BORDEAUX HISTORY
A Brief History of Bordeaux
Part 5: English Bordeaux
The fortunes of Bordeaux took an interesting turn in 1154
when the Duchess Eleanor of Aquitaine married Henri Plantagenet,
count of Anjou and Duke of Normandy. Within months of the
wedding he became King Henry II of England thereby linking
the destinies of Bordeaux and the Aquitaine to England
for three centuries (1154-1453), a time of immense prosperity
for the region.
As a result of this union, the bourgeoisie concentrated on the Bordeaux wine trade with England and the Scandinavian countries. It flourished, and the Bordeaux wine merchants received further impetus when they were exempted from paying duty on their own wines. Through the thirteenth century, maritime traffic increased significantly to the inland “sea port”. The region around Bordeaux developed as churches were built beyond the town walls and vineyards flourished and expanded, propelled by the insatiable thirst of the English for the Bordeaux wine they called “claret”.
Bordeaux wine exports peaked in 1308/1309 with volumes not surpassed until the mid-twentieth century! This phenomenal level of trade was the greatest export volume in the medieval world and established Bordeaux as a centre of commerce.
The fifteenth century began with France in the midst of the Hundred Years War with the English. The Kings of France took more than half a century to reconquer Aquitaine and from 1438, the Gascony front became the focal point of the war. Bordeaux fought against the French but without the presence of King Henry V of England and fearing for its vineyards and homes, the town surrendered in June 1451. The English re-took the town but were again defeated on July 17, 1453, at the famous battle of Castillon, which finally ended the war. Bordeaux once again belonged to the Kings of France.
Read about French Bordeaux >
