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Marseilles :: Marseille
 

"Marseilles" redirects here. There is also Marseilles, Illinois.
"Massilia" redirects here. There is also a ship with this name; see The Vichy 80.

Marseille (English alternative spelling Marseilles) (pronounced in standard French, in local Marseille accent) (Provençal: Marsiho or Marselha, both pronounced ) is the second largest city in France and the third metropolitan area, with 1,516,340 inhabitants at the 1999 census. Located in the former province of Provence and on the Mediterranean Sea, it is France's largest commercial port.

Marseille is the capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur région, as well as the préfecture (capital) of the Bouches-du-Rhône département.

History

Ancient

Marseille was founded in 600 B.C. by Greeks* from Phocaea as a trading port under the name Μασσαλία (Massalia; see also List of traditional Greek place names). Facing an opposing alliance of the Etruscans, Carthage and the Celts, the Greek colony allied itself with the expanding Roman Republic for protection. The association with the expanding Roman market saw the city thrive by acting as a link between the interior of Gaul, hungry for Roman goods and wine (of which Massilia was steadily exporting by 500 B.C.) Hugh Johnson, Vintage: The Story of Wine pg 40. Simon and Schuster 1989 , and Rome's insatiable slave markets. Under this arrangement the city maintained its independence until the rise of Julius Caesar, when it joined the losing side in civil war, and lost its independence. It was the site of a siege and naval battle. During the Roman times, it was called Massilia.

It was the home port of Pytheas.

Medieval

From the 5th to the 8th century, Marseille faced wars, barbarian invasions, pillages and epidemics which led to its impoverishment and depopulation. During the 11th century the city revived economically and received a religious focus (the 1st "abbé" is elected in the abbey of St Victor).

Modern

In 1934 Alexander I of Yugoslavia arrived at the port to meet with the French foreign minister Louis Barthou. He was assassinated there by Vlada Georgieff.

Climate

Mean annual temperature: 15 °C
Average temperature in January: 7 °C
Average temperature in July: 23 °C
Average annual precipitation: 550 mm

Economy

Marseille's harbor is the biggest in France and one of the most important of the Mediterranean Sea.

Administration

Marseille is divided into 16 municipal arrondissements, which are themselves divided into quartiers (111 in total). The arrondissements are regrouped in pairs into sectors, and 8 sectors have a council and a town hall (like the arrondissements in Paris and in Lyon).

The municipal elections are carried out by sector. Each sector elects its councillors (303 in total), one third of which are municipal councillors.

Number of councilors elected by sector:

Sector 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 Total
- align="center" 		Sector councilors 22 16 22 30 30 26 32 24 202
- align="center" 		Municipal councilors 11 8 12 13 15 13 16 12 100
- align="center" 		Total number of elected officials 33 24 33 42 45 39 48 36 303

The last mayors of Marseille :

 

This article is licensed under the GNU Free Documentation License. It uses material from the "Marseille".

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