Bouches-du-Rhône

Bouches-du-Rhône (ˌbuːʃ_djuː_ˈroʊn , buʃ dy ʁon, ˈbuʃə dy ˈʁonə; Bocas de Ròse ˈbukɔz de ˈʀɔze; "Mouths of the Rhône") is a department in southern France. It borders Vaucluse to the north, Gard to the west and Var to the east. The Mediterranean Sea lies to the south. Its prefecture and largest city is Marseille; other important cities include Aix-en-Provence, Arles, Martigues and Aubagne. Marseille, France's second-largest city, has one of the largest container ports in the country. It prizes itself as France's oldest city, founded by Greek settlers from Phocaea around 600 BC. Bouches-du-Rhône is the most populous department of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, with 2,043,110 inhabitants as of 2019. It has an area of . Its INSEE and postal code is 13. The history of the area is closely linked to that of Provence. Marseille has been an important harbour since before Julius Caesar's conquest of Gaul. The Roman presence left numerous monuments across the department. Notable people born in the area include Romantic painter Camille Roqueplan and his brother, journalist and theatre director Nestor Roqueplan. Bouches-du-Rhône is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from the western part of the former province of Provence and the principalities of Orange, Martigues and Lambesc. It lost part of its territory in 1793, including Orange and Apt, when the department of Vaucluse was created. Following its creation, the department strongly supported the French Revolution, containing 90 Jacobin Clubs by 1794. It was also noteworthy that more than half of the priests in the department accepted the Civil Constitution of the Clergy, which in effect subordinated the church to the government. During the ascendancy of the French Communist Party in the 20th century, election results showed that support for left-wing politics remained relatively strong there, especially in the northern suburbs of Marseille. The department is part of the current region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.