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MARSEILLES

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Originally appearing in Volume V17, Page 768 of the 1911 Encyclopedia Britannica.
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MARSEILLES , a See also:

city of See also:southern See also:France, See also:chief seaport of France and of the Mediterranean, 219 M. S. by E. of See also:Lyons and 534 M. S.S.E. of See also:Paris, by the Paris-See also:Lyon-Mediterranee railway. Pop. (1906), See also:commune 517,498; See also:town 421,116. Marseilles is situated on the Golfe du See also:Lion on the eastern See also:shore of a See also:bay protected to the See also:south by Cape Croisette but open towards the See also:west; to the See also:east the See also:horizon is bounded by an See also:amphitheatre of hills, those in the foreground clothed with vegetation while the more distant eminences are See also:bare and rugged. The city is built on undulating ground and the south-western and most aristocratic See also:quarter covers the slopes of the See also:ridge crowned by a fort and the See also:church of Notre-See also:Dame de la Garde and projecting westward into the bay to See also:form a See also:protection for the See also:harbour. The newest and most pleasant portion lies on the south-eastern slope of the ridge, between the southern end of the See also:Rue Paradis and the Prado avenues, which is better protected than most other quarters from the See also:mistral that blows down the See also:Rhone valley, and where in summer the temperature is always a little See also:lower than in the centre of the town. The old harbour of Marseilles opens on the west to the Golfe du Lion, the famous Rue Cannebiere' prolonged by the Rue See also:Noailles leading E.N.E. from its inner end. These two streets are the centre of the See also:life of the city. Continued in the Allees de Meilhan and the See also:Boulevard de la Madeleine, they form one of its See also:main See also:arteries. The other, at right angles with the first, connects the See also:Place d'See also:Aix with the spacious and fashionable See also:Promenade du Prado, by way of the Cours Belsunce and the Rue de See also:Rome.

Other See also:

fine streets—the Rue St Ferreol, the Rue Paradis and the Rue See also:Breteuil are to the south of the Cannebiere See also:running parallel with the Rue de Rome. To these must be added the neighbouring See also:avenue of See also:Pierre See also:Puget named after the sculptor whose statue 1 From the Latin cannabis, Provencal cannebe, " See also:hemp," in allusion to the rope-walks formerly occupying its site.stands in the Borely See also:Park. The Prado, with its avenues of trees and fine houses, runs to within a quarter of a mile of the Huveaune, a stream that See also:borders the city on the south-east, then turns off at right angles and extends to the See also:sea, coming to an end See also:close to the Borely Park and the See also:race-course. From its extremity the Chemin de la Corniche runs northwards along the See also:coast, fringed by villas and bathing establishments, to the Anse See also:des Catalans, a distance of 41 . See also:miles. The old town of Marseilles is bounded W. by the Joliette See also:basin and the sea, E. by the Cours Belsunce, S. by the See also:northern See also:quay of the old See also:port, and N. by the Boulevard des Dames. It consists of a See also:labyrinth of steep, dark and narrow streets inhabited by a seafaring See also:population. Through its centre runs the broad Rue de la Republique, extending from the Cannebiere to the Place de la Joliette. The entrance to the old harbour is defended by Fort St See also:Jean on the See also:north and Fort St See also:Nicolas on the south. Behind the latter is the Anse (See also:Creek) de la Reserve. Beyond this again, situated in See also:succession along the shore, come the See also:Chateau du Pharo, given by the empress See also:Eugenie to the town, the Anse du Pharo, the military exercising ground, and the Anse des Catalans. To the old harbour, which covers only 70 acres with a mean See also:depth of 191 ft. and is now used by sailing vessels, the basin of La Joliette (55 acres) with an entrance harbour was added in 1853. Communicating with the old harbour by a channel which passes behind Fort St Jean, this See also:dock opens on the south into the See also:outer harbour, opposite the See also:palace and the Anse du Pharo.

A See also:

series of similar basins separated from the roadstead by a See also:jetty 21 M. See also:long was subsequently added along the shore to the north, viz. the basins of Lazaret and Arenc, bordered by the harbour railway station and the extensive See also:ware-houses of the Compagnie des Docks et Entrepbts, the Bassin de la Gare Maritime with the warehouses of the chamber of See also:commerce; the Bassin See also:National with the refitting basin, comprising six dry docks behind it; and the Bassin de la Pinede entered from the northern outer harbour. These new docks have a See also:water See also:area of 414 acres and over 11 m. of quays, and are commodious and deep enough for the largest vessels to manoeuvre easily. In the roads to the south-west of the port See also:lie the islands of Ratonneau and Pomegue, See also:united by a jetty forming a See also:quarantine port. Between them and the mainland is the islet of Chateau d'If, in which the See also:scene of See also:part of See also:Dumas' See also:Monte Cristo is laid. Marseilles possesses few remains of either the See also:Greek or See also:Roman periods of occupation, and is poor in See also:medieval buildings. The old See also:cathedral of la See also:Major (Sainte-See also:Marie-Majeure), dating chiefly from the 12th See also:century and built on the ruins of a See also:temple of See also:Diana, is in See also:bad preservation. The See also:chapel of St Lazare (See also:late ,5th century) in the See also:left See also:aisle is in the earliest See also:Renaissance See also:style, and a bas-See also:relief of See also:white See also:porcelain by See also:Lucca della Robbia is of See also:artistic value. Beside this church and alongside the Joliette basin is a See also:modern See also:building begun in 1852, opened for See also:worship in 1893 and recognized as the finest modern cathedral in France. It is a See also:Byzantine See also:basilica, in the form of a Latin See also:cross, 46o ft. long, built in See also:green Florentine See also:stone blended with white stone from the neighbourhood of See also:Arles. The four towers which surmount it—two at the west front, one over the See also:crossing, one at the east end —are roofed with cupolas. Near the cathedral stands the See also:bishop's palace, and the Place de la Major, which they overlook, is embellished with the statue of Bishop Belsunce, who displayed See also:great devotion during the See also:plague of 1720-1721. The celebrated Notre-Dame de la Garde, the See also:steeple of which, surmounted by a gilded statue of the Virgin, 30 ft. in height, rises 15o ft. above the See also:summit of the See also:hill on which it stands, commands a view of the whole port and town, as well as of the surrounding mountains and the neighbouring sea.

The See also:

present chapel is modern and occupies the site of one built in 1214. On the south See also:side of the old harbour near the Fort St Nicolas stands the church of St See also:Victor, built in the 13th century and once attached to an See also:abbey founded See also:early in the 4th century. With its lofty crenellated walls and square towers built of large blocks of uncemented stone, it resembles a fortress. St Victor is built above crypts dating mainly from the 11th century but also embodying See also:architecture of the Carolingian See also:period and of the early centuries of the See also:Christian era. Tradition relates that St See also:Lazarus inhabited the catacombs under St Victor; and the See also:black See also:image of the Virgin, still preserved there, is popularly attributed to St See also:Luke. The See also:spire, which is the only relic of the See also:ancient church of Accoules, marks the centre of Old Marseilles. At its See also:foot are a " See also:calvary " and a curious underground chapel in See also:rock See also:work, both modern. Notre-Dame du Mont See also:Carmel, also in the old town, occupies the place of what was the citadel of the Massaliots when they were besieged by See also:Julius See also:Caesar. Of the See also:civil buildings of the city, the prefecture, one of the finest in France, the Palais de See also:Justice, in front of which is the statue of the See also:advocate See also:Antoine See also:Berryer (1790-1868) and the See also:Exchange, all date from the latter See also:half of the 19th century. The Exchange, built at the expense of the Chamber of Commerce, includes the spacious See also:hall of that institution with its fine mural paintings and See also:gilding. The hotel-de-ville (17th century) stands on the northern quay of the old harbour. Al; these buildings are surpassed by the Palais See also:Longchamp (1862-1870), situated in the north-east of the town at the end of the Boulevard Long-champ.

The centre of the building is occupied by a monumental chateau d'eau (See also:

reservoir). Colonnades See also:branch off from this, uniting it on the left to the picture See also:gallery, with a fine collection of ancient and modern See also:works, and on the right to the natural See also:history museum, remarkable for its conchological See also:department and collection of See also:ammonites. In front are ornamental grounds; behind are extensive zoological gardens, with the astronomical See also:observatory. The museum of antiquities is established in the Chateau Borely (1766-1778) in a fine park at the end of the Prado. It includes a Phoenician collection (containing the remains that support the See also:hypothesis of the Phoenician origin of Marseilles), an See also:Egyptian collection, numerous Greek, Latin, and Christian See also:inscriptions in stone, &c. A See also:special building within the city contains the school of See also:art with a valuable library and a collection of medals and coins annexed to it. The city also has a colonial museum and a laboratory of marine See also:zoology. The triumphal See also:arch of Aix, originally dedicated to the victors of the Trocadero, was in 183o appropriated to the conquests of the See also:empire. The See also:canal de Marseille, constructed from 1837 to 1848, which has metamorphosed the town and its arid surroundings by bringing to them the See also:waters of the See also:Durance, leaves the See also:river opposite Pertuis. It has a length of 97 miles (including its four main branches) of which 13 are underground, and irrigates some 7500 acres. After crossing the valley of the Arc, between Aix and Rognac, by the magnificent See also:aqueduct of Roquefavour, it purifies its waters, charged with See also:ooze, in the basins of Realtort. It draws about 2200 gallons of water per second from the Durance, supplies 2450 See also:horse-See also:power to works in the vicinity of Marseilles, and ensures a See also:good water-See also:supply and efficient sanitation to the city.

Marseilles is the headquarters of the XV. See also:

army See also:corps and the seat of a bishop and a See also:prefect. It has tribunals of first instance and of commerce, a chamber of commerce, a See also:board of See also:trade See also:arbitration, and a branch of the See also:Bank of France. The educational institutions include a See also:faculty of See also:science, a school of See also:medicine and See also:pharmacy, and a faculty (faculte libre) of See also:law, these three forming part of the university of Aix-Marseille; lycees for boys and girls, a See also:conservatoire of See also:music, a school of fine art, a higher school of commerce, a school for See also:ships' boys, a school of See also:navigation and See also:industrial See also:schools for both sexes. Trade and See also:Industry.—Marseilles is the western See also:emporium for the See also:Levant trade and the See also:French See also:gate of the Far East. It suffers, however, from the competition of See also:Genoa, which is linked with the See also:Rhine basin by the Simplon and St Gotthard railway routes, and from lack of communication with the inland waterways of France. In See also:January 1902 the chamber of deputies voted £3,656,000 for the construction of a canal from Marseilles to the Rhone at Arles. This See also:scheme was designed to overcome the difficulties of See also:egress from the Rhone and to make the city the natural outlet of the See also:rich Rhone basin. Much of the activity of the port is due to the demand for raw material created by the See also:industries of Marseilles itself. The imports include raw See also:silk, See also:sesame, ground-nuts and other oil-producingfruits and seeds largely used in the See also:soap manufacture, cereals and See also:flour, See also:wool, hides and skins, See also:olive and other See also:oils, raw See also:cotton, See also:sheep and other livestock, See also:woven goods, table See also:fruit, See also:wine, potatoes and dry vegetables, See also:lead, cocoon silk, See also:coffee, See also:coal, See also:timber. The See also:total value of imports was £64,189,000 in 1907, an increase of £18,000,000 in the preceding See also:decade. The exports, of which the total value was £52,901,000 (an increase of £21,000,000 in the decade) included cotton fabrics, silk fabrics, cereals and flour, hides and skins, wool fabrics, worked skins, olive and other oils, chemical products, wine, refined See also:sugar, raw cotton, wool, coal, building-material, machinery and pottery. The port is the centre for numerous lines of steamers, of which the chief are the Messageries Maritimes, which ply to the eastern Mediterranean, the east coast of See also:Africa, See also:Australia, See also:India, Indo-See also:China, See also:Havre and See also:London, and the Compagnie Generale Transatlantique, whose vessels run to See also:Algiers, See also:Tunis, See also:Malta, See also:Corsica, See also:Morocco and the See also:Antilles.

In addition many important See also:

foreign lines See also:call at the port, among them being the P. and O., the Orient, the North See also:German See also:Lloyd, and the German East Africa lines. Marseilles has five chief railway stations, two of which serve the new harbours, while one is alongside the old port; the city is on the main See also:line of the Paris-Lyon-Mediterranee railway from the See also:Riviera and See also:Toulon to Paris via Arles, See also:Avignon and Lyons, another less important line connecting it with Aix. Soap-making, introduced in antiquity from See also:Savona and Genoa, is carried on in upwards of fifty factories. These utilize the products of the oil-distilleries and of the chemical works, the latter being also an important See also:adjunct to the manufacture of candles, another leading industry. A large quantity of See also:iron, See also:copper and other ores is smelted in the blast-furnaces of See also:Saint See also:Louis in the vicinity and in other foundries, and the Mediterranean See also:Engineering See also:Company and other companies have large workshops for the construction or repair of marine See also:steam-engines and every branch of iron See also:ship-building. To these industries must be added flour-milling, the manufacture of semolina and other farinaceous foods and of biscuits, bricks and tiles, rope, casks, capsules for bottles and other See also:tin-goods, tanning, distilling, See also:brewing and See also:sulphur- and sugar-refining. There are See also:state See also:tobacco and match factories. History.—The Greek See also:colony of Massalia (See also:Lat. Massilia) was founded by the mariners of See also:Phocaea in See also:Asia See also:Minor, about 600 B.C. The See also:settlement of the Greeks in waters which the Carthaginians reserved for their own commerce was not effected without a See also:naval conflict; it is not improbable that the Phoenicians were settled at Marseilles before the Greek period, and that the name of the town is the Phoenician for " settlement." Whether the See also:judges (sophetim, " suffetes ") of the Phoenician sacrificial tablet of Marseilles were the rulers of a city existing before the See also:advent of the Phocaeans, or were consuls for Punic residents in the Greek period, is disputed. In 542 B.C. the fall of the Phocaean cities before the Persians probably sent new settlers to the Ligurian coast and cut off the remote city of Massalia from close connexion with the See also:mother See also:country. Isolated amid See also:alien populations, the Massaliots made their way by prudence in dealing with the inland tribes, by vigilant See also:administration of their oligarchical See also:government, and by frugality united to remarkable commercial and naval enterprise.

Their colonies spread east and west along the coast from See also:

Monaco to Cape St See also:Martin in See also:Spain, carrying with them the worship of See also:Artemis; the inland trade, in which wine was an important See also:element, can be traced by finds of Massalian coins across See also:Gaul and through the See also:Alps as far as See also:Tirol. In the 4th century B.C. the Massaliot See also:Pytheas visited the coasts of Gaul, See also:Britain and See also:Germany, and Euthymenes is said to have sailed down the west coast of Africa as far as See also:Senegal. The great See also:rival of Massalian trade was See also:Carthage, and in the Punic See also:Wars the city took the side of Rome, and was rewarded by Roman assistance in the subjugation of the native tribes of See also:Liguria. In the See also:war between Caesar and See also:Pompey Massilia took Pompey's side and in A.D. 49 offered a vain resistance to Caesar's See also:lieutenant Trebonius. In memory of its ancient services the city, " without which," as See also:Cicero says, " Rome had never triumphed over the Transalpine nations," was left as a civitas libera, but her power was broken and most of her dependencies taken from her. From this See also:time Massilia has little place in Roman history; it became for a time an important school of letters and medicine, but its commercial and intellectual importance declined. The town appears to have been christianized before the end of the 3rd century, and at the beginning of the 4th century was the scene of the martyrdom of St Victor. Its reputation partly revived through the names of Gennadius and Cassian, which give it prominence in the history of Semi-Pelagianism and the See also:foundation of western monachism. After the ravages of successive invaders, Marseilles was re-peopled in the loth century under the protection of its viscounts. The town gradually bought up their rights, and at the beginning of the 13th century was formed into a See also:republic, governed by a pedestat, who was appointed for life, and exercised his See also:office in See also:conjunction with 3 notables, and a municipal See also:council, composed of 8o citizens, 3 clerics, and 6 See also:principal tradesmen. During the See also:rest of the See also:middle ages, however, the higher town was governed by the bishop, and had its harbour at the creek of La Joliette which at that period ran inland to the north of the old town.

The southern suburb was governed by the See also:

abbot of St Victor, and owned the Port des Catalans. Situated between the two, the lower town, the republic, retained the old harbour, and was the most powerful of the three divisions. The period of the See also:crusades brought prosperity to Marseilles, though throughout the middle ages it suffered from the competition of See also:Pisa, Genoa and See also:Venice. In 1245 and 1256 See also:Charles of See also:Anjou, See also:count of See also:Provence, whose predecessors had left the citizens a large measure of See also:independence, established his authority above that of the republic. In 1423 See also:Alphonso V. of See also:Aragon sacked the town. See also:King Rene, who had made it his See also:winter See also:residence, however, caused trade, arts and manufactures again to flourish. On the embodiment of Provence in the See also:kingdom of France in 1481, Marseilles preserved a See also:separate administration directed by royal officials. Under See also:Francis I. the disaffected See also:constable Charles de See also:Bourbon vainly besieged the town with the imperial forces in 1524. During the wars of See also:religion, Marseilles took part against the Protestants, and long refused to acknowledge See also:Henry IV. The loss of the ancient liberties of the town brought new disturbances under the See also:Fronde, which Louis XIV. came in See also:person to suppress. He entered the town by a See also:breach in the walls and afterwards had Fort St Nicolas constructed. Marseilles repeatedly suffered from the plague, notably from May 1720 to May 1721.

During the Revolution the See also:

people See also:rose against the See also:aristocracy, who up to that time had governed the commune. In the Terror they rebelled against the See also:Convention, but were promptly subdued by See also:General Carteaux. The wars of the empire, by dealing a See also:blow to their maritime commerce, excited the hatred of the inhabitants against See also:Napoleon, and they hailed the return of the Bourbons and the defeat of See also:Waterloo. The See also:news of the latter provoked a bloody reaction in the town against those suspected of imperialism. The prosperity of the city received a considerable impulse from the See also:conquest of See also:Algeria and from the opening of the See also:Suez Canal. See P. Castanier, Histoire de la Provence See also:dens l'antiguite, vol. ii. (Paris, 1896) ; E. Caman, Marseille au XX'', siecle (Paris, 1905) ; P. Joanne, Marseille et ses environs.

End of Article: MARSEILLES

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