| The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. 2001-07. |
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| Giurgiu |
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(j r´j) (KEY) , city (1990 pop. 71,875), S Romania, in Walachia, on the Danube River opposite Ruse, Bulgaria, with which it is linked by a bridge. An important inland port, Giurgiu is connected by two oil pipelines with Ploie ti. There are shipyards, canneries, and other light industries. The city was founded (10th cent.) on the site of a Roman settlement by Genoese merchants, who named it San Giorgio. Conquered by the Turks in 1417, it played an important role in the 16th-century wars between Walachia and Turkey and in the later Russo-Turkish Wars. Remains of the old town walls, the ruins of a medieval fortress, and an old clock tower still stand. |
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| | | The Columbia Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition. Copyright © 2007 Columbia University Press. |
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