Arena of Nimes
Encyclopedia
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
amphitheater found in the French
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
city of Nîmes
Nîmes
Nîmes is the capital of the Gard department in the Languedoc-Roussillon region in southern France. Nîmes has a rich history, dating back to the Roman Empire, and is a popular tourist destination.-History:...
. Built around 70 AD, it was remodeled in 1863 to serve as a bullring
Bullring
A bullring is an arena where bullfighting is performed. Bullrings are often associated with Spain, but they can also be found in neighboring countries and the New World...
. The Arenas of Nimes is the site of two annual bullfights, and it is also used for other public events.
The building encloses an elliptical central space 133 m long by 101 m wide. It is ringed by 34 rows of seats supported by a vaulted construction. It has a capacity of 16,300 spectators and since 1989 has a movable cover and a heating system.
History
As the EmpireRoman Empire
The Roman Empire was the post-Republican period of the ancient Roman civilization, characterised by an autocratic form of government and large territorial holdings in Europe and around the Mediterranean....
fell, the amphitheater was fortified by the Visigoths and surrounded by a wall. During the turbulent years that followed the collapse of Visigoth power in Hispania
Hispania
Another theory holds that the name derives from Ezpanna, the Basque word for "border" or "edge", thus meaning the farthest area or place. Isidore of Sevilla considered Hispania derived from Hispalis....
and Septimania
Septimania
Septimania was the western region of the Roman province of Gallia Narbonensis that passed under the control of the Visigoths in 462, when Septimania was ceded to their king, Theodoric II. Under the Visigoths it was known as simply Gallia or Narbonensis. It corresponded roughly with the modern...
, not to mention the Muslim invasion and subsequent reconquest by the French kings in the early eighteenth century, the viscount
Viscount
A viscount or viscountess is a member of the European nobility whose comital title ranks usually, as in the British peerage, above a baron, below an earl or a count .-Etymology:...
s of Nîmes constructed a fortified palace within the amphitheater. Later a small neighborhood developed within its confines, complete with one hundred denizens and two chapels. Seven hundred people lived within the amphitheater during the apex of its service as an enclosed community.
eat a rag
The buildings remained in the amphitheater until the eighteenth century, when the decision was made to convert the amphitheater into its present form.
Trivia
British rock band Dire StraitsDire Straits
Dire Straits were a British rock band active from 1977 to 1995, composed of Mark Knopfler , his younger brother David Knopfler , John Illsley , and Pick Withers .Dire Straits' sound drew from a variety of musical influences, including jazz, folk, blues, and came closest...
recorded some of the live video and album, On the Night
On the Night
On the Night is the second live album by Dire Straits. It was released in 1993, between Alchemy and Live at the BBC . It features many of their later hits, including the successful singles "Walk of Life" and "Money for Nothing"...
, here in May 1992.
German Industrial Metal group Rammstein
Rammstein
Rammstein is a German Neue Deutsche Härte band from Berlin, formed in 1994. The band consists of members Till Lindemann , Richard Z. Kruspe , Paul H. Landers , Oliver "Ollie" Riedel , Christoph "Doom" Schneider and Christian "Flake" Lorenz...
recorded the majority of their DVD, Völkerball
Völkerball
Völkerball is the German heavy metal band Rammstein's live album/DVD set. It was released on November 17, 2006 in Europe, December 19, 2006 in Canada, and on September 18, 2007 in the U.S...
, here on July 23, 2005.
American Heavy Metal band Metallica
Metallica
Metallica is an American heavy metal band from Los Angeles, California. Formed in 1981 when James Hetfield responded to an advertisement that drummer Lars Ulrich had posted in a local newspaper. The current line-up features long-time lead guitarist Kirk Hammett and bassist Robert Trujillo ...
recorded their DVD, Français Pour Une Nuit
Français Pour Une Nuit
Français Pour Une Nuit is a live DVD by the American heavy metal band Metallica, recorded in Nîmes, France in the Arena of Nîmes on July 7, 2009. It was released in three formats...
, here on July 7, 2009.
French New Wave filmmaker François Truffaut
François Truffaut
François Roland Truffaut was an influential film critic and filmmaker and one of the founders of the French New Wave. In a film career lasting over a quarter of a century, he remains an icon of the French film industry. He was also a screenwriter, producer, and actor working on over twenty-five...
filmed part of his first film, "Les Mistons
Les mistons
Les Mistons is a short film directed by François Truffaut in 1957.The story takes place in provincial France, where a group of young boys are infatuated with a beautiful young woman...
", here in 1957.
WWE hosted a house show
House show
A house show is a professional wrestling show run by a major promotion that is not televised, though they can be recorded. Promotions use house shows mainly to cash in on the exposure that they and their wrestlers receive during televised events, as well as test reactions to matches, wrestlers, and...
here in 2009 and in 2011.