Well I think Ive heard something about a seaport called Marseille... I think I spelled it right.. Anyways It was historically the most important trade center in the region and city! It was called Massalia and.. established at modern-day Marseille in about 600 BC by then living in exile in Marseille, joked about that no one could regret Rome..... Soo...the city was not affected by the decline of the Roman Empire before the 8th..... Or something like that.. But Im pretty sure that was the most important trading center before the 600s!