Marseille was a Gauls port center that became the Greek colony of Massalia circa 600 BC, and was populated by Greek settlers from Phocaea (modern Foça, Turkey). July and August are the hottest months, averaging temperatures of around 28–30 °C (82–86 °F) during the day and 19 °C (66 °F) at night in the Marignane airport (35 km (22 mi) from Marseille) but in the city near the sea the average high temperature is 27 °C (81 °F) in July. Marseille served as the European Capital of Culture for 2013 along with Košice. [10] Marseille is also France's second largest research centre with 3,000 research scientists within Aix Marseille University. Marseille's main railway station—Gare de Marseille Saint-Charles—is north of the Centre Bourse in the 1st arrondissement; it is linked by the Boulevard d'Athènes to the Canebière.[8]. [citation needed].

In 1792 the city became a focal point of the French Revolution and though France's national anthem was born in Strasbourg, it was first sung in Paris by volunteers from Marseille, hence the name the crowd gave it: La Marseillaise. Those who could afford to move left and the poorest remained.

[citation needed] Residents of Marseille are of diverse origins, yet appear to share a similar particular identity. Lyon–Saint Exupéry Airport (French: Aéroport de Lyon-Saint Exupéry), formerly known as Lyon Satolas Airport (IATA: LYS, ICAO: LFLL), is the international airport of Lyon, the third-biggest city in France and an important transport facility for the entire Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region. A Lyon–Saint-Exupéry repülőtér (IATA: LYS, ICAO: LFLL) egy nemzetközi repülőtér Franciaországban, Lyon közelében. Thus new parks, museums, public spaces and real estate projects aim to improve the city's quality of life (Parc du 26e Centenaire, Old Port of Marseille,[20] numerous places in Euroméditerranée) to attract firms and people. Marseille is ranked 86th in the world for business tourism and events, advancing from the 150th spot one year before. In the 1930s, Italians settled in Marseille. The city maintained its position as a premier maritime trading hub even after its capture by the Visigoths in the 5th century AD, although the city went into decline following the sack of 739 AD by the forces of Charles Martel.

However, in the early 2000s, the growth in container traffic was being stifled by the constant strikes and social upheaval. It is also the driest major city with only 512 mm (20 in) of precipitation annually, especially thanks to the Mistral, a cold, dry wind originating in the Rhône Valley that occurs mostly in winter and spring and which generally brings clear skies and sunny weather to the region. [citation needed] The number of congress days hosted on its territory increased from 109,000 in 1996 to almost 300,000 in 2011. The Calanques, a mountainous coastal area, is home to, This page was last edited on 24 September 2020, at 07:20. In October, the Fiesta des Suds offers many concerts of world music.[54]. The fan-shaped canopy of the Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupéry, designed by architect Santiago Calatrava, is the airport's most notable architectural feature. The city boasts a wide variety of sports facilities and teams. He was succeeded by Robert Vigouroux of the European Democratic and Social Rally (RDSE). It became the preeminent Greek polis in the Hellenized region of southern Gaul.
In some parts of Marseille, youth unemployment is reported to be as high as 40%.[22]. As of 2014[update], the Marseille metropolitan area had a GDP amounting to $60.3 billion, or $36,127 per capita (purchasing power parity).[11]. There is also an extensive arts centre in La Friche, a former match factory behind the Saint-Charles station.

During the 16th century the city hosted a naval fleet with the combined forces of the Franco-Ottoman alliance, which threatened the ports and navies of Genoa and the Holy Roman Empire.
By the end of the 18th century about half the population originated from elsewhere in Provence mostly and also from southern France. [52] At the beginning of July, there is the International Documentary Festival. The Corniche, a waterfront road between the Old Port and the Bay of Marseille. To the west of Marseille is the former artists' colony of l'Estaque; farther west are the Côte Bleue, the Gulf of Lion and the Camargue region in the Rhône delta. The airport was inaugurated by President Valéry Giscard d'Estaing on 12 April 1975 and opened to passengers a week later. [36] Other music venues in Marseille include Le Silo (also a theatre) and GRIM. Marseille is also divided in twelve cantons, each of them sending two members to the Departmental Council of the Bouches-du-Rhône department. [2], The airport consists of passenger terminals 1 and 2 which are interconnected on the landside by a central building that itself has a foot-bridge to the nearby Gare de Lyon Saint-Exupéry high-speed railway station and the Rhônexpress terminus. [44] Marseille-Provence 2013 (MP2013) featured more than 900 cultural events held throughout Marseille and the surrounding communities. The three lines of the tramway,[85] opened in 2007, go from the CMA CGM Tower towards Les Caillols. Farther out in the Bay of Marseille is the Frioul archipelago which comprises four islands, one of which, If, is the location of Château d'If, made famous by the Dumas novel The Count of Monte Cristo. From 2011 ferry shuttle services operate between the Old Port and Pointe Rouge; in spring 2013 it will also run to l'Estaque. Since 1803, starting on the last Sunday of November, there has been a Santon Fair in Marseille; it is currently held in the Cours d'Estienne d'Orves, a large square off the Vieux-Port. Marseille: Not announced yet. [citation needed] The Marseille region is home to thousands of companies, 90% of which are small and medium enterprises with less than 500 employees. [8], The city's main thoroughfare (the wide boulevard called the Canebière) stretches eastward from the Old Port to the Réformés quarter.