Aix-en-Provence

Aix-en-Provence

Aix-en-Provence (UK: /ˌɛks ɒ̃ prɒˈvɒ̃s/,[3] US: /ˌeɪks ɒ̃ proʊˈvɒ̃s, ˌɛks -/),[4][5][6] or simply Aix (Occitan: Ais de Provença), is a city and commune in southern France, about 30 km (20 mi) north of Marseille. A former capital of Provence, it is the subprefecture of the arrondissement of Aix-en-Provence, in the department of Bouches-du-Rhône, in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur. The population of Aix-en-Provence is approximately 145,000. Its inhabitants are called Aixois or, less commonly, Aquisextains. Aix (Aquae Sextiae) was founded in 123 BC by the Roman consul Sextius Calvinus, who gave his name to its springs, following the destruction of the nearby Gallic oppidum at Entremont.[7][8] In 102 BC its vicinity was the scene of the Battle of Aquae Sextiae, where the Romans under Gaius Marius defeated the Ambrones and Teutones,[7] with mass suicides among the captured women, which passed into Roman legends of Germanic heroism.[9]