Côte-d'Or Tourisme - Discover the Côte-d'Or - History en Bourgogne - From "Burgondie" to the Duchy of "Bourgogne"

From ''Burgondie'' to the Duchy of Burgundy

This was followed by a period of invasions. In the 5th century the region was invaded by the Burgondes (who originated in Scandinavia).
Dijon fell into their hands in 476 but their domination was a benign one and seemed more like a gradual mixing of the races than an outright conquest.
Less than a century later their kingdom fell into the hands of Clovis' descendants and the process of the racial mixing continued.

The Carolingian era saw the beginning of power struggles which, in 843, split "Burgondie" in two : the North-West fell to Charles-le-Chauve (Charles the Bald) and the rest to Lothaire. Power was in the hands of the Earls and in about 890, one of them, the Earl of Autun, gained control of a number of earldoms. This marked the beginning of the Duchy of Burgundy.
At that time Autun was its centre but was soon replaced by another town, Beaune. The Dukes resided in Beaune and held their parliament there. This was a kind of high court of justice which was only moved to Dijon in 1480 at the behest of King Louis XI.

The 11th and 12th centuries were the time of the great abbeys.
Saint Benedict of Dijon (Guillaume Volpiano and the monastic reforms of Cluny), Saint-Seine, Flavigny, Bèze, Moutiers-Saint-Jean, Molesme. In 1098 what became known as the Cistercian order was founded at the Abbey of Cîteaux. It was here that the most famous Burgundian of the 12th century, Bernard de Fontaines-lès-Dijon, came as a monk in 1112. Soon after, he became abbot of Clairvaux.

Under the Capetians a feudal system was established with a Duke, Lords and many ordinary folk who served them and looked to them for protection. In 1361 the last Duke, Philippe de Rouvres, died of plague and the duchy was taken over by the French king, Jean le Bon, meaning that Burgundy was then ruled directly from the French throne. In 1363, the king handed Burgundy over to his son as reward for services in battle. His name is one of the first famous Burgundian names to enter into history : Philippe le Hardi (Phillip the Bold).