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BORDEAUX HISTORY

"Bordeaux, city of wine, city of commerce and city of culture, is a magnificent reflection of its diverse history and exciting future !"

A Brief History of Bordeaux

Part 9: Modern History of Bordeaux
Unlike the northeast regions of France, the wars of the nineteenth and twentieth centuries generally spared Bordeaux, although of course many local lives were lost. Resistance activities by the Bordelais exemplified the streak of independence that has made the region’s inhabitants famous. When Paris was threatened from the north and the east, Bordeaux served briefly as the wartime capital of France earning it the nickname “la Capitale tragique”. This happened on three occasions: 1870, 1914 and for 2 weeks in 1940.

Bordeaux experienced a resurgence in prosperity in the early twentieth century with the establishment of arms factories. However the Second World War brought a period of confusion and darkness within Bordeaux’s governing bodies. Following the conflict, the city welcomed the security of General Jacques Chaban-Delmas, who became the Mayor of Bordeaux in 1947. When he came to office, practically the entire infrastructure of the city had to be updated: sewage, lighting, roads… He remained in this position for almost 50 years with Bordeaux of today reflecting the many stages of his political office.

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However with a worsening economic situation and the rise of unemployment, Chaban-Delmas was forced to resign in 1995 and Alain Juppé was elected to replace him. Juppé faced the challenge of bringing a still outdated and somewhat dilapidated Bordeaux fully into the twenty-first century.

He is well on his way to completing this mammoth task and Bordeaux, city of wine, city of commerce and city of culture, is a magnificent reflection of its diverse history and exciting future.

The long history of Bordeaux contains three constants that have undoubtedly helped create “l’esprit de Bordeaux”: the flourishing port that has welcomed trade and immigrants from around the world; the commerce that has been the basis of the city’s development; and of course the Bordeaux wine, which is undoubtedly the lifeblood of the city that shares its name. Such a wealth of history and culture makes Bordeaux and the Aquitaine region a fascinating, exciting, beautiful location to learn French in France!

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