Garonne, river that rises south of Toulouse in south west france and flows north west towards the Atlantic and on which the city of bordeaux is situated. The confluence of the Garonne and the dordogne, between margaux and bourg, marks the southern end of the gironde estuary. The Garonne was an important trade route through south west gaul in the era of Ancient rome and continued to play a vital role in the medieval wine trade, where there was particular commercial rivalry between the wines produced up river in the haut pays, either on the Garonne or on its tributaries the Lot and the Tarn, and those produced in the immediate vicinity of Bordeaux.
