The Lugdunum reference article from the English Wikipedia on 24-Apr-2004 (provided by Fixed Reference: snapshots of Wikipedia from wikipedia.org)

Lugdunum

Colonia Copia Claudia Augusta Lugdunum (modern: Lyon) was founded in 43 BC by L. Munatius Plancus. It was the capital of the Roman Province Lugdunensis and for 300 years the most important city in north-western Europe.

The city was situated west of the confluence of the Rhone and Saone, on the Fourviere heights.

History

After the founding of the city it soon became the centre for much of Roman Gaul and Germany. The imperial mint established a branch in the city and its large and cosmopolitan population made it the commercial and financial heart of the provinces. In 177 AD its Christian communinity suffered one of the earliest persucations.

After 250 AD Roman attention shifted to the Rhine frontier and Lugdunum lost its prominence to Trier. However, after the demise of the Roman Empire the city became the centre of the Burgundian kingdom.

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