Burgundy

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Burgundy

Burgundy (; ) is a region historically situated in modern-day France

France

France , officially the French Republic , is a country whose Metropolitan France is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various Overseas departments and territories of France....
and Switzerland

Switzerland

Switzerland is a landlocked Swiss Alps country of roughly 7.7 million people in Western Europe with an area of 41,285 km?. Switzerland is a federal republic consisting of 26 states called Cantons of Switzerland....
.
undy was inhabited in turn by Celts (Gauls

Gauls

The Gauls were a Continental Celtic Celts people of Classical Antiquity, the inhabitants of Gaul , and speakers of the Gaulish language.Archaeologically, they were the bearers of the La T?ne culture ....
), Romans

Ancient Rome

Ancient Rome was a civilization that grew out of a small agricultural community founded on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 10th century BC....
(Gallo-Romans), and in the 4th century assigned by Romans to the Burgundians

Burgundians

File:Roman Empire 125.svgThe Burgundians were an East Germanic language Germanic tribes which may have emigrated from mainland Scandinavia to the island of Bornholm, whose old form in Old Norse still was Burgundarholmr , and from there to mainland Europe....
, a Germanic

Germanic

Germanic may refer to* The Germanic languages, descended from Proto-Germanic.* The Germanic peoples**List of Germanic peoples**Confederations of Germanic tribes...
people, who settled there and established their own kingdom. This Burgundian kingdom was conquered in the 6th century by the Franks

Franks

The Franks or Frankish people were a West Germanic ethnic group first identified in the 3rd century as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River....
who continued the kingdom of Burgundy under their own rule.

Later, the region was divided between the Duchy of Burgundy

Duchy of Burgundy

The Duchy of Burgundy was a feudal territory once existing within the France in the Middle Ages. It roughly conforms to the modern Bourgogne. Existing between 843 and 1477, the Duchy was ruled by a succession of Duke of Burgundy, whose extinction with the death of Charles the Bold in 1477 led to the Duchy being absorbed into the French crown...
(west of Burgundy) and the County of Burgundy

County of Burgundy

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History

Burgundy was inhabited in turn by Celts (Gauls

Gauls

Ancient Rome

Burgundians

Germanic

Franks

Duchy of Burgundy

County of Burgundy

The Free County of Burgundy, in German Freigrafschaft Burgund, was a medieval county , within the traditional province and modern French region Franche-Comt?, whose very French name is still reminiscent of the unusual title of its count: Freigraf ....
(east of Burgundy). The Duchy of Burgundy is the more famous of the two, and the one which reached historical fame. Later, the Duchy of Burgundy became the French province of Burgundy, while the County of Burgundy became the French province of Franche-Comté

Franche-Comté

Franche-Comt? the former County of Burgundy, as distinct from the neighbouring Duchy of Burgundy, is an regions of France and a Provinces of France of eastern France....
, literally meaning free county.

The modern-day administrative région of Bourgogne

Bourgogne

Bourgogne is one of the 26 regions of France of France.The region of Bourgogne is both larger than the old Duchy of Burgundy and smaller than the area ruled by the Duke of Burgundy....
comprises most of the former Duchy of Burgundy.

The Burgundians

Burgundians

Decline of the Roman Empire

The English historian Edward Gibbon, author of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire made this concept part of the framework of the English language, but he was neither the first nor the last to speculate on why and when the Empire collapsed....
of the western half of the Roman Empire

Roman Empire

The Roman Empire was the Roman Republic phase of the Ancient Rome, characterised by an autocracy form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
. In A.D. 411, they crossed the Rhine

Rhine

File:Swiss Grand Canyon.jpgThe Rhine is one of the longest and most important rivers in Europe, at , with an average discharge of more than ....
and established a kingdom at Worms

Worms, Germany

Worms is a city in Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany, on the Rhine River. At the end of 2004, it had 85,829 inhabitants.Established by the Celts who called it Borbetomagus, Worms today remains embattled with the cities Trier and Cologne over title of "Oldest City in Germany"....
. Amidst repeated clashes between the Romans and Huns

Huns

The Huns were a confederation of Central Asian Eurasian nomads or semi-nomads, who had established an empire in Eurasia. The Huns may have stimulated the Migration Period, a contributing factor in the collapse of the Roman Empire....
, the Burgundian kingdom eventually occupied what is today the borderlands between Switzerland

Switzerland

Italy

Italy , officially the Italian Republic , is a country located on the Italian Peninsula in Southern Europe and on the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea, Sicily and Sardinia....
. In 534, the Franks

Franks

The Franks or Frankish people were a West Germanic ethnic group first identified in the 3rd century as living north and east of the Lower Rhine River....
defeated Godomar

Godomar

Godomar , son of king Gundobad, was king of Kingdom of Burgundy. He ruled Burgundy after his elder brother's death in 524 until 534.Both he and his brother Sigismund of Burgundy were defeated in battle by Clovis' sons....
, the last Burgundian king, and absorbed the territory into their growing empire.

Burgundy's modern existence is rooted in the dissolution of the Frankish Empire

Frankish Empire

Francia or Frankia, later also called the Frankish Empire , Frankish Kingdom , Frankish Realm or occasionally Frankland, was the territory inhabited and ruled by the Franks from the 3rd to the 10th century....
. When the dynastic succession was settled in the 880s, there were four Burgundies:

the Kingdom of Upper (Transjurane) Burgundy
Upper Burgundy

File:Karte Hoch und Niederburgund EN.pngUpper Burgundy is the part of Burgundy east of the Jura mountains, but in fact encompassing both sides of the Jura mountains range....
around Lake Geneva
Lake Geneva

Lake Geneva or Lake L?man is the second largest freshwater lake in Central Europe in terms of surface area . 60% of it comes under the jurisdiction of Switzerland , and 40% under France ....
,
the Kingdom of Lower Burgundy
Lower Burgundy

File:Karte Hoch und Niederburgund EN.pngLower Burgundy was a historical kingdom in Provence, in southeastern France. Lower Burgundy is sometimes called the Kingdom of Arelat or incorrectly the Kingdom of Cisjurane Burgundy....
in Provence
Provence

Provence is a region of southeastern France on the Mediterranean adjacent to Italy. It is part of the administrative regions of France of Provence-Alpes-C?te d'Azur....
, and
the Duchy of Burgundy
Duchy of Burgundy

The Duchy of Burgundy was a feudal territory once existing within the France in the Middle Ages. It roughly conforms to the modern Bourgogne. Existing between 843 and 1477, the Duchy was ruled by a succession of Duke of Burgundy, whose extinction with the death of Charles the Bold in 1477 led to the Duchy being absorbed into the French crown...
west of the Saône
Saône

The Sa?ne is a river of eastern France. It is a right tributary of the River Rh?ne River . Rising at Viom?nil in the Vosges department, it joins the Rh?ne in Lyon ....
the County of Burgundy
County of Burgundy

The Free County of Burgundy, in German Freigrafschaft Burgund, was a medieval county , within the traditional province and modern French region Franche-Comt?, whose very French name is still reminiscent of the unusual title of its count: Freigraf ....
east of the Saône

The two kingdoms of Upper and Lower Burgundy were reunited in 937 and absorbed into the Holy Roman Empire

Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early modern Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor....
under Conrad II

Conrad II, Holy Roman Emperor

Conrad II was the son of a mid-level nobleman in Franconia, Henry of Speyer and Adelaide of Alsace, who inherited the titles of count of Speyer and of Worms, Germany as an infant when Henry died at age twenty....
in 1032, as the Kingdom of Arles

Kingdom of Arles

File:Map Kingdom Arelat EN.pngThe Kingdom of Burgundy or of Arles was a Franks dominion surrounding Arles, established in 933, by combining Upper Burgundy and Lower Burgundy....
. The Duchy of Burgundy was annexed by the French throne in 1477. The County of Burgundy remained loosely associated with the Holy Roman Empire

Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early modern Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor....
(intermittently independent, whence the name "Franche-Comté

Franche-Comté

Franche-Comt? the former County of Burgundy, as distinct from the neighbouring Duchy of Burgundy, is an regions of France and a Provinces of France of eastern France....
"), and finally incorporated into France in 1678, with the Treaties of Nijmegen

Treaties of Nijmegen

The Treaties of Peace of Nijmegen were a series of treaties, signed in the Netherlands city of Nijmegen, August 1678 - December 1679, ending war between various countries, including France, the Dutch Republic, Spain, Brandenburg-Prussia, Sweden, Denmark, the Bishopric of M?nster, and the Holy Roman Empire, during the Franco-Dutch War ....
.

During the Middle Ages

Middle Ages

File:Karl 1 mit papst gelasius gregor1 sacramentar v karl d kahlen.jpgThe Middle Ages of European history are a period in history which lasted for roughly a millennium, commonly dated from the fall of the Roman Empire in the 5th century to the beginning of the Early Modern Period in the 16th century, marked by the division of Western Christi...
, Burgundy was the seat of some of the most important Western churches and monasteries

Monastery

Monastery , a term derived from the Greek language word ???ast?????, neut. of ???ast????? - monasterios denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of Monk, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in Cenobium or alone ....
, among them Cluny

Cluny

The town and commune in France of Cluny or Clugny lies in the modern-day D?partements of France of Sa?ne-et-Loire in the r?gion in France of Bourgogne, in east-central France, near M?con....
, Citeaux, and Vézelay

Vézelay

V?zelay is a Communes of France in the Yonne Departments of France in the Bourgogne Regions of France of France.It is principally noted for V?zelay Abbey , sited here since the 9th century....
.

During the Hundred Years' War

Hundred Years' War

The Hundred Years' War was a prolonged conflict lasting from 1337 to 1453 between two royal houses for the French throne, which was vacant with the extinction of the senior House of Capet line of French kings....
, King John II of France

John II of France

John II , called John the Good , was Count of Anjou, Count of Maine, and Duke of Normandy from 1332, Count of Poitiers from 1344, Duke of Aquitaine from 1345, and King of France from 1350 until his death, as well as Duke of Burgundy from 1361 to 1363....
gave the duchy to his younger son, rather than leaving it to his successor on the throne. The duchy soon became a major rival to the French throne, because the Dukes of Burgundy succeeded in assembling an empire stretching from Switzerland

Switzerland

North Sea

The North Sea is a marginal sea, epeiric sea on the European continental shelf. The Dover Strait and the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian Sea in the north connect it to the Atlantic Ocean....
, mostly by marriage. The Burgundian territories consisted of a number of fiefdoms on both sides of the (then largely symbolic) border between the Kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire

Holy Roman Empire

The Holy Roman Empire was a union of territories in Central Europe during the Middle Ages and the Early modern Europe under a Holy Roman Emperor....
. Its economic heartland was in the Low Countries

Low Countries

The Low Countries, the historical region of de Nederlanden, are the country on low-lying land around the river delta of the Rhine, Scheldt, and Meuse River rivers....
, particularly Flanders

Flanders

Flanders is a geographical region located in parts of present-day Belgium, France, and the Netherlands. Over the course of history, the geographical territory that was called "Flanders" has varied....
and Brabant

Duchy of Brabant

The Duchy of Brabant was a historical region in the Low Countries. It consisted of not only the three modern-day Belgium provinces of Flemish Brabant, Walloon Brabant and Antwerp as well as the Brussels-Capital Region, but also the present-day Netherlands province of North Brabant....
. The court in Dijon

Dijon

Dijon is a communes of France in eastern France, the capital of the C?te-d'Or Departments of France and of the Bourgogne Regions of France. Dijon is the historical capital of the provinces of France of Burgundy ....
outshone the French court by far, both economically and culturally. In Belgium

Belgium

* A small German-speaking Community of Belgium exists in eastern Wallonia. Belgium's linguistic diversity and related political and cultural conflicts are reflected in the history of Belgium and a complex Communities and regions of Belgium....
and in the south of the Netherlands

Netherlands

The Netherlands is a country that is part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands. It is a parliamentary democratic constitutional monarchy. The Netherlands is located in North-West Europe, and bordered by the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east....
, a 'Burgundian lifestyle' still means 'enjoyment of life, good food, and extravagant spectacle'.

In the late 15th and early 16th centuries, Burgundy provided a power base for the rise of the Habsburg

Habsburg

The House of Habsburg was an important royal house of Europe and is best known as supplying all of the formally elected Holy Roman Emperors between 1452 and 1740, as well as rulers of Spanish Empire and the Austrian Empire....
s, after Maximilian of Austria

Maximilian I, Holy Roman Emperor

Maximilian I of Habsburg was Holy Roman Empire from 1508 until his death, but had ruled jointly with his father for the last ten years of his reign, from circa 1483....
had married into the ducal family. In 1477 at the battle of Nancy

Battle of Nancy

The Battle of Nancy was the final and decisive war of the Burgundian Wars, fought outside the walls of Nancy, France on 5 January 1477 between Charles the Bold, Duke of Duchy of Burgundy, and Ren? II, Duke of Lorraine, Duke of Lorraine ....
during the Burgundian Wars

Burgundian Wars

The Burgundian Wars were a conflict between the Duchy of Burgundy and the Valois Dynasty, later involving the Old Swiss Confederacy, which would play a decisive role....
the last duke Charles the Bold was killed in battle and Burgundy itself taken back by France. After the death of his daughter Mary

Mary of Burgundy

Mary, called Mary the Rich , was suo jure Duke of Burgundy from 1477 – 1482. As the only child of Charles the Bold, Duke of Burgundy, and his wife Isabella of Bourbon, she was the heiress to the vast Burgundian domains in France and the Low Countries upon her father's death in the Battle of Nancy on 5 January 1477....
her husband Maximilian moved the court first to Mechelen and later to the palace at Coudenberg

Coudenberg

Coudenberg or Koudenberg is a small hill in Brussels where the Palace of Coudenberg was built.For nearly 700 years, the Castle and then the Palace of Coudenberg were the seat of government of the counts, dukes, archdukes, kings, emperors and governors who from the 11th century until its destruction in 1731, exerted their sovereignty...
, Brussels

Brussels

Brussels , officially the Brussels Capital-Region, is the de facto capital city of the European Union and the largest urban area in Belgium....
, and from there ruled the remnants of the empire, the Low Countries (Burgundian Netherlands

Burgundian Netherlands

In the history of the Low Countries, the Burgundian Netherlands refers to the period when the Duke of Burgundy ruled the area, as well as Luxembourg and parts of northern France, from 1384 to 1530....
) and Franche-Comté

Franche-Comté

Franche-Comt? the former County of Burgundy, as distinct from the neighbouring Duchy of Burgundy, is an regions of France and a Provinces of France of eastern France....
, then still an imperial fief. The latter territory was ceded to France in the Treaty of Nijmegen of 1678.

Geography

Highest point: Haut-Folin

Haut-Folin

Haut-Folin in the Sa?ne-et-Loire d?partement in France is at 901m the highest point in the region of Burgundy on France.It is located in the commune of Saint-Prix, Sa?ne-et-Loire....
(901m) in the Morvan

Morvan

*Morman was also the legendary chief of L?on, in Breton folktales.*Morvan's syndrome is a disorder affecting potassium channels in the brain and peripheral nerves....
.

The Canal of Burgundy
Canal of Burgundy

The Canal of Burgundy is a canal in Burgundy in central eastern France. There are two river entrances; to the north the Yonne River allows access in the town of Migennes, and in the south the Sa?ne allows access in the town Saint-Jean-de-Losne....
joins the Rivers Yonne
Yonne River

The Yonne is a river in France, left tributary of the Seine. It is 292 km long. The river gives its name to the Yonne departments of France....
and Saône
Saône

The Sa?ne is a river of eastern France. It is a right tributary of the River Rh?ne River . Rising at Viom?nil in the Vosges department, it joins the Rh?ne in Lyon ....
, allowing barges to navigate from the north to south of France. Construction began in 1765 and was completed in 1832. At the summit there is a tunnel 3.333 kilometers long in a straight line. The canal is 400 kilometers long, with a total 209 locks and crosses two counties of Burgundy, the Yonne and Cote d'Or. The canal is now mostly used for riverboat
Riverboat

A riverboat is a ship designed for inland navigation. These vessels are usually less sturdy than ships built for the open seas, with limited navigational and rescue equipment, as they do not have to survive the high winds or large waves characteristic on large lakes, seas or oceans....
tourism; Dijon
Dijon

Dijon is a communes of France in eastern France, the capital of the C?te-d'Or Departments of France and of the Bourgogne Regions of France. Dijon is the historical capital of the provinces of France of Burgundy ....
, the most important city along the canal, has a harbor.

Culture

Wine

Burgundy is one of France's main wine
Wine

Wine is an alcoholic beverage often made of fermentation grape juice. The natural chemical balance of grapes is such that they can ferment without the addition of sugars, acids, enzymes or other nutrients....
producing areas, well known for both its red and white wines, mostly made from Pinot Noir
Pinot Noir

Pinot noir is a red wine grape variety of the species Vitis vinifera. The name may also refer to wines produced predominantly from Pinot noir grapes....
and Chardonnay
Chardonnay

Chardonnay is a green-skinned grape variety used to make white wine. It is believed to have originated in the Burgundy wine region of eastern French wine but is now grown wherever wine is produced, from English wine to New Zealand wine....
grapes respectively, although other grape varieties can be found including Gamay, Aligote
Aligoté

Aligot? is a white grape used to make dry white wines in the Bourgogne region of France, and which also has significant plantings in much of Eastern Europe including Russian wine, Ukraine wine, Moldovan wine and Bulgarian wine....
, Pinot Blanc
Pinot Blanc

Pinot blanc is a white wine grape. It is a genetic mutation of Pinot gris, which is itself a mutation of Pinot noir....
and Sauvignon Blanc
Sauvignon blanc

Sauvignon blanc is a green-skinned grape variety which originates from the Bordeaux region of France. The grape gets its name from the French word sauvage and blanc due to its early origins as an indigenous grape in South West France ....
. The region is divided into the Côte-d'Or
Côte-d'Or

C?te-d'Or is a departments of France in the eastern part of France....
, where the most expensive and prized Burgundies are found, and Beaujolais
Beaujolais

Beaujolais is a France Appellation d'Origine Contr?l?e wine generally made of the Gamay grape which has a thin skin and few tannins. Like most AOC wines they are not wine label varietally....
, Chablis
Chablis

Chablis is a town and commune in France of the Yonne d?partement in France in France. Chablis is located at the north of the Burgundy region....
, the Côte Chalonnaise
Côte Chalonnaise

C?te Chalonnaise is a subregion of the Burgundy wine region of France. C?te Chalonnaise lies to the south of the C?te d'Or continuing the same geology southward....
and Mâcon
Macon

Macon may refer to:...
.

The reputation and quality of the top wines, together with the fact that they are often produced in tiny quantities, has led to high demand and high prices, with some Burgundies ranking among the most expensive wines in the world.

Cuisine
Famous Burgundian dishes include coq au vin
Coq au vin

Coq au vin is a France fricassee of rooster cooked with wine, lardons, Edible mushroomss, and optionally garlic. Older roosters are traditionally used because they contain a lot of connective tissue, which creates a richer broth when cooked....
and beef bourguignon
Beef Bourguignon

Beef Bourguignon is a well-known, traditional French cuisine. It is essentially a stew prepared with beef braised in red wine and beef broth, generally flavoured with garlic, onions, carrots, and a bouquet garni, and garnished with pearl onions and mushrooms....
.

See also

Burgundian Netherlands
Burgundian Netherlands

In the history of the Low Countries, the Burgundian Netherlands refers to the period when the Duke of Burgundy ruled the area, as well as Luxembourg and parts of northern France, from 1384 to 1530....
Count of Burgundy
County of Burgundy
County of Burgundy

The Free County of Burgundy, in German Freigrafschaft Burgund, was a medieval county , within the traditional province and modern French region Franche-Comt?, whose very French name is still reminiscent of the unusual title of its count: Freigraf ....
Duchy of Burgundy
Duchy of Burgundy

The Duchy of Burgundy was a feudal territory once existing within the France in the Middle Ages. It roughly conforms to the modern Bourgogne. Existing between 843 and 1477, the Duchy was ruled by a succession of Duke of Burgundy, whose extinction with the death of Charles the Bold in 1477 led to the Duchy being absorbed into the French crown...
Duke of Burgundy
Duke of Burgundy

Duke of Burgundy was a title borne by the rulers of the Duchy of Burgundy, a small portion of traditional lands of Burgundians west of river Sa?ne which in 843 was allotted to Charles the Bald's West Franks....
French wine
French wine

French wine is produced in several regions throughout France, in quantities between 50 and 60 million hectolitres per year . France has the world's largest wine production ahead of Italian wine and the second-largest total vineyard area ....
Kingdom of Burgundy
Kingdom of Burgundy

Burgundy is a region of Western Europe which has existed as a political entity in a number of forms with very different boundaries. Two of these entities have been called the Kingdom of Burgundy, and a third Kingdom of Burgundy was very nearly created....
King of Burgundy
King of Burgundy

The following is a list of the Kings of Kingdom of Burgundy....

External links

(INSEE
INSEE

INSEE is the France List of national and international statistical services for Statistics and Economic Studies. It collects and publishes information on the Economy of France and society, carrying out the periodic national census....
site)