Dijon

Dijon, a town in eastern France, formerly the capital of Burgundy, now the chef lien of the Cote d'Or department, is situated on a fruitful plain which is bordered by slopes covered with vineyards. The old ramparts have been converted into boulevards, and the town is protected by a chain of outlying forts. The town is at the junction of the Ouche and the Suzon, and is also on the Burgundy Canal. The view of the city from the neighbourhood is picturesque, and it seems to bristle with spires of every style and date. Many of the buildings date from the time at which Dijon was the Burgundian capital. The cathedral is large, and has a wooden spire of 300 feet in height. The churches of Notre Dame and of St. Michael are notable, as is the old palace of the Dukes of Burgundy, now used as town-hall and museum. The Palais de Justice was formerly the seat of the Burgundian parliament. There is a fine and interesting museum, and the town has good schools and colleges. There is a large wine trade, especially in Burgundies, and there are manufactures of woollen, hosiery, paper-hangings, candles, mustard, chemicals, machinery, as well as cotton and oil mills, foundries, and tanneries. Marcus Aurelius is said to have established here a Castrum Divionense, and Dijon has played an important part in later history. It carne into the possession of France upon the death of Charles the Bold in 1477, and it was the scene of fighting in the Franco-German war both in 1870 and 1871. Charles the Bold and Bossuet were born at Dijon.