History of Lyon
After the Battle of Lugdunum (197) the city never fully recovered, and Lyon was built out of its ashes becoming a part of the Kingdom of the Burgundians.
Traces of human occupation during the Stone Age suggest that there may have already been trade routes from the Mediterranean to Northern Europe which passed through the site.
[3] While there may not have been extensive settlement, there was already the infrastructure of trade and contact between the Segusiavi, Aedui, and Allobroges before the area became an important part of Roman history.
The settlement initiatives were established by Julius Caesar, and included the cities of Vienne, Noviodunum (Switzerland), and Augusta Raurica.
Lucius Munatius Plancus, a former officer under Julius Caesar, and later proconsul of Gaul Chevelue, is credited with founding the city.
Secondly, during the first decades of the city's founding, the administrative organization of Gaul was not complete and governors provided general supervision and management, from Lugdunum to the whole region.
In Letters from a Stoic, from the first century AD, Seneca the Younger references the complete destruction and razing of the city in a great fire.
Each community was hierarchically organized, with a board of dignitaries representing the profession, and serving as the authorities of the trade structure.
This mint briefly appeared again during 196-197 and was recreated by the Emperor Aurelian in 274, in order to fight against the devalued currencies and coin imitations which were very widespread.
In addition to several archaeological traces of his Passages, his speech supporting the entry of Gauls in the Senate, which was transcribed on the Lyon Tablet, was preserved.
[19] Under Nero, in 64 AD, the Romans of Lyon supported the victims of the Great Fire of Rome by sending the sum of four million sesterces.
In AD 177 the Christian community sent a letter to their co-religionists in Asia Minor, giving the names of 48 of their number who had suffered martyrdom in the Croix-Rousse amphitheatre, among them St Pothinus, first Bishop of Lyon.
[21] A vault located at the Museum of Early Christianity is presented by the ecclesiastical authorities as the jail of Saint Pothin The church was, however, to recover quickly, and St. Irenaeus, the successor of Pothinus, wrote works of such length and depth that he could be considered the fourth great Christian theologian (see St. Paul of Tarsus, St. John the Apostle, St. Ignatius of Antioch).
Many foreigners flocked to Lyon once peace was restored, including a large number of Jewish people who traded in luxurious goods (precious stones, metals, jewelry, and fabrics).
[24] With Frederick Barbarossa's marriage to Béatrice, heiress of the Burgundy counts, the emperor formally recognized in 1157 the de facto ecclesiastical control over the city of Lyon with the Bulle d'Or.
[25] One important aid to Lyon's prosperity was the nascent money-lending industry which facilitated trade with the East, as well as commerce at the Chalon and Champagne fairs.
[23] The Third Council of the Lateran (1179) reinforced the Christian prohibition on money-lending as a primary business, while lamenting that usurious practices were widespread.
[27] As military monastic orders settled in Lyon in the 12th century, the city became a comfortable stopover and temporary residence for the papacy during the Middle Ages.
A century of devastation caused by warfare was exacerbated by the peace of Arras, which brought écorcheurs to the Lyonnais countryside and Charles VII increased both direct (taille) and indirect (gabelle) taxation.
[30] During the reign of Louis XI (1461–83) four annual Lyon fairs [fr] were established, which drew merchants from all over Europe, especially Italy (and Florence in particular).
Lyon was the location of the meeting that resulted in 1601 in large parts of the Dukedom of Savoy being added to the French kingdom.
During the 17th and 18th centuries its preeminence in silk production was unchallenged, with inventors like Vaucanson and Jacquard making far-reaching contributions to this industry.
The geographical situation of Lyon meant that many artists and architects passed through it on their way to and from Italy, and their influence can be seen in the buildings of the period, such as the Hôtel-Dieu, the Loge du Change, and the Hôtel de Ville.
[34] During the 18th century the expansion resulting from increased prosperity indicated the need for a measure of systematic town planning, and this was carried out by a series of brilliant planners and architects such as de Cotte, Soufflot, Morand, and Perrache.
Lyon became an industrial city and pursued its urban development with a distinct preference for the Haussman style prevalent at the time.
Urban development continued to expand and change the face of the city, with the silk-processing industry playing a dominant role in the economy.
Klaus Barbie (the "Butcher of Lyon") tortured prisoners for the occupying German forces, for which he was ultimately convicted of crimes against humanity.
Lyon acquired a European dimension through the development of the transportation system, hotel and other tourist facilities, cultural establishments and the creation of the Part-Dieu business quarter in 1960.
