What you know about Beaune? travel tips and stories. Vacations ideas, cruises spa and resorts

Beaune is quite a town of Bourgogne in eastern France, not far from the regional capital city Dijon. It was a residence of the Dukes of Bourgogne until the 14th century. Beaune is primarily noted for two things. First it is the focal point of the Burgundy wine area (the old fortified city is now a world capital for some of the greatest wines) , and secondly it has one of the oldest surviving hospitals in the world. It is a fascinating old town, with origins as far back as the 7th century, rich of monuments and museums.
The famous Hospices de Beaune was founded in 1442 by Nicolas Rollins, the Duke of Burgundy’s chancellor, who hoped to earn a place in heaven through good works. With his wife, Guigone de Salins, Rolin devoted much of his fortune to caring for the 75% of Beaune’s population who were poor and starving after the Hundred Years’ War. Following from past donations, they own vineyards in the most reputed parts of Burgundy. The Hotel-Dieu of the Hospices de Beaune was used as a hospital until the 1960s, when medical activities were transferred to a new building. The Hotel Dieu is now a museum that shows how the Hospices cared for the sick and indigent from 1443 through the 19th Century. Beaune is commonly referred to as “the wine capital of the world”, and every year merchants come from the four corners of the earth to sample and bid for the wines of the area. It is said that there are more than 100 kilometers of tunnels and wine cellars below the old streets, storing hundreds of thousands of red and white bottles of wine. Also, do not forget to visit the painting of Rogier van der Weyden.