Description
Bourges is a city in central France on the Yèvre river. It is the capital of the department of Cher and also was the capital of the former province of Berry.HistoryThe name of the city derives either from the Bituriges, the name of the original inhabitants, or from the Germanic Burg (French: bourg. Spanish: burgo. English, others: burgh, berg, or borough), for "hill/village". The Celts called it Avaricon; Latin-speakers: Avaricum.In the Gallic Wars of 58-50 BC the Gauls practised a scorched earth policy, but the inhabitants of Avaricum begged not to have their city burned, and it was spared due to its good defences provided by the surrounding marshes and a strong southern wall. Following the siege of Avaricum in the winter of 52 BC, Julius Caesar's forces destroyed the city and killed all but 800 of its inhabitants.Rome reconstructed Avaricum as a Roman city, with a monumental gate, aqueducts, thermae and an amphitheatre, reaching a greater size than it would attain during the Middle Ages. The massive walls surrounding the late Roman city, enclosing 40 hectares, were built in part with stone re-used from earlier public buildings.
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