Nantes (Breton: Naoned; Gallo: Naunnt) is a city in western France, near the Atlantic coast, with 711,120 inhabitants in the metropolitan area at the 1999 census. Nantes is the capital of the Pays de la Loire région, as well as the préfecture of the Loire-Atlantique département. It is also the most important city of historic Brittany, though now a part of the modern Pays de la Loire region.
History
Originally founded as a town by the Celtic tribe named Namneti around 70 BCE, it was conquered by Julius Caesar in 56 BCE and named Portus Namnetus. Christianised in the 3rd century CE, Nantes was successively invaded by the Saxons (around 285), the Franks (around 500), the Britons (in the 6th and 7th centuries) and the Normans (in 843). In 937, Alain Barbe-Torte, grandson of the last king of Brittany who was expelled by Norris, drove them out and founded the duchy of Brittany.
When the duchy of Brittany was annexed by the kingdom of France in 1532, Nantes kept the parliament of Brittany for a few years, before it was moved to Rennes. In 1598, King Henry IV of France signed the Edict of Nantes here, which granted Protestants rights to their religion.
During the 18th century, prior to abolition of slavery, Nantes was the slave trade capital of France. This kind of trade led Nantes to become the first port in France and a wealthy city. When the French Revolution broke out, Nantes chose to be part of it, although the whole surrounding region soon degenerated into an open civil war against the new republic. The excesses of the revolution led to thousands of summary executions, mainly by drowning in the Loire River. In the 19th century, Nantes became an industrial city. The first public transport anywhere may have been the omnibus service initiated in Nantes in 1826. It was soon imitated in Paris, London and New York. The first railroads were built in 1851 and many industries were created.
In 1940, the city was occupied by German troops. In 1941, the murder of a German officer, Lt. Col.Fritz Hotz, caused the retaliatory execution of 48 civilians. In 1943, the city was bombed twice by British bombers. Nantes was freed by the Americans in 1944. The harbour was moved to the very mouth of the Loire river, in Saint-Nazaire. It was only in the last 15 years of the 20th century that the city was able to move to a more modern economy.
Main sights
- Cathedral Saint-Peter Saint-Paul.
- Passage Pommeraye
- the new Palais de Justice, on the Île de Nantes, built in 2000, designed by Jean Nouvel
- the Museum and the native house of Jules Verne, the pioneer science fiction writer
- Musée des Beaux-arts (Arts museum)
- La Tour LU (LU Tower) - a picturesque tower guarding the entrance of a former Lefevre-Utile biscuit factory
- Musèe D'Obrèe
- Le chateau des Ducs de Bretagne
- Jardin des Plantes, situated just outside the main train station (North exit)
- Marché Talensac, the main town market, full of high quality local produce
Copyright manuele Ferlito 2009-2010