The Canal du Midi was conceived and built in the 17th century by Paul Riquet to establish a link between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean. It starts in Toulouse, where it opens into the Gironde river, and ends here, in Marseillan. At a time prior to road and rail transportation, the Canal constituted a significant boost to the economic development of the regions it traversed. Riquet was never to see the end of the achievement, and the project was finished by Louis XIV's famous military architect, Vauban.