Dijon
From World travel guide
Dijon is the capital of the eastern French region of Burgundy (Bourgogne).
Contents |
Understand
Dijon is perhaps best known for its mustard (named after the town) which is still produced locally, but it is also one of the most beautiful cities in France, having avoided being devastated by bombing in WWII.
Dijon was for some time the capital of the Dukes of Burgundy. Burgundy was a great power during the 14th and 15th centuries, when the dukes controlled a large part of what is now northeastern France, western Germany, Belgium, and the Netherlands. The dukes were great patrons of the arts, so Dijon was a major center of Gothic and early renaissance music, painting, and sculpture, attracting some of the greatest and most famous artists and musicians from Flanders in particular. The music the great composers left behind can be performed anywhere, but it is particularly in the fields of sculpture and architecture that masters left a lasting mark on Dijon.
Today, Dijon is a cosmopolitan city, with universities in the center and industrial plants on the outskirts. Traffic is restricted in the center of the city, so many parts of central Dijon are quiet and relaxing.
See
- the Ducal Palace (Palais Ducal) - a beautiful building, has a museum containing priceless treasures and wonderful art that was the property of the Dukes of Burgundy
- the Well of Moses (Puits de Moïse) - splendid monument by Claus Sluter, now on the grounds of a psychiatric hospital, but visitable nonetheless
Cope
- The Local Tourist office runs walking tours of the town (with guides speaking both French and English)
External links
- Dijon - Capital of Burgundy - official tourism website
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