root / PyCon07 / material / burgundy_before.txt

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Burgundy
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Burgundy (French: Bourgogne) is a historic region of France, inhabited in turn 
by Celts (Gauls), Romans (Gallo-Romans), and various Germanic peoples, most 
importantly the Burgundians and the Franks. Burgundians gave their name to the 
region. Later in time, the region was divided between the duchy of Burgundy 
(west of Burgundy) and the county of Burgundy (east of Burgundy). The duchy of 
Burgundy is the most 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 
(literally meaning "free county").

Burgundy (duchy) makes up most of the modern-day administrative région of 
Bourgogne.

The Burgundians were one of the Germanic peoples who filled the power vacuum 
left by the collapse of the western half of the Roman empire. In 411, they 
crossed the Rhine and established a kingdom at Worms. Amidst repeated clashes 
between the Romans and Huns, the Burgundian kingdom eventually occupied what 
is today the borderlands between Switzerland, France, and Italy. In 534, the 
Franks defeated Godomar, the last Burgundian king, and absorbed the territory 
into their growing empire.

Its modern existence is rooted in the dissolution of the Frankish empire. When 
the dynastic dust had settled in 880s, there were three Burgundies: the 
kingdom of Upper Burgundy around Lake Geneva, the kingdom of Lower Burgundy in 
Provence, and the duchy of Burgundy in France. The two kingdoms of Burgundy 
were reunited in 937 and absorbed into the Holy Roman Empire under Conrad II 
in 1032, while the duchy of Burgundy was annexed by the French throne in 1004.

During the Middle Ages, Burgundy was the seat of some of the most important 
Western churches and monasteries, among them Cluny, Citeaux, and Vézelay.

During the Hundred Years' War, King Jean II of France 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 to the North 
Sea, mostly by marriage. The Burgundian Empire consisted of a number of 
fiefdoms on both sides of the (then largely symbolic) border between the 
French kingdom and the Holy Roman Empire. Its economic heartland was in the 
Low Countries, particularly Flanders and Brabant. The court in Dijon outshone 
the French court by far, both economically and culturally. In Belgium and The 
Netherlands, 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 Habsburgs, after Maximilian of Austria had married into the 
ducal family. In 1477 the last duke Charles the Bold was killed in battle and 
Burgundy itself taken back by France. His daughter Mary and her husband 
Maximillian moved the court to the palace at Coudenberg, Brussels and ruled 
the remnants of the empire (the Low Countries (Burgundian Netherlands) and 
Franche-Comté, then still a German fief) from there.

Burgundy produces wines of the same name. Although "Burgundy" means red, 
the Burgundy region produces both white wines and red wines. According to 
the AOC's regulations, they must only be made of either Chardonnay, Pinot Noir, 
Gamay or Pinot Blanc to be considered true Burgundy wines. The best-known 
wines are made from Chardonnay and Pinot Noir varietals, and come from the 
CÃŽte d'Or, although also viticulturally part of Burgundy are Beaujolais, 
Chablis, CÎte Chalonnaise, and Mâcon.

Burgundy wines can be described as varied, complex, human, and sophisticatedly 
homely. They are highly regarded because of historical tradition, and arguably 
because they transmit well the flavour of the land, what the French call 
terroir.The repuatation, quality, and small numbers of production of the 
top wines means high prices and high demand. This leads to the wines of this 
region to be some of the most expensive wines in the World. Some consumers buy 
the high-end wines of this region purely for speculative purposes, as they are 
often regarded as Veblen goods.

There have been issues with the quality for the asking price, and reputed 
fraud practices of enhancing the lesser wines with powerful, alcoholic and 
deeply coloured southern wine.

Highest point: Haut-Folin (901m) in the Morvan.

The Canal of Burgundy joins the Rivers Yonne and SaÃŽne, 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 242 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 tourism; Dijon, the most important city along the 
canal, has a harbor for leisure boats.

Famous Burgundian dishes include coq au vin and beef bourguignon.