Bouches-du-Rhône

Bouches-du-Rhône is a département in the south of France named after the mouth of the Rhône River.

History

Bouches-du-Rhône was one of the original 83 départements created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Provence and the principalities of Orange, Martigues, and Lambesc. It lost part of its territory in 1793, including Orange and Apt, when the Vaucluse département was created.

Marseille has been an important harbor since before Julius Caesar's conquest of Gaul.

Geography

The département is part of the current région of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. It is surrounded by the départments of Gard on the west, Vaucluse on the north, and Var on the east, and by the Mediterranean Sea on the south.

Marseille is an important harbor.

Other significant cities include:

• Aix-en-Provence
• Aubagne
• Cassis
• Fos-sur-Mer
• Istres
• La Ciotat
• Martigues

Rivers include:

• Rhône, which forms the border with the Gard département
• Rhône delta (the Camargue)

Mountains include:

• Alpilles mountain range
• Montagnette hills
• Sainte-Victoire mountain
• Sainte-Baume massif

Culture

The département is well represented in French art. Paul Cézanne painted numerous representations of the Mont Sainte-Victoire. Vincent van Gogh spent much of his life in Aix-en-Provence, painting many scenes in the area.

Tourism

• Cities of Marseille and Aix-en-Provence
• Roman and Romanesque monuments of Arles
• The Camargue and the city of Saintes-Maries-de-la-Mer
• Alphonse Daudet's windmill in Fontvieille
• Les Baux de Provence, medieval village
• Saint-Rémy-de-Provence and the ruins of the Roman city of Glanum
• Tarascon, medieval castle and church

This article is licenced under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the Wikipedia article "Bouches-du-Rhône".