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France

Specialty Definition: France

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Specialty Definition: Communications in France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Telephones - main lines in use: 34.86 million (yearend 1998)

Telephones - mobile cellular: 11.078 million (yearend 1998)

Telephone system: highly developed
domestic: extensive cable and microwave radio relay; extensive introduction of fiber-optic cable; domestic satellite system
international: satellite earth stations - 2 Intelsat (with total of 5 antennas - 2 for Indian Ocean and 3 for Atlantic Ocean), NA Eutelsat, 1 Inmarsat (Atlantic Ocean region); HF radiotelephone communications with more than 20 countries

Radio broadcast stations: AM 41, FM about 3,500 (this figure is an approximation and includes many repeaters), shortwave 2 (1998)

Radios: 55.3 million (1997)

Television broadcast stations: 574 (plus 9,634 repeaters) (1995)

Televisions: 34.8 million (1997)

Internet Service Providers (ISPs): 128 (1999)

Country code: FR

See also : France

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Communications in France."

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Constitution of France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The current Constitution of France was adopted on October 4, 1958, and has been amended 17 times, most recently on October 2, 2000. It is typically called the Constitution of the Fifth Republic, and replaced that of the Fourth Republic dating from October 27, 1946. Charles de Gaulle was its main instigator.

It recalls the Declaration of the Rights of Man from 1789 and establishes France as a secular and democratic republic, deriving its sovereignty from the people.

It provides for the election of the President and the Parliament, the selection of the Government, and the powers of each and the relations between them. It ensures judicial authority and creates a High Court of Justice, a Constitutional Council, and an Economic and Social Council. It was designed to create a politically strong President.

It enables the ratification of international treaties and those associated with the European Union. It is unclear whether the wording (especially the reserves of reciprocity) are compatible with European Union law.

The Constitution also sets out methods for its own amendment either by referendum or through a Parliamentary process with Presidential consent.

See also:

• Politics of France
• Second Republic
• French Third Republic

External links

• French Text - Constitutional Council
• English Text - National Assembly

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Constitution of France."

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Culture of France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The culture of France is noted for its cosmopolitan, civilised approach to life, combined with great concern for style and fashion, appearances and taking a great pride in the national identity and positive achievements of France.

French people address each other with formality, calling each other Madame, Mademoiselle or Monsieur in a way which may seem formulaic to outsiders, but signifies a respect for the individual which permeates the French way of life. The French value family life, the art of cooking good food and enjoyment of theatrical and musical arts.

Transportation

The TGV high speed rail network, train à grande vitesse is a fast rail transport which serves several areas of the country and is self financing. There are plans to reach most parts of France and many other destinations in Europe in coming years. Rail services are punctual, frequent and user friendly, in contrast to some other European networks.

French language

French culture is profoundly allied with French language, expressing a national psychology of high emotion, playfulness, and "joie de vivre". The artful use of the mother tongue, and its defense against perceived decline or corruption by foreign terms, is a major preoccupation. The French Minister of Culture works to promote French cinema, and the Académie Française sets an official standard of language purity.

The real importance of local languages is disputed.

Little known outside France are the many regional languages, very unrelated to standard French except that they are from the same language group (Indo-European), such as Breton and Alsatian, and some regional languages which are Romance, like French, such as Provençal, which have enthusiastic proponents among the people. There is also a language completely unrelated to French, Basque. In April 2001, the Minister of Education, Jack Lang, admitted formally that for more than two centuries, the political powers of the French government had repressed regional languages, and announced that bilingual education would, for the first time, be recognized, and bilingual teachers recruited in French public schools.

Bohemians

The Bohemian history of Paris deserves an article in itself. Many culture icons spent some years in Paris, including Hemingway, Picasso, Toulouse Lautrec, Gertrude Stein, Samuel Beckett and many others.

Social reform

The revolutionary ideal is a powerful totem in the French psyche. Some ideas of Situationism were realised in Disneyland Paris, although doubtless this would be denied by its builders. The French Revolution was itself an extreme form of social change, and its reverberations are everywhere apparent in day to day life there. Consider the 1848 Paris Commune, and the 1968 student riots. Parallel to these events, it is possible to discern deeply conservative trends in French life.

Television

A mass market cultural export from France that many people (at least some of those who grew up in Canada) fondly rember is a television series called Thierry La Fronde, about a Robin Hood like heroic figure who lived in the period of conflict between England and France in the 14th century known as the Hundred Years' War.

See also

• French language
• Académie Française
• French literature
• Famous French People
• French cuisine
• Cinema of France
• Music of France

External links

• What is French Culture? (in French)

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Culture of France."

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France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The French Republic, or France, is a country located in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Monaco, Andorra, and Spain. It is a founding member of the European Union.

République Française

France has no national coat of arms; see Marianne (In Detail)
National motto: Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité (French, Liberty, Equality, Brotherhood)
Official language	French
Capital	Paris
Largest City	Paris
President	Jacques Chirac
Prime Minister	Jean-Pierre Raffarin
Area  - Total  - % water	Ranked 47th 547,030 km² ¹ 0.26%
Population  - Total (2003)  - Density	Ranked 20th 60,180,529 ¹ 110/km²
Currency	Euro², French euro coins
Time zone	UTC +1 (CET)
National anthem	La Marseillaise
Internet TLD	.FR¹
Calling Code	33¹
(1) Data for European (metropolitan) France (2) Prior to 1999: French franc

History

Main article: History of France

Though the French monarchy is often dated to the 5th century, France's continuous existence as a separate entity begins with the 9th-century division of Charlemagne's Frankish empire into an eastern and a western part. The eastern part can be regarded the beginnings of what is now Germany, the western part that of France.

Charlemagne's descendants ruled France until 987, when Hugh Capet, Duke of France and Count of Paris, was crowned King of France. His descendants, starting with the Capetian dynasty, ruled France until 1792, when the French Revolution established a Republic, in a period of increasingly radical change that began in 1789.

Although ultimately a victor in World Wars I and II, France suffered extensive losses in its empire, wealth, manpower, and rank as a dominant nation-state. Since 1958, it has constructed a presidential democracy (known as the Fifth Republic) that has not succumbed to the instabilities experienced in earlier more parliamentary regimes.

In recent decades, France's reconciliation and cooperation with Germany have proved central to the economic integration of Europe, including the introduction of the Euro in January 1999.

Today, France is at the forefront of European states seeking to exploit the momentum of monetary union to advance the creation of a more unified and capable European political, defense and security apparatus.

It is also one of the five permanent members of the UN Security Council.

Politics

Main article: Politics of France

The constitution of the Fifth Republic was approved by public referendum on September 28 1958. It greatly strengthened the authority of the executive in relation to Parliament. Under the constitution, the president is elected directly for a 5-year (originally 7-year) term. Presidential arbitration assures regular functioning of the public powers and the continuity of the state. The president names the prime minister, presides over the cabinet, commands the armed forces, and concludes treaties.

The National Assembly (Assemblée Nationale) is the principal legislative body. Its deputies are directly elected to 5-year terms, and all seats are voted on in each election. Senators are chosen by an electoral college for 9-year terms, and one-third of the Senate is renewed every 3 years. The Senate's legislative powers are limited; the National Assembly has the last word in the event of a disagreement between the two houses. The government has a strong influence in shaping the agenda of Parliament.

See also:

• Constitution of France
• President of France
• List of Prime Ministers of France
• List of Foreign Ministers of France

Regions & Departments

Main articles: Département, List of regions in France

France has 26 regions (French: région), which are further subdivided into 100 départements. The departments are numbered (mainly alphabetically) and this number is used in e.g. postal codes and vehicle number plates.

Alsace 67 Bas-Rhin 68 Haut-Rhin Aquitaine 24 Dordogne 33 Gironde 40 Landes 47 Lot-et-Garonne 64 Pyrénées-Atlantiques Auvergne 03 Allier 15 Cantal 43 Haute-Loire 63 Puy-de-Dôme Basse-Normandie 14 Calvados 50 Manche 61 Orne Bourgogne (Burgundy) 21 Côte-d'Or 58 Nièvre 71 Saône-et-Loire 89 Yonne Bretagne (Brittany) 22 Côtes-d'Armor 29 Finistère 35 Ille-et-Vilaine 56 Morbihan Centre 18 Cher 28 Eure-et-Loir 36 Indre 37 Indre-et-Loire 41 Loir-et-Cher 45 Loiret Champagne-Ardenne 08 Ardennes 10 Aube 51 Marne 52 Haute-Marne Corse (Corsica) 2A Corse-du-Sud 2B Haute-Corse Franche-Comté 25 Doubs 39 Jura 70 Haute-Saône 90 Territoire-de-Belfort Haute-Normandie 27 Eure 76 Seine-Maritime Ile-de-France 75 Paris 77 Seine-et-Marne 78 Yvelines 91 Essonne 92 Hauts-de-Seine 93 Seine-Saint-Denis 94 Val-de-Marne 95 Val-d'Oise Languedoc-Roussillon 11 Aude 30 Gard 34 Hérault 48 Lozère 66 Pyrénées-Orientales

Limousin 19 Corrèze 23 Creuse 87 Haute-Vienne Lorraine 54 Meurthe-et-Moselle 55 Meuse 57 Moselle 88 Vosges Midi-Pyrénées 09 Ariège 12 Aveyron 31 Haute-Garonne 32 Gers 46 Lot 65 Hautes-Pyrénées 81 Tarn 82 Tarn-et-Garonne Nord-Pas-de-Calais 59 Nord 62 Pas-de-Calais Pays-de-la-Loire 44 Loire-Atlantique 49 Maine-et-Loire 53 Mayenne 72 Sarthe 85 Vendée Picardie 02 Aisne 60 Oise 80 Somme Poitou-Charentes 16 Charente 17 Charente-Maritime 79 Deux-Sèvres 86 Vienne Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur 04 Alpes-de-Haute-Provence 05 Hautes-Alpes 06 Alpes-Maritimes 13 Bouches-du-Rhône 83 Var 84 Vaucluse Rhône-Alpes 01 Ain 07 Ardèche 26 Drôme 38 Isère 42 Loire 69 Rhône 73 Savoie 74 Haute-Savoie Départements d'outre mer (DOM) (Overseas departments), each of them being a département and a region at the same time: 971 Guadeloupe 972 Martinique 973 French Guiana 974 La Réunion Collectivités territoriales (Territorial Collectivities): 975 Saint Pierre and Miquelon 976 Mayotte Pays et Territoires d'outre-mer (PTOM) (Overseas Countries and Territories): 986 Wallis and Futuna 987 French Polynesia 988 New Caledonia (pays d'outre mer from 1998) French Southern and Antarctic Territories (including France's Antarctic claim)

The departments are further subdivided into 342 arrondissements.

The overseas departments are former colonies outside France that now enjoy a status similar to European or metropolitan France. They are considered to be a part of France (and the EU) rather than dependent territories, and each of them is a region at the same time.

The overseas territories and countries form part of the French Republic, but do not form part of the Republic's European territory or the EU fiscal area. They continue to use the French Pacific Franc as their currency, which was unaffected by the French franc's replacement by the Euro in 2002.

The territorial collectivities have an intermediate status between overseas department and overseas territory.

France also maintains control over a number of other small islands in the Indian Ocean and the Pacific, including Bassas da India, Clipperton Island, Europa Island, Glorioso Islands, Juan de Nova Island, Tromelin Island. See Islands controlled by France in the Indian and Pacific oceans.

Geography

Main article: Geography of France

France possesses a large variety of landscapes, ranging from coastal plains in the north and west, where France borders the North Sea and the Atlantic Ocean, to the mountain ranges in the south (the Pyrenees) and the southeast (the Alps), of which the latter contains the highest point of Europe, the Mont Blanc at 4810 m.

In between are found other elevated regions such as the Massif Central or the Vosges mountains and extensive river basins such as those of the Loire River, the Rhone River, the Garonne and Seine.

• National parks (France)

Economy

Main article: Economy of France

France's economy combines extensive private enterprise with substantial, but declining, government intervention. Large tracts of fertile land, the application of modern technology, and subsidies have combined to make France the leading agricultural producer in Western Europe.

The government retains considerable influence over key segments of infrastructure sectors, with majority ownership of railway, electricity, aircraft, and telecommunication firms. It has been gradually relaxing its control over these sectors since the early 1990s. The government is slowly selling off holdings in France Telecom, in Air France, and in the insurance, banking, and defense industries.

France joined 11 other EU members to launch the euro on January 1 1999, with euro coins and banknotes completely replacing the French franc in early 2002.

See also: List of French companies

Demographics

Main article: Demographics of France

The official language is French, with several local languages (Basque, Breton, Catalan, Corsican, Dutch (Flemish), German (Alsatian), Occitan), but the French government and school system discouraged the use of any of them until recently. The regional languages are now taught at some schools, though French remains the only official language in use by the government, local or national.

Religion

Following from the 1789 Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, France guarantees freedom of religion as a constitutional right. A 1905 law instituted the separation of Church and State and prohibited the government from recognizing, salarying or subsidizing any religion. In the preceding situation, established 1801-1808 of the Concordat, the State used to support the Roman Catholic Church, the Lutheran Church, the Calvinist Church and the Jewish religion and provided for public religious educations in those religions (for historical reasons, this situation is still current in Alsace-Moselle).

The French government does not keep statistics as to religion.

The 1995 CIA World Factbook lists the religion of France as: Roman Catholic 90%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim (North African workers) 1%, unaffiliated 6%.

However, in a 2003 poll 41% said that the existence of God was "excluded" or "unlikely". 33% declared that "atheist" described them rather or very well, and 51% for "Christian". When interrogated about their religion, 62% answered Roman Catholic, 6% Muslim, 2% Protestant, 1% Jewish, 2% "other religions" (except for Orthodox or Buddhist, which were negligible), 26% "no religion" and 1% declined to answer. The discrepancy between the number of "atheists" and the number of "without religion" may be attributed to people who nominally belong to a religion, perhaps out of social pressure or custom, but do not actually believe in it.

See also: Islam in France

Culture

Main article: Culture of France

• Académie Française
• French literature
• Famous French People
• French cuisine
• Cinema of France
• Music of France

Holidays

Date	English Name	Local Name	Remarks
January 1	New Year's Day	Jour de l'An
-	Easter	Pâques	Sunday, date varies
-	Easter Monday	Lundi de Pâques	Monday, date varies
May 1	Labour Day	Fête du Travail
May 8	Victory Day 1945	Victoire 1945	End of WWII
-	Ascension Day	Ascension	Thursday, date varies
-	Pentecost	Pentecôte	Seventh Sunday after Easter
July 14	Bastille Day	Fête Nationale	National Day
August 15	Assumption	Assomption
November 1	All Saints Day	Toussaint
November 11	Veterans Day	Armistice 1918	End of WWI
December 25	Christmas Day	Noël

Miscellaneous topics

Description of the flag: three equal vertical bands of blue (hoist side), white, and red; known as the drapeau tricolore (Tricolor Flag); the design and colors are similar to a number of other flags, including those of Belgium, Chad, Ireland, Côte d'Ivoire, and Luxembourg; the official flag for all French dependent areas

The foundation of France may be dated to 486 (unified by Clovis I).

The national holiday is the Fête Nationale (National Day), celebrating the Taking of the Bastille, July 14 (1789), often referred to as Bastille Day in English.

The capital and most populous city, Paris, is home to the Eiffel Tower, a tower of girdered steel constructed in 1889.

The Palace of Versailles is the number one tourist destination in France followed by the great châteaux of the Loire Valley.

Principal cities include:

Aix-en-Provence, Ajaccio, Albi, Amiens, Angers, Angouleme, Bastia, Belfort, Besançon, Bordeaux, Brest, Caen, Calais, Cannes, Carcassonne, Charleville-Mézières, Clermont-Ferrand, Colmar, Dijon, Dunkerque, Evreux, Grenoble, La Rochelle, Le Havre, Le Mans, Lille, Limoges, Lyon, Marseille, Metz, Montpellier, Mulhouse, Nancy, Nantes, Nice, Nîmes, Orléans, Paris, Perpignan, Poitiers, Quimper, Reims, Rennes, Roubaix, Rouen, Saint-Étienne, Saint-Nazaire, Strasbourg, Tarbes, Toulon, Toulouse, Tourcoing, Tours and Valence.

Other towns of interest include:

Abbeville, Albertville, Aurillac, Brive, Cahors, Chamonix, Chatellerault, Chinon, Deauville, Dieppe, Digne-les-Bains, Dole, Domremy, Dreux, La Baule, Mende, Mont-de-Marsan, Montauban, Pau, Perigueux, Rodez, Saint-Gaudens, Saint-Tropez, Saumur, Sete, Soissons and Vichy.

See also

• Communications in France
• Transportation in France
• Military of France
• List of universities in France
• Foreign relations of France
• Tourism in France
• History of French Imperialism
• Marianne

International rankings

• Human Development Index, 2003: 17th (out of 175)
• world-wide press freedom index Rank 11 out of 139 countries

External links

• Official site of the Office of the French President - The Elysée Palace
• Official site of the Office of the French Prime Minister - Main governmental site
• Assemblée Nationale - The French National Assembly
• Sénat - The French Senate
• Official site of the French civil service - Contains many links to various administrations and institutions
• Tourism in France
• French aviation pioneers: first flight, first powered flight, first powered heavier-than-air flight

---

European Union:
Austria  |  Belgium  |  Denmark  |  Finland  |  France  |  Germany  |  Greece  |  Ireland
Italy  |  Luxembourg  |  Netherlands  |  Portugal  |  Spain  |  Sweden  |  United Kingdom

Countries acceding to membership on May 1, 2004:
Cyprus  |  Czech Republic  |  Estonia  |  Hungary  |  Latvia  |  Lithuania  |  Malta  |  Poland  |  Slovakia  |  Slovenia

Countries of the world  |  Europe  |  Council of Europe

simple:France zh-cn:%E6%B3%95%E5%9B%BD zh-tw:法國

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "France."

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French hip hop

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Most French hip hop artists come from poor suburbs of Paris, Strasbourg, Toulouse or Marseille. Unlike the blacks living in urban ghettos in the United States, where hip hop began, France has had a much wider social safety net, meaning that poverty was rarely as extreme in France's North and West African immigrant communities (where most of the artists come from) as in African American ghettos.

Some of France's most important hip hop crews:

• IAM (Marseille) featuring members with (North) African, French and Hispano-Italian roots. Inspired by East Coast rap.
• Suprême NTM(Paris) featuring members with Caribbean and French roots. Inspired by East Coast (hardcore) rap.
• NAP (Strasbourg) featuring with African and Caribbean roots.
• La Cliqua (Paris) featuring Rocca, bilingual rapper with Columbian roots.
• KDD (Toulouse) hardcore
• Manau (Bretagne) rather commercial group mixing hip hop with Celtic music.
• MC Solaar considered as commercial by some. It sucedeed writing rap songs with a strong "Chanson Francaise" influence his lyric style has been compared to Serge Gainsbourg.
• Sniper () ..
• Saïan Supa Crew () ..

The majority of French rappers are really from Africa. Even though DJ Dee Nasty became the pioneer of Hip-Hop in France during the early 1980s, immigrants from Africa dominated the music scene as well. Due to the former French rule and the colonial, Africans immigrants moved to France for education or better life. M.C. Solaar, from Senegal moved to France around the late 1980s and released his first CD in 1991. More African emcees include:

• Stomy Bugsy (Cape Verde)
• Red One (Morocco)
• Le Specialist (Madagascar)
• Bissao na Bissao (Democratic Republic of the Congo/Republic of Congo)
• INTIK (Algeria)
• Bidew n Bess (Senegal)
• Taj Kul B (Morocco)
• M.A.M (Cote d'Ivoire)
• Kaysha (Democratic Republic of the Congo)
• Tana-Cergy (Madagascar)

Hip-Hop groups from Africa also tour in France and all over Europe.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "French hip hop."

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French language

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

French (la langue française) is one of the most important Romance languages, outnumbered only by Spanish and Portuguese. French is the 11th most spoken language in the world, spoken by about 77 million people as a mother tongue, and 128 million including second language speakers, in 1999. It is an official or administrative language in various communities and organizations (such as the European Union, IOC, United Nations and Universal Postal Union).

History

Although in the past many Frenchmen liked to refer to their descent from Gallic ancestors ("Nos ancêtres les gaulois"), very little Celtic influence seems to remain in the French of today. Most of the vocabulary is of Latin and Germanic (Frankish) origin.

Originally, many dialects and languages were spoken throughout contemporary French territory (among them were several langue d'Oïl dialects, like Picard, Valon, etc.), Occitan dialects (Gascon, Provençal, etc.), Breton, Basque, Catalan, Low German, etc., but over time the dialect of the Ile-de-France (the region around Paris), Francien, has supplanted the others and has become the basis for the official French language. The earliest text in French is the Oath of Strasbourg from 842; the period of the language up to around 1300 is called Old French, which after 1300 turned into Middle French, and ultimately, Modern French. Old French became a literary language with the chansons de geste that told tales of the paladins of Charlemagne and the heroes of the Crusades. By the Ordinance of Villers-Cotterêts, in 1539 King Francis I made French the official language of administration and court proceedings in France, ousting the Latin that had been used before then.

The worldwide use of French

French is an official language in the following countries:

country	native speakers	population	pop. dens.	area
	(rough est.)	(July 2003 est.)	(/km²)	(km²)
France (Metropolitan)	60,000,000	60,180,600	105	547,030
Democratic Republic of the Congo		55,225,478	24	2,345,410
Canada	6,700,000	32,207,000	3	9,976,140
Madagascar		16,979,900	-	587,040
Côte d'Ivoire		16,962,500	-	322,460
Cameroon		15,746,200	-	422,277
Burkina Faso		13,228,500	-	274,200
Mali		11,626,300	-	1,240,000
Senegal		10,580,400	-	196,190
Belgium	4,000,000	10,290,000	-	30,510
Rwanda		7,810,100	-	26,338
Haiti		7,527,800	-	27,750
Switzerland	(millions)	7,318,638	-	41,290
Burundi		6,096,156	-	27,830
Togo		5,429,300	-	56,785
Central African Republic		3,683,600	-	622,984
Republic of the Congo		2,954,300	-	342,000
Gabon		1,321,500	-	267,667
Comoros		632,948	-	2,170
Djibouti		457,130	-	23,000
Luxembourg		454,157	-	2,586
Guadeloupe		442,200	-	1,780
Martinique		390,200	-	1,100
Vanuatu		200,000	-	12,200
Seychelles		80,469	-	455

Although not official, French is the major second language in the following countries.

country	population	pop. dens.	area
	(July 2003 est.)	(/km²)	(km²)
Algeria	32,810,500	-	2,381,440
Tunisia	9,924,800	-	163,610
Mauritius	1,210,500	-	2,040
Morocco	31,689,600	-	446,550

Also, there are some French-speakers in Egypt, India (Pondicherry), Italy (Aosta Valley), Laos, Mauritania, United Kingdom (Channel Islands), United States of America (mainly Louisiana & New England) and Vietnam.

La Francophonie is an international organization of French-speaking countries and governments.

Historically, for nearly 300 years French was also the language of the ruling classes and commerce in England, from the time of the Norman Conquest until 1362, when the use of English was resumed.

French Phonemes

French spelling is by no means phonetic. Terminal consonants have often become silent in most dialects, unless followed by a vowel sound (liaison) or silent altogether (e.g., "et" is never pronounced with the ending "t"). In many words, the "n" and "m" become silent and cause the preceding vowel to become nasalized (i.e. pronounced with the soft palate extended downward so as to cause the air to leave through the nostrils instead of through the mouth). Furthermore, French words tend to run together when spoken, with ending consonants often being chained to the start of the next word.

Rounded

i y u

e 2 o

E 9 O

a A

E~9~o~

 ã

Note: /A/ is for many speakers no longer a phoneme. Whether /@/ (Schwa) is a phoneme of French is controversial. Some see it as an allophone of /9/

Plosives

/p, b/

/k, g/

/t, d/

Fricatives

/s, z/

/f, v/

/S, Z/

Nasals

/m, n, n_j/ For some speakers, /n_j/ is probably /n/ + /j/

Lateral

/l/

Vibrant

/r/ (Uvular trill)

Semi-vowel

/j/

Some common phrases

• French: français /frA~ sE/ ("fron-seh")
• hello: bonjour /bO~ Zur/ ("bon-zhoor")
• good-bye: au revoir /o r@ vwar/ ("o-ruh-vwar")
• please: s'il vous plaît /sil vu plE/ ("seel voo pleh")
• thank you: merci /mEr si/ ("mair-see")
• you're welcome: de rien /dœ riE~/ ("deu ryeh") (France); bienvenue /bjE~v@ny/ ("byeh-venew") (Quebec)
• that one: celui-là ("sull-wee la") or celle-là /s@ la/ ("cell-la")
• how much?: combien /kO~ bjE~/ ("kom-bee-an")
• English: anglais /A~ glE/ ("ahng-gleh")
• yes: oui /wi/ ("wee")
• no: non /nO~/ ("non")
• I'm sorry: Je suis désolé ("zhuh swee day-so-lay")
• I don't understand: Je ne comprends pas /Z@~ co~'pRA~ 'pa/ ("zhuh nuh comprahn pa")
• Where is the toilet?: Où sont les toilettes? /u sO~ lE twa lEt/ ("ooh song lay twa-let")
• Cheers (toast to someone's health): A votre santé /sA~te/ ("a votr(uh) sahn-TAY")
• Do you speak English?: Parlez-vous anglais ? /par lE vu A~ glE/ ("parlay voo ahng-glay") OR "Vous parlez anglais ?" /vu par lE A~ glE/ ("voo parlay ahng-lay")

See also:

• Académie Française
• French phrases used by English speakers
• French proverbs

• Common phrases in different languages
• Verlan

Grammar

The verb

There are three main verb categories, verbs ending in -er, -ir and -re.

French verbs are commonly conjugated in five simple tenses and five compound tenses. They are also conjugated in the "literary" or "historic" tenses, each of which have a commonly used equivalent tense. These literary tenses are used often in literature and history. There are two simple literary tenses and three compound literary tenses.

The commonly used simple tenses are: the present tense (le présent), the imperfect (l'imparfait), the future (le futur), the present subjunctive (le subjonctif) and the present conditional (le conditionnel).

The commonly conjugated compound tenses are the perfect (le passé composé), the pluperfect (le plus-que-parfait), the future perfect (le futur antérieur), the imperfect subjunctive (le subjonctif passé) and the past conditional (le conditionnel passé).

The perfect is the tense in common use used to describe actions that were started and completed in the past. The imperfect is the tense used to describe actions that were ongoing or continuous in the past or to describe habitual or repetitive action. The present and past subjunctives are used to describe doubt, emotions, possibilities and events which may or may not occur.

The simple literary tenses are the simple past or past historic (le passé simple), replaced in ordinary language by the perfect tense, and the imperfect subjunctive (l'imparfait du subjonctif), replaced in ordinary language by the present subjunctive.

The compound literary tenses are the past anterior (le passé antérieur), usually replaced by the pluperfect; the pluperfect subjunctive (le plus-que-parfait du subjonctif), usually replaced by the past subjunctive; and a second form of the past conditional.

Of the literary tenses, only the past historic tends to be used commonly any more. While grammatical distinctions were lost when the literary tenses fell out of common usage, the distinctions were not important enough for confusion to result.

Aside from these tenses, there is an imperative, a participle, and the infinitive, each of which can be inflected for tense (present and past), although the past imperative is quite rare.

Compound tense auxiliary verbs

In French, all compound tenses are formed with an auxiliary verb (either être "to be" or avoir "to have"). Most verbs use avoir as their auxiliary verb. The exceptions are sixteen commonly used verbs of motion and all reflexive verbs.

The distinction between the two auxiliary verbs is important for the correct formation of the compound tenses and is also essential to the agreement of the past participle.

The past participle

The past participle is used in French as both an adjective and to form all the compound tenses of the language. When it is used as an adjective, it follows all the regular agreement rules of the language, but when it is used in compound tenses, it follows special agreement rules.

-er verbs form the participle by changing the -er ending to -é, -ir verbs by changing -ir to -i, and -re verbs by changing to -u. Therefore, the past participle of parler, "to speak", is parlé; for finir, "to finish", fini, and for vendre, "to sell", vendu.

The rules of agreement for past participles differ for avoir verbs and être verbs (see "Compound tense auxiliary verbs"). For avoir verbs, the past participle does not agree with the subject unless the direct object comes before the verb, either in the form of a pronoun or a relative clause using que.

For the sixteen commonly used être verbs, the past participle always agrees with the subject. For reflexive verbs, the past participle generally agrees with the subject, unless there is a direct object to the reflexive verb.

Legal issues

France

France mandates the use of French in official government publications, education (though these dispositions are often ignored) and legal contracts; avertisements must bear a translation of foreign words. Contrary to a myth common in the American and British media, France does not prohibit the use of foreign words in Web pages or any other private publication, which would anyway contradict constitutional guarantees on freedom of speech.

Canada

French is one of Canada's two official languages, with English; various provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms deal with the right of Canadians to access services in French. By law, the federal government must operate and provide services in both English and French; proceedings of the Parliament of Canada must be translated into both English and French; and all Canadian products must be labelled in both English and French.

French is an official language of New Brunswick, the Northwest Territories, and Nunavut, and is the sole official language of Quebec. The Quebec government enforces certain laws regarding the status of French in the province, including requirements for the use of French in businesses of a certain size; precedence of French-language outdoor signs over English-language ones in commercial settings; and requirements for French-language education for children. Policy regarding the French language in Quebec is the department of the Office québécois de la langue française.

Varieties of French

• Belgian French
• Québécois French
• Acadian French

Languages derived from French

• Haitian Creole
• Michif

External links

• Académie Française
• French Pronunciation
• Ethnologue report for French
• Beginning French Vocabulary
• Free online resources for learners

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "French language."

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French national football team

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The French national football team won the FIFA World Cup once in 1998, when France was the host of the event. The team is generally considered to be one of the stronger sides to participate in international football.

France's national football association is called the Fédération Française de Football, and is a member of UEFA.

Honors

• World Cupss (1) - 1998
• European Championship (2) - 1984, 2000

Famous Players

• Michel Platini
• Zinédine Zidane
• Marcel Desailly
• Laurent Blanc
• Raymond Kopa
• Just Fontaine
• Didier Deschamps
• Eric Cantona
• Christian Karembeu
• Fabien Barthez
• Thierry Henry
• Bixente Lizarazu
• Patrick Vieira
• Robert Pires
• Lilian Thuram
• David Trezeguet
• Sylvain Wiltord

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "French national football team."

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French Revolution

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

This article is part of the History of France series.

Gaul

Franks

France in the Middle Ages

Valois Dynasty

Bourbon Dynasty

French Revolution

First French Empire

French Restoration

Second Republic

Second French Empire

Third Republic

France during World War II

Fourth Republic

Fifth Republic

The French Revolution is a period in the history of France covering the years 1789-1799, in which the monarchy was overthrown and radical restructuring was forced upon the Roman Catholic Church.

Causes

France in 1789 was still one of the richest and most powerful nations in Europe. Other than Britain and the Netherlands the French people had more freedom and less chance of arbitrary punishment than in any other nation in Europe. The King of France, Louis XVI was overthrown in a popular rebellion, caused by a variety of reasons:

• the absolutist system of government
• rampant discourse on enlightenment ideals
• an unmanageable debt
• the system of taxation
• food scarcity

Absolutism

The French system of absolute monarchy mingled with a large and growing middle class that had absorbed the ideology of equality and freedom of the individual, brought about by such philosophers as Voltaire, Denis Diderot, Turgot, and other theorists of the Enlightenment. They attacked the undemocratic nature of the government, pushed for freedom of speech, challenged the Catholic Church, and the prerogatives of the nobles. There was virtually no representation for the lower and middle classes in government and the French parliament (Estates-General) had not met since 1614.

Economics

Debt

This was compounded by the long running fiscal crisis of the French government. Extravagant expenditures by Louis XIV on luxuries such as Versailles were compounded by heavy expenditures on the Seven Years War and the American War of Independence. This put France deeply into debt; Britain too had a great of debt from these conflicts, but Britain had a far more advanced fiscal structure to deal with it. There was no counterpart to the Bank of England in France in 1789 and there was also far less ready capital in France as it was nearly as much a trading nation as was Britain.

Taxation

Unlike the trading nation France could not rely almost solely on tariffs to generate income. While average tax rates were higher in Britain the burden on the people was greater in France. Taxation relied on a system of internal tariffs separating the regions of France, this prevented a unified market from developing in the country. Taxes such as the extremely unpopular gabelle were contracted out to private collectors who were permitted to raise far more than the government requested. These systems led to an arbitrary and unequal collection of many of France's consumption taxes.

The system also excluded the nobles and the clergy from having to pay taxes. The tax burden was thus paid by the peasants and the professional and business classes. These groups were also cut off from most positions of power in the regime.

Other Causes

Feudalism

These problems were compounded by the remnants of feudalism which gave nobles a number of rights, such as large hunting preserves, that annoyed the rest of the population.

American Influence

France had played a deciding role in the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783) sending its navy and troops to aid the revolting colonists. During this time there was much contact between the Americans and the French, and revolutionary ideals spread between the groups.

Food Scarcity

These problems were all compounded by a great scarcity of food in the 1780s. Different crop failures in the 1780s caused these shortages, which of course led to high prices for bread. Perhaps no cause more motivated the Paris mob that was the engine of the revolution more than the shortage of bread. The poor conditions on the countryside had forced rural residents to move into Paris, and the city was overcrowded and filled with the hungry and disaffected. The peasants suffered doubly from the economic and agricultural problems.

History

During the reigns of Louis XV and Louis XVI different ministers tried to tax the nobles. Such measures encountered much resistance from the parlements (law courts), which the nobility dominated. When in 1788 all attempts had failed, King Louis XVI decided to summon a meeting of the Estates-General, the first since 1614, which he scheduled for May 1789. The King tried to make the Estates meet in a modern way but the parlements decided that the Estates-General would meet in the same way as it met in 1614: in different chambers for every class. But society had changed. The bourgeoisie had grown in the last 200 years and money lay in their hands. Now they had the chance to seize the power they wanted to have.

Right from the beginning the Estates-General were divided about what to do. Instead of discussing the taxes of the king, they began to discuss the way in which decisions should be made. The Third Estate wanted the Estates to meet as one body and vote per person, not per class. When the King doubtfully rejected this idea, the members of the Third Estate declared themselves the National Assembly, the true representatives of the people. In the Tennis Court Oath, they swore that they wouldn't disperse until France had a new constitution.

Under the influence of conservative nobles the king decided to send troops to Versailles to disperse the Assembly. The people saw this as a provocation and the poor labourers of Paris attacked the Bastille.

The storming of the Bastille prison on July 14th, 1789, is commemorated today as Bastille Day. Although only seven prisoners were released -- four forgers, two lunatics, and a dangerous sexual offender -- it became a potent symbol of all that was hated of the ancien régime. After this violent act nobles started to flee the country.

In August the Assembly abolished feudalism and published the Declaration of the Rights of Man; in 1790, the Civil Constitution of the Clergy was passed, confiscating the Church's French land holdings and making it a department of state. New paper money was introduced in that same year, causing high inflation. The King tried to flee in June 1791 to join the nobles in exile, but his flight to Varennes did not succeed. He reluctantly accepted the new constitution in September 1791, which made France a constitutional monarchy. The king had to share power with the elected National Assembly, but he still retained his royal veto and the ability to pick ministers.

New factions emerged such as the Feuillants (constitutional monarchists), Girondins (liberal republicans) and Jacobins (radical revolutionaries). The King, the Feuillants and the Girondins wanted to wage war. The King wanted war to become popular or be defeated: both actions would make him stronger. The Girondins wanted to export the Revolution through Europe. France declared war on Austria (April 20, 1792) and Prussia started participating on the Austrian side a few weeks later. The French Revolutionary Wars had begun.

The Franco-Prussian Battle of Valmy that took place on September 20, 1792 was the first significant military engagement of the French Revolutionary Wars. Although heavy rain prevented a conclusive resolution, the superiority of French artillery was evident. Nonetheless, fighting went badly and prices rose sky-high. In August 1792 a mob assaulted the Royal Palace in Paris and arrested the King. On September 21, 1792 monarchy was abolished and a republic declared. The French Revolutionary Calendar commenced.

The legislative power in the new republic was vested in the National Convention, while the executive power was vested in the Committee of Public Safety. The Girondins became the most influential party in the Convention and on the Committee.

On January 21, 1793 King Louis was executed with a Convention majority of 361 to 360 (only 1 vote!). The execution caused more wars with European countries.

When war went badly, prices rose and the sans-culottes (poor laborers and radical Jacobins) rioted and counter-revolutionary activities began in some regions. This caused the Jacobins to seize power through a parliamentary coup. The Committee of Public Safety came under the control of Maximilien Robespierre. The Jacobins unleashed the Reign of Terror. Thousands of innocent people found the death under the guillotine after accusations of counter-revolutionary activities. In 1794 Robespierre had ultraradicals and moderate Jacobins executed, so eliminating popular support. On July 27, 1794, the French people revolted against the excesses of the Reign of Terror in what had become known as the Thermidorian Reaction. It resulted in Robespierre and several other leadings members of the Committee of Public Safety being deposed and executed by moderate Convention members.

In 1795 a new constitution was drafted, which installed the Directoire. The executive power became vested in five directors who were annually appointed by a bicameral parliament (500 representatives and 250 senators). The new regime met with opposition from remaining Jacobins and royalists. Riots and counter-revolutionary activities were suppressed by the army. In this way the army and its successful general, Napoleon Bonaparte gained much power.

On November 9, 1799 Napoleon staged a coup which led to his dictatorship and eventually to his proclamation as emperor, which brought the specifically republican phase of the French Revolution to a close.

See also

• French Revolutionary Calendar
• French Revolutionary Wars
• Timeline of the French Revolution

Further reading

• Chronicle of the French Revolution - (1989) By Jean Favier, Director of the French Archives in Paris, France with Anik Blaise, Serge Cosseron, and Jacques Legrand in cooperation with more than 35 historians/authors

External links

• The French Revolution - a fictive diary, written for students

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "French Revolution."

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French Southern Territories

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The French Southern Territories (long name: Territory of the French Southern and Antarctic Lands, French: Territoire des Terres Australes et Antarctiques Françaises) are antarctic, volcanic islands in the southern Indian Ocean, south of Africa and about equidistant between Africa, Antarctica, and Australia. It is an overseas territory of France.

The territory includes Ile Amsterdam, Ile Saint-Paul, Iles Crozet, and Iles Kerguelen in the southern Indian Ocean near 43°S, 67°E, along with the French-claimed sector of Antarctica, Adelie Land (French Terre Adélie) , named by French explorer Jules Dumont d'Urville after his wife.

It has been an overseas territory of France since 1955, administered March 25, 1998, from Paris by High Commissioner of the Republic Brigitte Girardin, assisted by Secretary General Jean-Yves Hermoso.

Several countries do not recognize the French claim to "Adelie Land", and France's territorial claim is suspended in accordance with the provisions of the Antarctic Treaty.

The "Adelie Land" of about 500,000 square kilometers and the islands, totaling 7781 square kilometers, have no indigenous inhabitants, though in 1997 there were about 100 researchers whose numbers varied from winter (July) to summer (January). Ile Amsterdam and Ile Saint-Paul are extinct volcanoes; the highest point in the territory is Mont Ross on Iles Kerguelen at 1850 meters. There are no airstrips on the islands and the 1232 kilometers of coastline have no ports or harbors, only offshore anchorages. However, the territory has a merchant marine fleet totaling (in 1999) 2,892,911 GRT/5,165,713 DWT, including seven bulk carriers, five cargo ships, ten chemical tankers, nine container ships, six liquified gas carriers, 24 petroleum tankers, one refrigerated cargo ship, and ten roll-on/roll-off (ro-ro) carriers. This fleet is maintained as a subset of the French register that allowing French-owned ships to operate under more liberal taxation and manning regulations than permissible under the main French register.

The territory's natural resources are limited to fish and crayfish; enonomic activity is limited to servicing meteorological and geophysical research stations and French and other fishing fleets. The fish catches landed on Iles Kerguelen by foreign ships are exported to France and Reunion. The territory takes in revenues of about $18 million a year. The territory's data code is FS and its ISO 3166-1 country code (top level Internet domain) is TF.

External links

• Crozet Archipelago http://www.discoverfrance.net/Colonies/Crozet.shtml
• Kerguelen Archipelago http://www.discoverfrance.net/Colonies/Kerguelen.shtml
• Southern & Antarctic Territories http://www.discoverfrance.net/Colonies/Antarctic.shtml
• Terre Adélie http://www.discoverfrance.net/Colonies/Terre_Adelie.shtml

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "French Southern Territories."

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History of France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

This article is the top of the History of France series.

Gaul

Franks

France in the Middle Ages

Valois Dynasty

Bourbon Dynasty

French Revolution

First French Empire

French Restoration

Second Republic

Second French Empire

Third Republic

France during World War II

Fourth Republic

Fifth Republic

Gaul

For details, see the main Gaul article.

Settled mainly by the Gauls and related Celtic peoples (apart from a shrinking area of Basque population in the south-west and Ligurian population on the southern coast), the area of modern France comprised the bulk of the region of Gaul (Latin Gallia) under Roman rule from the 1st century BC to the 5th century AD.

Franks

For details, see the main Franks article.

In 486, Clovis I, leader of the Salian Franks to the east, conquered the Roman territory between the Loire and the Somme, subsequently uniting most of northern and central France under his rule and adopting (496) the Roman Catholic form of Christianity in preference to the Arianism preferred by rival Germanic rulers.

After Clovis's death (511) his realm underwent repeated division while his Merovingian dynasty eventually lost effective power to their successive mayors of the palace, the founders of what was to become the Carolingian dynasty. The assumption of the crown in 751 by Pepin the Short (son of Charles Martel) established Carolingian rule in name as well as in fact.

The new rulers' power reached its fullest extent under Pepin's son Charlemagne, (Charles the Great), who in 771 reunited the Frankish domains after a further period of division, subsequently conquering the Lombard kingdom in northern Italy (774), incorporating Bavaria (788) into his realm, defeating the Avars of the Danubian plain (796), advancing the frontier with Muslim Spain as south as Barcelona (801), and subjugating Lower Saxony (804) after prolonged campaigning.

In recognition of his successes and his political support for the Papacy, Charlemagne was in 800 crowned Emperor of the Romans, or Roman Emperor in the West, by Pope Leo III: on the death of his son Louis I (emperor 814-840), however, the empire was divided among Louis's three sons (Treaty of Verdun, 843). After a last brief reunification (884-887), the imperial title ceased to be held in the western part which was to form the basis of the future French kingdom.

France in the Middle Ages

For details, see the main France in the Middle Ages article.

During the latter years of the elderly Charlemagne's rule, the Vikings made advances along the northern and western perimeters of his kingdom. After Charlemagne's death in 814 his heirs were incapable of maintaining any kind of political unity and the once great Empire began to crumble. Viking advances were allowed to escalate, their dreaded longboats were sailing up the Loire and Seine Rivers and other inland waterways, wreaking havoc and spreading terror. In 843 the Viking invaders murdered the Bishop of Nantes and a few years after that, they burned the Church of Saint-Martin at Tours. Emboldened by their successes, in 845 the Vikings ransacked Paris.

During the reign of Charles the Simple (898-922) whose territory comprised much of the France of today, he was forced to concede to the Vikings a large area on either side of the Seine River, downstream from Paris, that was to become Normandy.

The Carolingians were subsequently to share the fate of their predecessors: after an intermittent power struggle between the two families, the accession (987) of Hugh Capet, duke of France and count of Paris, established on the throne the Capetian dynasty which with its Valois and Bourbon offshoots was to rule France for more than 800 years.

The Carolingian era had seen the gradual emergence of institutions which were to condition France's development for centuries to come: the acknowledgement by the crown of the administrative authority of the realm's nobles within their territories in return for their (sometimes tenuous) loyalty and military support, a phenomenon readily visible in the rise of the Capetians and foreshadowed to some extent by the Carolingians' own rise to power.

The new order left the new dynasty in immediate control of little beyond the middle Seine and adjacent territories, while powerful territorial lords such as the 10th and 11th-century counts of Blois accumulated large domains of their own through marriage and through private arrangements with lesser nobles for protection and support.

The area around the lower Seine, ceded to Scandinavian invaders as the duchy of Normandy in 911, became a source of particular concern when duke William took possession of the kingdom of England in 1066, making himself and his heirs the king's equal outside France (where he was still nominally subject to the crown).

Worse was to follow, with the succession (1154) to the disputed English throne of Henry II, already count of Anjou and duke of Normandy before his marriage (1152) to France's newly-divorced ex-queen Eleanor of Aquitaine brought him control also of much of south-west France. A century of intermittent warfare brought Normandy once more under French control (1204) and French victory at Bouvines (1214).

The 13th century was to bring the crown important gains also in the south, where a papal-royal crusade against the region's Albigensian or Cathar heretics (1209) led to the incorporation into the royal domain of Lower (1229) and Upper (1271) Languedoc. Philippe IV's seizure of Flanders (1300) was less sucessful, ending two years later in the rout of her knights by the forces of the Flemish cities at the "battle of the spurs" near Courtrai (Kortrijk).

Valois Dynasty

For details, see the main Valois Dynasty article.

The extinction of the main Capetian line (1328) brought to the throne the related house of Valois, but as Philippe IV's grandson, Edward III of England claimed the French crown for himself, inaugurating the succession of conflicts known collectively as the Hundred Years' War. The following century was to see devastating warfare, peasant revolts in both England (Wat Tyler's revolt of 1381) and France (the Jacquerie of 1358) and the growth of nationhood in both countries.

French losses in the first phase of the conflict (1337-1360) were partly reversed in the second (1369-1396); but Henry V of England's shattering victory at the battle of Agincourt in 1415 against a France now bitterly divided between rival Armagnac and Burgundian factions of the royal house was to lead to his son Henry VI's recognition as king in Paris seven years later under the 1420 Treaty of Troyes, reducing Valois rule to the lands south of the Loire River.

France's humiliation was abruptly reversed in 1429 by the appearance of a restorationist movement symbolised by the Lorraine peasant maid Joan of Arc, who claimed the guidance of divine voices for the campaign which rapidly ended the English siege of Orlens and ended in Charles VII's coronation in the historic city of Reims. Subsequently captured by the Burgundians and sold to their English allies, her execution for heresy in 1431 redoubled her value as the embodiment of France's cause.

Reconciliation between the king and Philippe of Burgundy (1435) removed the greatest obstacle to French recovery, leading to the recapture of Paris (1436), Normandy (1450) and Guienne (1453), reducing England's foothold to a small area around Calais (lost also in 1558). After the war, France's emergence as a powerful national monarchy was crowned by the incorporation of the duchy of Burgundy (1477) and Brittany (1491).

The losses of the century of war were enormous, particularly owing to the plague (the Black Death, usually considered an outbreak of bubonic plague), which arrived from Italy in 1348, spreading rapidly up the Rhone valley and thence across most of the country: it is estimated that a population of some 18-20 million in modern-day France at the time of the 1328 hearth-tax returns had been reduced 150 years later by 40% or more.

Despite the beginnings of rapid demographic and economic recovery, the gains of the previous half-century were to be jeopardised by a further protracted series of conflicts, this time in Italy (1494-1559), where French efforts to gain dominance ended in the increased power of the Habsburg Holy Roman Emperors of Germany.

Barely were the Italian Wars over than France was plunged into a domestic crisis with far-reaching consequences. Despite the conclusion of a Concordat between France and the Papacy (1516), granting the crown unrivalled power in senior ecclesiastical appointments, France was deeply affected by the Protestant Reformation's attempt to break the unity of Roman Catholic Europe.

A growing urban-based Protestant minority (later dubbed Huguenots) faced ever harsher repression under the rule of King Henri II. Renewed Catholic reaction headed by the powerful dukes of Guise culminated in a massacre of Huguenots (1562), starting the first of the French Wars of Religion during which English, (Scottish?), German and Spanish forces intervened on the side of rival Protestant and Catholic forces.

Bourbon Dynasty

For details, see the main Bourbon Dynasty article.

The conflict was ended by the assassination of both Henry of Guise (1588) and king Henri III (1589), the accession of the Protestant king of Navarre as Henri IV (first king of the Bourbon dynasty) and his subsequent abandonment of Protestantism (1593), his acceptance by most of the Catholic establishment (1594) and by the Pope (1595), and his issue of the toleration decree known as the Edict of Nantes (1598), which guaranteed freedom of private worship and civil equality.

France's pacification under Henri laid much of the ground for the beginnings after his assassination (1610) of France's rise to European hegemony under Louis XIII and his minister (1624-1642) Cardinal Richelieu, architect of France's policy against Spain and the German emperor during the Thirty Years' War (1618-1648) which had broken out among the lands of Germany's Holy Roman Empire.

An English-backed Huguenot rebellion (1625-1628) defeated, France intervened directlly (1635) in the wider European conflict following her ally (Protestant) Sweden's failure to build upon initial success. After the death of both king and cardinal, the Peace of Westphalia (1648) secured universal acceptance of Germany's political and religious fragmentation, and the Treaty of the Pyrenees (1659) formalised France's seizure (1642) of the Spanish territory of Roussillon after the crushing of the efemerous Catalan Republic.

During the reign of Louis XIV (1643-1715), France was the dominant power in Europe, aided by the diplomacy of Richelieu's successor (1642-1661) Cardinal Mazarin and the economic policies (1661-1683) of Colbert. Renewed war (1667-1668 and 1672-1678) brought further territorial gains (Artois and western Flanders and the free county of Burgundy, left to the Empire in 1482), but at the cost of the increasingly concerted opposition of rival powers.

Following the seizure of the (then separate) English, Irish and Scottish thrones by the Dutch prince William of Orange in 1688, the anti-French "Grand Alliance" of 1689 inaugurated more than a century of intermittent European conflict in which Britain would play an ever more important role, seeking in particular to keep France out of the Netherlands (the Dutch provinces and the future Belgium, then under Spanish rule).

After the war of 1689-1697 gained France only Haiti (lost to a slave revolt a century later), the War of the Spanish Succession (1701-1713) ended with the undoing of Louis's dreams of a Franco-Spanish Bourbon empire: the two conflicts strained French resources already weakened by disastrous harvests in the 1690s and in 1709, as well as by the revocation (1685) of the Edict of Nantes and the consequent loss of Huguenot support and manpower.

The reign (1715-1774) of Louis XV saw an initial return to peace and prosperity under the regency (1715-1723) of Philippe II, duke of Orleans, whose policies were largely continued (1726-1743) by Cardinal Fleury, prime minister in all but name, renewed war with the Empire (1733-1735 and 1740-1748) being fought largely in the East. But alliance with the traditional Habsburg enemy (the "Diplomatic Revolution" of 1756 against the rising power of Britain and Prussia led to costly failure in the Seven Years' War (1756-1763).

French Revolution

For details, see the main French Revolution article.

Louis XVI's reign (1774-1792) saw a temporary revival of French fortunes through intervention (1778-1783) in support of Britain's rebel American colonies. But the over-ambitious projects and military campaigns the past century had produced chronic financial problems. Deteriorating economic conditions, popular resentment against the complicated system of privileges granted the nobility and clerics, and a lack of alternate avenues for change were among the principal causes of the French Revolution. This led to the formation of the First Republic. The Second Republic was later proclaimed on February 26, 1848.

Although the revolutionaries advocated republican and egalitarian principles of government, France reverted to forms of absolute rule or constitutional monarchy four times:

• the First Empire of Napoleon
• the Restoration of Louis XVIII
• the July Monarchy of Louis-Philippe
• the Second Empire of Napoleon III.

First French Empire

For details, see the main First French Empire article.

French Restoration

For details, see the main French Restoration article.

Second Republic

For details, see the main Second Republic article.

Second French Empire

For details, see the main Second French Empire article.

Third Republic

For details, see the main Third Republic article.

After the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, the Third Republic was established and lasted until the military defeat of 1940.

World War I (1914-1918) brought great losses of troops and materiel. In the 1920s, France established an elaborate system of border defenses (the Maginot Line) and alliances (see Little Entente) to offset resurgent German strength.

France during World War II

For details, see the main France during World War II article.

France surrendered to Nazi Germany early in World War II (June 24 1940). Nazi Germany occupied three fifth of France's territory leaving the rest to the new Vichy collaboration government established on July 10, 1940 under Henri Philippe Pétain. Its senior leaders acquiesced in the plunder of French resources, as well as the sending of French forced labor to Nazi Germany; in doing so, they claimed they hoped to preserve at least some small amount of French sovereignty. The Nazi German occupation proved costly, however, as Nazi Germany appropriated a full one-half of France's public sector revenue.

On the other hand, those who refused defeat and collaboration with Nazi Germany, the Free French, organised resistance movementss in occupied and Vichy France and the Free French Forces. The Free French Forces started in exile in and with the support of the UK.

After four years of occupation and strife, Allied forces, including Free France, liberated France in 1944.

Fourth Republic

For details, see the main Fourth Republic article.

France emerged from World War II to face a series of new problems. After a short period of provisional government initially led by General Charles de Gaulle, a new constitution (October 13, 1946) established the Fourth Republic under a parliamentary form of government controlled by a series of coalitions. The mixed nature of the coalitions and a consequent lack of agreement on measures for dealing with colonial wars in Indochina and Algeria caused successive cabinet crises and changes of government.

The May 1958 seizure of power in Algiers by French army units and French settlers opposed to concessions in the face of Arab nationalist insurrection led to the fall of the French government and a presidential invitation to de Gaulle to form an emergency government to forestall the threat of civil war. Swiftly replacing the existing constitution with one strengthening the powers of the presidency, he became the elected president in December of that year, inaugurating France's Fifth Republic.

Fifth Republic

For details, see the main Fifth Republic article.

Seven years later, in an occasion marking the first time in the 20th century that the people of France went to the polls to elect a president by direct ballot, de Gaulle won re-election with a 55% share of the vote, defeating Francois Mitterrand. In April 1969, de Gaulle resigned following the defeat in a national referendum of government proposals for the creation of 21 regions with limited political powers. Succeeding him as president of France have been:

• Gaullist Georges Pompidou (1969-1974)
• Independent Republican Valery Giscard d'Estaing (1974-81)
• Socialist Francois Mitterrand (1981-95)
• neo-Gaullist Jacques Chirac (elected in spring 1995).

While France continues to revere its rich history and independence, French leaders increasingly tie the future of France to the continued development of the European Union (EU). During President Mitterrand's tenure, he stressed the importance of European integration and advocated the ratification of the Maastricht Treaty on European economic and political union, which France's electorate narrowly approved in September 1992.

Current President Jacques Chirac assumed office May 17, 1995, after a campaign focused on the need to combat France's stubbornly high unemployment rate. The center of domestic attention soon shifted, however, to the economic reform and belt-tightening measures required for France to meet the criteria for Economic and Monetary Union (EMU) laid out by the Maastricht Treaty. In late 1995, France experienced its worst labor unrest in at least a decade, as employees protested government cutbacks.

On the foreign and security policy front, Chirac took a more assertive approach to protecting French peacekeepers in the former Yugoslavia and helped promote the peace accords negotiated in Dayton, Ohio and signed in Paris in December 1995. The French have stood among the strongest supporters of NATO and EU policy in the Balkans.

Related articles

• Franks
• List of Frankish Kings
• Merovingians
• Carolingians

• List of French monarchs
• Capetian Dynasty
• Valois Dynasty
• Bourbon Dynasty
• Bourbon Dynasty, Restored
• Kings of France family tree

• List of every President of France

• French colonization of the Americas

Further reading

• André Maurois, A History of France

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "History of France."

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Lighthouses in France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Lighthouses in France is a link page for any lighthouse in France.

See: List of lighthouses and lightvessels

Bretagne

• St. Mathieu lighthouse
• Phare de l'Île de la Vierge

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Lighthouses in France."

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List of cities in France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

This is a list of cities in France:

• Angers
• Avignon
• Blois
• Bordeaux
• Brest
• Calais
• Cannes
• Chinon
• Colmar
• Grasse
• Grenoble
• Le Havre
• Le Mans
• Lille
• Lyon
• Marseille
• Metz
• Nice
• Orange
• Orleans
• Paris
• Perpignan
• Poitiers
• Rennes
• Reims
• Rouen
• Saumur
• Strasbourg
• Saint-Germain-en-Laye
• Toulon
• Toulouse
• Tours
• Versailles

See also: List of cities, Lists of communes of France

External link

• map

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "List of cities in France."

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List of French airports

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The following is a list of airports in France.

There is also a list of airports sorted by ICAO Airport Code.

ICAO code	Name of the airport and connecting city	Depart	Altitude in meters
LFAB	Dieppe St Aubin	76	105
LFAC	Calais Dunkerque	62	4
LFAD	Compiègne Margny	60	96
LFAE	Eu Mers le Tréport	76	100
LFAF	Laon Chambry	02	78
LFAG	Péronne St Quentin	80	89
LFAI	Nangis les Loges	77	129
LFAJ	Argentan	61	177
LFAK	Dunkerque Ghyvelde	59	-1
LFAL	La Flèche Thorée les Pins	72	37
LFAM	Berck/Mer	62	10
LFAN	Condé/Noireau	14	254
LFAO	Bagnoles de l'Orne Couterne	61	219
LFAP	Rethel	08	125
LFAQ	Albert Bray	80	111
LFAR	Montdidier	80	109
LFAS	Falaise	14	156
LFAT	Le Touquet Paris plage	62	11
LFAU	Vauville	50	139
LFAV	Valenciennes Denain	59	54
LFAW	Villerupt	54	396
LFAX	Mortagne au Perche	61	270
LFAY	Amiens Glisy	80	60
LFBA	Agen la Garenne	47	62
LFBC	Cazaux	33	25
LFBD	Bordeaux Mérignac	33	49
LFBE	Bergerac Roumanière	24	51
LFBF	Toulouse Francazal	31	163
LFBG	Cognac Châteaubernard	16	32
LFBH	La Rochelle Laleu	17	22
LFBI	Poitiers Biard	86	128
LFBJ	St Junien	87	275
LFBK	Montluçon Guéret	23	415
LFBL	Limoges Bellegarde	87	396
LFBM	Mont de Marsan	40	63
LFBN	Niort Souche	79	61
LFBO	Toulouse Blagnac	31	152
LFBP	Pau Pyrénées	64	188
LFBR	Muret l'Herm	31	189
LFBS	Biscarrosse Parentis	40	30
LFBT	Tarbes Ossun Lourdes	65	384
LFBU	Angoulême Brie-Champniers	24	133
LFBV	Brive la Roche	19	116
LFBX	Périgueux Bassillac	24	100
LFBY	Dax Seyresse	40	33
LFBZ	Biarritz Bayonne Anglet	64	74
LFCA	Châtellerault	86	63
LFCB	Bagnères de Luchon	31	617
LFCC	Cahors Lalbenque	46	278
LFCD	Andernos les Bains	33	21
LFCE	Guéret St Laurent	23	368
LFCF	Figeac Livernon	46	331
LFCG	St Girons Antichan	09	417
LFCH	Arcachon la Teste de Buch	33	15
LFCI	Albi le Séquestre	81	172
LFCJ	Jonzac Neulles	17	39
LFCK	Castres Mazamet	81	240
LFCL	Toulouse Lasbordes	31	140
LFCM	Millau Larzac	12	794
LFCN	Nogaro	32	92
LFCO	Herrere	64	300
LFCP	Pons Avy	17	35
LFCQ	Graulhet Montdragon	81	177
LFCR	Rodez Marcillac	12	580
LFCS	Bordeaux Léognan Saucats	33	58
LFCT	Thouars	79	104
LFCU	Ussel Thalamy	19	739
LFCV	Villefranche de Rouergue	12	334
LFCW	Villeneuve sur Lot	47	58
LFCX	Castelsarrasin Moissac	82	74
LFCY	Royan Médis	17	22
LFCZ	Mimizan	40	50
LFDA	Aire sur Adour	40	79
LFDB	Montauban	82	107
LFDC	Montendre Marcillac	33	46
LFDE	Egletons	19	565
LFDF	Ste Foy la Grande	24	86
LFDG	Gaillac Lisle/Tarn	81	136
LFDH	Auch Lamothe	32	125
LFDI	Libourne Artigues de Lussac	33	48
LFDJ	Pamiers les Pujols	09	340
LFDK	Soulac/Mer	33	3
LFDL	Loudun	86	96
LFDM	Marmande Virazeil	47	32
LFDN	Rochefort St Agnant	17	18
LFDO	Bordeaux Souge	33	42
LFDP	St Pierre d'Oléron	17	7
LFDQ	Castelnau Magnoac	65	300
LFDR	La Réole Floudes	33	14
LFDS	Sarlat Domme	24	298
LFDT	Tarbes Laloubère	65	328
LFDU	Lesparre St Laurent Médoc	33	32
LFDV	Couhé Vérac	86	152
LFDW	Chauvigny	86	134
LFDX	Fumel Montayral	47	211
LFDY	Bordeaux Yvrac	33	74
LFEA	Belle Ile	56	50
LFEB	Dinan Trélivan	22	120
LFEC	Ouessant	29	42
LFED	Pontivy	56	124
LFEF	Amboise Dierre	37	55
LFEG	Argenton/Creuse	36	202
LFEH	Aubigny/Nere	18	192
LFEI	Briare Châtillon	45	170
LFEJ	Châteauroux Villers	36	165
LFEK	Issoudun le Fay	36	162
LFEL	Le Blanc	36	115
LFEM	Montargis Vimory	45	94
LFEN	Tours Sorigny	37	91
LFEP	Pouilly Maconge	21	430
LFEQ	Quiberon	56	11
LFER	Redon Bains/Oust	35	68
LFES	Guiscriff Scaer	56	172
LFET	Til Châtel	21	286
LFEU	Bar le Duc	55	277
LFEV	Gray St Adrien	70	207
LFEW	Saulieu Liernais	21	524
LFEX	Nancy Azelot	54	293
LFEY	Ile d'Yeu le Grand Phare	85	25
LFEZ	Nancy Malzeville	54	382
LFFB	Buno Bonnevaux	91	128
LFFC	Mantes Cherence	95	156
LFFD	St Andre de l'Eure	27	149
LFFE	Enghien Moisselles	95	102
LFFG	La Ferté Gaucher	77	164
LFFH	Château-Thierry	02	222
LFFI	Ancenis	44	29
LFFJ	Joinville Mussey	52	312
LFFK	Fontenay le Comte	85	26
LFFL	Bailleau Armenonville	28	155
LFFM	Lamotte Beuvron	41	126
LFFN	Brienne le Château	10	116
LFFP	Pithiviers	45	117
LFFQ	La Ferté Alais	91	138
LFFR	Bar/Seine	10	286
LFFT	Neufchâteau Rouceux	88	373
LFFU	Châteauneuf/Cher	18	168
LFFV	Vierzon Méreau	18	131
LFFW	Montaigu St Georges	85	56
LFFX	Tournus Cuisery	71	208
LFFY	Etrepagny	27	94
LFFZ	Sézanne St Remy	51	108
LFGA	Colmar Houssen	68	192
LFGB	Mulhouse Habsheim	68	240
LFGC	Strasbourg Neuhof	67	139
LFGD	Arbois	39	267
LFGE	Avallon	89	251
LFGF	Beaune Challanges	21	199
LFGG	Belfort Chaux	90	417
LFGH	Cosne/Loire	58	175
LFGI	Dijon Darois	21	483
LFGJ	Dole Tavaux	39	196
LFGK	Joigny	89	222
LFGL	Lons Courlaoux	39	232
LFGM	Montceau les Mines	71	314
LFGN	Paray le Monial	71	304
LFGO	Pont/Yonne	89	72
LFGP	St Florentin Cheu	89	107
LFGQ	Semur en Auxois	21	321
LFGR	Doncourt les Conflans	54	245
LFGS	Longuyon Villette	54	350
LFGT	Sarrebourg Buhl	57	266
LFGU	Sarreguemines Neunkirch	57	260
LFGV	Thionville Yutz	57	158
LFGW	Verdun le Rozelier	55	375
LFGX	Champagnole Crotenay	39	531
LFGY	St Die Remomeix	88	361
LFGZ	Nuits St Georges	21	243
LFHA	Issoire le Broc	63	378
LFHC	Pérouges Meximieux	01	214
LFHD	Pierrelatte	26	60
LFHE	Romans St Paul	26	181
LFHF	Ruoms	07	110
LFHG	St Chamond l'Horme	42	395
LFHH	Vienne Reventin	38	219
LFHI	Morestel	38	245
LFHJ	Lyon Corbas	69	198
LFHL	Langogne Lesperon	07	1013
LFHM	Megève	74	1468
LFHN	Bellegarde Vouvray	01	495
LFHO	Aubenas Vals Lanas	07	280
LFHP	Le Puy Loudes	43	831
LFHQ	St Flour Coltines	15	978
LFHR	Brioude Beaumont	43	452
LFHS	Bourg Ceyzeriat	01	261
LFHT	Ambert le Poyet	63	562
LFHU	L'Alpe d'Huez	38	1857
LFHV	Villefranche Tarare	69	328
LFHW	Belleville Villie Morgon	69	215
LFHX	Lapalisse Périgny	03	317
LFHY	Moulins Montbeugny	03	278
LFHZ	Sallanches	74	534
LFIB	Belves St Pardoux	24	241
LFID	Condom Valence sur Baise	32	138
LFIF	St Affrique	12	513
LFIG	Cassagnes Begonhes	12	616
LFIH	Chalais	16	87
LFIK	Riberac St Aulaye	24	107
LFIL	Rion des Landes	40	78
LFIM	St Gaudens Montrejeau	31	404
LFIP	Peyresourde	65	1579
LFIR	Revel Montgey	31	196
LFIT	Bourg St Bernard	31	160
LFIV	Vendays Montalivet	33	5
LFIX	Itxassou	64	185
LFIY	St Jean d'Angely	17	75
LFJA	Semoutiers	52	305
LFJB	Mauléon	79	177
LFJC	Clamecy	58	217
LFJL	Metz Nancy Lorraine	57	265
LFJS	Soissons Courmelles	02	155
LFJT	Tours le Louroux	37	126
LFJU	Lurcy Levis	03	227
LFKA	Albertville	74	315
LFKB	Bastia Poretta	20	8
LFKC	Calvi Ste Catherine	20	64
LFKD	Sollieres Sardières	73	1295
LFKE	St Jean en Royan	26	264
LFKF	Figari Sud Corse	20	26
LFKG	Ghisonaccia Alzitone	20	54
LFKH	St Jean d'Avelanne	38	295
LFKJ	Ajaccio Campo Dell'Oro	20	5
LFKL	Lyon Brindas	69	317
LFKM	St Galmier	42	386
LFKO	Propriano Tavaria	20	4
LFKP	La Tour du Pin	38	320
LFKS	Solenzara	20	8
LFKT	Corte	20	345
LFKX	Méribel	73	1715
LFKY	Belley Peyrieu	01	225
LFKZ	St Claude	39	624
LFLA	Auxerre Branches	89	159
LFLB	Chambéry Aix les Bains	73	237
LFLC	Clermont-Ferrand Aulnat	63	332
LFLD	Bourges	18	161
LFLE	Challes les Eaux	73	300
LFLG	Grenoble Le Versoud	38	220
LFLH	Chalon Champforgueil	71	189
LFLI	Annemasse	74	492
LFLJ	Courchevel	73	2002
LFLK	Oyonnax Arbent	01	534
LFLL	Lyon St-Exupéry	69	250
LFLM	Macon Charnay	71	222
LFLN	St Yan	71	242
LFLO	Roanne Renaison	42	337
LFLP	Annecy Meythet	74	463
LFLQ	Montélimar Ancône	26	74
LFLR	St Rambert d'Albon	26	155
LFLS	Grenoble St Geoirs	38	397
LFLT	Montluçon Domérat	03	235
LFLU	Valence Chabeuil	26	162
LFLV	Vichy Charmeil	03	249
LFLW	Aurillac	15	638
LFLX	Châteauroux Déols	36	161
LFLY	Lyon Bron	69	201
LFLZ	Feurs Chambéon	42	334
LFMA	Aix les Milles	13	112
LFMC	Le Luc le Cannet	83	81
LFMD	Cannes Mandelieu	06	4
LFME	Nîmes Courbessac	30	60
LFMF	Fayence	83	226
LFMG	Montagne Noire	31	448
LFMH	St Etienne Bouthéon	42	404
LFMI	Istres le Tube	13	23
LFMK	Carcassonne Salvaza	11	132
LFML	Marseille Provence	13	21
LFMN	Nice Cote d'Azur	06	4
LFMO	Orange Caritat	84	60
LFMP	Perpignan Rivesaltes	66	44
LFMQ	Le Castellet	83	424
LFMR	Barcelonnette St Pons	04	1130
LFMS	Ales Déaux	30	204
LFMT	Montpellier Méditerranée	34	5
LFMU	Béziers Vias	34	18
LFMV	Avignon Caumont	84	37
LFMW	Castelnaudary Villeneuve	11	168
LFMX	Château-Arnoux St Auban	04	460
LFMY	Salon de Provence	13	60
LFMZ	Lézignan Corbières	11	63
LFNA	Gap Tallard	05	597
LFNB	Mende Brénoux	48	1023
LFNC	Mont Dauphin St Crépin	05	902
LFND	Pont St Esprit	84	44
LFNE	Salon Eyguieres	13	75
LFNF	Vinon/Verdon	83	275
LFNG	Montpellier Candillargues	34	1
LFNH	Carpentras	84	120
LFNJ	Aspres/Buech	05	830
LFNL	St Martin de Londres	34	182
LFNM	La Mole	83	18
LFNO	Ste Enimie	48	930
LFNP	Pézenas Nizas	34	98
LFNQ	Mont Louis la Quillane	66	1707
LFNR	Berre la Fare	13	33
LFNS	Sisteron Thèse	04	540
LFNT	Avignon Pujaut	30	46
LFNU	Uzès	30	270
LFNV	Valréas Visan	84	144
LFNW	Puivert	11	490
LFNX	Bédarieux la Tour	34	377
LFNZ	Le Mazet de Romanin	13	140
LFOA	Avord	18	176
LFOB	Beauvais Tille	60	109
LFOC	Châteaudun	36	132
LFOD	Saumur St Florent	49	82
LFOE	Evreux Fauville	27	141
LFOF	Alençon Valframbert	61	146
LFOG	Flers Saint Paul	61	200
LFOH	Le Havre Octeville	76	95
LFOI	Abbeville	80	67
LFOJ	Orléans Bricy	45	125
LFOK	Châlons Vatry	51	179
LFOL	L'Aigle St Michel	61	240
LFOM	Lessay	50	28
LFON	Dreux Vernouillet	28	135
LFOO	Les Sables d'Olonne Talmont	85	32
LFOP	Rouen Vallée de Seine	76	156
LFOQ	Blois le Breuil	41	121
LFOR	Chartres Champhol	28	155
LFOS	St Valery Vittefleur	76	83
LFOT	Tours St Symphorien	37	108
LFOU	Cholet le Pontreau	49	135
LFOV	Laval Entrammes	53	100
LFOW	St Quentin Roupy	02	99
LFOX	Etampes Mondésir	91	149
LFOY	Le Havre St Romain	76	129
LFOZ	Orléans St Denis de l'Hôtel	45	120
LFPA	Persan Beaumont	95	46
LFPB	Paris Le Bourget	93	67
LFPC	Creil	60	88
LFPD	Bernay St Martin	27	169
LFPE	Meaux Esbly	77	67
LFPF	Beynes Thiverval	78	113
LFPG	Paris Charles de Gaulle	93	118
LFPH	Chelles le Pin	77	63
LFPK	Coulommiers Voisins	77	143
LFPL	Lognes Emerainville	77	108
LFPM	Melun Villaroche	77	92
LFPN	Toussus le Noble	78	164
LFPO	Paris Orly	91	89
LFPP	Le Plessis Belleville	60	118
LFPQ	Fontenay Trésigny	77	113
LFPT	Pontoise Cormeilles en Vexin	95	99
LFPU	Moret Episy	77	77
LFPV	Villacoublay Velizy	78	177
LFPX	Chavenay Villepreux	78	130
LFPY	Bretigny sur Orge	91	82
LFPZ	St Cyr l'Ecole	78	113
LFQA	Reims Prunay	51	95
LFQB	Troyes Barberey	10	120
LFQC	Lunéville Croismare	54	242
LFQD	Arras Roclincourt	62	103
LFQE	Etain Rouvres	55	234
LFQF	Autun Bellevue	71	304
LFQG	Nevers Fourchambault	58	179
LFQH	Châtillon/Seine	21	276
LFQI	Cambrai Epinoy	59	78
LFQJ	Maubeuge Elesmes	59	137
LFQK	Chalons Ecury sur Coole	51	119
LFQL	Lens Benifontaine	62	51
LFQM	Besançon la Vèze	25	387
LFQN	St Omer Wizernes	62	76
LFQO	Lille Marcq en Baroeul	59	21
LFQP	Bourscheid	57	310
LFQQ	Lille Lesquin	59	48
LFQR	Romilly/Seine	10	82
LFQS	Vitry en Artois	62	53
LFQT	Merville Calonne	59	18
LFQU	Sarre Union	67	255
LFQV	Charleville Mézières	08	149
LFQW	Vesoul Frotey	70	380
LFQX	Juvancourt	10	349
LFQY	Saverne Steinbourg	67	192
LFQZ	Dieuze Guéblange	57	220
LFRA	Angers Avrille	49	57
LFRB	Brest Guipavas	29	99
LFRC	Cherbourg Maupertus	50	139
LFRD	Dinard Pleurtuit St Malo	35	67
LFRE	La Baule Escoublac	44	32
LFRF	Granville	50	11
LFRG	St Gatien	14	146
LFRH	Lorient Lann Bihoué	56	49
LFRI	La Roche/Yon Les Ajoncs	85	91
LFRJ	Landivisiau	29	106
LFRK	Caen Carpiquet	14	78
LFRL	Lanvéoc Poulmic	29	87
LFRM	Le Mans Arnage	72	60
LFRN	Rennes St Jacques	35	37
LFRO	Lannion	22	89
LFRP	Ploërmel Loyat	56	72
LFRQ	Quimper Pluguffan	29	92
LFRS	Nantes Atlantique	44	28
LFRT	St Brieuc Armor	22	138
LFRU	Morlaix Ploujean	29	86
LFRV	Meucon	56	136
LFRW	Avranches le Val St Père	50	8
LFRZ	St Nazaire Montoir	44	4
LFSA	Besançon Thise	25	246
LFSB	Basel-Mulhouse	68	269
LFSC	Colmar Meyenheim	68	211
LFSD	Dijon Longvic	21	222
LFSE	Epinal Dogneville	88	317
LFSF	Metz Frescaty	57	190
LFSG	Epinal Mirecourt	88	331
LFSH	Haguenau	67	150
LFSI	St Dizier Robinson	52	139
LFSJ	Sedan Douzy	08	156
LFSK	Vitry le François Vauclerc	51	125
LFSL	Toul Rosières	54	285
LFSM	Montbéliard Courcelles	25	316
LFSN	Nancy Essey	54	229
LFSO	Nancy Ochey	54	336
LFSP	Pontarlier	25	816
LFSR	Reims Champagne	51	95
LFST	Strasbourg Entzheim	67	153
LFSU	Langres Rolampont	52	420
LFSV	Pont St Vincent	54	407
LFSW	Epernay Plivot	51	88
LFSX	Luxeuil St Sauveur	70	278
LFSZ	Vittel Champ de Course	88	328
LFTF	Cuers Pierrefeu	83	81
LFTH	Hyères le Palyvestre	83	4
LFTM	Serres la Batie Monsaleon	05	714
LFTN	La Grand'Combe	30	502
LFTP	Puimoisson	04	768
LFTQ	Châteaubriant Pouance	49	98
LFTW	Nîmes Garons	30	94
LFXA	Ambérieu	01	251
LFXB	Saintes Thenac	17	36
LFXI	St Christol	84	833
LFXM	Mourmelon	51	118
LFXR	Rochefort Soubise	17	4
LFXU	Les Mureaux	78	28
LFYD	Damblain	88	390
LFYG	Cambrai Niergnies	59	95
LFYH	Broye les Pesmes	70	208
LFYK	Montmedy Marville	55	277
LFYL	Lure Malbouhans	70	317
LFYM	Marigny le Grand	51	101
LFYR	Romorantin Pruniers	41	88
LFYS	Ste Léocadie	66	1318
LFYT	St Simon	02	90

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "List of French airports."

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List of French monarchs

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The following list of French monarchs is one of several Wikipedia lists of incumbents.

The actual beginnings of the French monarchy are somewhat debatable. Much of the question stems from the beginnings of France as a distinct kingdom in the Middle Ages -- that is, several hundred years after the Romans lost control over what is now most of Central and Western Europe.

Most medieval historians would argue that the existence of France proper did not begin until the advent of the Capetian Dynasty in 987, or, at the very earliest, with the establishment of the Kingdom of Western Francia at the Treaty of Verdun in 843. This view is somewhat problematic in layman's terms, however, in part due to the existence of centuries-old tradition that considers the beginnings of France to lie in the Merovingian Frankish kingdom established under Clovis I. This kingdom was founded in the 5th century, and its rulers deposed in the 8th century. This tradition itself is based in part on the need of the post-Carolingian Capetian kings to strengthen their claims to the throne. Over time, these claims became part of the French national identity. Since the 1990s, the very question of nationality, especially for nations who consider their foundations to be in the period from the 5th to 9th centuries, has come under fire. This re-examination has already resulted in several interesting studies (see below), some of which will surely lead to a further redefinition of what it means to be a nation, and how nationality can be better defined.

In light of these recent trends, this list begins with the creation in 843 of Charles the Bald's Kingdom of Western Francia, the state which would directly evolve into modern France. For earlier Frankish monarchs, see List of Frankish Kings.

(Names of regents are included for convenience's sake, though they are of course not actually French monarchs. Note that Charlemagne (768-814) is usually considered to be "Charles I of France", and his son Louis the Pious is numbered as Louis I.)

Carolingian Dynasty (843 to 987).

• Charles the Bald (Charles II) 843-877
• Louis the Stammerer (Louis II) 877-879
• Louis III 879-882
• Carloman 882-884
• Charles the Fat 884-887
• Odo 888-898
• Charles the Simple (Charles III) 898-922
• Robert I 922-923
• Raoul 923-936
• Louis IV 936-954
• Lothair I 954-986
• Louis V, the Indolent 986-987

Capetian Dynasty (987 to 1328).

The Capetian Dynasty, the male-line descendants of Hugh Capet ruled France continuously from 987 to 1792. The branches of the dynasty which ruled after 1328, however, are generally given the specific branch names of Valois and Bourbon

• Hugh Capet, Count of Paris, crowned King of France 987 - 996
• Robert II the Pious 996 - 1031
• Henry I 1031 - 1060
• Philip I the Fair 1060 - 1108
• Louis VI the Fat 1108 - 1137
• Louis VII the Younger 1137 - 1180
• Philip II Augustus 1180 - 1223
• Louis VIII the Lion 1223 - 1226
• Louis IX (St. Louis) 1226 - 1270
  • Blanche of Castile (regent for Louis IX) 1226 - 1234
• Philip III the Bold 1271 - 1285
• Philip IV the Fair 1285 - 1314
• Louis X the Stubborn (1314 - 1316
  • (Philip, brother of Louis X (served as regent before the birth of John I, and during his short life) 1316 - 1316)
• John I the Posthumous 1316
• Philip V the Tall 1316 - 1322
• Charles IV the Fair 1322-1328

Valois Dynasty (1328-1589)

Main Branch (1328-1498)

• Philip VI the Fortunate 1328-1350
• John II the Good 1350-1364
• Charles V the Wise 1364-1380
• Charles VI the Well-Beloved 1380-1422
  • Louis I of Anjou (regent for Charles VI) 1380-1382
• Charles VII the Victorious 1422-1461
• Louis XI 1461-1483
• Charles VIII the Affable 1483-1498
  • Anne de Beaujeu (regent for Charles VIII) 1483-1484

Valois-Orleans Branch (1498-1515)

• Louis XII, the Father of His People 1498-1515

Valois-Angoulême Branch (1515-1589)

• Francis I 1515-1547
• Henry II 1547-1559
• Francis II 1559-1560
  • (Catherine de Medici (served as regent for Charles IX) 1560-1563)
• Charles IX 1560-1574
• Henry III (King of Poland, 1573-1574) 1574-1589

Bourbon Dynasty (1589-1792)

• Henry IV (King Henry III of Navarre, 1572-1610) 1589-1610
  • (Marie de Medici (served as regent for Louis XIII) 1610-1614)
• Louis XIII the Well-Beloved 1610-1643
  • (Anne of Austria (served as regent for Louis XIV) 1643-1651)
• Louis XIV the Sun King 1643-1715
  • (Philippe of Orleans (served as regent for Louis XV) 1715-1723)
• Louis XV the Well-Beloved 1715-1774
• Louis XVI the Beloved 1774-1792

First Republic (1792-1804)

Convention (1792-1795)

Directory (1795-1799)

Consulate (1799-1804)

• Napoleon Bonaparte -- First Consul (1799-1804)

Bonaparte Dynasty -- First Empire (1804-1814)

• Napoleon I, Emperor (1804-1814, The Hundred Days 1815)

Bourbon Dynasty, Restored (1814-1848)

• Louis XVIII (1814-1824)
• Charles X (1824-1830)

Bourbon-Orleans, The Monarchy of July

• Louis-Philippe the Citizen King (1830-1848)

Second Republic (1848-1852)

• Louis Napoleon Bonaparte, President (1848-1852)

Bonaparte Dynasty -- Second Empire (1852-1870)

• Napoleon III of France, Emperor (1852-1870)

The chronology continues on Presidents of France.

References

For a study of France and its rulers, see also:

• Edward James, "The Origins of France: Clovis to the Capetians 500-1000." ISBN: 0333270525
• Edward James, The Franks. Blackwell: 1991. ISBN 0631179364
• The history of France as recounted in the "Grandes Chroniques de France," and particularly in the personal copy produced for King Charles V between 1370 and 1380 that is the saga of the three great dynasties, the Merovingians, Carolingians, and the Capetian Rulers of France, that shaped the institutions and the frontiers of the realm. It should be noted that this work was commissioned at a time that France was embroiled in the Hundred Years' War with England, a war fought over hereditary claims to the throne of France. It must therefore be read with a careful eye toward biases meant to justify the Capetian claims of continuity and inheritance.
• The Cambridge Illustrated History of France - Cambridge University Press
• Paul Fouracre and Richard A. Gerberding, Late Merovingian France: History and Hagiography, 640-720. Manchester University Press - ISBN: 0719047919
• Patrick Geary, Before France and Germany: The Creation and Transformation of the Merovingian World. Oxford: Oxford U. Press, 1988. ISBN 0195044584
• Patrick Geary, The Myth of Nations: The Medieval Origins of Europe. Princeton U. Press, 2001. ISBN 0691114811

Related articles

• Franks (main history of Frankish kingdoms)
• List of Frankish Kings
• History of France
• Members of the French Royal Families
• Donation of Constantine for an example of a document forged to support a traditional claim.
• Kings of France family tree

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "List of French monarchs."

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List of national parks of France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

National parks in France are maintained by Parcs Nationaux de France. There are seven French national parks which protect a total of 3710 km² in central zones and 9162 km² in secondary zones. This puts over 2% of the total area of France under some level of protection. French national parks draw over 7 million visitors every year.

• Cévenne National Park (Parc National des Cévennes)
• Ecrins National Park (Parc National des Écrins)
• Guadeloupe National Park (Parc National de la Guadeloupe)
• Mercantour National Park (Parc National du Mercantour)
• Port-Cros National Park (Parc National de Port-Cros)
• Pyrenees National Park (Parc National des Pyrénées)
• Vanoise National Park (Parc National de la Vanoise)

External link

• http://www.parcsnationaux-fr.com/

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "List of national parks of France."

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List of Prime Ministers of France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

List of French prime ministers

	Prime Minister	from	to
Fifth Republic	Jean-Pierre Raffarin	May 6, 2002
	Lionel Jospin	June 3, 1997	May 6, 2002
	Alain Juppé	May 18, 1995	June 3, 1997
	Edouard Balladur	March 29, 1993	May 18, 1995
	Pierre Bérégovoy	April 2, 1992	March 29, 1993
	Edith Cresson	May 15, 1991	April 2, 1992
	Michel Rocard	May 10, 1988	May 15, 1991
	Jacques Chirac	March 20, 1986	May 10, 1988
	Laurent Fabius	July 17, 1984	March 20, 1986
	Pierre Mauroy	May 21, 1981	July 17, 1984
	Raymond Barre	August 26, 1976	May 21, 1981
	Jacques Chirac	May 27, 1974	August 26, 1976
	Pierre Messmer	April 5, 1973	May 27, 1974
	Jacques Chaban-Delmas	June 20, 1969	April 5, 1973
	Maurice Couve de Murville	July 10, 1968	June 20, 1969
	Georges Pompidou	April 14, 1962	July 10, 1968
	Michel Debré	January 8, 1959	April 14, 1962
Fourth Republic	Charles de Gaulle	June 1, 1958	January 8, 1959
	Pierre Pflimlin	May 13, 1958	June 1, 1958
	Félix Gaillard	November 6, 1957	May 13, 1958
	Maurice Bourgès-Maunoury	June 12, 1957	November 6, 1957
	Guy Mollet	January 31, 1956	June 12, 1957
	Edgar Faure	February 23, 1955	January 31, 1956
	Christian Pineau	February 17, 1955	February 23, 1955
	Pierre Mendès-France	June 18, 1954	February 17, 1955
	Joseph Laniel	June 27, 1953	June 18, 1954
	René Mayer	January 8, 1953	June 27, 1953
	Antoine Pinay	March 8, 1952	January 8, 1953
	Edgar Faure	January 20, 1952	March 8, 1952
	René Pleven	August 11, 1951	January 20, 1952
	Henri Queuille	March 10, 1951	August 11, 1951
	René Pleven	July 12, 1950	March 10, 1951
	Henri Queuille	July 2, 1950	July 12, 1950
	Georges Bidault	October 28, 1949	July 2, 1950
	Henri Queuille	September 11, 1948	October 28, 1949
	Robert Schuman	September 5, 1948	September 11, 1948
	André Marie	July 26, 1948	September 5, 1948
	Robert Schuman	November 24, 1947	July 26, 1948
	Paul Ramadier	January 22, 1947	November 24, 1947
Provisional Government	Léon Blum	December 16, 1946	January 16, 1947
	Georges Bidault	June 24, 1946	December 16, 1946
	Félix Gouin	January 26, 1946	June 24, 1946
	Charles de Gaulle	June 3, 1944	January 26, 1946
Vichy France	Pierre Laval	April 18, 1942	August 17, 1944
	Henri Philippe Pétain	July 11, 1940	April 18, 1942
Third Republic	Henri Philippe Pétain	June 16, 1940	July 11, 1940
	Paul Reynaud	March 21, 1940	June 16, 1940
	Edouard Daladier	April 10, 1938	March 21, 1940
	Léon Blum	March 13, 1938	April 10, 1938
	Camille Chautemps	June 22, 1937	March 13, 1938
	Léon Blum	June 4, 1936	June 22, 1937
	Albert Sarraut	January 24, 1936	June 4, 1936
	Pierre Laval	June 7, 1935	January 24, 1936
	Fernand Bouisson	June 1, 1935	June 7, 1935
	Pierre Flandin	November 8, 1934	June 1, 1935
	Gaston Doumergue	February 9, 1934	November 8, 1934
	Edouard Daladier	January 30, 1934	February 9, 1934
	Camille Chautemps	November 26, 1933	January 30, 1934
	Albert Sarraut	October 26, 1933	November 26, 1933
	Edouard Daladier	January 31, 1933	October 26, 1933
	Joseph Paul-Boncour	December 18, 1932	January 31, 1933
	Edouard Herriot	June 3, 1932	December 18, 1932
	André Tardieu	February 20, 1932	June 3, 1932
	Pierre Laval	January 27, 1931	February 20, 1932
	Théodore Steeg	December 13, 1930	January 27, 1931
	André Tardieu	March 2, 1930	December 13, 1930
	Camille Chautemps	February 21, 1930	March 2, 1930
	André Tardieu	November 2, 1929	February 21, 1930
	Aristide Briand	July 29, 1929	November 2, 1929
	Raymond Poincaré	July 23, 1926	July 29, 1929
	Edouard Herriot	July 20, 1926	July 23, 1926
	Aristide Briand	November 28, 1925	July 20, 1926
	Paul Painlevé	April 17, 1925	November 28, 1925
	Edouard Herriot	June 15, 1924	April 17, 1925
	Frédéric François-Marsal	June 8, 1924	June 15, 1924
	Raymond Poincaré	January 15, 1922	June 8, 1924
	Aristide Briand	January 16, 1921	January 15, 1922
	Georges Leygues	September 24, 1920	January 16, 1921
	Alexandre Millerand	January 20, 1920	September 24, 1920
	Georges Clemenceau	November 16, 1917	January 20, 1920
	Paul Painlevé	September 12, 1917	November 16, 1917
	Alexandre Ribot	March 20, 1917	September 12, 1917
	Aristide Briand	October 29, 1915	March 20, 1917
	René Viviani	June 13, 1914	October 29, 1915
	Alexandre Ribot	June 9, 1914	June 13, 1914
	Gaston Doumergue	December 9, 1913	June 9, 1914
	Louis Barthou	March 22, 1913	December 9, 1913
	Aristide Briand	January 21, 1913	March 22, 1913
	Raymond Poincaré	January 21, 1912	January 21, 1913
	Joseph Caillaux	June 27, 1911	January 21, 1912
	Ernest Monis	March 2, 1911	June 27, 1911
	Aristide Briand	July 24, 1909	March 2, 1911
	Georges Clemenceau	October 25, 1906	July 24, 1909
	Ferdinand Sarrien	March 12, 1906	October 25, 1906
	Maurice Rouvier	January 24, 1905	March 12, 1906
	Émile Combes	June 7, 1902	January 24, 1905
	Pierre Waldeck-Rousseau	June 22, 1899	June 7, 1902
	Charles Dupuy	November 1, 1898	June 22, 1899
	Henri Brisson	June 28, 1898	November 1, 1898
	Jules Méline	April 29, 1896	June 28, 1898
	Léon Bourgeois	November 1, 1895	April 29, 1896
	Alexandre Ribot	January 26, 1895	November 1, 1895
	Charles Dupuy	May 30, 1894	January 26, 1895
	Jean Casimir-Périer	December 3, 1893	May 30, 1894
	Charles Dupuy	April 4, 1893	December 3, 1893
	Alexandre Ribot	December 6, 1892	April 4, 1893
	Émile Loubet	February 27, 1892	December 6, 1892
	Charles de Freycinet	March 17, 1890	February 27, 1892
	Pierre Tirard	February 22, 1889	March 17, 1890
Charles Floquet	April 3, 1888	February 22, 1889
Pierre Tirard	December 12, 1887	April 3, 1888
Maurice Rouvier	May 30, 1887	December 12, 1887
René Goblet	December 16, 1886	May 30, 1887
Charles de Freycinet	January 7, 1886	December 16, 1886
Henri Brisson	April 6, 1885	January 7, 1886
Jules Ferry	February 21, 1883	April 6, 1885
Armand Fallières	January 29, 1883	February 21, 1883
Charles Duclerc	August 7, 1882	January 29, 1883
Charles de Freycinet	January 30, 1882	August 7, 1882
Léon Gambetta	November 14, 1881	January 30, 1882
Jules Ferry	September 23, 1880	November 14, 1881
Charles de Freycinet	December 28, 1879	September 23, 1880
William Waddington	February 4, 1879	December 28, 1879
Jules Dufaure	December 13, 1877	February 4, 1879
Caietan de Grimaudet de Rochebouet	November 23, 1877	December 13, 1877
Jacques Albert, Duc de Broglie	May 17, 1877	November 23, 1877
Jules Simon	December 12, 1876	May 17, 1877
Jules Dufaure	February 23, 1876	December 12, 1876
Louis Buffet	March 10, 1875	February 23, 1876
Ernest Courtot de Cissey	May 22, 1874	March 10, 1875
Jacques Albert, Duc de Broglie	May 25, 1873	May 22, 1874
Jules Dufaure	February 19, 1871	May 24, 1873
Provisional Government	Jules Trochu	September 4, 1870	February 18, 1871
Second Empire	Charles Cousin-Montauban, Comte de Palikao	August 9, 1870	September 4, 1870
	Émile Ollivier	January 2, 1870	August 9, 1870
	None	1851	1870
Second Republic	Comte d'Hautpoul	October 31, 1849	1851
	Odilon Barrot	December 20, 1848	October 31, 1849
	Louis-Eugène Cavaignac	June 28, 1848	December 20, 1848
	Jean Arago	May 10, 1848	June 24, 1848
	Jacques-Charles Dupont de l'Eure	February 24, 1848	May 9, 1848
July Monarchy	Adolphe Thiers	February 24, 1848	February 24, 1848
	Louis, Comte Molé	February 23, 1848	February 24, 1848
	François Guizot	September 19, 1847	February 23, 1848
	Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult, Duc de Dalmatie	October 29, 1840	September 19, 1847
	Adolphe Thiers	March 1, 1840	October 29, 1840
	Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult, Duc de Dalmatie	May 12, 1839	March 1, 1840
	Louis, Comte Molé	September 6, 1836	March 31, 1839
	Adolphe Thiers	February 22, 1836	September 6, 1836
	Achille-Charles, Duc de Broglie	March 12, 1835	February 22, 1836
	Edouard Mortier, Duc de Treviso	November 18, 1834	March 12, 1835
	Hugues Maret, Duc de Bassano	November 10, 1834	November 18, 1834
	Etienne-Maurice, Comte Gérard	July 18, 1834	November 10, 1834
	Nicolas Jean de Dieu Soult, Duc de Dalmatie	October 11, 1832	July 18, 1834
	Casimir Périer	March 13, 1831	May 16, 1832
	Jacques Laffitte	November 2, 1830	March 13, 1831
	Achille-Charles, Duc de Broglie	August 13, 1830	November 2, 1830
Restoration	Jules, Prince de Polignac	August 8, 1829	July 29, 1830
	Jean-Baptiste Gaye, Vicomte de Martignac	January 4, 1828	August 8, 1829
	Jean-Baptiste, Comte de Villèle	December 14, 1821	January 4, 1828
	Armand-Emmanuel du Plessis, Duc de Richelieu	February 20, 1820	December 14, 1821
	Elie, Comte Decazes	November 19, 1819	February 20, 1820
	Jean-Joseph, Marquis Dessolles	December 29, 1818	November 19, 1819
	Armand-Emmanuel du Plessis, Duc de Richelieu	September 26, 1815	December 29, 1818
	Charles-Maurice de Talleyrand-Périgord, Prince de Benevente	July 9, 1815	September 26, 1815

See also: President of France, Politics of France, History of France, List of Foreign Ministers of France

External link

• List on the website of the French Prime Minister (in French)

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "List of Prime Ministers of France."

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Louis VII of France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Louis VII (1120 - 1180) was King of France from 1137 to 1180.

A member of the Capetian Dynasty, Louis VII was born in 1120, the second son of Louis the Fat and Adélaide of Maurienne (c.1100-1154). Construction began on Notre-Dame de Paris in Paris during his reign.

In the same year he was crowned king of France, Louis VII was married on July 22, 1137 to Eleanor of Aquitaine (1122- March 31, 1204), heiress of William II, Duke of Aquitaine. They divorced in 1152 but had two daughters:

• 1) Marie (1138 - March 11, 1198)
• 2) Eléonore (1149 - 1184)

In 1154 Louis VII married Constance of Castile (1140 - October 4,1160). Their children were:

• Marguerite
• Alix, Countess de Vexin

He married again on November 13, 1160 to Adèle of Champagne (1140 - June 4, 1206). Their children were:

• 1) Philippe II (August 21, 1165 - July 14, 1223)
• 2) Agnès (c. 1171 - April 1240)

In the first part of Louis VII’s reign he was vigorous and jealous of his prerogatives, but after his crusade his religiosity developed to such an extent as to make him utterly inefficient. His accession was marked by no disturbances, save the risings of the burgesses of Orleans and of Poitiers, who wished to organize communes. But soon he came into violent conflict with Pope Innocent II. The archbishopric of Bourges became vacant, and the king supported as candidate the chancellor Cadurc, against the pope's nominee Pierre de la Chatre, swearing upon relics that so long as he lived Pierre should never enter Bourges. This brought the interdict upon the king's lands. At the same time he became involved in a war with Theobald, Count of Champagne, by permitting Rodolphe, Count of Vermandois and seneschal of France, to repudiate his wife, Theobald's niece, and to marry Petronille of Aquitaine, sister of the queen of France.

The war, which lasted two years (1142-44), was marked by the occupation of Champagne by the royal army and the capture of Vitry, where many persons perished in the burning of the church. Geoffrey the Handsome, count of Anjou, by his conquest of Normandy threatened the royal domains, and Louis VII by a clever manoeuvre threw his army on the Norman frontier and gained Gisors, one of the keys of Normandy.

At his court which met in Bourges Louis declared on Christmas Day 1145 his intention of going on a crusade. Bernard of Clairvaux assured its popularity by his preaching at Vezelay (Easter 1146), and in June 1147 Louis set out from Metz, Lorraine, on the overland route to Syria. The expedition was disastrous, and he returned to France in 1149, overcome by the humiliation of the crusade.

In the rest of his reign he showed much feebleness and poor judgment. He committed a grave political blunder in causing a council at Beaugency (March 1152) to annul his marriage with Eleanor of Aquitaine, under pretext of kinship, but really owing to violent quarrels during the crusade. Eleanor married Henry, Count of Anjou in the following May, and brought him the duchy of Aquitaine. Louis VII led a half-hearted war against Henry for having married without the authorization of his suzerain; but in August 1154 gave up his rights over Aquitaine, and contented himself with an indemnity.

In 1154 Louis married Constance, daughter of Alfonso VII, king of Castile, and their daughter Marguerite he pledged imprudently in the treaty of Gisors (1158) to Henry, eldest son of the king of England, promising as a dowry, Vexin and Gisors.

Five weeks after the death of Constance, on the 4th of October 1160, Louis VII married Adele of Champagne, and Henry II to counterbalance the aid this would give the king of France, had the marriage of their infant children celebrated at once. Louis VII gave little sign of understanding the danger of the growing Angevin power though in 1159 he made an expedition in the south to aid Raymond V, Count of Toulouse, who had been attacked by Henry II. At the same time the emperor Frederick I in the east was making good the imperial claims on Aries. When the schism broke out, Louis took the part of the pope, Alexander III, the enemy of Frederick, and after two comedy-like failures of Frederick to meet Louis VII at Saint Jean de Losne (on the 29th of August and the 22nd of September 1162), Louis definitely gave himself up to the cause of Alexander, who lived at Sens from 1163 to 1165. Alexander gave the king, in return for his loyal support, the golden rose.

Louis VII received Thomas Becket and tried to reconcile him with King Henry II. He supported Henry's rebellious sons, but acted slowly and feebly and so contributed largely to the break up of the coalition (1173-1174). Finally in 1177 the pope intervened to bring the two kings to terms at Vitry.

His reign from the point of view of royal territory and military Dower, was a period of retrogression. Yet the royal authority had made progress in the parts of France distant from the royal domains. More direct and more frequent connecion was made with distant vassals, a result largely due to the alliance of the clergy with the crown. Louis thus reaped the reward for services rendered the church during the least successful portion of his reign.

He was to be succeeded by his son by Adèle, Philip II Augustus and had him crowned at Reims in 1179. However, already stricken with paralysis, King Louis himself was not able to be present at the ceremony.

Louis VII died on November 18, 1180 at the Abbey at Saint-Pont, Allier and is interred in Saint Denis Basilica.

Preceded by: Louis VI

List of French monarchs

Succeeded by: Philip II

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Louis VII of France."

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Orange, France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

See also Orange (disambiguation) for other meanings of the word.

Orange is a city in the département of Vaucluse, in the south of France.

Its Roman theatre, together with its surroundings and the "Triumphal Arch" have been listed by the UNESCO as one of the World Heritage Sites (1981). The Roman city was known as Colonia Julia Firma Secundanorum Arausio.

See also: Prince of Orange, House of Orange-Nassau

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Orange, France."

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Places in Atlas Shrugged

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

This page aims to consolidate dozens of one-paragraph place descriptions into a single page. It is still very much a work in progress.

Warning: Wikipedia contains spoilers

Places in Ayn Rand's novel, Atlas Shrugged

(in alphabetical order):

Algeria: In section 152, we learn Francisco d'Anconia threw a party at an Algerian desert resort where he gave away an ermine coat to any woman who undressed in step with the melting of ice sculptures.

Andes: Francisco d'Anconia has a villa in the Andes. This is mentioned in section 141. Sebastian d'Anconia's first estate in the New World was a shack in the foothills of the Andes (section 152).

Argentina: Argentina is the home of Francisco d'Anconia and the ancestral home of his family. Sebastian d'Anconia fled to Argentina to escape the Inquisition.

• Argentina is mentioned in sections 132 and 152.

Arizona: Arizona is the home of the Phoenix-Durango railroad.

Arizona is mentioned in sections 111, 146 and 171.

Atlantic Ocean: The Atlantic Ocean is mentioned in section 161. It is where Ragnar Danneskjold is active as a pirate.

Bar Harbor: Bar Harbor is a city in Maine that is mentioned in section 161 as a place where Ragnar Danneskjold has been spotted.

Buenos Aries: The home of the d'Anconia estate and the residence of Francisco's Father.

California: Hank Rearden has business concerns on California. In section 121 Lillian Rearden asks Rearden to promise he won't be in California on the night of December 10.

Cheyenne Wyoming: Cheyenne, Wyoming is the northern terminus of the Rio Norte Line.

It is mentioned in sections 111 and 171.

Chicago: Dagny Taggart passes through Chicago while returning from an inspection of the Rio Norte Line in section 112. In section 171 we learn Dagny flew to Chicago to take over Summit Casting which had gone bankrupt before delivering parts needed for the Rio Norte Line.

Chile: Francisco d'Anconia owns extensive mining properties in Chile. Chile is mentioned in section 132.

Cleveland:

• Cleveland is the home of Patrick Henry University.
• Dagny Taggart got off her train at Cleveland while returning from an inspection of the Rio Norte Line in section 112. She phoned Hank Rearden and placed the first order of Rearden Metal.
• McNamara's offices are located in Cleveland.

Cleveland is mentioned in sections 111, 114, 133 and 152.

Colorado: Colorado is the home of Wyatt Oil and the state with the most vigorous economy in the beginning of Atlas Shrugged. It is served by Taggart Transcontinental's collapsing Rio Norte Line. It is also the location of Galt's Gulch.

Colorado is mentioned in sections 111, 114, 145, 146, 147, 148, 161 and 171.

Connecticut: The home of Amalgamated Switch and Signal.

Connecticut is mentioned in section 171.

Delaware Bay: An inlet of the Atlantic Ocean off New Jersey and Delaware - in section 161 it is mentioned as a place where Ragnar Danneskjold has been spotted.

Denver: The home of Barton and Jones.

Mentioned in section 171.

Detroit: Hank Rearden knows a contractor in Detroit who is interested in buying Rearden Metal.

Detroit is mentioned in section 161.

El Paso, Texas: El Paso, Texas is the southern terminus of the Rio Norte Line. Francisco d'Anconia was in El Paso at the time Mrs. Gilbert Vail claimed he was with her in the Andes.

El Paso is mentioned in sections 111 and 152.

England: The People's State of England is mentioned in section 161. Ragnar Danneskjold's ship is said to be better than any in the English navy.

Europe: In Atlas Shrugged, Europe has declined faster than the United States and has become an economic wasteland. For the most part, countries in Europe are mentioned only in the context of a relief ship being sent there, usually one that has been seized by Ragnar Danneskjold.

Europe is mentioned in section 161.

Fifth Avenue: A street in downtown New York. In section 111, Eddie Willers walks down Fifth Avenue on his way to the Taggart Transcontinental building.

France: The People's State of France was to receive a large ship of relief supplies from the United States, but this ship was seized by Ragnar Danneskjold. This is mentioned in section 161.

Hudson River: Dagny Taggart's childhood home was located in the hills overlooking The Hudson River. The home is also said to be five miles from Rockdale, though the actual Rockdale, NY is more like one hundred miles from the Hudson River.

It is mentioned in sections 111, 152 and 175.

Illinois: The home of Summit Casting.

Illinois is mentioned in section 171.

Lake Michigan: Ore is shipped across Lake Michigan. However the ships used to transport it are growing so old that the shipping lanes are dying. Paul Larkin cuts a deal with James Taggart to ship his ore by rail, which drives the Lake Michigan shippers out of existence, and makes Larkin dependent on Taggart.

Louisiana: Eddie Willers finds a wood-burning locomotive in Louisiana which is used to run trains on the San Sebastian Line. This is mentioned in section 132.

Madrid: In section 152 a young Francisco d'Anconia mentions he spent a winter in Madrid with the Duke of Alba.

Maine: Maine is mentioned in passing in section 161. Someone is complaining about the sense of forebodding she has whenever it is dark, as if the daylight will never return. Another woman says her cousin in Maine feels the same way. The conversation then turns to Ragnar Danneskjold, who has been seen off the coast of Maine.

Mexico: Mexico, formally the People\'s State of Mexico, is a poor, corrupt third-world nation. It is the home of the San Sebastian Mines and of Taggart Transcontinental's San Sebastian Line. After millions of investment dollars are poured into these projects, they are nationalized by the Mexican government.

Mexico is mentioned in sections 111, 131, 132, 142, 143, 151 and 152.

Mexico City: Jules Mott is Taggart Transcontinental's representative in Mexico City.

Mexico City is mentioned in sections 142 and 143.

Middle West: Nathaniel Taggart is rumoured to have killed a state legislator from the Middle West. Supposedly the legislator had sold short shares of Taggart's railroad, and was using his power in the state government to drive the railroad into bankruptcy. This is mentioned in section 132.

Minnesota: Minnesota was the location of Hank Rearden's first job, working in the iron mines at age 14. He continues to hold business concerns there. In section 171 Rearden lies to Dagny Taggart about going to Minnesota so he doesn't have to fly with her to New York.

Minnesota is mentioned in sections 121 and 171.

Montana: The location of Francisco d'Anconia's first job with d'Anconia Copper.

It is mentioned in section 152.

Nantucket: Nantucket is an island off the southern coast of Massachusetts, Ragnar Danneskjold has been spotted there.

Nantucket is mentioned in section 161. New Hampshire: New Hampshire is the home of The State Science Institute, a government research institution and the only research facility left in the country.

New Hampshire is mentioned in section 174.

New Jersey: New Jersey is the home of United Locomotive Works.

New Jersey is mentioned in section 141.

New Mexico: New Mexico is a state where the Phoenix-Durango has successfully obtained the freight business that formerly went to the Rio Norte Line. After the passage of the Anti-dog-eat-dog Rule the Phoenix-Durango is forced to abandon operations in New Mexico, as well as in Colorado.

New Mexico is mentioned in sections 111 and 146.

New York: New York is the home of Taggart Transcontinental and the scene of much of the action in Atlas Shrugged. New York is treated as the cultural and intellectual center of the United States.

It appears in sections 111, 113, 114, 141, 152, 161, 162 and 171.

Norway: The People's State of Norway was the home of Ragnar Danneskjold, who can no longer return there because they have put a million-dollar price on his head.

It is mentioned in section 161.

Ohio: In section 112, Dagny Taggart decides to appoint Owen Kellogg as the new head of Taggart Transcontinental's Ohio Division.

Ohio is mentioned in sections 112 and 114.

Pennsylvania: Home of Rearden Steel. A newspaper ridiculed Rearden for starting a steel company, claiming "The historical cycle of steelmaking in Pennsylvania is running down."

Philadelphia: Philadelphia is the home of Hank Rearden and Rearden Steel.

Philadelphia is mentioned in sections 114 and 121.

Portugal: The People's State of Portugal is another country that is offering a reward for the capture of Ragnar Danneskjold.

It is mentioned in section 161.

Redding: In section 121 Philip Rearden mentions visiting Redding. It is not clear which Redding this is, possible Redding, Connecticut.

Rockdale: A town near the Taggart estate in upstate New York. Dagny Taggart had her first position working for Taggart Transcontinental at the Rockdale Station, when she was 16. The Taggart estate overlooks the Hudson River. Rockport, we are told, is five miles from the estate. The actual town of Rockport, New York is more like 100 miles from the Hudson River.

San Francisco: San Francisco is the western terminus of Taggart Transcontinental. It is mentioned in section 111.

Scotland: Scotland is mentioned in section 161. Someone reports that Ragnar Danneskjold's ship had been spotted there.

Spain: Spain is the ancestral home of the d'Anconias. Sebastian d'Anconia fled Spain to escape the Inquisition.

This is mentioned in section 152.

Turkey: The People's State of Turkey is another country that is offering a reward for the capture of Ragnar Danneskjold.

It is mentioned in section 161.

United States: The United States is the setting of Atlas Shrugged. While almost every other nation has become a socialist "People's State", the United States remains the last country with some semblance of a free economy. This is rapidly changing, and the book follows the United States as it gradually beomes a "People's State" itself.

(This point is unconfirmed): In the novel, the United States is not referred to as America.

The United States is mentioned in section 132.

Valparaiso: In section 152 the harbor of Valparaiso is mentioned as a location for one of Francisco d'Anconia's parties. At this party, the guests wore bathing suits, and were showered with champagne throughout the night.

Washington: Washington is the seat of the government of the United States. Throughout Atlas Shrugged it is portrayed as a corrupt center of bureaucratic looters. Many directives that affect the plot are issued from Washington, but little to none of the book's action occurs there.

Washington is mentioned in sections 121, 131, 132, 143 and 161.

Wilmington: In section 121 Philip Rearden mentions visiting Wilmington. Presumably this is Wilmington, Delaware.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Places in Atlas Shrugged."

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Politics of France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

France is an indivisible, secular, democratic and social republic. It ensures the equality before the law of all citizens without distinction of origin, race or religion.

The Constitution

Main article: Constitution of France

A popular referendum approved the constitution of the Fifth Republic in 1958, greatly strengthening the authority of the presidency and the executive in relation to Parliament.

The executive branch

France has an original system with an executive headed by two officials: the President and the Prime Minister.

The President of the Republic

Main article: President of France

Under the constitution, a president was originally elected for a seven year term; this however has now been reduced to five years. The president names the prime minister, presides over the cabinet, commands the armed forces, and concludes treaties. The president may submit questions to a national referendum and can dissolve the National Assembly. In certain emergency situations, the president may assume full powers.

Under the system created by Charles de Gaulle, the President is the pre-eminent executive figure, who names the Prime Minister and cabinet, which is composed of a varying number of ministers, ministers-delegates, and secretaries of state. Where the President's political party or supporters control parliament, the President is in effect the dominant player in executive action, chosing whomever he wishes for government, and having it follow his political agenda. However where the President's political opponents control parliament, the President's dominance can be severely limited, as he must choose a prime minister and cabinet reflecting the majority in parliament. Where parties from opposite ends of the political spectrum control parliament and the presidency, the power-sharing arrangement is known as Cohabitation.

As of 2003, the President is Jacques Chirac (since 17 May 1995).

The cabinet of ministers

The gouvernement, or cabinet, is headed by the Prime Minister. It has at its disposal the civil service the government agencies and the armed forces.

The cabinet is responsible before Parliament, and the National Assembly may vote a motion of censure, which forces the resignation of the cabinet. Ministers have to answer questions from members of Parliament, both written and oral; this is known as the questions au gouvernement. In addition, ministers are to attend meetings of the houses of Parliament where laws pertaining to their area of responsability are discussed.

Traditionally, the cabinet comprises, in decreasing rank:

• ministers
• deputy ministers (ministres délégués), who assist a minister in parts of its duties;
• secretaries of state (secrétaires d'état), who assist a minister in parts of its duties and attend cabinet meetings only occasionally.

In the past of the Fifth Republic, some ministers of particular importance were called "ministers of state" (ministres d'État), but this was of purely honorific signifiance.

The number of ministries and the splitting of responsabilities and administrations between them varies between the successive cabinets, but some positions tend to stay the same, even though the exact title of the position may vary:

• Ministry of Finances (taxes, budget),
• Ministry of the Interior (law enforcement, relationships with local governments),
• Ministry of Justice (prisons, running the court system, supervision of the prosecution service),
• Ministry of Education,
• Ministry of Defense,
• Ministry of Foreign Affairs

The prime minister signs decrees, which are countersigned by the competent ministers. All ministers may take administrative decisions (arrêtés) in their field of competence. Anybody with an interest in the case may sue before the Conseil d'État for the cancellation of a decree or decision.

The gouvernement has a leading role in shaping the agenda of the houses of Parliament. It may propose laws to Parliament , as well as amendments during parliamentary meetings. It may make use of some procedures to speed up parliamentary deliberations.

The cabinet has weekly meetings (in normal times, on Wednesday mornings) at the Élysée Palace chaired by the president.

As of 2003, the prime minister is Jean-Pierre Raffarin (since 6 may 2002).

The legislative branch

Parliament meets for one 9-month session each year: under special circumstances the president can call an additional session. Although parliamentary powers have diminished from those existing under the Fourth Republic, the National Assembly can still cause a government to fall if an absolute majority of the total Assembly membership votes to censure.

The National Assembly

Main article: French National Assembly

The National Assembly is the principal legislative body. Its 577 deputies are directly elected for 5-year terms in local majority votes, and all seats are voted on in each election.

The National Assembly may cause the resignation of the executive cabinet by voting a motion of censure. For this reason, the prime minister and his cabinet are necessarily from the dominant party or coalition in the assembly. In the case of a president and assembly from opposing parties, this leads to the situation known as cohabitation.

The Senate

Senators are chosen by an electoral college of about 145,000 local elected officials for 6-year terms, and one half of the Senate is renewed every 3 years. There are currently 321 senators, but there will be 346 in 2010; 304 represent the départements - including the overseas departments - while 5 represent the other dependencies and 12 the French established abroad.

The Senate's legislative powers are limited; on most matters of legislation, the National Assembly has the last word in the event of a disagreement between the two houses.

Since the beginning of the Fifth Republic, the Senate has always had a right-wing majority. This, the indirect mode of election and the inequality of representation with respect to demographics prompted (now former) prime minister Lionel Jospin to declare the Senate an "anachronism".

The Judiciary

The most distinctive feature of the French judicial system is that it is divided into the judiciary and the administrative orders of courts.

The Judicial Order

The judicial order of courts judges civil and penal cases. It consists in first instance courts, courts of appeal, and the Cour de cassation at its helm.

Judges are civil servants, but enjoy special statutory protection from the executive. They may not be moved or promoted without their consent. Their career are overseen by the High Council of the Magistracy

The prosecution service, on the other hand, responds to the Minister of Justice. This has in the past led to suspicions of pressures to drop litigation against politicians suspected of corruption, and the topic of the status of the prosecutors comes up regularly in political discussions.

Trial by jury are used in the judgment of the most severe crimes.

Pre-judgment proceedings are inquisitorial, but the actual court appearance is rather adversarial.

As in all democracies respecting human rights, criminal justice legally respects the presumption of innocence.

Local Government

Traditionally, decision-making in France was highly centralized, with each of France's departments headed by a prefect appointed by the central government. In 1982, the national government passed legislation to decentralize authority by giving a wide range of administrative and fiscal powers to local elected officials. In March 1986, regional councils were directly elected for the first time, and the process of decentralization continues, albeit at a slow pace.

Administrative units with a local government consist in:

• about 36000 communes, headed by a municipal council and a mayor, grouped in
• 100 départements, headed by a conseil général and its president, grouped in
• 22 régions, headed by a regional council and its president.

Different levels of administration have different duties, and shared responsibility is common; for instance, in the field of education, communes run public elementary schools, while départements run public junior highschools and régions run public highschools, but only for the building and upkeep of buildings; curricula and teaching personnel are supplied by the national Ministry of Education.

Modern French Politics under President Chirac

During his first 2 years in office, President Jacques Chirac's prime minister was Alain Juppé, who served contemporaneously as leader of Chirac's neo-Gaullist (RPR) Party. Chirac and Juppé benefited from a very large, if rather unruly, majority in the National Assembly (470 out of 577 seats). Mindful that the government might have to take politically costly decisions in advance of the legislative elections planned for spring 1998 in order to ensure that France met the Maastricht criteria for the single European currency, Chirac decided in April to call early elections.

The Left, led by Socialist Party leader Lionel Jospin, whom Chirac had defeated in the 1995 presidential race-unexpectedly won a solid National Assembly majority (319 seats, with 289 required for an absolute majority). President Chirac named Jospin prime minister on June 2, and Jospin went on to form a government composed primarily of Socialist ministers, along with some ministers from allied parties of the Left, such as the Communist Party and the Greens. Jospin stated his support for continued European integration and his intention to keep France on the path toward Economic and Monetary Union, albeit with greater attention to social concerns.

The tradition in periods of "cohabitation" (president of one party, prime minister of another) is for the president to exercise the primary role in foreign and security policy, with the dominant role in domestic policy falling to the prime minister and his government. Jospin stated, however, that he would not a priori leave any domain exclusively to the president.

Chirac and Jospin worked together, for the most part, in the foreign affairs field with representatives of the presidency and the government pursuing a single, agreed French policy. Their "cohabitation" arrangement was the longest-lasting in the history of the Fifth Republic. However it ended, following the National Assembly elections that followed Chirac's heavy defeat of Jospin (who failed even to make it through to the second round of voting) in the 2002 presidential election. President Chirac's current prime minister is the right wing Jean-Pierre Raffarin.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Politics of France."

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President of France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

The President of France is France's elected Head of State, currently Jacques Chirac.

Presidential attributions

Unlike many other European presidents, the office of the French President is quite a powerful one, especially in matters of foreign policy. However, it is the prime minister and his gouvernement that run the country.

Current constitutional attributions

The constitutional attributions of the president are defined in Title II of the Constitution of France.

Article 5 The President of the Republic shall see that the Constitution is observed. He shall ensure, by his arbitration, the proper functioning of the public authorities and the continuity of the State. He shall be the guarantor of national independence, territorial integrity and observance of treaties.

Article 8 The President of the Republic shall appoint the Prime Minister. He shall terminate the appointment of the Prime Minister when the latter tenders the resignation of the Government. On the proposal of the Prime Minister, he shall appoint the other members of the Government and terminate their appointments.

Article 9 The President of the Republic shall preside over the Council of Ministers.

Article 10 The President of the Republic shall promulgate Acts of Parliament within fifteen days following the final adoption of an Act and its transmission to the Government. He may, before the expiry of this time limit, ask Parliament to reconsider the Act or sections of the Act. Reconsideration shall not be refused.

Article 11 [the president may submit laws to the citizens in a referendum]

Article 12 The President of the Republic may, after consulting the Prime Minister and the Presidents of the assemblies, declare the National Assembly dissolved. A general election shall take place not less than twenty days and not more than forty days after the dissolution. The National Assembly shall convene as of right on the second Thursday following its election. Should it so convene outside the period prescribed for the ordinary session, a session shall be called by right for a fifteen-day period. No further dissolution shall take place within a year following this election.

Article 13 The President of the Republic shall sign the ordinances and decrees deliberated upon in the Council of Ministers. He shall make appointments to the civil and military posts of the State. [...]

Article 14 The President of the Republic shall accredit ambassadors and envoys extraordinary to foreign powers ; foreign ambassadors and envoys extraordinary shall be accredited to him.

Article 15 The President of the Republic shall be commander-in-chief of the armed forces. He shall preside over the higher national defence councils and committees.

Article 16 Where the institutions of the Republic, the independence of the Nation, the integrity of its territory or the fulfilment of its international commitments are under serious and immediate threat, and where the proper functioning of the constitutional public authorities is interrupted, the President of the Republic shall take the measures required by these circumstances, after formally consulting the Prime Minister, the Presidents of the assemblies and the Constitutional Council. He shall inform the Nation of these measures in a message. The measures must stem from the desire to provide the constitutional public authorities, in the shortest possible time, with the means to carry out their duties. The Constitutional Council shall be consulted with regard to such measures. Parliament shall convene as of right. The National Assembly shall not be dissolved during the exercise of the emergency powers.

Article 16 has been used only once, by Charles de Gaulle during the Algerian War, from April 23 to au September 29, 1961.

Article 17 The President of the Republic has the right to grant pardon.

Article 18 The President of the Republic shall communicate with the two assemblies of Parliament by means of messages, which he shall cause to be read and which shall not be the occasion for any debate. Outside sessions, Parliament shall be convened especially for this purpose.

Since 1875, the President is prohibited from entering the houses of Parliament.

Article 19 Acts of the President of the Republic, other than those provided for under articles 8 (first paragraph), 11, 12, 16, 18, 54, 56 and 61, shall be countersigned by the Prime Minister and, where required, by the appropriate ministers.

The fluctuating power of the French presidency

The position of France's presidents has grown and reduced in importance depending on the French constitution in place. Under the Second Republic the President possessed considerable power. Under the Third Republic France adopted a classic parliamentary system of government, with a weak presidency akin to a constitutional monarch. Though with somewhat different powers, the President under the Fourth Republic was also a weak, marginalised figure.

One of the major critics of that system was General Charles de Gaulle, the leader of the Free French during the German occupation in World War II who had urged the creation of a stronger presidency in the drafting of the Fourth Republic's constitution. De Gaulle's vision was reflected in the constitution of the Fifth Republic, which provided a classic dyarchy, with a strong president and a Prime Minister answerable to both parliament in the President (see semi-presidential system). Where the President's party controls the French National Assembly, he is the dominant political figure, controlling what is in effect his government. Where however the opposition control parliament, the President is forced to choose a prime minister from, or acceptable to, the opposition, leading to the sharing of power, a process known as cohabitation. Usually that involves the opposition-orientated prime minister and government dealing with the internal governance of France, without major policy involvement from the President. In turn the government give the President considerable freedom to represent France on the international stage, shaping foreign policy, with both the President and Prime Minister representing France at European Council meetings.

The changing fortune of presidents is reflected in their role with the Council of Ministers. All presidents since the Second Republic (1848-1852) have chaired the Council of Ministers. In most of the Republics, the Council operated as little more than a rubber stamp, to which decisions taken by ministers at separate extra-constitutional cabinet meetings chaired by the Prime Ministers were taken for formal adoption. Under the Fourth Republic the informal cabinet was given constitutional status as the Cabinet Council. However under the Fifth Republic, Council of Ministers' meetings under the President's chairmanship became the main and real formulator of governmental policy and not just a technical rubber stamp for decisions taken elsewhere.

Other information

The official residence and office of the president is the Élysée Palace in Paris. Other presidential residences include:

• the Fort de Bregançon, in southeastern France, is the current official presidential vacationing residence;
• the Hôtel de Marigny; standing next to the Élysée Palace, it houses foreign official guests;
• the Château de Rambouillet is normally open to visitors when not used for (rare) official meetings;
• the Domaine National de Marly is normally open to visitors when not used for (rare) official meetings;
• the Domaine de Souzy-la-Briche, not a historical monument, is a private residence.

Presidents of France are de jure Co-Prince of Andorra.

Presidents of France

The list below follows on from List of French monarchs.

• Second Republic
  • Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte, (1848-1852)

• Third Republic
  • Adolphe Thiers, 1871-1873 (Thiers became president before the adoption of the Constitution of 1875 so his constitutional position was different to later presidents.)
  • Patrice MacMahon, duc de Magenta, 1873-1879
  • Jules Grévy, 1879-1887
  • Marie François Sadi Carnot, 1887-1894
  • Jean Casimir-Périer, 1894-1895
  • Félix Faure, 1895-1899
  • Émile Loubet, 1899-1906
  • Armand Fallières, 1906-1913
  • Raymond Poincaré, 1913-1920
  • Paul Deschanel, February 18 1920 - September 21 1920
  • Alexandre Millerand, 1920-1924
  • Gaston Doumergue, 1924-1931
  • Paul Doumer, 1931-1932
  • Albert Lebrun, 1932-1940

• Vichy France
  • Henri Philippe Pétain, 1940-1944 ("Head of State", not President)

• Free France
  • Charles de Gaulle, 1940-1944 ("Head of the Free French", not President)

• Provisional Government of the Republic ("Head of the Provisional Government", not President)
  • Charles de Gaulle, 1944-1946
  • Félix Gouin, Georges Bidault and Léon Blum, 1946-1947

• Fourth Republic
  • Vincent Auriol, 1947-1954
  • René Coty, 1954-1959

• Fifth Republic
  • Charles de Gaulle, 1959-1969
  • Georges Pompidou, 1969-1974
  • Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, 1974-1981
  • François Mitterrand, 1981-1995
  • Jacques Chirac, from 1995

Presidential elections results

French presidential election, 2002

Election results, first ballot (April 21, 2002):
Registered voters : 41 194 689
Number of voters : 29 495 733
Valid votes : 28 498 471

• Jacques Chirac 19.88%
• Jean-Marie Le Pen 16.86%
• Lionel Jospin 16.18%
• François Bayrou 6.84%
• Arlette Laguiller 5.72%
• Jean-Pierre Chevenement 5.33%
• Noël Mamere 5.25%
• Olivier Besancenot 4.25%
• Jean Saint-Josse 4.23%
• Alain Madelin 3.91%
• Robert Hue 3.37%
• Bruno Megret 2.34%
• Christine Taubira 2.32%
• Christine Boutin 1.19%
• Corinne Lepage 1.88%
• Daniel Gluckstein 0.47%

Election results, second ballot :

• Jacques Chirac (RPR) 82.21%
• Jean-Marie Le Pen (FN) 17.71%

See also : Politics of France, List of French prime ministers, List of Foreign Ministers of France

External link

• Web page of the President

  Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "President of France."

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Tourism in France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Tourism > Tourism in France

Chateau of Josselin, in Brittany, France.
Larger version

France is one of the "classics among tourist countries". It offers mountain ranges, coastlines like in Brittany or along the Mediterranean Sea, cities with a rich cultural heritage, châteaux and castles like Versailles, countryside, vineyards in Burgundy and the metropolis of Paris with the Louvre, boulevards, the Eiffel Tower, Arc de Triomphe and cathedral of Notre-Dame.

In the eastern parts of France there are famous skiing resorts in the Alps. Other famous cities are Avignon with the old pope's palace, Arles, Aix-en-Provence, Marseille, Nice, Orleans on the Loire River, Strasbourg on the border to Germany or Lyon.

France is easy to discover by train. It offers a high-speed train service called TGV (train à grande vitesse) as well as regional service, both operated by the SNCF.

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Tourism in France."

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Transportation in France

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Railways:

total: 31,939 km (31,940 km are operated by French National Railways (SNCF); 14,176 km of SNCF routes are electrified and 12,132 km are double- or multiple-tracked)
standard gauge: 31,840 km 1.435-m gauge
narrow gauge: 99 km 1.000-m gauge (1998)

Trains, unlike road traffic, drive on the left.

See also: TGV, high-speed train, French railway history, Chemins de Fer de Provence, Eurotunnel.

Underground railway systems:

• Paris Metro, operated by the RATP (Régie Autonome des Transports Parisiens) and the RER
• Lille, VAL (Véhicule Automatique Léger, "Light Automatic Vehicule"), operated by Transpole.
• Lyon
• Marseille, operated by the RTM (Régie des Transports de Marseille)
• Rennes, VAL
• Toulouse, VAL

Tramway and light rail:

This mode of transportation started disappearing in France at the end of the 1930s. Since the 1980s, several cities have re-introduced it.
List of cities operating a tramway or light rail system:

• Grenoble, since 1987
• Ile-de-France
  • T1 between Saint Denis and Bobigny, since 1992
  • T2 between La Defense and Issy Plaine, since 1997
• Lille - Roubaix - Tourcoing
• Lyon, since 2001
• Marseille
• Montpellier
• Nantes, since 1985
• Orléans
• Rouen
• Saint-Etienne
• Strasbourg, since 1994

Closed:

• Paris, since March 1937

Highways:
total: 893,300 km
paved: 893,300 km (including 10,300 km of expressways)
unpaved: 0 km (1998 est.)

Waterways: 14,932 km; 6,969 km heavily traveled

Pipelines: crude oil 3,059 km; petroleum products 4,487 km; natural gas 24,746 km

Seaports and harbors: Bordeaux, Boulogne, Cherbourg, Dijon, Dunkerque, La Pallice, Le Havre, Lyon, Marseille, Mulhouse, Nantes, Paris, Rouen, Saint-Nazaire, Saint Malo, Strasbourg

Merchant marine:
total: 55 ships (1,000 GRT or over) totaling 1,155,286 GRT/1,693,030 DWT
ships by type: bulk 3, cargo 5, chemical tanker 6, combination bulk 1, container 5, liquified gas 4, multi-functional large load carrier 1, passenger 3, petroleum tanker 16, roll-on/roll-off 6, short-sea passenger 4, specialized tanker 1 (1999 est.)
note: France also maintains a captive register for French-owned ships in Iles Kerguelen (French Southern and Antarctic Lands) (1998 est.)

List of French Airports: 474 (1999 est.)

Airports - with paved runways:
total: 267
over 3,047 m: 14
2,438 to 3,047 m: 30
1,524 to 2,437 m: 92
914 to 1,523 m: 74
under 914 m: 57 (1999 est.)

Charles De Gaulle International Airport in Roissy, near Paris is one of Europe's principal aviation centers. It is also France's main international airport. Paris' other important airport is Orly Airport.

Airports - with unpaved runways:
total: 207
1,524 to 2,437 m: 4
914 to 1,523 m: 76
under 914 m: 127 (1999 est.)

National airline:

• Air France

Heliports: 3 (1999 est.)

History

France naturally has a system of large, navigable rivers, such as the Loire, Seine, and Rhone that criss cross the country and have long been essential for trade and travel.

The first important human improvements were the Roman roads linking major settlements and providing quick passage for marching armies. These routes these roads followed are copied today by many modern highways and railroads.

Throughout the middle ages improvements were sparse and mediocre and transportation became slow and cumbersome. The early modern period saw great improvements. There was a proliferation of canals connecting rivers (like the Canal du Midi). It also saw great changes in oceanic shipping. Rather than expensive galleys, wind powered ships that were far faster and had far more cargo space became popular on the coastal trade. Transatlantic shipping with the New World turned cities such as Nantes and Bordeaux into major ports of international importance.

Railways

(see also French railway history)

Even in France, where, because of water transport, railways were of lesser import than in other nations, railways were still an extremely important area of economic development. Despite already having a well developed water transport system, by 1875 railroads were carrying four times as much cargo as canals and rivers combined.

French railways started later, and developed more slowly than those in other nations. While the first railway built in France was in operation in 1832, not long after the first line had opened in Britain, French progress failed to keep pace over the next decade.

After the war of 1870 the French rail system was overhauled and made far more efficient. By 1914 the French rail system was a match for Germany's and played a crucial part in France's victory in the First World War.

In the 1930s Léon Blum's socialist government nationalized the French rail system, along with many other industries, and the transportation system was successful in World War Two.

After the war the French train system began a slow movement to electric trains. Eventually high speed trains, such as the TGV were introduced providing extremely quick links been France's urban centers.

See also : France

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Transportation in France."

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Tricolore

(From Wikipedia, the free Encyclopedia)

Flag Ratio: 2:3

The national flag of France, more commonly known as the Tricolore (Tricolour), features three equal vertical bands coloured blue (hoist side), white and red. It first appeared during the French Revolution and was a combination of the colours of the coat of arms of Paris (red and blue) and the royal colour (white), with the combination often being credited to the Marquis de Lafayette. The original configuration had the colour red at the hoist side, but this was changed when the flag was officially adopted as the national flag on February 15 1794 during the First Republic.

After the restoration of the Bourbon monarchy following the defeat of Napoleon in 1815 the tricolore was replaced by the royal white standard with fleur-de-lis which had been in use before the Revolution. However, the revolution of 1830 saw Louis-Philippe, the Citizen-King, ascend to the throne who again designated the tricolour as the national flag, which it has remained ever since.

See also: Marianne

Source: adapted by the editor from Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia under a copyleft GNU Free Documentation License (GFDL) from the article "Tricolore."

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Abbreviations & Acronyms: France

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Modern Usage: France

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Commercial Usage: France

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Image Slideshow: France

Photos: France More pictures...

Illustrations: France More pictures...

Computer Images: France More pictures...

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Photo Album: France

Thumbnail	Description & Credit	Thumbnail	Description & Credit
	Eiffel Tower from across Seine River, Paris, France. Credit: CDC.		Nice, France, from Mont Boron. Credit: CDC.
	Godfrey, Cooper and de France on the Ramp. Credit: NASA.		Smith De France Examines Service Award. Credit: NASA.
	"Gee" or Shoran hyperbolic navigation lattice over France Allies installed electronic navigation systems to guide bombers Adapted to hydrographic survey needs at end of war. Credit: Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Image Collection.		Annotated barograph showing storm passages EXPLORER cable survey to St. Hilaire, France. Credit: Coast & Geodetic Survey Historical Image Collection.
	Dr. Morgan Wells, former NOAA Dive Prog. Dir., Jim Miller and Jean Jaubert, a French biologist from the Laboratory of General Biology, Nice, France. (r-l). Credit: National Undersea Research Program (NURP).		Prince Albert I of Monaco, 1848-1922, a great oceanographer, statesman, and humanitarian. He is wearing the "habit ver", the uniform of the Institut de France of which the Academie des sciences de Paris is one of five components. Through his generosity, the Oceanographic Museum of Monaco was established. Credit: Sailing for Science - the NOAA Fleet Then and Now.
	Figure 18. Hopfgartner sounding device, invented by the Austrian Lieutenant France von Hopfgartner. No information has been found regarding tests and subsequent use of this instrument. Credit: Sailing for Science - the NOAA Fleet Then and Now.		Figure 46. Regnault pycnometers, instruments first mentioned by the physicist Henri-Victor Regnault, a professor at the College of France, in 1843. These instruments were used to measure the density of liquids which he was studying to obtain their specific heat. Credit: Sailing for Science - the NOAA Fleet Then and Now.
Source: pictures compiled by the editor from various references; see picture credits.

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Digital Photo Gallery: France
 

"Obelisque in Hendaye, France 3" by Jon Urtxegi Commentary: "Strange serie, wich it´s taken in Hendaye, South-west part of France, next to Basque Country."	"Tour de France 1" by Chico Iuliano Commentary: "US postal team passing the intermediary sprint line on the Champs Elysées."
Source: photographs selected by the editor, with permission from the photographers.

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Sounds Captioned with "France".

Play	Caption
	Siren; police; European; French; France; emergency.
Source: compiled by the editor from various references; see credits.

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Familiar Quotations: France

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Historic Usage: France

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Use in Literature: France

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Non-Fiction Usage: France

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Spoken Usage: France

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Speeches: France

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Usage Frequency: France

Source: compiled by the editor from several corpora; see credits.

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Name Usage Frequency: France

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Derived & Related Names: France

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Usage in Company Names: France

Source: compiled by the editor from Icon Group International, Inc.

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Expressions: France

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Frequency of Internet Keywords: France

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Modern Translation: France