 Gallactorius was made
Count of Bordeaux The Count of Bordeaux (Latin ''comes Burdagalensis'') was the ruler of the city of Bordeaux and its environs in the Merovingian and Carolingian periods. The names of the counts are scarcely known until the ninth century, when they start to take on ...
and fought the Basques. In 732, the city was plundered by the troops of Abd er Rahman who stormed the fortifications and overwhelmed the Aquitanian garrison. Duke Eudes mustered a force to engage the
Umayyads Umayyads may refer to: *Umayyad dynasty, a Muslim ruling family of the Caliphate (661–750) and in Spain (756–1031) *Umayyad Caliphate (661–750) :*Emirate of Córdoba (756–929) :*Caliphate of Córdoba The Caliphate of Córdoba ( ar, خ ...
, eventually engaging them in the
Battle of the River Garonne The Battle of the River Garonne, also known as the Battle of Bordeaux,Matthew Bennett ''The Hutchinson Dictionary of Ancient & Medieval Warfare'' 1579581161 1998 p319 "In 732 a large army of (70,000-80,000) men led by Abd ar-Rahman defeated the Aq ...
somewhere near the river Dordogne. The battle had a high death toll, and although Eudes was defeated he had enough troops to engage in the
Battle of Poitiers The Battle of Poitiers was fought on 19September 1356 between a French army commanded by King JohnII and an Anglo- Gascon force under Edward, the Black Prince, during the Hundred Years' War. It took place in western France, south of Poit ...
and so retain his grip on Aquitaine. In 737, following his father Eudes's death, the Aquitanian duke Hunald led a rebellion to which Charles responded by launching an expedition that captured Bordeaux. However, it was not retained for long, during the following year the Frankish commander clashed in battle with the Aquitanians but then left to take on hostile Burgundian authorities and magnates. In 745 Aquitaine faced another expedition where Charles's sons Pepin and Carloman challenged Hunald's power and defeated him. Hunald's son Waifer replaced him and confirmed Bordeaux as the capital city (along with Bourges in the north). During the last stage of the war against Aquitaine (760–768), it was one of Waifer's last important strongholds to fall to the troops of King Pepin the Short. Charlemagne built the fortress of Fronsac (''Frontiacus'', ''Franciacus'') near Bordeaux on a hill across the border with the Basques (''Wascones''), where Basque commanders came and pledged their loyalty (769). In 778, Seguin (or Sihimin) was appointed count of Bordeaux, probably undermining the power of the Duke Lupo, and possibly leading to the
Battle of Roncevaux Pass The Battle of Roncevaux Pass ( French and English spelling, ''Roncesvalles'' in Spanish, ''Orreaga'' in Basque) in 778 saw a large force of Basques ambush a part of Charlemagne's army in Roncevaux Pass, a high mountain pass in the Pyrenees on t ...
. In 814, Seguin was made Duke of
Vasconia The Duchy of Gascony or Duchy of Vasconia ( eu, Baskoniako dukerria; oc, ducat de Gasconha; french: duché de Gascogne, duché de Vasconie) was a duchy located in present-day southwestern France and northeastern Spain, an area encompassing the m ...
, but was deposed in 816 for failing to suppress a Basque rebellion. Under the Carolingians, sometimes the Counts of Bordeaux held the title concomitantly with that of Duke of Vasconia. They were to keep the Basques in check and defend the mouth of the Garonne from the
Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
s when they appeared in c. 844. In Autumn 845, the Vikings were raiding Bordeaux and Saintes, count Seguin II marched on them but was captured and executed. Although the port of Bordeaux was a buzzing trade center, the stability and success of the city was threatened by
Viking Vikings ; non, víkingr is the modern name given to seafaring people originally from Scandinavia (present-day Denmark, Norway and Sweden), who from the late 8th to the late 11th centuries raided, pirated, traded and se ...
and
Norman Norman or Normans may refer to: Ethnic and cultural identity * The Normans, a people partly descended from Norse Vikings who settled in the territory of Normandy in France in the 10th and 11th centuries ** People or things connected with the Norm ...
incursions and political instability. The restoration of the Ramnulfid
Dukes of Aquitaine The Duke of Aquitaine ( oc, Duc d'Aquitània, french: Duc d'Aquitaine, ) was the ruler of the medieval region of Aquitaine (not to be confused with modern-day Aquitaine) under the supremacy of Frankish, English, and later French kings. As succ ...
under
William IV William IV (William Henry; 21 August 1765 – 20 June 1837) was King of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland and King of Hanover from 26 June 1830 until his death in 1837. The third son of George III, William succeeded h ...
and his successors (known as the
House of Poitiers The Ramnulfids, or the House of Poitiers, were a French dynasty ruling the County of Poitou and Duchy of Aquitaine in the 9th through 12th centuries. Their power base shifted from Toulouse to Poitou. In the early 10th century, they contested th ...
) brought continuity of government.


12th century to 15th century, the English era

From the 12th to the 15th century, Bordeaux flourished once more following the marriage of Eléonore, Duchess of
Aquitaine Aquitaine ( , , ; oc, Aquitània ; eu, Akitania; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne ( oc, Guiana), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former administrative region of the country. Since 1 Janu ...
and the last of the
House of Poitiers The Ramnulfids, or the House of Poitiers, were a French dynasty ruling the County of Poitou and Duchy of Aquitaine in the 9th through 12th centuries. Their power base shifted from Toulouse to Poitou. In the early 10th century, they contested th ...
, to Henry II Plantagenêt,
Count of Anjou The Count of Anjou was the ruler of the County of Anjou, first granted by Charles the Bald in the 9th century to Robert the Strong. Ingelger and his son, Fulk the Red, were viscounts until Fulk assumed the title of Count of Anjou. The Robertians ...
and the grandson of Henry I of England, who succeeded to the English crown months after their wedding, bringing into being the vast
Angevin Empire The Angevin Empire (; french: Empire Plantagenêt) describes the possessions of the House of Plantagenet during the 12th and 13th centuries, when they ruled over an area covering roughly half of France, all of England, and parts of Ireland and W ...
, which stretched from the
Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...
to Ireland. After granting a tax-free trade status with England, Henry was adored by the locals as they could be even more profitable in the wine trade, their main source of income, and the city benefited from imports of cloth and wheat. The belfry (Grosse Cloche) and city cathedral St-André were built, the latter in 1227, incorporating the artisan quarter of Saint-Paul. Under the terms of the
Treaty of Brétigny The Treaty of Brétigny was a treaty, drafted on 8 May 1360 and ratified on 24 October 1360, between Kings Edward III of England and John II of France. In retrospect, it is seen as having marked the end of the first phase of the Hundred Years ...
it became briefly the capital of an independent state (1362–1372) under
Edward, the Black Prince Edward of Woodstock, known to history as the Black Prince (15 June 1330 – 8 June 1376), was the eldest son of King Edward III of England, and the heir apparent to the English throne. He died before his father and so his son, Richard II, suc ...
, but after the
Battle of Castillon The Battle of Castillon between the forces of England and France took place on 17 July 1453 in Gascony near the town of Castillon-sur-Dordogne (later Castillon-la-Bataille). Historians regard this decisive French victory as marking the end o ...
(1453) it was annexed by France.


15th century to 17th century

In 1462, Bordeaux created a local parliament. Bordeaux adhered to the
Fronde The Fronde () was a series of civil wars in France between 1648 and 1653, occurring in the midst of the Franco-Spanish War, which had begun in 1635. King Louis XIV confronted the combined opposition of the princes, the nobility, the law cour ...
, being effectively annexed to the
Kingdom of France The Kingdom of France ( fro, Reaume de France; frm, Royaulme de France; french: link=yes, Royaume de France) is the historiographical name or umbrella term given to various political entities of France in the medieval and early modern period ...
only in 1653, when the army of
Louis XIV , house = Bourbon , father = Louis XIII , mother = Anne of Austria , birth_date = , birth_place = Château de Saint-Germain-en-Laye, Saint-Germain-en-Laye, France , death_date = , death_place = Palace of Ver ...
entered the city.


18th century, the golden era

The 18th century saw another golden age of Bordeaux. The
Port of the Moon The ''Port de la Lune'' (Port of the Moon) is the name given to the harbour of Bordeaux, dating to the Middle Ages, because of the shape of the river crossing the city. It is represented by a crescent on the coat of arms of Bordeaux, and by three ...
supplied the majority of Europe with coffee, cocoa, sugar, cotton and indigo, becoming France's busiest port and the second busiest port in the world after London. Many downtown buildings (about 5,000), including those on the quays, are from this period. Bordeaux was also a major trading centre for slaves. In total, the Bordeaux shipowners deported 150,000 Africans in some 500 expeditions.


French Revolution: political disruption and loss of the most profitable colony

At the beginning of the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...
(1789), many local revolutionaries were members of the
Girondists The Girondins ( , ), or Girondists, were members of a loosely knit political faction during the French Revolution. From 1791 to 1793, the Girondins were active in the Legislative Assembly (France), Legislative Assembly and the National Convention ...
. This Party represented the provincial bourgeoisie, favorable towards abolishing aristocracy privileges, but opposed to the Revolution's social dimension. In 1793, the Montagnards led by Robespierre and
Marat Marat may refer to: People *Marat (given name) *Marat (surname) **Jean-Paul Marat (1743-1793), French political theorist, physician and scientist Arts, entertainment, and media *''Marat/Sade'', a 1963 play by Peter Weiss * ''Marat/Sade'' (fil ...
came to power. Fearing a bourgeois misappropriation of the Revolution, they executed a great number of Girondists. During the purge, the local Montagnard Section renamed the city of Bordeaux "Commune-Franklin" (Franklin-municipality) in homage to
Benjamin Franklin Benjamin Franklin ( April 17, 1790) was an American polymath who was active as a writer, scientist, inventor, statesman, diplomat, printer, publisher, and political philosopher. Encyclopædia Britannica, Wood, 2021 Among the leading inte ...
. At the same time, in 1791, a
slave revolt A slave rebellion is an armed uprising by enslaved people, as a way of fighting for their freedom. Rebellions of enslaved people have occurred in nearly all societies that practice slavery or have practiced slavery in the past. A desire for freed ...
broke out at Saint-Domingue (current Haiti), the most profitable of the French colonies. Three years later, the Montagnard Convention abolished slavery. In 1802, Napoleon revoked the manumission law but lost the war against the army of former slaves. In 1804, Haiti became independent. The loss of this "Pearl" of the West Indies generated the collapse of Bordeaux's port economy, which was dependent on the colonial trade and trade in slaves. Towards the end of the
Peninsular War The Peninsular War (1807–1814) was the military conflict fought in the Iberian Peninsula by Spain, Portugal, and the United Kingdom against the invading and occupying forces of the First French Empire during the Napoleonic Wars. In Spain ...
of 1814, the
Duke of Wellington Arthur Wellesley, 1st Duke of Wellington, (1 May 1769 – 14 September 1852) was an Anglo-Irish people, Anglo-Irish soldier and Tories (British political party), Tory statesman who was one of the leading military and political figures of Uni ...
sent William Beresford with two divisions and seized Bordeaux, encountering little resistance. Bordeaux was largely anti-
Bonapartist Bonapartism (french: Bonapartisme) is the political ideology supervening from Napoleon Bonaparte and his followers and successors. The term was used to refer to people who hoped to restore the House of Bonaparte and its style of government. In thi ...
and the majority supported the
Bourbons The House of Bourbon (, also ; ) is a European dynasty of French origin, a branch of the Capetian dynasty, the royal House of France. Bourbon kings first ruled France and Navarre in the 16th century. By the 18th century, members of the Spani ...
. The British troops were treated as liberators.


19th century, rebirth of the economy

From the Bourbon Restoration, the economy of Bordeaux was rebuilt by traders and shipowners. They engaged to construct the first bridge of Bordeaux, and customs warehouses. The shipping traffic grew through the new African colonies.
Georges-Eugène Haussmann Georges-Eugène Haussmann, commonly known as Baron Haussmann (; 27 March 180911 January 1891), was a French official who served as prefect of Seine (1853–1870), chosen by Emperor Napoleon III to carry out a massive urban renewal programme of n ...
, a longtime prefect of Bordeaux, used Bordeaux's 18th-century large-scale rebuilding as a model when he was asked by Emperor
Napoleon III Napoleon III (Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte; 20 April 18089 January 1873) was the first President of France (as Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte) from 1848 to 1852 and the last monarch of France as Emperor of the French from 1852 to 1870. A nephew ...
to transform the quasi-medieval Paris into a "modern" capital that would make France proud.
Victor Hugo Victor-Marie Hugo (; 26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French Romantic writer and politician. During a literary career that spanned more than sixty years, he wrote in a variety of genres and forms. He is considered to be one of the great ...
found the town so beautiful he said: "Take
Versailles The Palace of Versailles ( ; french: Château de Versailles ) is a former royal residence built by King Louis XIV located in Versailles, about west of Paris, France. The palace is owned by the French Republic and since 1995 has been managed, ...
, add Antwerp, and you have Bordeaux". In 1870, at the beginning of the Franco-Prussian war against
Prussia Prussia, , Old Prussian: ''Prūsa'' or ''Prūsija'' was a German state on the southeast coast of the Baltic Sea. It formed the German Empire under Prussian rule when it united the German states in 1871. It was ''de facto'' dissolved by an ...
, the French government temporarily relocated to Bordeaux from Paris. That recurred during
World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...
and again very briefly during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
, when it became clear that Paris would fall into German hands.


20th century

During World War II, Bordeaux fell under
German occupation German-occupied Europe refers to the sovereign countries of Europe which were wholly or partly occupied and civil-occupied (including puppet governments) by the military forces and the government of Nazi Germany at various times between 1939 an ...
. In May and June 1940, Bordeaux was the site of the life-saving actions of the Portuguese consul-general, Aristides de Sousa Mendes, who illegally granted thousands of Portuguese visas, which were needed to pass the Spanish border, to refugees fleeing the German occupation. From 1941 to 1943, the
Italian Royal Navy The ''Regia Marina'' (; ) was the navy of the Kingdom of Italy (''Regno d'Italia'') from 1861 to 1946. In 1946, with the birth of the Italian Republic (''Repubblica Italiana''), the ''Regia Marina'' changed its name to ''Marina Militare'' ("M ...
established
BETASOM BETASOM (an Italian language acronym of ''Bordeaux Sommergibile'' or ''Sommergibili'') was a submarine base established at Bordeaux, France by the Italian '' Regia Marina Italiana'' during World War II. From this base, Italian submarines participa ...
, a submarine base at Bordeaux. Italian submarines participated in the Battle of the Atlantic from that base, which was also a major base for German
U-boats U-boats were naval submarines operated by Germany, particularly in the First and Second World Wars. Although at times they were efficient fleet weapons against enemy naval warships, they were most effectively used in an economic warfare rol ...
as headquarters of
12th U-boat Flotilla The 12th U-boat Flotilla (German ''12. Unterseebootsflottille'') was a German U-boat flotilla formed on 15 October 1942 at Bordeaux under the command of ''Korvettenkapitän () is the lowest ranking senior officer in a number of Germanic-speaki ...
. The massive, reinforced concrete U-boat pens have proved impractical to demolish and are now partly used as a cultural center for exhibitions.


21st century, listed as World heritage

In 2007, 40% of the city surface area, located around the
Port of the Moon The ''Port de la Lune'' (Port of the Moon) is the name given to the harbour of Bordeaux, dating to the Middle Ages, because of the shape of the river crossing the city. It is represented by a crescent on the coat of arms of Bordeaux, and by three ...
, was listed as World heritage sites. Unesco inscribed Bordeaux as "an inhabited historic city, an outstanding urban and architectural ensemble, created in the age of the Enlightenment, whose values continued up to the first half of the 20th century, with more protected buildings than any other French city except Paris".


Geography

Bordeaux is located close to the European
Atlantic The Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's five oceans, with an area of about . It covers approximately 20% of Earth's surface and about 29% of its water surface area. It is known to separate the " Old World" of Africa, Europe an ...
coast, in the southwest of France and in the north of the Aquitaine region. It is around southwest of Paris. The city is built on a bend of the river Garonne, and is divided into two parts: the right bank to the east and left bank in the west. Historically the left bank is more developed because when flowing outside the bend, the water makes a furrow of the required depth to allow the passing of merchant ships, which used to offload on this side of the river. But, today, the right bank is developing, including new urban projects. In Bordeaux, the Garonne River is accessible to ocean liners through the Gironde estuary. The right bank of the Garonne is a low-lying, often marshy plain.


Climate

Bordeaux's climate was last officially classified as a temperate oceanic climate (
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
''Cfb''), although in more recent temperature records, from 1991 to 2020, it has warmed to become a humid subtropical climate (
Köppen climate classification The Köppen climate classification is one of the most widely used climate classification systems. It was first published by German-Russian climatologist Wladimir Köppen (1846–1940) in 1884, with several later modifications by Köppen, notabl ...
''Cfa''). In the
Trewartha climate classification The Trewartha climate classification (TCC) or the Köppen–Trewartha climate classification (KTC) is a climate classification system first published by American geographer Glenn Thomas Trewartha in 1966. It is a modified version of the Köppen ...
system it was classified as temperate oceanic or ''Do'' climate, but more recent temperature numbers have shown it to have eight months greater than and classify it as subtropical (''Cf''). Winters are cool because of the prevalence of westerly winds from the Atlantic. Summers are warm and long due to the influence from the Bay of Biscay (surface temperature reaches ). The average seasonal winter temperature is , but recent winters have been warmer than this. Frosts in the winter occur several times during a winter, but snowfall is very rare, occurring only once every three years. The average summer seasonal temperature is . The summer of 2003 set a record with an average temperature of . February 1956 was the coldest month on record with an average temperature of −2.00 °C at Bordeaux Mérignac-Airport.


Economy

Bordeaux is a major centre for business in France as it has the sixth largest metropolitan population in France. It serves as a major regional center for trade, administration, services and industry.


Wine

The vine was introduced to the Bordeaux region by the Romans, probably in the mid-first century, to provide wine for local consumption, and wine production has been continuous in the region since. Bordeaux wine growing area has about of
vineyard A vineyard (; also ) is a plantation of grape-bearing vines, grown mainly for winemaking, but also raisins, table grapes and non-alcoholic grape juice. The science, practice and study of vineyard production is known as viticulture. Vineya ...
s, 57
appellations An appellation is a legally defined and protected geographical indication primarily used to identify where the grapes for a wine were grown, although other types of food often have appellations as well. Restrictions other than geographical boun ...
, 10,000 wine-producing estates (châteaux) and 13,000 grape growers. With an annual production of approximately 960 million bottles, the Bordeaux area produces large quantities of everyday wine as well as some of the most expensive wines in the world. Included among the latter are the area's five ''premier cru'' ( First Growth) red wines (four from Médoc and one,
Château Haut-Brion Château Haut-Brion () is a French wine, rated a ''Premier Grand Cru Classé'' ( First Great Growth), produced in Pessac just outside the city of Bordeaux. It differs from the other wines on the list in its geographic location in the north of ...
, from
Graves A grave is a location where a dead body (typically that of a human, although sometimes that of an animal) is buried or interred after a funeral. Graves are usually located in special areas set aside for the purpose of burial, such as grave ...
), established by the
Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855 The Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855 resulted from the 1855 Exposition Universelle de Paris, when Emperor Napoleon III requested a classification system for France's best Bordeaux wines that were to be on display for visitors from ...
: Both red and white wines are made in the Bordeaux region. Red Bordeaux wine is called
claret Bordeaux wine ( oc, vin de Bordèu, french: vin de Bordeaux) is produced in the Bordeaux region of southwest France, around the city of Bordeaux, on the Garonne River. To the north of the city the Dordogne River joins the Garonne forming the ...
in the United Kingdom. Red wines are generally made from a blend of grapes, and may be made from Cabernet Sauvignon, Merlot, Cabernet Franc,
Petit verdot Petit Verdot is a variety of red wine grape, principally used in classic Bordeaux blends. It ripens much later than the other varieties in Bordeaux, often too late, so it fell out of favour in its home region. When it does ripen it adds tannin, ...
,
Malbec Malbec () is a purple grape variety used in making red wine. The grapes tend to have an inky dark color and robust tannins, and are known as one of the six grapes allowed in the blend of red Bordeaux wine. In France, plantations of Malbec are n ...
, and, less commonly in recent years,
Carménère The Carménère grape is a wine grape variety originally planted in the Médoc region of Bordeaux, France, where it was used to produce deep red wines and occasionally used for blending purposes in the same manner as Petit Verdot. A member of t ...
. White Bordeaux is made from Sauvignon blanc,
Sémillon Sémillon is a golden-skinned grape used to make dry and sweet white wines, mostly in France and Australia. Its thin skin and susceptibility to botrytis make it dominate the sweet wine region Sauternes AOC and Barsac AOC. History The Sémil ...
, and
Muscadelle Muscadelle is a white wine grape variety. It has a simple aroma of grape juice and raisins like grapes of the Muscat family of grapes, but it is unrelated. DNA analysis has indicated that Muscadelle is a cross between Gouais blanc and an unid ...
. Sauternes is a sub-region of Graves known for its intensely sweet, white,
dessert wine Dessert wines, sometimes called pudding wines in the United Kingdom, are sweet wines typically served with dessert. There is no simple definition of a dessert wine. In the UK, a dessert wine is considered to be any sweet wine drunk with a meal ...
s such as
Château d'Yquem Château d'Yquem () is a '' Premier Cru Supérieur'' ( Fr: "Superior First Growth") wine from the Sauternes, Gironde region in the southern part of the Bordeaux vineyards known as Graves. In the Bordeaux Wine Official Classification of 1855, Ch ...
. Because of a wine glut (
wine lake The wine lake refers to a perceived overproduction of wine in the European Union, particularly around 2005–2007. The EU's Common Agricultural Policy contained a number of subsidies for wine producers, leading to a supply glut; this surplus forc ...
) in the generic production, the price squeeze induced by an increasingly strong international competition, and
vine pull schemes Vine pull schemes are programs whereby grape growers receive a financial incentive to pull up their grape vines, a process known as ''arrachage'' in French. A large program of this kind was initiated by the European Union ( EU) in 1988 to reduce t ...
, the number of growers has recently dropped from 14,000 and the area under vine has also decreased significantly. In the meantime, the global demand for first growths and the most famous labels markedly increased and their prices skyrocketed. The
Cité du Vin The Cité du Vin is a museum as well as a place of exhibitions, shows, movie projections and academic seminars on the theme of wine located in Bordeaux, France. Construction Architects The architects were Anouk Legendre and Nicholas Desmazi ...
, a museum as well as a place of exhibitions, shows, movie projections and
academic An academy (Attic Greek: Ἀκαδήμεια; Koine Greek Ἀκαδημία) is an institution of secondary or tertiary higher learning (and generally also research or honorary membership). The name traces back to Plato's school of philosophy, ...
seminar A seminar is a form of academic instruction, either at an academic institution or offered by a commercial or professional organization. It has the function of bringing together small groups for recurring meetings, focusing each time on some parti ...
s on the theme of wine opened its doors in June 2016.


Others

The
Laser Mégajoule Laser Mégajoule (LMJ) is a large laser-based inertial confinement fusion (ICF) research device near Bordeaux, France, built by the French nuclear science directorate, Commissariat à l'Énergie Atomique (CEA). Laser Mégajoule plans to deliver ...
will be one of the most powerful lasers in the world, allowing fundamental research and the development of the
laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word "laser" is an acronym for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation". The fi ...
and plasma technologies. Some 20,000 people work for the aeronautic industry in Bordeaux. The city has some of the biggest companies including
Dassault Dassault Group (; also GIM Dassault or Groupe Industriel Marcel Dassault SAS) is a French group of companies established in 1929 with the creation of Société des Avions Marcel Bloch (now Dassault Aviation) by Marcel Dassault, and led by son Ser ...
,
EADS Sogerma Stelia Aerospace (stylized STELIA Aerospace) is an aerospace company headquartered in Toulouse, France. It specializes in the design and manufacture of aerostructures, pilot seats and premium class passenger seats, mainly for the commercia ...
,
Snecma Safran Aircraft Engines, previously Snecma (''Société nationale d'études et de construction de moteurs d'aviation'') or Snecma Moteurs, is a French aerospace engine manufacturer headquartered in Courcouronnes and a subsidiary of Safran. It ...
,
Thales Thales of Miletus ( ; grc-gre, Θαλῆς; ) was a Greek mathematician, astronomer, statesman, and pre-Socratic philosopher from Miletus in Ionia, Asia Minor. He was one of the Seven Sages of Greece. Many, most notably Aristotle, regarded ...
, SNPE, and others. The
Dassault Falcon The Dassault Falcon is a family of business jets, manufactured by Dassault Aviation. July 2017 saw the 2,500th Falcon delivered – a Falcon 900LX – since the first Falcon 20 was handed over to a customer in 1965. The fleet has accumula ...
private jets are built there as well as the
military aircraft A military aircraft is any fixed-wing or rotary-wing aircraft that is operated by a legal or insurrectionary armed service of any type. Military aircraft can be either combat or non-combat: * Combat aircraft are designed to destroy enemy equi ...
Rafale The Dassault Rafale (, literally meaning "gust of wind", and "burst of fire" in a more military sense) is a French twin-engine, canard delta wing, multirole fighter aircraft designed and built by Dassault Aviation. Equipped with a wide rang ...
and Mirage 2000, the
Airbus A380 The Airbus A380 is a large wide-body airliner that was developed and produced by Airbus. It is the world's largest passenger airliner and only full-length double-deck jet airliner. Airbus studies started in 1988, and the project was annou ...
cockpit, the boosters of Ariane 5, and the M51 SLBM
missile In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocke ...
. Tourism, especially
wine tourism Enotourism, oenotourism, wine tourism, or vinitourism refers to tourism whose purpose is or includes the tasting, consumption or purchase of wine, often at or near the source. Where other types of tourism are often passive in nature, enotourism ca ...
, is a major industry. Globelink.co.uk mentioned Bordeaux as the best tourist destination in Europe in 2015. Access to the
port A port is a maritime facility comprising one or more wharves or loading areas, where ships load and discharge cargo and passengers. Although usually situated on a sea coast or estuary, ports can also be found far inland, such as H ...
from the Atlantic is via the Gironde estuary. Almost nine million tonnes of goods arrive and leave each year.


Major companies

This list includes indigenous Bordeaux-based companies and companies that have major presence in Bordeaux, but are not necessarily headquartered there. *
Arena An arena is a large enclosed platform, often circular or oval-shaped, designed to showcase theatre, musical performances, or sporting events. It is composed of a large open space surrounded on most or all sides by tiered seating for spectators ...
*
Groupe Bernard A group is a military unit or a military formation that is most often associated with military aviation. Air and aviation groups The terms group and wing differ significantly from one country to another, as well as between different branches ...
*
Groupe Castel Castel Group (French Groupe Castel) is a French beverage company. It was established in 1949 by Pierre Castel, who continues to run the company as a family-owned concern. Castel is the largest French wine producer and owns the biggest French an ...
*
Cdiscount Cdiscount is the third largest (behind amazon.fr and veepee.fr) French e-commerce website with products such as electronics, household appliances and food. In 2013, Cdiscount was the most important French e-commerce website in terms of turnover ...
*
Dassault Dassault Group (; also GIM Dassault or Groupe Industriel Marcel Dassault SAS) is a French group of companies established in 1929 with the creation of Société des Avions Marcel Bloch (now Dassault Aviation) by Marcel Dassault, and led by son Ser ...
* Jock *
Marie Brizard Marie may refer to: People Name * Marie (given name) * Marie (Japanese given name) * Marie (murder victim), girl who was killed in Florida after being pushed in front of a moving vehicle in 1973 * Marie (died 1759), an enslaved Cree person in T ...
* McKesson Corporation *
Oxbow __NOTOC__ An oxbow is a U-shaped metal pole (or larger wooden frame) that fits the underside and the sides of the neck of an ox or bullock. A bow pin holds it in place. The term " oxbow" is widely used to refer to a U-shaped meander in a rive ...
*
Ricard Ricard is a surname, as well as a Catalan name. Notable people with the surname include: * Étienne Pierre Sylvestre Ricard (1771–1843), French general under Napoleon * Hámilton Ricard (born 1974), Colombian footballer *Jean-François Ricard (bo ...
*
Sanofi Aventis Sanofi S.A. is a French multinational pharmaceutical and healthcare company headquartered in Paris, France. Originally, the corporation was established in 1973 and merged with Synthélabo in 1999 to form Sanofi-Synthélabo. In 2004, Sanofi-Syn ...
*
Smurfit Kappa The Smurfit Kappa Group plc is Europe's leading corrugated packaging company and one of the leading paper-based packaging companies in the world. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. History The co ...
*
Snecma Safran Aircraft Engines, previously Snecma (''Société nationale d'études et de construction de moteurs d'aviation'') or Snecma Moteurs, is a French aerospace engine manufacturer headquartered in Courcouronnes and a subsidiary of Safran. It ...
* Solectron *
Thales Group Thales Group () is a French multinational company that designs, develops and manufactures electrical systems as well as devices and equipment for the aerospace, defence, transportation and security sectors. The company is headquartered in Paris' ...


Population

In January 2019, there were 260,958 inhabitants in the city proper (commune) of Bordeaux. The commune (including Caudéran which was annexed by Bordeaux in 1965) had its largest population of 284,494 at the 1954 census. The majority of the population is French, but there are sizable groups of Italians,
Spaniards Spaniards, or Spanish people, are a Romance ethnic group native to Spain. Within Spain, there are a number of national and regional ethnic identities that reflect the country's complex history, including a number of different languages, both in ...
(Up to 20% of the Bordeaux population claim some degree of Spanish heritage),
Portuguese Portuguese may refer to: * anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Portugal ** Portuguese cuisine, traditional foods ** Portuguese language, a Romance language *** Portuguese dialects, variants of the Portuguese language ** Portu ...
,
Turks Turk or Turks may refer to: Communities and ethnic groups * Turkic peoples, a collection of ethnic groups who speak Turkic languages * Turkish people, or the Turks, a Turkic ethnic group and nation * Turkish citizen, a citizen of the Republic ...
,
Germans , native_name_lang = de , region1 = , pop1 = 72,650,269 , region2 = , pop2 = 534,000 , region3 = , pop3 = 157,000 3,322,405 , region4 = , pop4 = ...
. The built-up area has grown for more than a century beyond the municipal borders of Bordeaux due to the small size of the commune () and
urban sprawl Urban sprawl (also known as suburban sprawl or urban encroachment) is defined as "the spreading of urban developments (such as houses and shopping centers) on undeveloped land near a city." Urban sprawl has been described as the unrestricted growt ...
, so that by January 2019 there were 1,363,711 people living in the overall metropolitan area (''aire d'attraction'') of Bordeaux, only a fifth of whom lived in the city proper. Largest communities of foreigners :


Politics


Municipal administration

The Mayor of the city is the environmentalist
Pierre Hurmic Pierre Hurmic (born 10 April 1955) is a French politician serving as Mayor of Bordeaux since 2020. A member of Europe Ecology – The Greens (EELV), he was first elected to the municipal council of Bordeaux in 1995. In 2020, he defeated incumben ...
. Bordeaux is the capital of five cantons and the Prefecture of the Gironde and
Aquitaine Aquitaine ( , , ; oc, Aquitània ; eu, Akitania; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne ( oc, Guiana), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former administrative region of the country. Since 1 Janu ...
. The town is divided into three districts, the first three of Gironde. The headquarters of Urban Community of Bordeaux Mériadeck is located in the neighbourhood and the city is at the head of the Chamber of Commerce and Industry that bears his name. The number of inhabitants of Bordeaux is greater than 250,000 and less than 299,999 so the number of municipal councilors is 65. They are divided according to the following composition:


Mayors of Bordeaux

Since the
Liberation Liberation or liberate may refer to: Film and television * ''Liberation'' (film series), a 1970–1971 series about the Great Patriotic War * "Liberation" (''The Flash''), a TV episode * "Liberation" (''K-9''), an episode Gaming * '' Liberati ...
(1944), there have been 6 mayors of Bordeaux: * RPR was renamed to UMP in 2002 which was later renamed to LR in 2015


Elections


Presidential elections of 2007

At the 2007 presidential election, the Bordelais gave 31.37% of their votes to
Ségolène Royal Marie-Ségolène Royal (; born 22 September 1953) is a French politician who was the Socialist Party candidate for the Presidency of France in the 2007 election. Royal was president of the Poitou-Charentes Regional Council from 2004 to 201 ...
of the Socialist Party against 30.84% to Nicolas Sarkozy, president of the UMP. Then came François Bayrou with 22.01%, followed by
Jean-Marie Le Pen Jean Louis Marie Le Pen (, born 20 June 1928) is a French far-right politician who served as President of the National Front from 1972 to 2011. He also served as Honorary President of the National Front from 2011 to 2015. Le Pen graduated fro ...
who recorded 5.42%. None of the other candidates exceeded the 5% mark. Nationally, Nicolas Sarkozy led with 31.18%, then Ségolène Royal with 25.87%, followed by François Bayrou with 18.57%. After these came Jean-Marie Le Pen with 10.44%, none of the other candidates exceeded the 5% mark. In the second round, the city of Bordeaux gave Ségolène Royal 52.44% against 47.56% for Nicolas Sarkozy, the latter being elected President of the Republic with 53.06% against 46.94% for Ségolène Royal. The abstention rates for Bordeaux were 14.52% in the first round and 15.90% in the second round.


Parliamentary elections of 2007

In the parliamentary elections of 2007, the left won eight constituencies against only three for the right. It should be added that after the partial 2008 elections, the eighth district of Gironde switched to the left, bringing the count to nine. In Bordeaux, the left was for the first time in its history the majority as it held two of three constituencies following the elections. In the first division of the Gironde, the outgoing UMP MP Chantal Bourragué was well ahead with 44.81% against 25.39% for the Socialist candidate Beatrice Desaigues. In the second round, it was Chantal Bourragué who was re-elected with 54.45% against 45.55% for his socialist opponent. In the second district of Gironde the UMP mayor and all new Minister of Ecology, Energy, Sustainable Development and the Sea
Alain Juppé Alain Marie Juppé (; born 15 August 1945) is a French politician. A member of The Republicans (France), The Republicans, he was Prime Minister of France from 1995 to 1997 under President Jacques Chirac, during which period he faced 1995 strikes ...
confronted the General Counsel PS Michèle Delaunay. In the first round, Alain Juppé was well ahead with 43.73% against 31.36% for Michèle Delaunay. In the second round, it was finally Michèle Delaunay who won the election with 50.93% of the votes against 49.07% for Alain Juppé, the margin being only 670 votes. The defeat of the so-called constituency "Mayor" showed that Bordeaux was rocking increasingly left. Finally, in the third constituency of the Gironde, Noël Mamère was well ahead with 39.82% against 28.42% for the UMP candidate Elizabeth Vine. In the second round, Noël Mamère was re-elected with 62.82% against 37.18% for his right-wing rival.


Municipal elections of 2008

In 2008 municipal elections saw the clash between mayor of Bordeaux, Alain Juppé and the President of the Regional Council of Aquitaine Socialist Alain Rousset. The PS had put up a Socialist heavyweight in the Gironde and had put great hopes in this election after the victory of Ségolène Royal and Michèle Delaunay in 2007. However, after a rather exciting campaign it was Alain Juppé who was widely elected in the first round with 56.62%, far ahead of Alain Rousset who has managed to get 34.14%. At present, of the eight cantons that has Bordeaux, five are held by the PS and three by the UMP, the left eating a little each time into the right's numbers.


European elections of 2009

In the European elections of 2009, Bordeaux voters largely voted for the UMP candidate Dominique Baudis, who won 31.54% against 15.00% for PS candidate Kader Arif. The candidate of Europe Ecology José Bové came second with 22.34%. None of the other candidates reached the 10% mark. The 2009 European elections were like the previous ones in eight constituencies. Bordeaux is located in the district "Southwest", here are the results: UMP candidate Dominique Baudis: 26.89%. His party gained four seats. PS candidate Kader Arif: 17.79%, gaining two seats in the European Parliament. Europe Ecology candidate Bove: 15.83%, obtaining two seats. MoDem candidate Robert Rochefort: 8.61%, winning a seat. Left Front candidate Jean-Luc Mélenchon: 8.16%, gaining the last seat. At regional elections in 2010, the Socialist incumbent president Alain Rousset won the first round by totaling 35.19% in Bordeaux, but this score was lower than the plan for Gironde and Aquitaine. Xavier Darcos, Minister of Labour followed with 28.40% of the votes, scoring above the regional and departmental average. Then came Monique De Marco, Green candidate with 13.40%, followed by the member of Pyrenees-Atlantiques and candidate of the MoDem Jean Lassalle who registered a low 6.78% while qualifying to the second round on the whole Aquitaine, closely followed by Jacques Colombier, candidate of the National Front, who gained 6.48%. Finally the candidate of the Left Front Gérard Boulanger with 5.64%, no other candidate above the 5% mark. In the second round, Alain Rousset had a tidal wave win as national totals rose to 55.83%. If Xavier Darcos largely lost the election, he nevertheless achieved a score above the regional and departmental average obtaining 33.40%. Jean Lassalle, who qualified for the second round, passed the 10% mark by totaling 10.77%. The ballot was marked by abstention amounting to 55.51% in the first round and 53.59% in the second round. ''Only candidates obtaining more than 5% are listed''


2017 elections

Bordeaux voted for Emmanuel Macron in the
presidential election A presidential election is the election of any head of state whose official title is President. Elections by country Albania The president of Albania is elected by the Assembly of Albania who are elected by the Albanian public. Chile The pre ...
. In the 2017 parliamentary election, La République En Marche! won most of the constituencies in Bordeaux.


2019 European elections

Bordeaux voted in the
2019 European Parliament election in France The 2019 European Parliament election in France were held on 26 May 2019 (and on 25 May in parts of overseas France and for some nationals abroad), electing members of the 9th French delegation to the European Parliament as part of the elections ...
.


Municipal elections of 2020

After 73 years of right-of-centre rule, the ecologist Pierre Hurmic ( EELV) came in ahead of Nicolas Florian ( LR/ LaREM).


Parliamentary representation

The city area is represented by the following
constituencies An electoral district, also known as an election district, legislative district, voting district, constituency, riding, ward, division, or (election) precinct is a subdivision of a larger state (a country, administrative region, or other polity ...
: Gironde's 1st, Gironde's 2nd, Gironde's 3rd, Gironde's 4th, Gironde's 5th, Gironde's 6th, Gironde's 7th.


Education


University

During Antiquity, a first university had been created by the Romans in 286. The city was an important administrative centre and the new university had to train administrators. Only rhetoric and
grammar In linguistics, the grammar of a natural language is its set of structural constraints on speakers' or writers' composition of clauses, phrases, and words. The term can also refer to the study of such constraints, a field that includes domain ...
were taught.
Ausonius Decimius Magnus Ausonius (; – c. 395) was a Roman poet and teacher of rhetoric from Burdigala in Aquitaine, modern Bordeaux, France. For a time he was tutor to the future emperor Gratian, who afterwards bestowed the consulship on him ...
and
Sulpicius Severus Sulpicius Severus (; c. 363 – c. 425) was a Christian writer and native of Aquitania in modern-day France. He is known for his chronicle of sacred history, as well as his biography of Saint Martin of Tours. Life Almost all that we know of Sev ...
were two of the teachers. In 1441, when Bordeaux was an English town, the
Pope Eugene IV Pope Eugene IV ( la, Eugenius IV; it, Eugenio IV; 1383 – 23 February 1447), born Gabriele Condulmer, was head of the Catholic Church and ruler of the Papal States from 3 March 1431 to his death in February 1447. Condulmer was a Venetian, and ...
created a university by demand of the archbishop
Pey Berland Blessed Pey Berland (or ''Peyberland'', from ''Pierre Berland''; c. 1380 – January 1458) was the Archbishop of Bordeaux from 1430 until his abdication, during a pivotal time in the history of the city and of Gascony. During his tenure, th ...
. In 1793, during the
French Revolution The French Revolution ( ) was a period of radical political and societal change in France that began with the Estates General of 1789 and ended with the formation of the French Consulate in coup of 18 Brumaire, November 1799. Many of its ...
, the
National Convention The National Convention (french: link=no, Convention nationale) was the parliament of the Kingdom of France for one day and the French First Republic for the rest of its existence during the French Revolution, following the two-year Nationa ...
abolished the university, and replace them with the
École centrale The Ecoles Centrales Group is an alliance, consisting of following grandes écoles of engineering: * CentraleSupélec (formed by merger of École Centrale Paris and Supélec) established in 2015 * École centrale de Lille established in 1854 * ...
in 1796. In Bordeaux, this one was located in the former buildings of the college of Guyenne. In 1808, the university reappeared with
Napoleon Napoleon Bonaparte ; it, Napoleone Bonaparte, ; co, Napulione Buonaparte. (born Napoleone Buonaparte; 15 August 1769 – 5 May 1821), later known by his regnal name Napoleon I, was a French military commander and political leader who ...
. Bordeaux accommodates approximately 70,000 students on one of the largest campuses of Europe (235 ha). The University of Bordeaux is divided into four: *The University Bordeaux 1, (Maths, Physical sciences and Technologies), 10,693 students in 2002 *The University Bordeaux 2, Bordeaux Segalen (Medicine and Life sciences), 15,038 students in 2002 *The University Bordeaux 3, Michel de Montaigne (
Liberal arts Liberal arts education (from Latin "free" and "art or principled practice") is the traditional academic course in Western higher education. ''Liberal arts'' takes the term '' art'' in the sense of a learned skill rather than specifically th ...
, Humanities, Languages, History), 14,785 students in 2002 *The University Bordeaux 4, Montesquieu (Law, Economy and Management), 12,556 students in 2002 * Institut of Political Sciences of Bordeaux. Although technically a part of the fourth university, it largely functions autonomously.


Schools

Bordeaux has numerous public and private schools offering undergraduate and postgraduate programs. Engineering schools: *
Arts et Métiers ParisTech Arts et Métiers ParisTech is a French engineering and research institute of higher education. It is a '' grande école'', recognized for leading in the fields of mechanics and industrialization. Founded in 1780, it is among the oldest French in ...
, graduate school of industrial and mechanical engineering *
ESME-Sudria The École Spéciale de Mécanique et d'Electricité (English: Special School of Mechanics and Electricity), also known as ESME Sudria is a French private grande école founded in 1905. It is a part of the IONIS Education Group. Founded in ''190 ...
, graduate school of engineering *École d'ingénieurs en modélisation mathématique et mécanique *École nationale supérieure d'électronique, informatique, télécommunications, mathématique et mécanique de Bordeaux (ENSEIRB-MATMECA) *École supérieure de technologie des biomolécules de Bordeaux * École nationale supérieure des sciences agronomiques de Bordeaux Aquitaine * École nationale supérieure de chimie et physique de Bordeaux *
École pour l'informatique et les nouvelles technologies The Paris Graduate School of Digital Innovation (french: École pour l'informatique et les nouvelles technologies, or EPITECH), formerly European Institute of Information Technology, is a private institution of higher education in computer scien ...
*Institut des sciences et techniques des aliments de Bordeaux * Institut de cognitique *École supérieure d'informatique * École privée des sciences informatiques Business and management schools: *The Bordeaux MBA (International College of Bordeaux) *IUT Techniques de Commercialisation of Bordeaux (business school) * INSEEC Business School ( Institut des hautes études économiques et commerciales) *
KEDGE Business School KEDGE Business School is a triple accredited (AACSB, EQUIS and AMBA) French business school and grande école. The school was founded in 2013 from the merger of two grandes écoles: Bordeaux Ecole de Management (ESC Bordeaux), founded in 1874 i ...
(former BEM – Bordeaux Management School) *Vatel Bordeaux International Business School *
E-Artsup E-Artsup is a French private school created in 2001 and specialized in digital creativity and multimedia. The school is located at Paris, Bordeaux, Lyon, Nantes, Montpellier, Toulouse, Strasbourg and Lille and is part of IONIS Education Group. Th ...
* Institut supérieur européen de gestion group * Institut supérieur européen de formation par l'action Other: * ''École nationale de la magistrature'' (National school for the judiciary) * * * (EFAP) * (CNAM) * (law school)


Weekend education

The ''École Compleméntaire Japonaise de Bordeaux'' (ボルドー日本語補習授業校 ''Borudō Nihongo Hoshū Jugyō Kō''), a part-time Japanese supplementary school, is held in the ''Salle de L'Athénée Municipal'' in Bordeaux.欧州の補習授業校一覧(平成25年4月15日現在)


. Ministry of Education, Culture, Sports, Science and Technology (MEXT). Retrieved on 10 May 2014. "Salle de L'Athénée Municipal Place St. Christoly, 33000 Bordeaux, FRANCE"


Main sights


Heritage and architecture

Bordeaux is classified "City of Art and History". The city is home to 362 ''
monuments historiques ''Monument historique'' () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which National Heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a coll ...
'' (only Paris has more in France) with some buildings dating back to Roman times. Bordeaux,
Port of the Moon The ''Port de la Lune'' (Port of the Moon) is the name given to the harbour of Bordeaux, dating to the Middle Ages, because of the shape of the river crossing the city. It is represented by a crescent on the coat of arms of Bordeaux, and by three ...
, has been inscribed on
UNESCO World Heritage List A World Heritage Site is a landmark or area with legal protection by an international convention administered by the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO). World Heritage Sites are designated by UNESCO for h ...
as ''"an outstanding urban and architectural ensemble"''. Bordeaux is home to one of Europe's biggest 18th-century architectural urban areas, making it a sought-after destination for tourists and cinema production crews. It stands out as one of the first French cities, after Nancy, to have entered an era of
urbanism Urbanism is the study of how inhabitants of urban areas, such as towns and cities, interact with the built environment. It is a direct component of disciplines such as urban planning, which is the profession focusing on the physical design and ...
and metropolitan big scale projects, with the team Gabriel father and son, architects for King
Louis XV Louis XV (15 February 1710 – 10 May 1774), known as Louis the Beloved (french: le Bien-Aimé), was King of France from 1 September 1715 until his death in 1774. He succeeded his great-grandfather Louis XIV at the age of five. Until he reached ...
, under the supervision of two intendants (Governors), first Nicolas-François Dupré de Saint-Maur then the Marquis de Tourny. Saint-André Cathedral, Saint-Michel Basilica and Saint-Seurin Basilica are part of the
World Heritage Sites of the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France UNESCO designated the Routes of Santiago de Compostela in France as a World Heritage Site in December 1998. The routes pass through the following regions of France: Aquitaine, Auvergne, Basse-Normandie, Bourgogne, Centre, Champagne-Ardenne, Ile-d ...
. The organ in Saint-Louis-des-Chartrons is registered on the French
monuments historiques ''Monument historique'' () is a designation given to some national heritage sites in France. It may also refer to the state procedure in France by which National Heritage protection is extended to a building, a specific part of a building, a coll ...
.


Buildings

Main sights include: * ''
Place de la Bourse Place de la Bourse is a square in Bordeaux, France and one of the city's most recognisable sights. Built from 1730 to 1775 along the river Garonne, it was a multi-building development designed by architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel Ange-Jacques Gabr ...
'' (1735–1755), designed by the Royal architect
Jacques Gabriel Ancient and noble French family names, Jacques, Jacq, or James are believed to originate from the Middle Ages in the historic northwest Brittany region in France, and have since spread around the world over the centuries. To date, there are over ...
as landscape for an
equestrian statue An equestrian statue is a statue of a rider mounted on a horse, from the Latin ''eques'', meaning 'knight', deriving from ''equus'', meaning 'horse'. A statue of a riderless horse is strictly an equine statue. A full-sized equestrian statue is a d ...
of Louis XV, now replaced by the ''Fountain of the Three Graces''. * '' Grand Théâtre'' (1780), a large neoclassical theater built in the 18th century. * ''Allées de Tourny'' * ''Cours de l'Intendance'' * ''Place du Chapelet'' * ''Place du Parlement'' * '' Place des Quinconces'', the largest square in France. * ''Monument aux Girondins'' * ''Place Saint-Pierre'' *'' Pont de pierre (1822)'' * '' Saint Andrew's Cathedral'', consecrated by Pope Urban II in 1096. Of the original Romanesque edifice only a wall in the nave remains. The Royal Gate is from the early 13th century, while the rest of the construction is mostly from the 14th and 15th centuries. * ''
Tour Pey-Berland The Tour Pey-Berland (Pey Berland Tower), named for its patron Pey Berland, is the separate bell tower of the Bordeaux Cathedral, in Bordeaux at the Place Pey Berland. History Its construction was from 1440 to 1500 at the initiative of the ar ...
'' (1440–1450), a massive, quadrangular Gothic tower annexed to the cathedral. * '' Église Sainte-Croix'' (Church of the Holy Cross). It lies on the site of a seventh-century abbey destroyed by the Saracens. Rebuilt under the Carolingians, it was again destroyed by the Normans in 845 and 864. It is annexed to a Benedictine abbey founded in the seventh century, and was built in the late 11th and early 12th centuries. The façade is in
Romanesque style Romanesque architecture is an architectural style of medieval Europe characterized by semi-circular arches. There is no consensus for the beginning date of the Romanesque style, with proposals ranging from the 6th to the 11th century, this later ...
* The Gothic '' Basilica of Saint Michael'', constructed between the end of the 14th century and the 16th century. * Basilica of Saint Severinus, the most ancient church in Bordeaux. It was built in the early sixth century on the site of a palaeochristian necropolis. It has an 11th-century portico, while the
apse In architecture, an apse (plural apses; from Latin 'arch, vault' from Ancient Greek 'arch'; sometimes written apsis, plural apsides) is a semicircular recess covered with a hemispherical vault or semi-dome, also known as an '' exedra''. ...
and
transept A transept (with two semitransepts) is a transverse part of any building, which lies across the main body of the building. In cruciform churches, a transept is an area set crosswise to the nave in a cruciform ("cross-shaped") building wi ...
are from the following century. The 13th-century nave has chapels from the 11th and the 14th centuries. The ancient crypt houses sepulchres of the Merovingian family. * ''Église Saint-Pierre'', gothic church * ''Église Saint-Éloi'', gothic church * ''Église Saint-Bruno'', baroque church decorated with frescoes * ''Église Notre-Dame'', baroque church * ''Église Saint-Paul-Saint-François-Xavier'', baroque church * '' Palais Rohan'', former mansion of the archbishop, now city hall * ''Palais Gallien'', the remains of a late second-century
Roman Roman or Romans most often refers to: *Rome, the capital city of Italy *Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD *Roman people, the people of ancient Rome *'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
amphitheatre An amphitheatre (British English) or amphitheater (American English; both ) is an open-air venue used for entertainment, performances, and sports. The term derives from the ancient Greek ('), from ('), meaning "on both sides" or "around" and ...
* ''Porte Cailhau'', a medieval
gatehouse A gatehouse is a type of fortified gateway, an entry control point building, enclosing or accompanying a gateway for a town, religious house, castle, manor house, or other fortification building of importance. Gatehouses are typically the mo ...
of the old city walls. * ''La Grosse Cloche'' (15th century), the second remaining gate of the Medieval walls. It was the belfry of the old Town Hall. It consists of two circular towers and a central bell tower housing a
bell A bell is a directly struck idiophone percussion instrument. Most bells have the shape of a hollow cup that when struck vibrates in a single strong strike tone, with its sides forming an efficient resonator. The strike may be made by an inte ...
weighing . The watch is from 1759. * '' Grande Synagogue'', completed 1882 * '' Rue Sainte-Catherine'', the longest pedestrian street of France * ''Darwin ecosystem'', alternative place into former military barracks * The
BETASOM BETASOM (an Italian language acronym of ''Bordeaux Sommergibile'' or ''Sommergibili'') was a submarine base established at Bordeaux, France by the Italian '' Regia Marina Italiana'' during World War II. From this base, Italian submarines participa ...
submarine base File:Le Palais Gallien vestige gallo-romain à Bordeaux.jpg, Remains of the Roman amphitheatre File:Cathédrale St André Bordeaux 3.jpg, Saint Andrew's Cathedral File:Bordeaux Porte Cailhau R02.jpg, Porte Cailhau File:Grand Théâtre Bordeaux.jpg, Grand Théâtre File:Bordeaux Notre-Dame R01.jpg, the church Notre Dame File:151 - Le Pont de Pierre - Bordeaux.jpg, Pont de Pierre File:Bordeaux - Basilique Saint-Michel - Vue générale.jpg, Basilica of Saint Michael File:Puerta de Burdeos.JPG, Grosse cloche File:026 - Hôtel de ville Place Pey-Berland - Bordeaux.jpg, Palais Rohan (town hall) File:FacadeSainteCroixBordeauxsoir.jpg, Église Sainte-Croix File:Bordeaux Place du Parlement R01.jpg, Place du Parlement File:Synagogue Bx 5.jpg, The Grand Synagogue File:Façades de deux ouvrages Art Déco du Quartier Lescure (Bordeaux).jpg, Facades of the
Art déco Art Deco, short for the French ''Arts Décoratifs'', and sometimes just called Deco, is a style of visual arts, architecture, and product design, that first appeared in France in the 1910s (just before World War I), and flourished in the Unite ...
district File:Darwin - Magasin général.jpg, Darwin district File:Basesousmarine.JPG, Submarine Pen


Contemporary architecture

* ''Cité Frugès'', district of
Pessac Pessac (; ) is a commune in the Gironde department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. It is a member of the metropolis of Bordeaux, being the second-largest suburb of Bordeaux and located just southwest of it. Pessac is also home to ...
, built by Le Corbusier, 1924–1926, listed as UNESCO heritage *Fire Station, ''la Benauge'', Claude Ferret/Adrien Courtois/Yves Salier, 1951–1954 *Mériadeck district, 1960-70's *''
Court of first instance A court is any person or institution, often as a government institution, with the authority to adjudicate legal disputes between parties and carry out the administration of justice in civil, criminal, and administrative matters in accorda ...
'', Richard Rogers, 1998 *CTBA, wood and furniture research center, A. Loisier, 1998 *Hangar 14 on the ''Quai des Chartrons'', 1999 *The Management Science faculty on the Bastide, Anne Lacaton/Jean-Philippe Vassal, 2006 *The ''
Jardin botanique de la Bastide The Jardin botanique de la Bastide (4 hectares) is the new municipal botanical garden located on the right bank of the Garonne, along the Allée Jean Giono in Bordeaux, Gironde, Aquitaine, France. It is open daily without charge. This garden is ...
'', Catherine Mosbach/Françoise Hélène Jourda/ Pascal Convert, 2007 *The Nuyens School complex on the Bastide, Yves Ballot/Nathalie Franck, 2007 *Seeko'o Hotel on the Quai de Bacalan, King Kong architects, 2007 * Matmut Atlantique stadium,
Herzog & de Meuron Herzog & de Meuron Basel Ltd.,
" Herzog & de Meuron. Retrieved on 11 October 2012. "Herzog & de Meuron Basel Ltd. R ...
, 2015 *
Cité du Vin The Cité du Vin is a museum as well as a place of exhibitions, shows, movie projections and academic seminars on the theme of wine located in Bordeaux, France. Construction Architects The architects were Anouk Legendre and Nicholas Desmazi ...
, XTU architects, Anouk Legendre & Nicolas Desmazières, 2016 *
MECA ''mecA'' is a gene found in bacterial cells which allows them to be resistant to antibiotics such as methicillin, penicillin and other penicillin-like antibiotics. The bacteria strain most commonly known to carry ''mecA'' is methicillin-resista ...
, Maison de l'Economie Créative et de la culture de la Région Nouvelle-Aquitaine, Bjarke Ingels, 2019 File:Bordeaux Meriadeck.JPG, Mériadeck district File:Bordeaux Palais de Justice 23.JPG, Court of first instance File:Seeko'o Hotel, Bordeaux, July 2014 (03).JPG, Seeko'o hotel File:Cite du vin Bordeaux 2017 (37500642606).jpg,
Cité du Vin The Cité du Vin is a museum as well as a place of exhibitions, shows, movie projections and academic seminars on the theme of wine located in Bordeaux, France. Construction Architects The architects were Anouk Legendre and Nicholas Desmazi ...
File:RB 20200222 Bordeaux-11.jpg,
MECA ''mecA'' is a gene found in bacterial cells which allows them to be resistant to antibiotics such as methicillin, penicillin and other penicillin-like antibiotics. The bacteria strain most commonly known to carry ''mecA'' is methicillin-resista ...


Museums

* ''Musée des Beaux-Arts'' (''Fine arts museum''), one of the finest painting galleries in France with paintings by painter such as
Tiziano Tiziano Vecelli or Vecellio (; 27 August 1576), known in English as Titian ( ), was an Italian (Venetian) painter of the Renaissance, considered the most important member of the 16th-century Venetian school. He was born in Pieve di Cadore, nea ...
, Veronese, Rubens,
Van Dyck Sir Anthony van Dyck (, many variant spellings; 22 March 1599 – 9 December 1641) was a Brabantian Flemish Baroque artist who became the leading court painter in England after success in the Southern Netherlands and Italy. The seventh ...
, Frans Hals, Claude, Chardin, Delacroix,
Renoir Pierre-Auguste Renoir (; 25 February 1841 – 3 December 1919) was a French artist who was a leading painter in the development of the Impressionist style. As a celebrator of beauty and especially feminine sensuality, it has been said that "Re ...
,
Seurat Georges Pierre Seurat ( , , ; 2 December 1859 – 29 March 1891) was a French post-Impressionist artist. He devised the painting techniques known as chromoluminarism and pointillism and used conté crayon for drawings on paper with a rough su ...
,
Redon Redon (; ) is a commune in the Ille-et-Vilaine department in Brittany in northwestern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. Geography Redon borders the Morbihan and Loire-Atlantique departments. It is situated at the junction of t ...
,
Matisse Henri Émile Benoît Matisse (; 31 December 1869 – 3 November 1954) was a French visual artist, known for both his use of colour and his fluid and original draughtsmanship. He was a drawing, draughtsman, printmaking, printmaker, and sculptur ...
and Picasso. *''
Musée d'Aquitaine The Museum of Aquitaine (French language, French: ''Musée d'Aquitaine'') is a collection of objects and documents from the history of Bordeaux and Aquitaine. History In the 16th century, the site of the Musée d'Aquitaine housed the convent o ...
'' (archeological and history museum) *''Musée du Vin et du Négoce'' (museum of the wine trade) *'' Musée des Arts Décoratifs et du Design'' (museum of decorative arts and design) *''Musée d'Histoire Naturelle'' (natural history museum) *''Musée Mer Marine'' (Sea and Navy museum) *''
Cité du Vin The Cité du Vin is a museum as well as a place of exhibitions, shows, movie projections and academic seminars on the theme of wine located in Bordeaux, France. Construction Architects The architects were Anouk Legendre and Nicholas Desmazi ...
'' *''
CAPC musée d'art contemporain de Bordeaux CAPC musée d'art contemporain de Bordeaux, formerly the Centre d'arts plastiques contemporains (CAPC), is a museum of modern art established in 1973 in Bordeaux, France. Building The museum is housed in the ''Entrepôt Lainé'', a former warehou ...
'' (modern art museum) *''
Musée national des douanes The Musée national des douanes is a national museum on the history of French customs located at Place de la Bourse in the city of Bordeaux, France. The building was built in the 18th century to receive the new ''Ferme générale The ''ferme g ...
'' (history of French customs) *''Bordeaux Patrimoine Mondial'' (architectural and heritage interpretation centre) *''Musée d'ethnologie'' (ethnology museum) *''Institut culturel Bernard Magrez'', modern and streetart museum into an 18th-century mansion *Cervantez Institute (into the house of
Goya Francisco José de Goya y Lucientes (; ; 30 March 174616 April 1828) was a Spanish romantic painter and printmaker. He is considered the most important Spanish artist of the late 18th and early 19th centuries. His paintings, drawings, and e ...
) * ''Cap Sciences'' *''Centre Jean Moulin'' File:Beaux arts bordeaux.jpg, ''Musée des Beaux-Arts'' File:Musée Aquitaine.JPG, ''
Musée d'Aquitaine The Museum of Aquitaine (French language, French: ''Musée d'Aquitaine'') is a collection of objects and documents from the history of Bordeaux and Aquitaine. History In the 16th century, the site of the Musée d'Aquitaine housed the convent o ...
'' File:Hôtel de Lalande - Musée des arts décoratifs et du design de Bordeaux.jpg, '' Musée des Arts Décoratifs et du Design'' File:CAPC janvier 2018.jpg, ''
CAPC musée d'art contemporain de Bordeaux CAPC musée d'art contemporain de Bordeaux, formerly the Centre d'arts plastiques contemporains (CAPC), is a museum of modern art established in 1973 in Bordeaux, France. Building The museum is housed in the ''Entrepôt Lainé'', a former warehou ...
'' File:Musée du vin et du négoce de Bordeaux (3).jpg, ''Musée du vin et du négoce de Bordeaux''


Memory of slavery

Slavery was part of a growing drive for the city. Firstly, during the 18th and 19th centuries, Bordeaux was an important slave port, which saw some 500 slave expeditions that cause the deportation of 150,000 Africans by Bordeaux shipowners. Secondly, even though the "
Triangular trade Triangular trade or triangle trade is trade between three ports or regions. Triangular trade usually evolves when a region has export commodities that are not required in the region from which its major imports come. It has been used to offset ...
" represented only 5% of Bordeaux's wealth, the city's direct trade with the Caribbean, that accounted for the other 95%, concerns the colonial stuffs made by the slave (sugar, coffee, cocoa). And thirdly, in that same period, a major migratory movement by Aquitanians took place to the Caribbean colonies, with Saint-Domingue (now Haiti) being the most popular destination. 40% of the white population of the island came from
Aquitaine Aquitaine ( , , ; oc, Aquitània ; eu, Akitania; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne ( oc, Guiana), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former administrative region of the country. Since 1 Janu ...
. They prospered with
plantations A plantation is an agricultural estate, generally centered on a plantation house, meant for farming that specializes in cash crops, usually mainly planted with a single crop, with perhaps ancillary areas for vegetables for eating and so on. Th ...
incomes, until the first slave revolts which concluded in 1848 in the final abolition of slavery in France. A statue of Modeste Testas, an Ethiopian woman who was enslaved by the Bordeaux-based Testas brothers was unveiled in 2019. She was trafficked by them from West Africa, to Philadelphia (where one of the brother coerced her to have two children by him) and was ultimately freed and lived in Haiti. The bronze sculpture was created by the Haitian artists Woodly Caymitte. A number of traces and memorial sites are visible in the city. Moreover, in May 2009, the
Museum of Aquitaine A museum ( ; plural museums or, rarely, musea) is a building or institution that cares for and displays a collection of artifacts and other objects of artistic, cultural, historical, or scientific importance. Many public museums make these ...
opened the spaces dedicated to "Bordeaux in the 18th century, trans-Atlantic trading and slavery". This work, richly illustrated with original documents, contributes to disseminate the state of knowledge on this question, presenting above all the facts and their chronology. The region of Bordeaux was also the land of several prominent
abolitionists Abolitionism, or the abolitionist movement, is the movement to end slavery. In Western Europe and the Americas, abolitionism was a historic movement that sought to end the Atlantic slave trade and liberate the enslaved people. The Britis ...
, as
Montesquieu Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (; ; 18 January 168910 February 1755), generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher. He is the princi ...
, Laffon de Ladébat and Elisée Reclus. Others were members of the
Society of the Friends of the Blacks The Society of the Friends of the Blacks (''Société des amis des Noirs'' or ''Amis des noirs'') was a French abolitionist society founded during the late 18th century. The society's aim was to abolish both the institution of slavery in the F ...
as the revolutionaries Boyer-Fonfrède, Gensonné, Guadet and Ducos. File:Bordeaux place de la Bourse mascaron visage africain.JPG, African face mascaron on the
place de la Bourse Place de la Bourse is a square in Bordeaux, France and one of the city's most recognisable sights. Built from 1730 to 1775 along the river Garonne, it was a multi-building development designed by architect Ange-Jacques Gabriel Ange-Jacques Gabr ...
. File:Détail de la fresque du Grand-Théâtre de Bordeaux.jpg, Allegory of Bordeaux and her wealth, including two African slaves, ceiling of the Grand-Théâtre de Bordeaux. File:Salles consacrées à l'esclavage au Musée d'Aquitaine, Bordeaux.jpg, Spaces dedicaded to slave trade,
Musée d'Aquitaine The Museum of Aquitaine (French language, French: ''Musée d'Aquitaine'') is a collection of objects and documents from the history of Bordeaux and Aquitaine. History In the 16th century, the site of the Musée d'Aquitaine housed the convent o ...
. File:Statue-fétiche Fon-Musée d'Aquitaine (1).jpg, Fon fetish,
Musée d'Aquitaine The Museum of Aquitaine (French language, French: ''Musée d'Aquitaine'') is a collection of objects and documents from the history of Bordeaux and Aquitaine. History In the 16th century, the site of the Musée d'Aquitaine housed the convent o ...
. File:Buste en bronze de Toussaint Louverture, Bordeaux.jpg, Bronze bust of
Toussaint Louverture François-Dominique Toussaint Louverture (; also known as Toussaint L'Ouverture or Toussaint Bréda; 20 May 1743 – 7 April 1803) was a Haitian general and the most prominent leader of the Haitian Revolution. During his life, Louverture ...
. File:Statue de Modeste Testas, quai des Chartrons, Bordeaux.jpg, Bronze Statue of Modeste Testas, Ethiopian woman enslaved by two Bordeaux plantation owners.


Parks and gardens

*'' Jardin public de Bordeaux'', with inside the '' Jardin botanique de Bordeaux'' *''
Jardin botanique de la Bastide The Jardin botanique de la Bastide (4 hectares) is the new municipal botanical garden located on the right bank of the Garonne, along the Allée Jean Giono in Bordeaux, Gironde, Aquitaine, France. It is open daily without charge. This garden is ...
'' *''Parc bordelais'' *''Parc aux Angéliques'' *''Jardin des Lumières'' *''Parc Rivière'' *''Parc Floral'' File:Bordeaux Jardin Public R02.jpg, ''Jardin public'' File:Jardin botanique de Bordeaux 7.jpg, ''Jardin botanique'' File:Bordeaux Quai Louis XVIII R01.jpg, ''Jardin des Lumières'' File:Parc floral de Bordeaux 3298.jpg, ''Parc floral'', Casablanca pavilion


Pont Jacques Chaban-Delmas

Europe's longest-span
vertical-lift bridge A vertical-lift bridge or just lift bridge is a type of movable bridge in which a span rises vertically while remaining parallel with the deck. The vertical lift offers several benefits over other movable bridges such as the bascule and sw ...
, the Pont Jacques Chaban-Delmas, was opened in 2013 in Bordeaux, spanning the River Garonne. The central lift span is and can be lifted vertically up to to let tall ships pass underneath. The €160 million bridge was inaugurated by President François Hollande and Mayor Alain Juppé on 16 March 2013. The bridge was named after the late Jacques Chaban-Delmas, who was a former Prime Minister and
Mayor In many countries, a mayor is the highest-ranking official in a municipal government such as that of a city or a town. Worldwide, there is a wide variance in local laws and customs regarding the powers and responsibilities of a mayor as well ...
of Bordeaux.


Shopping

Bordeaux has many shopping options. In the heart of Bordeaux is '' Rue Sainte-Catherine''. This pedestrian-only shopping street has of shops, restaurants and cafés; it is also one of the longest shopping streets in Europe. ''Rue Sainte-Catherine'' starts at ''Place de la Victoire'' and ends at ''Place de la Comédie'' by the ''Grand Théâtre''. The shops become progressively more upmarket as one moves towards ''Place de la Comédie'' and the nearby ''Cours de l'Intendance'' is where one finds the more exclusive shops and boutiques.


Culture

Bordeaux is also the first city in France to have created, in the 1980s, an architecture exhibition and research centre, '' Arc en rêve''. Bordeaux offers a large number of cinemas, theatres, and is the home of the
Opéra national de Bordeaux This is a glossary list of opera genres, giving alternative names. "Opera" is an Italian word (short for "opera in musica"); it was not at first ''commonly'' used in Italy (or in other countries) to refer to the genre of particular works. Most ...
. There are many music venues of varying capacity. The city also offers several festivals throughout the year. In October 2021, Bordeaux was shortlisted for the
European Commission The European Commission (EC) is the executive of the European Union (EU). It operates as a cabinet government, with 27 members of the Commission (informally known as "Commissioners") headed by a President. It includes an administrative body ...
's 2022 European Capital of Smart Tourism award along with
Copenhagen Copenhagen ( or .; da, København ) is the capital and most populous city of Denmark, with a proper population of around 815.000 in the last quarter of 2022; and some 1.370,000 in the urban area; and the wider Copenhagen metropolitan ar ...
,
Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...
,
Florence Florence ( ; it, Firenze ) is a city in Central Italy and the capital city of the Tuscany Regions of Italy, region. It is the most populated city in Tuscany, with 383,083 inhabitants in 2016, and over 1,520,000 in its metropolitan area.Bilan ...
,
Ljubljana Ljubljana (also known by other historical names) is the capital and largest city of Slovenia. It is the country's cultural, educational, economic, political and administrative center. During antiquity, a Roman city called Emona stood in the are ...
, Palma de Mallorca and
Valencia Valencia ( va, València) is the capital of the autonomous community of Valencia and the third-most populated municipality in Spain, with 791,413 inhabitants. It is also the capital of the province of the same name. The wider urban area al ...
. File:GrandTheatreBordeaux2.jpg, ''
Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux The Grand Théâtre de Bordeaux is an opera house in Bordeaux, France, first inaugurated on 17 April 1780. It was in this theatre that the ballet '' La fille mal gardée'' premiered in 1789, and where a young Marius Petipa staged some of his fir ...
'' File:Bordeaux - Théâtre Femina.jpg, ''Théâtre Femina'' File:RB 20200222 Bordeaux-11.jpg, ''MECA, Maison de l’Économie Créative et de la Culture en Aquitaine''


Transport


Road

Bordeaux is an important road and motorway junction. The city is connected to Paris by the A10 motorway, with Lyon by the A89, with Toulouse by the A62, and with Spain by the A63. There is a ring road called the " Rocade" which is often very busy. Another ring road is under consideration. Bordeaux has five road bridges that cross the
Garonne The Garonne (, also , ; Occitan, Catalan, Basque, and es, Garona, ; la, Garumna or ) is a river of southwest France and northern Spain. It flows from the central Spanish Pyrenees to the Gironde estuary at the French port of Bordeaux – ...
, the Pont de pierre built in the 1820s and three modern bridges built after 1960: the Pont Saint Jean, just south of the Pont de pierre (both located downtown), the Pont d'Aquitaine, a suspension bridge downstream from downtown, and the Pont François Mitterrand, located upstream of downtown. These two bridges are part of the ring-road around Bordeaux. A fifth bridge, the Pont Jacques-Chaban-Delmas, was constructed in 2009–2012 and opened to traffic in March 2013. Located halfway between the Pont de pierre and the Pont d'Aquitaine and serving downtown rather than highway traffic, it is a
vertical-lift bridge A vertical-lift bridge or just lift bridge is a type of movable bridge in which a span rises vertically while remaining parallel with the deck. The vertical lift offers several benefits over other movable bridges such as the bascule and sw ...
with a height in closed position comparable to that of Pont de pierre, and to the Pont d'Aquitaine when open. All five road bridges, including the two highway bridges, are open to cyclists and pedestrians as well. Another bridge, the Pont Jean-Jacques Bosc, is to be built in 2018. Lacking any steep hills, Bordeaux is relatively friendly to cyclists. Cycle paths (separate from the roadways) exist on the highway bridges, along the riverfront, on the university campuses, and incidentally elsewhere in the city. Cycle lanes and bus lanes that explicitly allow cyclists exist on many of the city's boulevards. A paid bicycle-sharing system with automated stations was established in 2010.


Rail

The main railway station,
Gare de Bordeaux Saint-Jean Bordeaux-Saint-Jean ( oc, Bordèu Sent Joan, link=no) or formerly Bordeaux-Midi is the main railway station in the French city of Bordeaux. It is the southern terminus of the Paris–Bordeaux railway, and the western terminus of the Chemins de ...
, near the center of the city, has 12 million passengers a year. It is served by the French national ( SNCF) railway's high speed train, the
TGV The TGV (french: Train à Grande Vitesse, "high-speed train"; previously french: TurboTrain à Grande Vitesse, label=none) is France's intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF. SNCF worked on a high-speed rail network from 1966 to 19 ...
, that gets to Paris in two hours, with connections to major European centers such as
Lille Lille ( , ; nl, Rijsel ; pcd, Lile; vls, Rysel) is a city in the northern part of France, in French Flanders. On the river Deûle, near France's border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, the prefecture of the N ...
, Brussels,
Amsterdam Amsterdam ( , , , lit. ''The Dam on the River Amstel'') is the capital and most populous city of the Netherlands, with The Hague being the seat of government. It has a population of 907,976 within the city proper, 1,558,755 in the urban ar ...
,
Cologne Cologne ( ; german: Köln ; ksh, Kölle ) is the largest city of the German western state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW) and the fourth-most populous city of Germany with 1.1 million inhabitants in the city proper and 3.6 millio ...
, Geneva and London. The TGV also serves
Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and from Pa ...
and
Irun Irun ( es, Irún, eu, Irun) is a town of the Bidasoaldea region in the province of Gipuzkoa in the Basque Autonomous Community, Spain. History It lies on the foundations of the ancient Oiasso, cited as a Roman-Vasconic town. During the Span ...
(Spain) from Bordeaux. A regular train service is provided to Nantes, Nice,
Marseille Marseille ( , , ; also spelled in English as Marseilles; oc, Marselha ) is the prefecture of the French department of Bouches-du-Rhône and capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region. Situated in the camargue region of southern Fra ...
and
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...
. The Gare Saint-Jean is the major hub for regional trains (
TER Ter or TER may refer to: Places * River Ter, in Essex, England * Ter (river), in Catalonia * Ter (department), a region in France * Torre (river), (Slovene: ''Ter''), a river in Italy * Ter, Ljubno, a settlement in the Municipality of Ljubno ob ...
) operated by the SNCF to
Arcachon Arcachon ( ; ) is a commune in the southwestern French department of Gironde. It is a popular seaside resort on the Atlantic coast southwest of Bordeaux, in the Landes forest. It has a sandy beach and a mild climate said to be favourable for i ...
, Limoges,
Agen The commune of Agen (, ; ) is the prefecture of the Lot-et-Garonne department in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. It lies on the river Garonne southeast of Bordeaux. Geography The city of Agen lies in the southwestern department ...
,
Périgueux Périgueux (, ; oc, Peireguers or ) is a commune in the Dordogne department, in the administrative region of Nouvelle-Aquitaine, southwestern France. Périgueux is the prefecture of Dordogne, and the capital city of Périgord. It is al ...
, Langon, Pau, Le Médoc, Angoulême and Bayonne. Historically the train line used to terminate at a station on the right bank of the river Garonne near the Pont de Pierre, and passengers crossed the bridge to get into the city. Subsequently, a double-track steel railway bridge was constructed in the 1850s, by
Gustave Eiffel Alexandre Gustave Eiffel (born Bonickhausen dit Eiffel; ; ; 15 December 1832 – 27 December 1923) was a French civil engineer. A graduate of École Centrale des Arts et Manufactures, he made his name with various bridges for the French railway ...
, to bring trains across the river direct into Gare de Bordeaux Saint-Jean. The old station was later converted and in 2010 comprised a cinema and restaurants. The two-track Eiffel bridge with a speed limit of became a bottleneck and a new bridge was built, opening in 2009. The new bridge has four tracks and allows trains to pass at . During the planning there was much lobbying by the Eiffel family and other supporters to preserve the old bridge as a footbridge across the Garonne, with possibly a museum to document the history of the bridge and Gustave Eiffel's contribution. The decision was taken to save the bridge, but by early 2010 no plans had been announced as to its future use. The bridge remains intact, but unused and without any means of access. Since July 2017, the
LGV Sud Europe Atlantique The LGV Sud Europe Atlantique (LGV SEA), also known as the LGV Sud-Ouest or LGV L'Océane, is a high-speed railway line between Tours and Bordeaux, in France. It is used by TGV trains operated by SNCF. It is an extension of the LGV Atlantique. ...
is fully operational and makes Bordeaux city 2h04 from Paris.


Air

Bordeaux is served by
Bordeaux–Mérignac Airport Bordeaux–Mérignac Airport (french: link=no, Aéroport de Bordeaux-Mérignac) is the international airport of Bordeaux, in south-western France. It is situated in the ''commune'' of Mérignac, west of Bordeaux, within the ''département' ...
, located from the city centre in the suburban city of
Mérignac Mérignac may refer to : ;Places * Mérignac, Charente, a commune in the Charente department in southwestern France * Mérignac, Charente-Maritime, a commune in the Charente-Maritime department in southwestern France * Mérignac, Gironde, a commun ...
.


Trams, buses and boats

Bordeaux has an important public transport system called
Transports Bordeaux Métropole Transports Bordeaux Métropole (or TBM, formerly Tram et bus de la CUB, or TBC) is a public transport system for the 28 ''communes'' of Bordeaux Métropole Bordeaux Métropole is the ''métropole'', an intercommunal structure, centred on t ...
(TBM). This company is run by the Keolis group. The network consists of: * 4 tram lines ( A, B, C and D) * 75
bus routes A bus (contracted from omnibus, with variants multibus, motorbus, autobus, etc.) is a road vehicle that carries significantly more passengers than an average car or van. It is most commonly used in public transport, but is also in use for cha ...
, all connected to the tramway network (from 1 to 96) * 13 night bus routes (from 1 to 16) * An
electric bus An electric bus is a bus that is propelled using electric motors as opposed to an internal combustion engine. Electric buses can store the needed electricity on-board, or be fed continuously from an external source. The majority of buses ...
shuttle in the city centre * A boat shuttle on the Garonne river This network is operated from 5 am to 2 am. There had been several plans for a subway network to be set up, but they stalled for both geological and financial reasons. Work on the
Tramway de Bordeaux The Bordeaux tramway network (french: Tramway de Bordeaux) consists of four lines serving the city of Bordeaux in Nouvelle-Aquitaine in southwestern France. The system has a route length of , serving a total of 133 tram stops. The first line of ...
system was started in the autumn of 2000, and services started in December 2003 connecting Bordeaux with its suburban areas. The tram system uses
Alstom APS Alstom APS, also known as ''Alimentation par Sol'' or ''Alimentation Par le Sol'' (which literally means "feeding via the ground"), is a form of ground-level power supply for street trams and, potentially, other vehicles. APS was developed by I ...
a form of
ground-level power supply Ground-level power supply, also known as surface current collection or, in French, ''alimentation par le sol'' ("feeding via the ground"), is a concept and group of technologies whereby electric vehicles collect electric power at ground level fro ...
technology developed by French company Alstom and designed to preserve the aesthetic environment by eliminating overhead cables in the historic city. Conventional overhead cables are used outside the city. The system was controversial for its considerable cost of installation, maintenance and also for the numerous initial technical problems that paralysed the network. Many streets and squares along the tramway route became pedestrian areas, with limited access for cars. The planned Bordeaux tramway system is to link with the airport to the city centre towards the end of 2019.


Taxis

There are more than 400
taxicab A taxi, also known as a taxicab or simply a cab, is a type of vehicle for hire with a driver, used by a single passenger or small group of passengers, often for a non-shared ride. A taxicab conveys passengers between locations of their choi ...
s in Bordeaux.


Public transportation statistics

The average amount of time people spend commuting with public transit in Bordeaux, for example to and from work, on a weekday is 51 min. 12.% of public transit riders, ride for more than 2 hours every day. The average amount of time people wait at a stop or station for public transit is 13 min, while 15.5% of riders wait for over 20 minutes on average every day. The average distance people usually ride in a single trip with public transit is , while 8% travel for over in a single direction.


Sport

The 41,458-capacity Nouveau Stade de Bordeaux is the largest stadium in Bordeaux. The stadium was opened in 2015 and replaced the
Stade Chaban-Delmas Stade Chaban-Delmas is a sporting stadium located in the city of Bordeaux, France. It was the home ground of FC Girondins de Bordeaux. Since 2011, it has also hosted matches of Top 14 rugby team Union Bordeaux Bègles. Until 2001, the stadium' ...
, which was a venue for the
FIFA World Cup The FIFA World Cup, often simply called the World Cup, is an international association football competition contested by the senior men's national teams of the members of the ' ( FIFA), the sport's global governing body. The tournament ha ...
in 1938 and 1998, as well as the 2007 Rugby World Cup. In the
1938 FIFA World Cup The 1938 FIFA World Cup was the third edition of the World Cup, the quadrennial international football championship for senior men's national teams and was held in France from 4 June until 19 June 1938. Italy defended its title in the final, bea ...
, it hosted a violent quarter-final known as the Battle of Bordeaux. The ground was formerly known as the ''Stade du Parc Lescure'' until 2001, when it was renamed in honour of the city's long-time mayor, Jacques Chaban-Delmas. There are two major sport teams in Bordeaux, Girondins de Bordeaux is the football team, playing in Ligue 2, the second tier of
French football Association football is the most popular sport in France. The French Football Federation (FFF, Fédération Française de Football) is the national governing body and is responsible for overseeing all aspects of association football in the cou ...
.
Union Bordeaux Bègles Union Bordeaux Bègles (; oc, Union Bordèu Begla) is a French rugby union team playing in the Top 14, the first level of the country's professional league system. They earned their Top 14 place by winning the promotion playoffs that followed ...
is a
rugby Rugby may refer to: Sport * Rugby football in many forms: ** Rugby league: 13 players per side *** Masters Rugby League *** Mod league *** Rugby league nines *** Rugby league sevens *** Touch (sport) *** Wheelchair rugby league ** Rugby union: 1 ...
team in the
Top 14 The Top 14 () is a professional rugby union club competition that is played in France. Created in 1892, the Top 14 is at the top of the national league system operated by the French National Rugby League, also known by its French initialism o ...
in the
Ligue Nationale de Rugby The French National Rugby League (french: Ligue Nationale de Rugby), known as the LNR, manages the professional rugby sector in France, by delegation of the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the French Rugby Federation. LNR * organises, manages and ...
. Skateboarding, rollerblading, and BMX biking are activities enjoyed by many young inhabitants of the city. Bordeaux is home to a beautiful quay which runs along the Garonne river. On the quay there is a skate-park divided into three sections. One section is for Vert tricks, one for street style tricks, and one for little action sports athletes with easier features and softer materials. The skate-park is very well maintained by the municipality. Bordeaux is also the home to one of the strongest
cricket Cricket is a bat-and-ball game played between two teams of eleven players on a field at the centre of which is a pitch with a wicket at each end, each comprising two bails balanced on three stumps. The batting side scores runs by str ...
teams in France and are champions of the South West League. There is a wooden
velodrome A velodrome is an arena for track cycling. Modern velodromes feature steeply banked oval tracks, consisting of two 180-degree circular bends connected by two straights. The straights transition to the circular turn through a moderate easement ...
, Vélodrome du Lac, in Bordeaux which hosts international cycling competition in the form of
UCI Track Cycling World Cup The UCI Track Cycling World Cup (formerly known as the UCI Track Cycling World Cup Classics) is a multi race tournament held over a track cycling season - usually between October and February. Each series is divided into several rounds, each held i ...
events. The 2015 Trophee Eric Bompard was in Bordeaux. But the Free Skate was cancelled in all of the divisions due to the Paris and aftermath. The Short Program occurred hours before the bombing. French skaters Chafik Besseghier (68.36) in tenth place, Romain Ponsart (62.86) in 11th. Mae-Berenice-Meite (46.82) in 11th and Laurine Lecavelier (46.53) in 12th. Vanessa James/Morgan Cipres (65.75) in second. Between 1951 and 1955, an annual Formula 1 motor race was held on a 2.5-kilometre circuit which looped around the Esplanade des Quinconces and along the waterfront, attracting drivers such as Juan Manuel Fangio, Stirling Moss, Jean Behra and
Maurice Trintignant Maurice Bienvenu Jean Paul Trintignant (30 October 1917 – 13 February 2005) was a motor racing driver and vintner from France. He competed in the Formula One World Championship for fourteen years, between 1950 and 1964, one of the longest care ...
.


Notable people

File:Ausonius.jpg,
Ausonius Decimius Magnus Ausonius (; – c. 395) was a Roman poet and teacher of rhetoric from Burdigala in Aquitaine, modern Bordeaux, France. For a time he was tutor to the future emperor Gratian, who afterwards bestowed the consulship on him ...
File:Anthony Frederick Sandys - Queen Eleanor.JPG,
Eleanor of Aquitaine Eleanor ( – 1 April 1204; french: Aliénor d'Aquitaine, ) was Queen of France from 1137 to 1152 as the wife of King Louis VII, Queen of England from 1154 to 1189 as the wife of King Henry II, and Duchess of Aquitaine in her own right from 1 ...
File:Richard II King of England.jpg, Richard II of England File:Montaigne-Dumonstier.jpg, Michel de Montaigne File:Sta. Joana de Lestonnac.jpg, Sainte Jeanne de Lestonnac File:Charles Montesquieu.jpg,
Montesquieu Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (; ; 18 January 168910 February 1755), generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher. He is the princi ...
File:Rosa Bonheur, 1865, wearing the Legion of Honour.jpg,
Rosa Bonheur Rosa Bonheur (born Marie-Rosalie Bonheur; 16 March 1822 – 25 May 1899) was a French artist known best as a painter of animals ( animalière). She also made sculpture in a realist style. Her paintings include ''Ploughing in the Nivernais'', fir ...
File:095 Odilon Redon Mon portrait.jpg, Odilon Redon File:Self-Portrait Albert Marquet (1904).jpg, Albert Marquet
*
Ausonius Decimius Magnus Ausonius (; – c. 395) was a Roman poet and teacher of rhetoric from Burdigala in Aquitaine, modern Bordeaux, France. For a time he was tutor to the future emperor Gratian, who afterwards bestowed the consulship on him ...
(310–395), Roman poet and teacher of rhetoric * Jean Alaux (1786–1864), painter *
Bertrand Andrieu Bertrand Andrieu (24 November 1761 – 6 December 1822) was a French engraver of medals. He was born in Bordeaux. In France, he was considered as the restorer of the art, which had declined after the time of Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis ...
(1761–1822), engraver *
Jean Anouilh Jean Marie Lucien Pierre Anouilh (; 23 June 1910 – 3 October 1987) was a French dramatist whose career spanned five decades. Though his work ranged from high drama to absurdist farce, Anouilh is best known for his 1944 play ''Antigone'', an a ...
(1910–1987), dramatist * Lucien Arman (1811–1873), shipbuilder and politician *
Yvonne Arnaud Germaine Yvonne Arnaud (20 December 1890 – 20 September 1958) was a French-born pianist, singer and actress, who was well known for her career in Britain, as well as her native land. After beginning a career as a concert pianist as a child, Ar ...
(1892–1958), pianist, singer and actress *
Xavier Arnozan Charles Louis Xavier Arnozan (12 November 1852 – 5 February 1928) was a French physician, professor of therapeutics then of medical clinic at the Faculty of Medicine of Bordeaux, member of the Académie Nationale de Médecine, deputy mayor of ...
(1852–1928), physician *
Floyd Ayité Floyd Ama Nino Ayité (born 15 December 1988) is a professional footballer who plays as a midfielder for French club Valenciennes and the Togo national team. He mainly plays a winger. He is Jonathan Ayité's younger brother. Club career Ayit ...
(born 1988), Togolese footballer * Jonathan Ayité (born 1985), Togolese footballer * Christine Barbe, winemaker *
Jean-Baptiste Barrière Jean-Baptiste Barrière (2 May 1707 – 6 June 1747) was a French cellist and composer. He was born in Bordeaux and died in Paris, at 40 years of age. Musical career Barrière first studied the viol, and published a set of viol sonatas. In due cou ...
(1707-1747), cellist, composer * Gérard Bayo (born 1936), writer and poet, * François Bigot (1703–1778), last "Intendant" of New France *
Arnaud Binard Arnaud Binard (born 18 January 1971 in Bordeaux) is a French actor and producer mainly known for his roles in many romantic or detective television hit-series broadcast throughout the French-speaking world such as ''Sous Le Soleil'' (1998-1999 ...
(born 1971), actor and producer *
Rosa Bonheur Rosa Bonheur (born Marie-Rosalie Bonheur; 16 March 1822 – 25 May 1899) was a French artist known best as a painter of animals ( animalière). She also made sculpture in a realist style. Her paintings include ''Ploughing in the Nivernais'', fir ...
(1822–1899), animal painter and sculptor *
Grégory Bourdy Grégory Bourdy (born 25 April 1982) is a French professional golfer who competes on the European Tour. Career Bourdy was born in Bordeaux. He turned professional in 2003. His cousin Nicolas Beaufils is also a professional golfer, who has playe ...
(born 1982), golfer *
Samuel Boutal Samuel Boutal (born 22 November 1969) is a French former professional footballer who played as a striker or attacking midfielder. Boutal helped Troyes become one of the winners of the 2001 UEFA Intertoto Cup. In the final Troyes beat Newcast ...
(born 1969), footballer *
Edmond de Caillou Edmond de Caillou or Raymond de Caillou (also spelt Calhou, Calhau, Cailow; died 1316) was a Gascon knight who fought during the First War of Scottish Independence. Life Caillou is believed to have been a native of Bordeaux. It has also been sug ...
(died c. February 1316) Gascon knight fighting in Scotland *
Gérald Caussé Gérald Jean Caussé (born 20 May 1963) has been the Presiding Bishop of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church) since 9 October 2015. He is the fifteenth man to serve in this position. He has been a general authority of th ...
, Presiding Bishop of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints * René Clément (1913–1996), actor, director, writer * Jean-René Cruchet (1875–1959), pathologist *
Boris Cyrulnik Boris Cyrulnik (birth 26 July 1937 in Bordeaux) is a French doctor, ethologist, neurologist, and psychiatrist. As a Jewish child during World War II, he was entrusted to a foster family for his own protection. In 1943 he was taken with adults in ...
(born 1937), psychiatrist and psychoanalyst * Damia (1899–1978), singer and actress *
Étienne Noël Damilaville Étienne Noël Damilaville (21 November 1723 – 13 December 1768) was an 18th-century French man of letters, friend of Voltaire, Diderot and d'Alembert. He served in various military and administrative functions of the Ancien Régime. He was a m ...
(1723–1768), encyclopédiste *
Lili Damita Lili Damita (born Liliane Marie-Madeleine Carré; 10 July 1904 – 21 March 1994) was a French-American actress and singer who appeared in 33 films between 1922 and 1937. Early life and education Lili Damita was born Liliane Marie-Madeleine Car ...
(1901–1994), actress * Frédéric Daquin, (born 1978), footballer *
Danielle Darrieux Danielle Yvonne Marie Antoinette Darrieux (; 1 May 1917 – 17 October 2017) was a French actress of stage, television and film, as well as a singer and dancer. Beginning in 1931, she appeared in more than 110 films. She was one of France's g ...
(born 1917), actress * Bernard Delvaille (1931–2006), poet, essayist *
David Diop David Mandessi Diop (9 July 1927 – 29 August 1960) was a French West African poet known for his contribution to the Négritude literary movement. His work reflects his anti-colonial stance. Biography Diop started writing poems while he wa ...
(1927–1960), poet * Jean-Francois Domergue, footballer *
Eleanor of Aquitaine Eleanor ( – 1 April 1204; french: Aliénor d'Aquitaine, ) was Queen of France from 1137 to 1152 as the wife of King Louis VII, Queen of England from 1154 to 1189 as the wife of King Henry II, and Duchess of Aquitaine in her own right from 1 ...
(1122–1204), duchess of Aquitaine, queen of France and queen of England *
Jacques Ellul Jacques Ellul (; ; January 6, 1912 – May 19, 1994) was a French philosopher, sociologist, lay theologian, and professor who was a noted Christian anarchist. Ellul was a longtime Professor of History and the Sociology of Institutions on ...
(1912–1994), sociologist, theologian, Christian anarchist *
Marie Fel Marie Fel (24 October 1713 – 2 February 1794) was a French opera singer and a daughter of the organist Henri Fel. Marie Fel was born at Bordeaux. She made her debut at the Paris Opera in 1733 and sang regularly at the Concert Spirituel. In a ...
(1713–1794), opera singer * Jean-Luc Fournet (1965), papyrologist * Pierre-Jean Garat (1762–1823), singer * Armand Gensonné (1758–1793), politician * Sébastien Gervais (born 1976), professional footballer * Stephen Girard (1750–1831), merchant, banker, and
Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...
philanthropist * Jérôme Gnako (born 1968), footballer * Randolphe Gohi (born 1969), former professional footballer * Eugène Goossens (1867–1958), conductor, violinist *
Anna Hamilton Anna Hamilton (22 May 1864 — 19 October 1935) was a French medical doctor, superintendent of the Protestant Hospital in Bordeaux for 34 years, and a proponent of professionalization in nursing. Early life Anna-Emilie Hamilton was born in Fieso ...
(1864–1935), doctor, superintendent of the Protestant Hospital at Bordeaux (1901–1934) * Adolphe Jacquies (c. 1798–1860), Canadian shopkeeper, printer, trade unionist, and newspaper publisher * Pierre Lacour (1745–1814), painter * Léopold Lafleurance (1865–1953), flautist * Joseph Henri Joachim Lainé (1767–1835), statesman * Sainte Jeanne de Lestonnac (1556–1640), Roman Catholic saint and foundress of the
Sisters of the Company of Mary, Our Lady The Sisters of the Company of Mary, Our Lady are the members of a Roman Catholic religious order founded by Jeanne de Lestonnac (1556-1640) in France in 1607. The Order's mission is education, focused on the person in all their uniqueness. The ...
* Christophe Lestrade (born 1969), former professional footballer * André Lhote (1885–1962), cubist painter * Jeanne Henriette Louis, (1938), professor of North American civilization * Jean-Baptiste Lynch (1749–1835), politician *
Lucenzo Luís Filipe Fraga Oliveira (; born 27 May 1983), better known by his stage name Lucenzo (), is a Portuguese–French reggaeton recording artist and record producer. His parents emigrated to France, from Portugal. Lucenzo, when began his singing ...
(born 1983), singer * Jean-Jacques Magendie (1766–1835), officer *
François Magendie __NOTOC__ François Magendie (6 October 1783 – 7 October 1855) was a French physiologist, considered a pioneer of experimental physiology. He is known for describing the foramen of Magendie. There is also a ''Magendie sign'', a downward ...
(1783–1855), physiologist * Bruno Marie-Rose (born 1965), athlete (sprinter) * Albert Marquet, (1875–1947), painter *
François Mauriac François Charles Mauriac (, oc, Francés Carles Mauriac; 11 October 1885 – 1 September 1970) was a French novelist, dramatist, critic, poet, and journalist, a member of the'' Académie française'' (from 1933), and laureate of the Nobel Prize ...
(1885–1970), writer, Nobel laureate 1952 *
Benjamin Millepied Benjamin Millepied (; born 10 June 1977) is a French dancer and choreographer, who has lived and worked in the United States since joining the New York City Ballet in 1995, where he became a soloist in 1998 and a principal in 2002. He has also ...
(born 1977), dancer and choreographer *
Édouard Molinaro Édouard Molinaro (13 May 1928 – 7 December 2013) was a French film director and screenwriter. Biography He was born in Bordeaux, Gironde. He is best known for his comedies with Louis de Funès (''Oscar'', '' Hibernatus''), '' My Uncle B ...
(1928–2013), film director, screenwriter *
Pierre Molinier Pierre Molinier (April 13, 1900 – March 3, 1976) was a French painter, photographer and "maker of objects". Biography and works Born in Agen, France, he lived his life in Bordeaux. He began his career as a painter of landscapes until his wo ...
(1900–1976), painter, photographer * Michel de Montaigne (1533–1592), essayist *
Montesquieu Charles Louis de Secondat, Baron de La Brède et de Montesquieu (; ; 18 January 168910 February 1755), generally referred to as simply Montesquieu, was a French judge, man of letters, historian, and political philosopher. He is the princi ...
(1689–1755), man of letters and political philosopher * Olivier Mony (1966–), writer and literary critic * Étienne Marie Antoine Champion de Nansouty (1768–1815), general *Elie Okobo, basketball player *Pierre Palmade (born 1968), actor and comedian *Paulinus of Nola, St. Paulinus of Nola (354–431), educator, religious figure *Émile Péreire (1800–1875), banker and industrialist *Sophie Pétronin (born 1945), aid worker and humanitarian *Albert Pitres (1848–1928), neurologist *Hippolyte Pradelles (1824–1913), naturalist painter *Georges Rayet, Georges Antoine Pons Rayet (1839–1906), astronomer, discoverer of the Wolf-Rayet stars, & founder of the Bordeaux Observatory * Odilon Redon (1840–1916), painter * Richard II of England (1367–1400), king *Pierre Rode (1774–1830), violinist *Olinde Rodrigues (1795–1851), mathematician, banker and social reformer *Marie-Sabine Roger (born 1957), writer *Bernard Sarrette (1765–1858), conductor and music pedagogue *Jean-Jacques Sempé (1932–2022), cartoonist *Florent Serra (born 1981), tennis player *Alfred Smith (artist), Alfred Smith, (1854–1932), painter *Philippe Sollers, (born 1936), writer *Wilfried Tekovi, (born 1989), Togolese footballer *Elie Vinet (1509–1587), historian and humanist of the Renaissance


International relationships


Twin towns – sister cities

Bordeaux is Twin towns and sister cities, twinned with: * Ashdod, Israel, since 1984 * Bilbao, Spain * Baku, Azerbaijan, since 1985 * Bristol, United Kingdom, since 1947 * Casablanca, Morocco, since 1988 * Fukuoka, Japan, since 1982 * Kraków, Poland, since 1993 * Lima, Peru, since 1957 * Los Angeles, California United States, since 1968 * Madrid, Spain, since 1984 * Munich, Germany, since 1964 * Oran, Algeria, since 2003 * Porto, Portugal, since 1978 * Quebec City, Quebec Canada, since 1962 * Ramallah, Palestine * Riga, Latvia * Saint Petersburg, Russia, since 1993 * Wuhan, China, since 1998


Partnerships

* Samsun, Turkey, since 2010


See also

*Bordeaux wine regions *Bordeaux–Paris, a formerly professional road bicycle racing annual event *The Burdigalian Age of the Miocene Epoch is named for Bordeaux *Canelé, a local pastry *Communes of the Gironde department *Dogue de Bordeaux, a Dog breed, breed of dog originally bred for dog fighting *French wine *List of mayors of Bordeaux *Operation Frankton, a British Combined Operations Headquarters, Combined Operations raid on shipping in the harbour at Bordeaux, in December 1942, during World War II *Roman Catholic Archdiocese of Bordeaux *Girondins * Atlantic history *
Triangular trade Triangular trade or triangle trade is trade between three ports or regions. Triangular trade usually evolves when a region has export commodities that are not required in the region from which its major imports come. It has been used to offset ...
* History of slavery


References


Bibliography

* *


External links


Bordeaux : the world capital of wine
– Official French website (in English) * {{Authority control Bordeaux, Communes of Gironde Port cities and towns on the French Atlantic coast Prefectures in France World Heritage Sites in France Cities in France Gironde Gallia Aquitania Guyenne Burdigalian, Cities in Nouvelle-Aquitaine