France

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France
Situated in northwestern Europe, France has historically and culturally been among
the most important countries in the Western world. Former French colonies in every
corner of the globe attest to the country's stature in world affairs. The French language
ranks second only to English in international use, and French culture has spread far
and greatly influenced the development of art and science, particularly anthropology,
philosophy, and sociology. France is Europe's most important agricultural producer,
providing wheat, wine, and other food products to the world, as well as an industrial
power. The capital, Paris, is a preeminent cultural and commercial center.
France is among the world's oldest countries, having been united under a single ruler
since the Middle Ages. At the beginning of the 21st century, as in that era, the central
government is strong, even though France's 22 régions wield significant power. The
French people look to the government as the guardian of liberty, and the government
in turn provides generous benefits for its citizens, from free education to health care
and pension plans. Even so, France also has insisted on strong protection for
individual freedom. The country has been influential in the spread of democratic
ideals throughout the world, with the Enlightenment and the French Revolution
inspiring political movements for centuries. France has also been a leading advocate
of European integration, eventually emerging as a leading member of the European
Union.



Cave painting of a bull and a horse; in Lascaux Grotto, near Montignac,
France.

France has many visible traces of its richly varied past. Beginning with the Stone Age
monuments at Carnac and the cave paintings of Lascaux, artists have recorded the
flow of past centuries down to some of today's most advanced creative expressions.
The French people have molded almost every part of the country, creating the
hedgerows of Normandy, the vast open fields of the Paris Basin, and the miles of
carefully tended vineyards in many regions. This humanization of the landscape has
sometimes gone against nature, resulting in deforestation, bleak mining areas, and
high levels of air and water pollution. At the beginning of the 21st century, however,
France became increasingly committed to protecting and restoring both its natural
environment and its cultural heritage.



Historical provinces of France (before 1789).

Reference is often made in this article to the historical provinces of France, which
include such well-known names as Brittany (Bretagne), Burgundy (Bourgogne),
Normandy, Provence, and Champagne. The map shows the locations of these
provinces.

Land and Climate



View of town below Mont Blanc, France.

France is one of Europe's largest countries, ranking third in size behind Russia and
Ukraine. Its area of more than 210,000 square miles (543,000 square kilometers)
includes the island of Corsica in the Mediterranean Sea. France faces the major seas
of Europe—the North Sea, the Atlantic Ocean, and the Mediterranean. It lies across
the English Channel from England and shares boundaries with Belgium, Luxembourg,
Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Andorra, and Spain.

Topographic Features
France is composed of a number of distinctive natural regions, many of which have a
complicated geologic history and form a pattern of great diversity. The country's
landscape varies from flat, almost featureless plains and lush, fertile valleys to Mont
Blanc, which rises to 15,771 feet (4,807 meters) and spreads across the border of
France and Italy in the French Alps.
Northern France, particularly the région of Île-de-France and its margins, is
dominated by the Paris Basin. This vast surface, which appears very flat in many
places, has been compared to a series of saucers of decreasing size stacked one inside
the other. There are gently sloping surfaces toward the interior and steep slopes on the
outer edges. Paris is in the center of the basin, and the outward-facing ridges,

composed primarily of resistant limestone, have historically provided strong defensive
lines to the east. The ridges form rugged chalk cliffs along the English Channel to the
west. To the north, the Paris Basin blends into the plains of Flanders and northwestern
Europe. The Ardennes and Vosges mountains to the northeast and east are part of a
zone extending beyond the Rhine River through central Germany.
To the west, much older rocks, mainly granites and schists, form the Massif
Armoricain of Brittany and the Cotentin Peninsula of Normandy. In the southwest, the
Paris Basin is connected by a low threshold, called the Gate of Poitou, to the other
large lowland region in France, the Aquitaine Basin. Along the Bay of Biscay,
Aquitaine has many areas of sandy soil and some of France's flattest surfaces. The
south-central part of the country is dominated by a large area of uplands, mostly of
volcanic origin, known as the Massif Central and including the régions of Limousin
and Auvergne. This area is dotted with peaks rising from 4,000 to 6,000 feet (1,200 to
1,800 meters), which impede communications and economic activity.
Some of Europe's most imposing mountains border France to the southeast and
southwest. East of the Massif Central, beyond the Rhône-Saône corridor, the linear
folded ridges of the Jura mountain range give way to the Alps. In France, the Alps
begin at the Mediterranean, where they are called the Maritime Alps, and extend
northward before turning east and entering Switzerland and northern Italy. The French
Alps, though high, rugged, and complex, were heavily glaciated, particularly in their
northern section. As a result, they have broad valleys and provide relatively easy
access deep into the range's interior.
The Pyrenees Mountains, which rise between France and Spain, are not as high as the
Alps, but in some ways they are more impressive. The Pyrenees were formed from a
single block of Earth's crust, thrust upward with the steeper face toward France. They
were only slightly glaciated, and thus they are less accessible than the Alps. Only a
few difficult passes cut through the central portions of the Pyrenees. Pic de
Vignemale, which has a height of 10,820 feet (3,298 meters), is the highest peak in
the French Pyrenees, though elevations exceed 11,000 feet (3,350 meters) on the
Spanish side. East of the Rhône River, the Mediterranean coast is rough and indented
where the Alps extend to the sea. West of the Rhône the broad, fertile plain of
Languedoc extends southward from outlying formations of the Massif Central.

Rivers



Château Gaillard, a 12th-century castle, overlooks the Seine River in the
Normandy region of …

Most of France is drained by five major river systems. Perhaps the most famous
French river is the Seine, which rises in Burgundy, flows through Paris, and empties
into the English Channel at Le Havre. With its major tributaries, especially the Marne,
Oise, and Eure rivers, it drains most of the Paris Basin and upper Normandy and is an
important waterway to and from Paris.
The Loire River, which has the largest drainage basin of any river entirely in France,
rises in the Massif Central. Tributaries such as the Cher, Vienne, and Sarthe rivers
enter the Loire before it flows into the Atlantic below Nantes.
The Rhine River, which rises in the Swiss Alps and enters the North Sea in The
Netherlands, forms the boundary between France and Germany. Most of Alsace and
Lorraine is drained by the Rhine or its major tributaries, the Moselle and Meuse.
The Rhône, another stream with its headwaters in Switzerland, is the major river of
southeastern France. Joined by tributaries such as the Saône and Isère rivers, the
Rhône drains southern Burgundy, the French Jura, and much of the French Alps
before entering the Mediterranean through a delta just west of Marseilles.
The fifth major French river, the Garonne, drains the southwestern regions. Rising in
the Pyrenees and flowing northward, it receives tributaries from both the Massif
Central—the Lot and Dordogne rivers—and the Pyrenees—the Ariège River. The
Garonne drains much of the Aquitaine Basin before entering the Atlantic north of
Bordeaux through a wide estuary known as the Gironde.

Climate
France has three major climates: oceanic, Mediterranean, and continental. These
climates are as varied as the country's size and physical diversity would suggest. In
general, however, the French climate is moderate, with few areas having extremes of
heat or cold, unusual drought, or violent weather.
The dominant climate found in most of France is oceanic, or maritime temperate. This
type of climate is usually restricted to the west coasts of continents in the latitudes of
westerly airflow. In France, however, the absence of mountains along the western and
northern borders permits this climate to influence weather in much of the country,
though its effect is strongest in the northwest, especially Brittany. Winters are mild,
with monthly temperatures averaging above freezing. With relatively cool summers,
the annual temperature range is quite small. For instance, Brest, a town on the coast of
Brittany, has a January average of 43° F (6° C) and a July average of 61° F (16° C).
The northwest receives moderate rainfall, averaging 35 inches (90 centimeters) per
year.
The Mediterranean climate predominates along the southern coast of France,
particularly in the shadow of the Alps. This type of climate brings warm to hot, dry
summers and cool to mild, wet winters. The warm Mediterranean Basin produces an
average January temperature of 47° F (8° C) at Nice. This famous resort city, like

other areas in southeastern France, receives heavy rainfall during the spring and
autumn but almost no rain in summer.
The continental climate prevails farther to the east, away from the sea, and especially
at higher elevations. There, temperatures become lower during winter and snow
remains on the ground for several weeks, though the weather is often sunny. Winter
storms and their moisture can move easily across France, and so snow often tends to
be heavy in the Jura and Alps, but excessively cold temperatures are rare except on
the highest peaks.

Plants and Animals
The plant life of France varies with the climate and soil. Under the moderate
conditions of the oceanic climate are the remains of broadleaf deciduous forests that
once covered the land, with oaks and beeches being most typical. Other common
species include maples, chestnuts, and ashes.
To the north and east, and at higher elevations, where colder winters are more
common, needleleaf evergreen trees, especially pines, spruces, and firs, are the
dominant species. Conifers, particularly pines, are also found in sandy soils,
especially along the coasts. Combinations of strong winds and poor granitic soils
along parts of the Atlantic coast, especially in Brittany, prevented forests from
thriving, and hardy plants such as broom, furze, and heather are common. Small
shrubs of the Alpine tundra grow above the tree line in the higher Alps and Pyrenees.
The Mediterranean fringe, with its dry summers, has unusual plants that adapt to
seasonal drought. They include a group of low shrubs with small leaves, deep roots,
thick bark, and other water-saving traits. This group is generally known as maquis,
which is particularly prevalent in Corsica. A slightly different form, called garigue,
grows on the dry limestone hills of Provence. Some drought-adapted trees, such as
pines, olives, and live oaks, also grow along the Mediterranean. France's only major
area of natural grassland is the Rhône river delta, known as the Camargue.
France's wide variety of elevations, climates, and natural vegetation created habitats
suitable for many species of animals. However, the spread of human habitation
sharply reduced the number and diversity of wildlife. By the end of the 20th century
greater protection of animals and their habitats was helping to reverse the trend. Areas
located farthest from human activity have retained a higher proportion of wildlife.
Among the larger mammals, red deer are common in forested areas in northern
France, and fallow deer, usually kept in compounds, are sometimes found wild in the
Massif Central. The smaller roe deer is the most common species, with the ability to
thrive even on the outskirts of major cities. Small populations of chamois and ibex
live in the Alps and Pyrenees, and mouflon (wild sheep) inhabit Corsica. Wild pigs
can be seen in all parts of the country. Small numbers of brown bears live in the high
Pyrenees, and other common carnivores include red foxes and wildcats. Skunks,

marmots, and several species of mink and marten are also abundant, as are hares and
voles. Beavers are rare and protected by law.
Birdlife is widespread in the Mediterranean region and includes rollers, bee eaters,
and blue rock thrushes. Many ducks, geese, hawks, rooks, starlings, thrushes, and
robins migrate from northern and eastern Europe to France for the winter. The
Camargue is the only region in western Europe where flamingos, egrets, and herons
nest. White storks inhabit Alsace and often build nests on roofs and chimneys.

People and Culture
The population of France surpassed 60 million in the early 21st century, placing it
third among the countries of Europe (after Russia and Germany). The four most
populated French régions are Île-de-France (Paris region), Rhône-Alpes and
Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur in the southeast, and Nord-Pas-de-Calais in the north. In
less than one fifth of the country's area, these régions have more than two fifths of the
population. Other densely populated areas are the industrial cities of Lorraine; isolated
large cities, such as Toulouse; and certain small-farm areas, such as coastal Brittany,
Flanders, Alsace, and the Limagne basin of Auvergne.
Because France is large and, by European standards, sparsely populated, it has
historically been able to absorb most of its population gains. As a result, France has
not lost as many people to emigration as have other European countries. In the 17th
century, however, religious persecution led to a mass emigration of roughly 400,000
French Protestants, or Huguenots. Small numbers of people emigrated to the newly
forming French colonies in the New World, notably in the regions that comprise
modern-day Quebec and Louisiana in North America and Martinique and French
Guiana in Latin America. Emigration, particularly to Canada, continues, though on a
small scale.
Immigration into France began to rise in the mid-19th century. In the early 20th
century France was considered to be more open to immigrants than any other
European country. This reputation led to an influx of immigrants, particularly political
refugees. Between the two world wars, roughly 6 percent of the country's residents
were foreign-born. In the two decades after World War II the continued flow of
refugees and other immigrants accounted for 40 percent of France's population
growth. In the 1970s, as French workers competed with immigrants for jobs, the
government began to restrict immigration, a policy that remained in force in the early
21st century. Historically, most of France's immigrants came from neighboring
countries such as Portugal, Italy, and Spain. More recently, however, an increasing
number have arrived from North Africa and French territories and former territories in
Central Africa, Asia, and the Americas.

Ethnic Groups

Though the French take great pride in belonging to a single nation, they hardly
constitute a unified ethnic group. For centuries before Europeans learned of the
Americas in the late 15th century, France was thought to be near the edge of the
known world. Generations of different migrants traveling by way of the
Mediterranean from the Middle East and Africa and through Europe from central Asia
and northern Europe settled permanently in France.
These migrations have all contributed to the ethnic composition of France. Perhaps
the oldest reflection of the migrations is the Basque people, who live in an isolated
area west of the Pyrenees in both Spain and France. They speak a language unrelated
to other European languages and whose origin remains unclear. The Celtic tribes,
known to the Romans as Gauls, spread from central Europe in the period 500 BC–AD
500. They provided France with a major component of its population, especially in
the center and west. After the fall of the Roman Empire, Germanic (Teutonic) peoples
spread through France, especially in the north and east. Vikings brought further
Germanic influence. In addition to these many migrations, France was, over the
centuries, the field of numerous battles and of prolonged occupations. Immigration in
the 19th and especially in the 20th century also contributed to the ethnic mix.

Languages
French is one of the world's most widely spoken languages. In addition to its general
use in France, it is the native tongue in seven cantons, or states, of Switzerland as well
as in Luxembourg, Monaco, and the southern half of Belgium. Outside of Europe the
language continues to be widely used wherever the French colonial influence was
once prevalent—for example, in the Canadian province of Quebec and in Haiti.
French is also commonly heard in North and West Africa, the Middle East, and
Southeast Asia. It is one of the official languages of the United Nations and is used at
many international conferences as well as in numerous scientific and cultural
publications. No other language except English is so widely studied as a second
language. The wide use of French and English is out of all proportion to the number
of people who speak those languages as their native language.
As a country formed from a patchwork of individual cultures, France has many
linguistic minorities representing various backgrounds. In Brittany, Breton is
commonly used. The only living Celtic language outside of Great Britain, it was
originally brought to France by Celts fleeing Anglo-Saxon pressure in southern
England during the 5th and 7th centuries. In northeastern France, German-speaking
people live in the French portion of the region called the Saar, and a more distinctive
tongue is spoken in Alsace, where German language roots are combined with French
additions. Italian is spoken in places along the French-Italian border, and numerous
remnants of Latin-based languages from Roman times are heard along the
Mediterranean. These include Occitan, also called Langue d'Oc, and Provençal, which
is spoken in southern France. The Corsican dialect, used on the island of Corsica, also
evolved from Latin during the Middle Ages. In the western Pyrenees, the Basque
language is spoken. Recent immigration has introduced various non-European
languages, notably Arabic.

Religions
Religious observance plays an important part in the lives of many French people, but
the importance of religion in national life has diminished through the years, as it has
in most European countries. Roman Catholicism has long been the predominant
religion in France. The powers of church and state were closely related under the
monarchy, with powerful cardinals, such as Cardinals Richelieu and Mazarin, serving
as the king's principal ministers. Except for a period of tolerance under the Edict of
Nantes, which was issued in 1598 and revoked in 1685, France was bitterly hostile to
Protestants. Indeed, many of the bloodiest periods of French history involved the wars
of religion that ravaged Europe for over a century. (See also Reformation.)
In the decade following the climax of the French Revolution in 1789, measures were
taken to reduce the power of the church and to separate religious and civil authority.
Religious freedom was granted in 1795. Roman Catholicism remains the major
religion in France, but most Protestant denominations are active in the country. They
are especially strong in Alsace, the northern Jura, the southern Massif Central, and the
central Atlantic region. The historic depth of religious feeling in France is perhaps
best reflected by the country's magnificent cathedrals.
Of the non-Christian religions, Islam has the largest following. Reflecting the
presence of immigrants from North Africa, France has more than 4 million Muslims.
The Jewish community in France, though relatively small, has had a strong influence
on the economic and cultural life of the country. France has the largest Jewish
population in Europe and one of the largest outside the United States and Israel. Most
French Jews and Muslims live in Paris, Lyon, and Marseilles. Many of the French,
especially among the working classes and the young, profess no religious belief.

Urban and Rural Settlement
Like other European countries, France was predominantly a rural society throughout
most of its history, with much of the population concentrated in villages or clustered
around castles or manor houses. A few larger communities began to develop early in
the Middle Ages as sites with certain features became settlements. Many of these sites
were at river crossings and mountain passes and on trade routes and harbors.
Paris, as the administrative, economic, and cultural center of an expanding country,
grew steadily. By 1500 Paris had a population of about 225,000 and was Europe's
largest city. In general, however, French cities remained small. Lyon, Rouen, and
Tours were the only others with as many as 60,000 people in 1500, and many
relatively important communities had no more than 5,000 inhabitants.
The rapid growth rate of urban France, as elsewhere in Europe, came in the 18th and
19th centuries with the Industrial Revolution. By the time of the 1911 census, the
population of France was almost half urban. Most of the urban population growth
consisted of migration from the countryside. Rural people, many of them

impoverished by the machines and manufacturing methods of the Industrial
Revolution, flocked to take advantage of the growing job prospects of the cities,
which also offered social and educational opportunities. The construction of railroads
increased this flow during the late 19th century. By the mid-20th century many rural
areas, especially in Brittany, the Massif Central, and the Alps, had lost much of their
population.
After 1960 the population of French cities changed in several ways. Internal migration
from the provinces diminished, while at the same time people from Italy, Spain,
Portugal, Yugoslavia, and other European countries joined the French urban-industrial
labor force. By the 1990s the face of urban immigration had shifted again, with most
arrivals coming from former French colonies, especially those in North Africa and
Southeast Asia. The central districts of many French cities began to show population
declines as the cost and inconvenience of life in crowded older quarters exceeded the
advantages. At the same time, suburban living became more accessible with increased
automobile ownership.
Paris is still by far the most important city of France and is one of the world's leading
cultural and economic centers. The government has tried to decrease the
overwhelming influence of Paris by encouraging the decentralization of industry,
promoting the economic and cultural development of many regional centers, and
building new towns far from the capital. Among France's major cities are Marseilles,
Lyon, Toulouse, Nice, Nantes, Strasbourg, and Bordeaux.

Culture
French culture has evolved primarily from the influences of three ancient
civilizations—Celtic, Greco-Roman, and Germanic. Far from being static, however,
French culture continues to develop, incorporating new ideas and movements while
maintaining a respect for history and a love of tradition. Monuments are found
everywhere, many from as long ago as the Roman occupation.
The rich culture that developed during the Middle Ages was fostered by monks and
scholars and encouraged by the wealthy patrons of the aristocracy. The development
of the middle class, or bourgeoisie, at the beginning of the 18th century extended the
reaches of culture to a wider audience. This was the time of the Enlightenment, an
intellectual movement that provoked inquiry and discussion on topics ranging from
philosophy to science and art. The spread of free and compulsory primary education
by the late 19th century and free secondary education by the end of World War II
raised literacy levels and made culture more accessible than ever before.
French culture has historically been centered in Paris, though smaller cities and towns
have contributed much, particularly in the realm of cuisine. The regions of Bordeaux,
Burgundy, and Champagne have produced world-famous wines for centuries. In
general, regional cultures are strong and often fiercely defended. In Brittany, parts of
the south, and Alsace, for example, much time and money is spent in support of local
culture.

The Arts
The French people as a whole highly value artistic creativity, As the arts have
flourished, they have spread the influence of French culture throughout the world. The
French have made invaluable contributions to literature, painting, music, ballet,
sculpture, motion pictures, and photography, among other arts.



Voltaire.



Victor Hugo.

French literature has a tradition that extends back through the Middle Ages.
Eighteenth-century author-philosophers such as Voltaire and Jean-Jacques Rousseau
were instrumental in shaping the ideas of modern France, and the works of Jean
Racine, Molière, and other neoclassical playwrights are still widely performed. Victor
Hugo, Honoré de Balzac, and Marcel Proust were among the literary giants of the
19th century. French authors have won more than a dozen Nobel prizes for literature,
more than those of any other country.



Self-portrait by Pierre-Auguste Renoir, oil on canvas, 1910.



Claude Monet.

Painting has long been a vital art form in France. Artists often enjoyed the patronage
of the nobility, producing works of quality and variety. During the 19th century the
impressionist movement was largely the inspiration of French artists such as Edgar
Degas, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Claude Monet, and many art trends of the 20th
century also originated in France.



Maurice Ravel.



Darius Milhaud.

French music gained a wide international following in the 19th and early 20th
centuries. Such composers as Hector Berlioz, Camille Saint-Saëns, Maurice Ravel,
Claude Debussy, and the Polish-born Frédéric Chopin created a distinctively French
style. Later French composers included Pierre Boulez, Darius Milhaud, and Erik
Satie. In the late 20th century France became known for supporting experimentation
in electronic music and acoustics. France is also famous for developing ballet,
particularly in the 17th-century court of Louis XIV.
The atmosphere of free inquiry and artistic integrity that is characteristic of France
has attracted many artists and writers from other countries. Leonardo da Vinci, from

Italy, spent his later years in France, and Spanish-born Pablo Picasso spent most of his
artistic life in France. Many American writers, including F. Scott Fitzgerald, Ernest
Hemingway, Edna St. Vincent Millay, and Gertrude Stein, lived in Paris during the
1920s and 1930s.

Architecture
Through the centuries architecture has been the visible, enduring record of the peoples
who have inhabited France, of their cultural influences, and often of the historic
currents that have swept across Europe. Prehistoric stone monuments are abundant,
particularly in Brittany, where the famous alignments at Carnac may have had
astronomical, as well as religious and cultural, significance. Arenas, theaters,
triumphal arches, and other evidence of Roman colonization are widely found, and
many of them have been restored.



Reims Cathedral was the site of 25 coronations of the kings of France, from
Louis VIII in 1223 to …

During medieval times preoccupation with defense and nation building led to the
construction of strong fortresses. Although most of them suffered during the centuries
of warfare that followed, some survived or have been restored, including La Cité, the
vast walled city at Carcassonne. Religious fervor found expression in architecture
during this period, and most of the famous churches and cathedrals of France were
built then. Many examples of the earlier Romanesque style remain, but the soaring
beauty of such Gothic cathedrals as those in Paris, Reims, Amiens, Chartres, and
Beauvais place them among the most treasured French buildings. The majority of
these cathedrals were begun in the 13th century, though the building of the massive
Notre Dame Cathedral in Paris started in the mid-12th century.



The château of Villandry, built in 1532, and its formal gardens in the Loire
valley just …

During the Renaissance, France's unity, power, and wealth were expressed in the
impressive, often extravagant creations of the monarchy. Near Paris, palaces such as
those at Versailles, Vincennes, and Fontainebleau still rank among the leading
architectural masterpieces. The valleys of the Loire River and its tributaries are dotted
with sumptuous ornamental châteaux, or castles, such as those at Chambord,
Chenonceaux, and Blois.
During the 18th and 19th centuries the zenith of French military and colonial power
gave rise to grandiose architecture, much of it in Paris. The Arc de Triomphe (Arch of
Triumph) celebrates the victories of Napoleon I, and urban renovation of the mid-19th
century provided buildings such as the Opéra and broad streets such as the ChampsÉlysées. The Eiffel Tower, which has come to symbolize Paris and even all of France,
was built as a supposedly temporary exhibit for the World's Fair of 1889.
French architecture has continued to be vital and imaginative. Le Corbusier was one
of the most famous of all modern architects. Subsidies from the French government
have sustained architecture into the 21st century. Two major achievements of the late
20th century, both located in Paris, were the controversial but successful Pompidou
Center, designed by Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers, and the pyramid entrance to
the Louvre Museum, designed by I.M. Pei.

Education and Social Welfare
The generally high standard of living in France is due in part to the educational and
social benefits offered by the government. Education is free in both the public schools
and universities, and nearly everyone is covered by the social security system. To pay
for these services, French employers and employees are taxed at a higher rate than
those in many other European countries.

Education
Schooling, both to instill appropriate citizenship values into the country's youth and to
prepare them for useful roles in a changing national economy, has been a special
concern of the government since the French Revolution. Until that time, education
was largely controlled by the Roman Catholic church. Today, there is a wide range of
educational opportunities for children, ranging from the excellent public school
system to church, private, and alternative schooling. Despite the official separation of
church and state, many parents choose a parochial education for their children.
Public education in France is characterized by its highly centralized structure. The
country is divided into educational districts called académies, each headed by a rector
who is responsible directly to the minister of education. The French system ensures
uniformity throughout the country, but it limits flexibility and allows little local input.

A typical French student begins preschool as early as the age of 2 and enters
elementary school at 6. After five years of primary school, the student attends a
secondary school called a collège for an additional four years. At age 15 students
continue on to another type of secondary school called a lycée, where they may
choose either a three-year program leading to the baccalauréat examination or two or
three years of technical and vocational courses.
Lycée graduates who pass the baccalauréat examination may be admitted to a
university. The University of Paris—often called the Sorbonne, which is actually the
name of one of its major units—once dominated higher education in France to an
unusual extent. Meanwhile, well-known universities in provincial centers such as
Montpellier, Rennes, Lille, Grenoble, and Aix-en-Provence remained comparatively
small. In the 1960s, however, student protests about the unavailability of university
places, together with concern for the country's growing educational needs, led to a
restructuring of the university system and a great increase in financial resources. The
University of Paris was divided into 13 distinct university units, and provincial
universities expanded rapidly in number and size.
Unique to the French system is a parallel educational network of grandes écoles,
schools that compete with and partly reduce the importance of the universities. These
elite institutions, founded by Napoleon, were designed to provide France with a
steady stream of superbly qualified civil servants and administrators, a function they
still perform. Among the best known grandes écoles are the École Nationale
d'Administration (National School of Administration), established in 1945, from
which most high public officials have graduated and the École Polytechnique
(Polytechnic School). Founded in 1794 to recruit and train technicians for the army, it
is now the most important engineering technical school in both the public and private
sectors.

Science and Medicine
Scientific research has benefited from the same intellectual climate of France that
stimulated cultural and artistic achievement. During the 18th and 19th centuries
scientists such as Pierre-Simon Laplace and the Broglie family in physics, AntoineLaurent Lavoisier and Joseph-Louis Gay-Lussac in chemistry, and Georges-Louis
Leclerc de Buffon and Jean-Baptiste Lamarck in biology contributed significantly to
their fields. Toward the end of the 19th century the husband-and-wife team of Marie
and Pierre Curie began the research into radiation and nuclear physics that made them
famous. During the 20th century French scientists won 18 Nobel prizes in chemistry
or physics; Marie Curie is the only person to have been awarded both prizes.



Louis Pasteur.

Medical research in France has kept pace with the other sciences. Well-known figures
such as Louis Pasteur and Claude Bernard highlight the history of French medicine,
and eight 20th-century French researchers were honored by Nobel prizes in
physiology or medicine. In the late 20th century French researchers were pivotal in
isolating the cause of AIDS.

Health and Social Protection
The social security system is funded primarily by employers' and employees'
contributions and a special income tax. The government makes up any deficits. The
majority of the money is devoted to retirement benefits (pensions) and the partial
reimbursement of most medical expenses. Excellent medical coverage and benefits
have helped raise the average life expectancy in France to 84 years for women and 77
years for men. Other programs provide family benefits for dependent children,
unemployment payments, and housing subsidies. The government has built an
extensive public housing system and has also sought to encourage home ownership
through low-interest loans.

Economy
France is one of the world's major economic powers. During the second half of the
20th century the structure of its economy changed significantly. Industry and
agriculture dominated the economy in the 1950s, but since then services have become
the leading source of jobs and income. Though most industries are privately owned,
the government has a history of involvement in the economy. Today state ownership
is concentrated mainly in transportation, defense, and broadcasting.

Agriculture, Fishing, and Forestry
France's extensive areas of rich soils, especially in the Paris Basin, combined with
generally moderate climates and vast extents of flat to gently rolling land have long

made agriculture a mainstay of the economy. In addition, the unusual variety of
climates, from the cool, wet plains of the north to the dry-summer warmth of the
Mediterranean, allows for a great diversity of crops and other agricultural products.
France lacks only a suitable climate for purely tropical crops.
Although agriculture employs relatively few people—less than 4 percent of the labor
force—France is western Europe's agricultural leader, accounting for more than one
fifth of the European Union's total value of output. France also is a major world
exporter of agricultural products and is the only major European country to be
generally self-sufficient in basic food production.

Crops



Sprinklers irrigate farmland in France.

The chief agricultural region of France is the Paris Basin, where productive districts
such as the Beauce, Picardy, and Île-de-France form the country's traditional
breadbasket. Wheat, grown on comparatively large farms, has always been the leading
crop in the Paris Basin, though it is also grown throughout the lowlands.
Corn is the other leading grain crop. Traditional types of corn have been grown in
Aquitaine and the Pyrenees in southwestern France, and in the Rhône-Saône Valley,
since the 16th century. More recently, hybrid varieties from the United States have
been introduced. Other grains grown by French farmers include oats, rye, and barley,
which is especially important to the brewing industry. These crops tend to be raised in
poorer soils or in areas where the climate is less well suited for wheat.
On the northern edge of the Paris Basin, where the flatlands of the North Sea plain
lead into Picardy and Flanders, sugar beets and potatoes have been important crops
since the early 19th century. The cool, moist regions of Normandy and Brittany are
noted for dairy products; early spring vegetables, which are highly prized in the Paris
markets; and apples.



The fertile fields of Languedoc make it one of France’s top agricultural …

In addition to the Paris Basin, the principal French agricultural regions are in the
south and southwest, particularly Aquitaine and Languedoc, and the Rhône Valley.
The generally good soils and warm, dry summers of these regions make them ideal
for cultivating grapes, and they are the country's major wine producers. France as a
whole accounts for about one fifth of world wine production. Other fruits, such as
peaches, plums, and apricots, are also widely grown in these regions. These fruits are
sold fresh in city markets and form the basis of canning and processing industries.
Better-quality wines, many with famous names and high prices, provide agricultural
prosperity to regions such as Burgundy, Bordeaux, Alsace, Champagne, and the Loire
Valley. Wines, together with wheat and other crops, have created a balanced rural
economy in these regions. However, in the Alps, the Pyrenees, and the Massif
Central, where the soils and climate are less suited to agriculture, many lowproducing farms have been abandoned.

Livestock
The raising of animals accounts for more than one third of the total value of France's
agricultural production. Cattle are raised in most parts of the country, especially in the
more humid regions of the west. The raising of pigs and poultry is concentrated in the
northwestern régions of Brittany and Pays de la Loire. Some sheep raising takes place
in southern France on the western and southern fringes of the Massif Central, in the
western Pyrenees, and in the southern Alps.

Fishing
With its lengthy coastline on the Mediterranean Sea, Atlantic Ocean, and English
Channel, France has historically supported a flourishing fishing industry. It provided
an important food resource as well as employment for thousands of people living
along the coast. Though the fishing industry has long been in decline, it still provides
fresh seafood to all parts of the country. The leading fishing ports are in northern
France at Boulogne, and in Brittany at Concarneau, Lorient, and Le Guilvinic. The
catch includes pollock, sardines, tuna, herring, and mackerel. Shellfish, such as

oysters, clams, and mussels, are raised along the Atlantic coast from Brittany to
Bordeaux.

Forestry
France has one of the largest forested areas in western Europe, but the vast forest
resources are generally underexploited. Economically important forests thrive in
remote regions that are difficult to reach, notably the Alps, the Pyrenees, the Jura, and
the Vosges mountains. In addition, much of the forestland is owned privately by
people who are uninterested in the commercial development of their estates.
Production does not meet national demands for wood pulp, paper, lumber, and other
forest products.

Industry
Industry was the powerhouse of France's economic recovery after World War II.
Though industrial production and employment declined beginning in the mid-1970s,
the sector is still very important to the French economy and is the chief source of
export income. Industry employs almost one fifth of the workforce and accounts for
more than one fifth of the gross domestic product (GDP).

Manufacturing
Under the reigns of the Bourbon monarchs, especially Louis XIV and his financial
minister, Jean-Baptiste Colbert, the French developed a policy of manufacturing and
trade aimed at making France preeminent among the countries of the world. France
based its economic policy on producing enough to meet nearly all its own needs and
selling surplus products for gold. For example, Colbert established the silk-weaving
industry at Lyon so that France would not have to import this highly prized material.
Ever since this period, France has been a major producer and exporter of luxury
goods.
The Industrial Revolution, spreading from its origins in the United Kingdom, had a
powerful influence on French manufacturing. The iron and steel industry, vital to any
country that sought economic power during the 19th century, became concentrated in
the coalfields, particularly in northern France. There, cities such as Lens and
Valenciennes grew into centers of heavy industry, and Lille, noted for textiles, was for
a time the second largest city in France. Steelmaking also developed in the iron ore
fields of Lorraine, where Thionville, Metz, and other centers grew rapidly.
Shipbuilding flourished at several coastal sites, notably St-Nazaire, and the
availability of waterpower encouraged the growth of small industrial towns in the
Alps, Jura, Vosges, and Massif Central. Many specialized in textiles, gloves, shoes,
and other consumer goods. Agricultural processing, still one of France's most
important industries, developed in hundreds of widely scattered towns and villages.

In the 20th century new industries developed in France while others declined or
relocated. In general, the once-dominant industrial regions of northern France saw
their traditional manufacturing base decline. Conversely, new manufacturing
industries, particularly in advanced technology, developed in areas of western and
southern France that were once sparsely industrialized. Nevertheless, the broad arc of
regions stretching through northern and eastern France, from Haute-Normandie to
Rhône-Alpes, remains the most heavily industrialized part of the country. In the early
21st century the most important manufacturing industries included automobiles,
aircraft, steel, chemicals (including perfumes), electronics, food and beverages, and
textiles.

Energy Production and Mining
Before the 18th century France, like most other European countries, relied on animals,
windmills, and water mills to supply power, and wood was the predominant fuel. The
Industrial Revolution called for more concentrated sources of energy, and France was
among the countries with abundant coal resources. Coal became the principal fuel
during the 19th century, and coal-mining regions in northern France were the centers
of heavy industry.
Coal production declined in the 20th century as the reserves became increasingly
difficult and expensive to mine. In 1958 annual production amounted to some 60
million tons; 40 years later this total had dropped to less than 6 million tons. In 2004
the country's last coal mine was closed.
As coal use fell, other energy sources became increasingly important. By the 1960s
oil was being used in greater quantities, and by 1973 it accounted for about two thirds
of France's energy consumption. Since then, however, the importance of oil has
fallen, replaced partly by natural gas and notably by nuclear energy. By the late 1990s
more than three quarters of electricity in France was produced in nuclear plants—the
highest proportion in the world—and the country became a significant exporter of
such energy. Hydroelectricity also contributes to the country's energy supply.
France has few oil reserves, and oil has long been its principal energy import. The
country has developed a major refining industry, with plants concentrated in two areas
of the lower Seine valley (Le Havre and Rouen) and in the region around Marseilles.
Many markets are supplied oil by pipeline, which is also the distribution method for
natural gas.
France does not have extensive mineral deposits. Traditionally the country was an
important producer of iron ore and bauxite, but production of both minerals was
stopped in the early 2000s because it was no longer profitable. Potash, gold, and
uranium mining have also ceased. Mineralized ores containing lead, zinc, and silver
are mined in very small quantities. Greater amounts of salt and sulfur are produced,
but again the trend is toward declining output as reserves are depleted. Stone, sand,
and gravel are in relatively large supply.

Services
Services account for about two thirds of employment and three quarters of the GDP.
The sector covers a diverse range of activities, including government, health care,
education, retailing, banking, computing, and data handling. Two of the more
important service industries in France are trade and tourism.

Trade
Trade is vital to France, which is one of the world's leading exporters. Major export
earnings come from agricultural products, including grains and wine; automobiles and
their parts, aircraft and spacecraft; chemicals, including pharmaceuticals and
perfumes; electronics; and metals. France is also a major importer, especially of
machinery, chemicals and chemical products, oil, automobiles, and tropical
agricultural products. France's most important trading partners are members of the
European Union—Germany, Italy, Belgium, the United Kingdom, Spain, and The
Netherlands—and the United States.

Tourism
Tourism is one of France's leading industries. The variety of its landscapes and
climates, together with an abundance of historical and cultural sites, artistic and
architectural treasures, recreational facilities, and famous foods and wines, have made
France a favorite of tourists from North America and other parts of Europe. Recently,
increasing numbers of travelers have come from Asia, Latin America, and the Middle
East. In the early 2000s France was the most visited country in the world, receiving
more than 70 million foreign tourists annually.
The French travel widely within their own country as well. The introduction of paid
vacations for industrial workers, beginning in the late 1930s, led to a boom in family
tourism. Most French workers now receive five weeks of paid vacation annually, and
regions such as Brittany and Languedoc profit from low-budget family tourism. Many
wealthier city residents have second homes, either in places from which their families
once migrated or in desirable vacation districts.



Sightseers viewing Paris by boat on the River Seine.

Paris is the country's greatest tourist draw. Its artistic and cultural attractions, its
famous shops and restaurants, the color and animation of its many districts, and
world-famous symbols such as the Eiffel Tower, the Louvre, the Cathedral of Notre
Dame, the Latin Quarter, Montmartre, and the Pompidou Center make Paris one of
the most visited places in the world.
The Mediterranean coast, especially the Provence-Côte d'Azur section, which
includes part of the French Riviera, is also popular. Sheltered by the Alps, the Riviera
first became popular in the 1860s as a winter resort for wealthy visitors, mainly
tourists from England. Its fame grew steadily, and today it is known especially as a
summer resort area.



Skiing at Chamonix in the département of …

The mountainous areas of France, particularly the Rhône-Alpes région, have
experienced a dramatic rise in tourism, largely because of increasing interest in winter
sports. People once visited the mountains mainly in summer for health reasons, but
these areas now benefit from almost a year-round season, and resorts such as
Chamonix and Morzine are internationally famous.

Transportation
Transport systems have long been vital to France, uniting the country in an
administrative sense while promoting the growth of regional economies and linking
the country to the rest of Europe and to the world. Paris has always been the hub of
French transportation.
The Industrial Revolution brought innovations in transportation to France. For
example, a complex system of canals was built, connecting many navigable rivers and
providing low-cost water transport for products from the mines and factories.
The railroad age began while the canal-building era was at its height. The first French
line began operating in 1827, between St.-Étienne and Andrézieux, and steel rails
soon linked most parts of the country. By 1934 France had more than 33,000 miles
(53,000 kilometers) of railways. Most of the main lines were built in a radial pattern,
with Paris at the center, thus reinforcing the importance of the capital. Paris continued
to grow and prosper at a remarkable rate because people had difficulty traveling

between any two points in France without passing through the capital. Also, rail lines
made it easier for people in rural areas displaced by the Industrial Revolution to
migrate to Paris than to any other city.
The appearance of the automobile in the late 19th century and the airplane in the early
20th century added new modes of transportation. Highways, duplicating the earlier
railway patterns, radiated in all directions from Paris, and the distance to any point in
France was calculated from the front steps of the Cathedral of Notre Dame. Air
transportation to and from the airfield at Le Bourget, near Paris, began in 1919.
As the road network expanded, rail traffic declined. The introduction of the highspeed TGV train in 1983, however, led to the opening of some new rail lines. The
TGV travels between Paris and Lyon in only two hours, compared with four hours for
conventional service. There is also international service to Switzerland, Belgium,
Germany, and the United Kingdom. The Channel Tunnel, which opened in 1994, runs
beneath the English Channel to link France with England. It is used for passenger and
freight trains. By the end of the 20th century Eurostar passenger trains linked Paris to
London in three hours.
In an effort to reduce road congestion and related pollution, France has invested in
underground rail and tram systems. In Paris, trains on the Métro subway system are
fast and frequent. Paris also boasts a regional high-speed express subway system.
Provincial cities such as Lyon, Marseilles, Lille, and Toulouse also have metro
networks, while Nantes, Strasbourg, Grenoble and other cities are served by
tramways.
Air travel has increased enormously. Paris has two major airports: Orly, south of the
city, and Charles de Gaulle, to the northeast, in Roissy. The city has the second largest
airport complex in western Europe (after London), handling roughly two thirds of all
French passenger traffic. Bordeaux, Marseilles, Nice, Lyon, Toulouse, and Strasbourg
also serve international destinations.
With its long coastline and emphasis on trade, France is served by a number of
seaports. Marseilles, located on the Mediterranean coast, and Le Havre, on the
English Channel are the leading ports. Dunkirk, Calais, Nantes–St-Nazaire, and
Rouen are also important.

Communications
About 100 daily newspapers are published in France. The most informed and
influential of modern French newspapers is the Paris-based Le Monde, founded in
1944. Other influential and widely circulating Paris dailies include Le Figaro,
Libération, and France-Soir. By the late 20th century some regional daily papers
rivaled or even surpassed the Paris dailies in circulation.
France has five state-controlled television channels and more than 100 private ones.
One of the public television channels broadcasts educational and cultural programs,
another features entertainment and sports, and the others offer films and other

programming. The country also has several state-controlled radio organizations,
including Radio France, which provides five national services and has some 50 local
stations. Radio France International broadcasts to international audiences.
At the beginning of the 21st century France lagged behind many other western
European countries in telecommunications. Just over half of its citizens had cellular
telephones, and roughly one sixth used the Internet. These comparatively low
statistics were due in part to restrictive government controls on electronic commerce
and the presence of an existing network. These obstacles began to fall away in the
first years of the 21st century, and telecommunications media proliferated. By 2006,
for example, the number of Internet users had risen to nearly half of the population.

Government
France is governed under the constitution of the Fifth Republic, which went into
effect on Oct. 4, 1958. It established a form of government that combines elements of
parliamentary and presidential systems. The French system is notable for the powerful
position given to the executive branch in relation to the legislative branch, or
parliament.

National Government
The executive branch is led by the president, who is elected by the people to a fiveyear term and can be reelected an unlimited number of times. The president appoints
the prime minister and, on the recommendation of the prime minister, the Council of
Ministers, or cabinet. The president has the authority to submit questions directly to
the people as referenda and even to dissolve parliament. The president also appoints
high civil servants and judges, negotiates and ratifies treaties, and is commander in
chief of the armed forces. Through the years, however, French presidents have passed
more responsibility for day-to-day policy to the prime minister, allowing that office to
gain in stature.
The president wields greater authority when his party controls the National Assembly,
or the lower house of parliament. In such cases, he is generally free to appoint anyone
from his party as prime minister. When the opposition controls the National
Assembly, however, the president must appoint a prime minister from an opposing
party. This power-sharing arrangement is known as cohabitation.
Parliament consists of two houses: the National Assembly and the Senate. The
National Assembly, also called the Chamber of Deputies, is the more important of the
two houses. Its members are elected directly by the public for five-year terms.
Members of the Senate are indirectly elected by an electoral college to six-year terms.
Both houses include representatives from overseas dependencies.

Regional and Local Government
Historically, the French government has sought to centralize power. Faced with
constant threats and challenges from rebellious dukes and other members of the
nobility in various provinces, the monarchy strove to concentrate authority and to
control the two keys to success, military power and economic decision making.
Because Paris has been the capital since the 13th century, much of this drive for
centralization tended to promote the growth and prosperity of that city at the expense
of outlying regions and provincial cities.
Although the French Revolution specifically aimed to destroy the provincial system
of the monarchy, it retained the concept of a strongly centralized administration. In
1790 the country was divided into units called départements, each with a governing
official called a prefect, that were controlled by Paris. The result of this system was
that Paris became an unwieldy city with much of the country's population, while
many outlying regions remained relatively undeveloped. The provinces relied on the
national government in Paris for even the most minor decisions.
In 1970 the government responded to regional demands for more autonomy by
creating 22 administrative régions. Many of the régions were named for the historical
provinces whose areas they approximate. Legislation passed in 1982 gave each région
its own directly elected council with the power to elect its executive. The law also
gave the régions many functions that had previously belonged to the central
government, in particular economic and social development, regional planning,
education, and cultural matters. Although the régions still must deal with the
traditional tendency of the Parisian bureaucracy toward centralization, they have
gradually come to play a larger part in the administrative and political life of the
country.
The régions are divided into 96 départements. There are also four overseas
départements—French Guiana, Guadeloupe, Martinique, and Réunion. Each
départment is run by an elected General Council. Since 1982 the president of the
General Council has served as chief executive of the départment, replacing the
government-appointed prefect in that role. The General Council is responsible for all
the main departmental services: welfare, health, administration, and employment.
The smallest unit of government is the commune. Each commune has an elected
municipal council led by a mayor. There are some 36,500 communes, many with
extremely small populations. The smallest communes have been urged to merge into
larger units.
France holds several overseas possessions, which are remnants of the former French
Empire. They include Mayotte, St. Pierre and Miquelon, French Polynesia, the French
Southern and Antarctic Territories, New Caledonia, and the Wallis and Futuna
Islands. They have varying levels of self-government.

Political Parties

Political life in France is as colorful and varied as most other aspects of the national
culture. Political parties range across the political spectrum from Communist to
Fascist, parties change their names and often their directions, and new ideas often
generate new parties.
France's leading parties include the Union for a Popular Movement, a conservative
party created in 2002. It is rooted in the ideas of World War II hero and former
president Charles de Gaulle. The left is dominated by the Socialist party. The
Socialists have generally been allied with the more radical French Communist party,
which has support among industrial workers. More recently, the left alliance has also
included a small ecology party, Les Verts (the Greens). The National Front, a far-right
party that opposes immigration, has also shown strength in elections, though all of the
main parties have refused to ally with it.

International Relations
In keeping with its long tradition of international involvement, France plays a leading
role in world affairs. France is a permanent member of the United Nations Security
Council and is one of only five countries with veto power over decisions of that body.
France is also a member of nearly all other United Nations agencies, as well as of
numerous other international bodies. In 1952 France was one of the founding
members (with Belgium, West Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, and The Netherlands) of
the European Coal and Steel Community, the forerunner of the European Union, and
it has been active in promoting European integration.
On the other hand, France has always been concerned with maintaining an
independent role in the world and pursuing its own interests regardless of the
positions of allies and friends. For example, in 1966 France withdrew from the
military affairs of the North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), which it helped
found, because it was unwilling to subject French defense decisions to international
control (it rejoined in 1995). France also refused to sign the nuclear test ban treaty. In
the 1990s, despite worldwide protests, France conducted a series of underground
nuclear weapons tests in the South Pacific.
France's foreign policy is dominated by three major goals. It tries to promote peace
and stability in Europe while ensuring its prominent role throughout the continent.
France also works to ensure stability in the Middle East, the source of much of its oil,
and to serve as an alternative to the United States and other leading powers in military
and economic aid to this and other sensitive regions. In addition, France seeks to
consolidate its influence in its former colonial possessions, especially in North and
West Africa, again on a basis of mutual advantage. French efforts in pursuit of these
goals are enhanced by the international stature of their language, their long reputation
as skilled diplomats, and their independent stance in world affairs.

History

Artifacts discovered by archaeologists show that people have lived in what is now
France since the retreat of the Ice Age glaciers. In ancient times the land was known
as Gaul. Roman armies led by Julius Caesar conquered Gaul and its people, the Celts,
in 58–50 BC. During five centuries of Roman rule the Celts of Gaul became fully
Romanized. In the cities of the south they dressed like the Romans, spoke the Latin
language, and learned to respect Roman law. Gauls became Roman citizens, held
government office, served in Roman legions, and returned home over Roman roads to
teach the new ways. Christianity spread from Rome to Gaul and was widely adopted
as early as the 4th century.

The Merovingian and Carolingian Kings
As the Roman Empire declined in the 5th century, Germanic peoples settled in Gaul
and other parts of the Roman world. The most successful of these peoples was the
Franks, who settled in northern Gaul. The greatest of the early Frankish leaders was
Clovis, who ruled from 481 to 511. He expanded Frankish power throughout much of
Gaul and founded the Merovingian dynasty. His most important act as king was his
conversion to Catholic Christianity. His Roman subjects were Catholic Christians, and
his conversion helped win their support and the support of the powerful bishops of
Gaul.
The Merovingian dynasty ruled Gaul until 751, but none of the later kings were as
effective as Clovis. By the end of the 7th century many nobles had become as
powerful as the kings. One family of nobles—the Carolingians—gained power as
court officials and gradually took control of the kingdom. Charles Martel of this line
led the armies that turned back an invasion of Muslim Arabs from Spain. This battle
between Poitiers and Tours was one of a series that Charles fought that kept Muslim
invaders out of the Frankish kingdom.



Pope Leo III crowns Charlemagne emperor on Christmas Day in 800.

The greatest of the Carolingians was Charlemagne, who created an empire that
included much of western Europe. He was a great warrior who spread Christianity to
the lands he conquered. He also built schools to educate the young boys of his empire
and invited the most learned men of Europe to join his court. On Christmas Day in
800 Charlemagne was crowned emperor by the pope in Rome.
Charlemagne's empire faced numerous problems after his death in 814. His successor,
Louis the Pious, struggled against rebellions by his sons. He and the empire survived,
but his sons divided the empire into three parts in 843. The western section would
become the kingdom of France.

In the late 9th and 10th centuries the kingdom suffered repeated invasions by the
Vikings. The Carolingian kings were unable to stop the invaders and lost power to
regional leaders—dukes and counts—who offered protection to local settlements. The
dukes and counts built castles to bolster their authority, and some were as powerful as
the king. To keep their support the kings gave them land and rights. By the end of the
10th century the Carolingian king was one of many leaders in France, and his
authority was limited to the area around Paris. One powerful duke became a king
himself. In 1066 William II, duke of the northwestern region of Normandy,
vanquished England and took its crown. He is remembered as William the Conqueror.

The Middle Ages



A miniature from a 14th-century manuscript depicts, at left, the marriage of
French king Louis VII …

In 987 the Carolingian dynasty was replaced by a new ruling family, the Capetian
dynasty. This line of kings would rule France until 1328 and would restore royal
authority throughout the kingdom. In the 11th century Capetian kings gradually built
up power and extended their authority outside of Paris. In the 12th and 13th centuries
they strengthened the monarchy through war and marriage alliances. Philip Augustus,
or Philip II (ruled 1180–1223), took control of Normandy from the English king John.
Louis IX (1226–70) improved the administration of the kingdom and established a
reputation as a great Christian ruler. Philip IV (1285–1314) further expanded royal
power throughout the kingdom and waged a successful struggle against the pope for
control over the church in France. French kings, including Louis VII and Louis IX,
led the Crusades, and French knights made up the majority of the warriors who went
on the First Crusade.
France, especially Paris, was a center of art and culture during the Middle Ages.
Architecture advanced as nobles built their great fortress-castles and growing towns
erected beautiful churches. Romanesque and Gothic cathedrals are the glory of France
today, and the Capetian kings were early supporters of the Gothic style. Artists and
craftsmen brought the stories of the Bible to life in the sculpture and stained glass of
the churches.
The University of Paris attracted scholars from all over Europe to study theology,
philosophy, and the liberal arts. The scholars wrote their treatises in Latin and offered
their services to both church and state. The greatest medieval scholar, Thomas
Aquinas, taught in Paris in the 13th century and wrote important works of theology.

Minstrels recited the adventures of the knights and crusaders in chansons de geste
(verse chronicles), and troubadours chanted verses of courtly love in the developing
French tongue. (See also French Literature.)

Joan of Arc Saves France
The unity fostered by the Capetian kings broke down in the 14th century. The
kingdom, like most of Europe, endured famine and disease, including the Black
Death. The Capetian dynasty came to an end in 1328 and was replaced by the Valois
line. The new dynasty's efforts to impose itself on France were undermined by the
challenge of the English kings, who claimed the right to the French throne. The
struggle for the throne was the primary cause of the Hundred Years' War (1337–
1453). The English won several major battles and caused great destruction to the
French countryside. The war was nearly lost until a peasant girl, Joan of Arc, led the
French troops to victory.
France recovered swiftly and prospered. The cities grew and gained strength as trade
flourished. Able kings, such as Louis XI (ruled 1461–83), continued the struggle to
bring the nobles' powerful domains into the kingdoms. Territory changed hands
through plots, wars, marriages, and inheritances.

Religious Wars and a Strong Monarchy
Francis I (ruled 1515–47) strengthened the monarchy and gave it grandeur. He
patronized the arts. He encouraged the discovery and exploration in America that was
to bring France an empire in the New World. He also involved France in the rivalries
of Europe, however, and wasted its wealth in fruitless wars for Italian territory.



Roman Catholic forces attack a group of Huguenot worshippers in France in
about 1570.

The outbreak of the Reformation and the spread of Protestantism led to wars of
religion throughout Europe. In France Roman Catholics and French Protestants, called

Huguenots, fought bitterly in the 16th century. Henry IV (1589–1610) restored order
when he converted to Roman Catholicism and became the first Bourbon king. He
signed the Edict of Nantes (1598), granting Protestantism partial toleration, but his
assassination in 1610 showed that religious hatreds had not died.

Grandeur Under Louis XIV
The 17th century is known as France's great century. Colonies expanded and trade
increased. Art and literature reached new heights. Able ministers, such as the duke de
Sully, Cardinal Mazarin, and Jean-Baptiste Colbert, helped make France the foremost
power in Europe. The greatest minister, Cardinal Richelieu, helped transform France
into the leading kingdom in Europe under the authority of an all-powerful king. Under
Louis XIV (ruled 1643–1715) Richelieu's program was perfected and the movement
to centralized government reached its peak. The Sun King's power was absolute and
thought to have been derived from God. He did not call the Estates-General into
session, and he treated his ministers as chief clerks. He also overturned the Edict of
Nantes and waged several unsuccessful wars to extend his power.
In the 18th century France endured a long struggle with England over colonial
possessions, and the Seven Years' War brought conflict with both England and
Prussia. Prussia's forces under Frederick II the Great inflicted humiliating defeats on
France, while the English captured French possessions in Canada, the Caribbean, and
India. The one French success in the century-long competition with England was the
support given to the rebellious North American colonies in the American Revolution
(1775–83). French military officers fought with the American forces, and for a short
while the French navy had control of the high seas. Though the Americans' victory
enhanced French prestige, it failed to bring any territorial gains or economic
advantages.
The French government was severely criticized for the loss of its colonies as well as
for inefficiency, abuses, and extravagance. The new cultured middle class was
dissatisfied with the old regime and demanded an influence in the government
suitable to its wealth and education. France's great 18th-century philosophers and
writers spread ideas of freedom and equality.

French Revolution and Rise of Napoleon



Peasants storm the Bastille prison in Paris on July 14, 1789. This was the
opening event of the …

Matters came to a crisis when financial problems forced the king to yield to protest
and convene the Estates-General in 1789. His granting of freedom of the press led to
the flooding of France with publications calling for reform and reconstruction. After
several months of conflict between the Third Estate (representing the people) and the
nobility and clergy, rumors spread that the aristocrats were looking to overthrow the
Third Estate. Panic set in among the peasants, who eventually stormed the Bastille, a
symbol of royal tyranny, on July 14. The revolution overthrew the monarchy and
proclaimed a new French republic. But the country still faced years of terror and war.
In the late 1790s the French military, led by Napoleon Bonaparte, won great victories
on the battlefield. With France suffering from political instability, the government
turned to Napoleon, who became first consul in 1799. As emperor (1804–14)
Napoleon attempted to make France the supreme power in Europe. In conquest after
conquest, he built up a great empire in Europe before his battle-weary troops
eventually met defeat, particularly in the disastrous Russian campaign of 1812 and in
the battle of Waterloo in 1815. The Congress of Vienna (1814–15) reduced France to
its former limits.



Louis-Philippe was king of France from 1830 to 1848.

The Napoleonic wars left France devastated, and the country was slow in accustoming
itself to the new order. The Revolution of 1830 (July 27–29) overthrew the Bourbons,
who had been restored to the throne in 1814. Louis-Philippe, a member of the Orléans
family, was declared a constitutional monarch. He was considered a liberal who was
also sympathetic to the upper classes. Nevertheless, he wanted to be a king who both
governed and reigned, and he participated actively in decision making. Eventually he
fell in the Revolution of 1848 (February 22–24). After a stormy experiment with a
Second Republic, the Second Empire brought Louis-Napoleon Bonaparte (a nephew
of Napoleon I) to the throne in 1852.

Franco-Prussian War and Third Republic



Napoleon III surrenders to Wilhelm I, king of Prussia, on Sept. 2, 1870, after
the battle at Sedan. …

Napoleon III ruled with an iron hand in the 1850s, limiting the rights of citizens, but
in 1859 he began implementing reforms to liberalize the empire. He gave amnesty to
political exiles and relaxed controls on the press. Napoleon and his Second Empire
fell as a result of the ruinous Franco-Prussian War (1870–71), launched by France
against Germany. When Paris surrendered after a long siege, a provisional
government made peace. France lost its provinces of Alsace and Lorraine and the
valuable iron mines and heavy industry there. Parisian workers rebelled and
established a government called the Commune, which was ruthlessly put down.
The Third Republic was founded in 1875. Under its constitution France had universal
male suffrage and an elected parliament of two houses. The republic had a president,
but real executive power lay with the body of ministers, or cabinet. Under the
parliamentary system, when the government was defeated on a major bill, the cabinet
was obliged to resign.
The public was so divided that it was difficult for any party or coalition to achieve a
stable majority in parliament. The numerous political parties ranged from monarchist
on the far right to Socialist, and later Communist, on the far left. Ministries tended to
be made up of coalitions of leaders of various parties without a safe majority. In the
Third Republic's 65-year history more than 90 governments were formed, most
lasting less than a year.

Economic Expansion
Despite political conflict and instability during the 19th and early 20th centuries,
France enjoyed economic progress. Agricultural production increased greatly after the
revolution broke up the great estates and put small holdings into the hands of
industrious farm families. Food was abundant. Wool, flax, and silk fibers supplied the
growing textile industry. After the monarchy's arbitrary regulations on manufacturing
and trade were swept away, enterprising French manufacturers began to compete
favorably with England's factories. French companies stressed quality and elegance in
their wares and found a market for them abroad.
The government aided commerce by building transportation lines. Abroad, it won
colonies in Indochina and Africa to replace its 18th-century losses, and in the mid19th century foreign trade benefited by the building of the Suez Canal by Ferdinand
de Lesseps.

Worldwide Cultural Renown
France's cultural prestige was at its zenith. The Third Republic's list of literary figures
was as brilliant as in any period of history. French painters made Paris the world
center of art. Museums and galleries in every country collected canvases by the

masters of modern French schools of painting, especially Henri Matisse (leader of the
Fauvist movement); impressionists such as Édouard Manet, Claude Monet, and Edgar
Degas; and postimpressionists such as Paul Cézanne, Henri de Toulouse-Lautrec, Paul
Gauguin, Pierre-Auguste Renoir, and Georges Seurat.



Claude Debussy.

Composers such as Hector Berlioz, Camille Saint-Saëns, Maurice Ravel, Claude
Debussy, and the Polish-born Frédéric Chopin created a distinctively French style of
music, original in both composition and harmonies. Scientists rivaled the artists in
renown, with Marie Curie winning Nobel prizes for physics and chemistry. Many of
the important discoveries and inventions of the period were the work of French
scientists and technologists.

World War I and Its Aftermath
Immediately after World War I broke out in 1914, France was invaded by Germany,
and the country became the chief battlefield of the war. More than 1.3 million French
soldiers were killed, and some 4 million were wounded. Many civilians died of
starvation, exposure, disease, and military encounters. Northern France was occupied
by the armies of the enemy and of the Allies. Hundreds of towns were deserted
wastes. Millions of acres of farmland were scarred with shell holes and trenches.
Industrial production was cut to a fraction of its prewar level.



Dignitaries gather in the Hall of Mirrors at the Palace of Versailles, France, on
June 28, 1919, to …

After Germany's defeat, the treaty signed at Versailles provided benefits for France. It
regained Alsace-Lorraine and took over many of Germany's colonies. As payment for
damage, France was given a 15-year lease on the Saar coal mines, and Germany

agreed to make huge reparations. The Saar and Lorraine provided coal, iron, and
potash to aid the postwar development of heavy industry.



The French statesman Aristide Briand signs the Kellogg-Briand Pact in1928.

France assisted in the founding of the League of Nations. Its diplomats were active in
the conferences of the 1920s and 1930s aimed at maintaining world peace. Aristide
Briand, who served as prime minister of France 11 times between 1906 and 1932, was
pivotal in achieving the Kellogg-Briand Pact (1928), in which 60 countries renounced
war as an instrument of national policy. Yet the scars of World War I left France
feeling insecure. In the 1930s it built the Maginot Line, an elaborate defensive barrier
along the German border, and it maintained the largest standing army in Europe.
Heavy defense costs forced the government to raise taxes, to float extensive loans,
and, in 1926, to devalue the franc by about 80 percent. France also ran into continual
difficulty trying to collect reparation payments from Germany.
Nevertheless, by the end of the 1920s France had apparently recovered its prewar
prosperity and self-confidence. For a time it even seemed immune to the economic
crisis that spread through Europe beginning in 1929, but by 1931 France began to feel
the effects of the worldwide economic depression.

Europe Drifts into World War II
In 1933 Adolf Hitler rose to power in Germany. Boldly promising to create a greater
Germany, Hitler rebuilt the army, navy, and air force and constructed fortifications
paralleling the Maginot Line. France, however, was divided both politically and
economically and failed to counter Germany's threat. Parties of the left feared rightist
plots to set up a dictatorship. Right and center parties feared a Communist revolution.
When civil war broke out in Spain in 1936, France's Popular Front coalition, led by
Léon Blum (France's first Socialist prime minister), refused to intervene on behalf of
the Republicans. In 1938 France joined England in appeasing Hitler's demand for
Czechoslovakian territory. This policy of appeasement fell into disrepute after Hitler
annexed all of Czechoslovakia and Italy's dictator, Benito Mussolini, seized Albania
in 1939. Both France and England had made security guarantees to Poland, and
following Germany's invasion of that country in September 1939, both declared war
on Germany.

Surrender, Resistance, Liberation
France and the United Kingdom planned to wage a defensive war of attrition, but their
strategy failed. In May 1940 German forces swept through The Netherlands,
Luxembourg, and Belgium. Within a short time the road to Paris lay open. Panic and
defeatism gripped the government. It retreated from Paris to Tours and later to
Bordeaux. Finally, the defeatists, led by Marshal Henri-Philippe Pétain, gained
control of the government and appointed Pétain prime minister. Pétain asked
Germany for an armistice, and on June 22 he signed surrender terms. The armistice
provided for the maintenance of a partially sovereign French state and for the division
of the country into an occupied zone (northern France plus the western coast) and an
unoccupied southern zone. France was made responsible for the German army's
occupation costs, and the French navy was forced to disarm.
Pétain declared the end of the Third Republic on July 11 and established a
dictatorship, with Vichy as the capital. After the Allies invaded North Africa on Nov.
8, 1942, Germany broke the surrender terms and occupied all of France.



U.S. soldiers land on the beaches of Normandy, France, in June 1944.

Part of the French army had escaped to England. This force was organized by Gen.
Charles de Gaulle into the Free French, later called the Fighting French. At home
hundreds of thousands of people joined an underground organization called Le
Maquis (meaning ―Underbrush‖), or the Resistance. This group harassed the
occupying forces and aided the Allied liberation troops after they landed in Normandy
on June 6, 1944. By August, Free French forces captured Paris.

Postwar Chaos and Disunity
Victory left France battered and exhausted. Factories had been looted and bombed
and transportation lines wrecked. Two million homes had been damaged—one quarter
of them beyond repair. Farms and vineyards had been neglected. The enormous task
of reconstruction was complicated by the country's great human losses. Some 2.5
million French prisoners of war, forced laborers, and deportees were still in German
camps; two thirds of them would not return. An additional 550,000 people, including
350,000 civilians, had died during the war.
De Gaulle was made president of the provisional government, and he called a
referendum on France's future. By an overwhelming majority, the French rejected a
return to the prewar regime. Members of the Resistance dominated the new

government, but they disagreed over the form of the new republic. In January 1946
De Gaulle resigned apparently because he was irritated with the political parties
forming the government. A new constitution creating the Fourth Republic was
approved in October. France's wartime unity crumbled as numerous parties battled for
power. When coalition governments took office, their policies often failed to get
support in the National Assembly. Like governments in the Third Republic,
governments in the Fourth Republic were often short-lived: in its 12 years the Fourth
Republic had 26 governments.

Achievements Under Four-Year Plans
France initially lagged behind its European allies and West Germany in reconstruction
and industrial recovery. In 1946, however, the country embarked on a series of highly
successful development plans. The first plan was aimed mainly at reconstruction and
at replacing the obsolete equipment that had kept output low. Investments in
equipment and modernization totaled nearly 12 billion dollars. In 1948 the French
began receiving enormous economic aid from the United States under the European
Recovery Program (or Marshall Plan), making funds available to buy machinery and
materials for public and private industries and public works.
Industrial expansion was the objective of the 1954–57 and 1958–61 plans. Large
investments were also made in housing, schools, hospitals, sanitary engineering, water
supply, and city planning. Production had been expanding at an annual average rate of
about 4.5 percent when the 1962–65 plan, which aimed at a 5.5 percent annual
increase, began.

Plans for European Economic Cooperation
France took a leading role in movements to unite western Europe economically. In
1948 it joined with 15 other countries to establish the Organisation for European
Economic Co-operation (OEEC), which coordinated efforts to restore Europe's
economy under the Marshall Plan. The following year the Council of Europe was
established with headquarters in Strasbourg.
In 1950 French foreign minister Robert Schuman and diplomat Jean Monnet proposed
the establishment of a common market for coal and steel in western Europe. The plan
became reality two years later, when France, West Germany, Italy, Belgium, The
Netherlands, and Luxembourg formed the European Coal and Steel Community. The
same six countries also organized the European Economic Community, or Common
Market, which sought the gradual elimination of customs duties and other restrictions
on trade. The Common Market and the European Atomic Energy Community
(Euratom), which pooled atomic resources for industrial use, both came into existence
on Jan. 1, 1958.
France rejected the European Defense Community plan in 1954, but the next year it
approved the similar Western European Union and authorized a German army of 12

divisions within NATO. France and the United Kingdom failed to get support from
their allies in 1956 when they invaded Egypt in an attempt to free the Suez Canal
from blockade.

Rebellion in Overseas Territories
During World War II France's colonies supplied valuable resources and manpower to
De Gaulle and the Free French movement. After the war, the colonies demanded a
new relationship with France, and French leaders recognized the need to grant
concessions. But most French leaders wanted to maintain the country's empire, partly
because losing it seemed incompatible with France's effort to rebuild the self-respect
it lost in the war. The constitution of 1946 introduced only mild reforms: the empire
was renamed the French Union, within which the colonial peoples would enjoy some
powers plus some representation in the French parliament.
In the 1950s relations worsened between France and its Asian and North African
colonies. The situation in Indochina became especially desperate. A long war against
the Communist Viet Minh of northern Vietnam resulted in severe losses to French
Union troops. After the French forces were surrounded and routed by the Vietnamese
at Dienbienphu, an armistice was signed in 1954 in Geneva. Vietnam was divided into
a Communist North Vietnam and a non-Communist South Vietnam. With full
independence for Laos, South Vietnam, and Cambodia in 1954, the conception of a
united ―French Indochina‖ ended.
In North Africa the Arab League helped rouse nationalist ambitions and revolts
among the Muslims in French territories. It recognized the independence of Morocco
and Tunisia in 1956. The French regarded Algeria, however, as part of France itself.
French settlers, called colons, had participated in its development. The colons
violently opposed the demands of the Arab peoples for freedom. By 1958 France had
sent some 500,000 troops to Algeria, but it was unable to defeat the rebellion. As the
revolt dragged on, it sapped French finances and added to the political dissension.

De Gaulle and the Fifth Republic
The unstable ministries of the Fourth Republic were unable to end the Algerian
conflict or solve France's economic problems. In May 1958 leaders of the French
army in Algeria appealed to General De Gaulle to take control of the government. De
Gaulle agreed to return to public life only if he was given full power to act, including
the ability to reform the constitution. On June 1 De Gaulle became prime minister and
was granted full powers for six months. His constitution, which created a strong
presidency, won the overwhelming backing of the voters in September 1958, and the
Fifth Republic officially came into existence on Oct. 4, 1958. De Gaulle was elected
president in December and assumed his presidential functions the following month.
De Gaulle faced two major issues: the Algerian conflict and inflation. To combat the
latter, he devalued the franc and made French currency convertible abroad. France

thus could offer favorable prices on its goods in foreign trade. De Gaulle also put into
effect an austerity budget. Private investment increased, and France prospered along
with other member countries of the Common Market.
In September 1959 De Gaulle suggested self-determination for the Algerians. This
enraged the colons, who stirred up riots in Algeria and demonstrations against De
Gaulle in France. There were also several attempts on De Gaulle's life.

Independence for Many French Colonies
Guinea gained its independence from France in 1958. In 1960 twelve other French
possessions in Africa—Dahomey (now Benin), Ivory Coast (now Côte d'Ivoire),
Niger, Senegal, Mali, Upper Volta (now Burkina Faso), Congo, Gabon, Chad,
Mauritania, the Malagasy Republic (now Madagascar), and the Central African
Republic—gained their independence. In the same year two trusteeships, Cameroon
and Togo, also became republics.
The French supported self-determination for Algeria in a January 1961 referendum;
peace talks with the Algerian National Liberation Front (FLN) were begun in May.
This set off terrorist violence organized by the Secret Army Organization (OAS) in
France and Algeria. The long-awaited truce guaranteeing Algerian independence was
signed on March 18, 1962, and it was approved by more than 90 percent of French
voters in April. The agreement provided for joint control of Algerian oil. Algeria
became independent on July 3, 1962.
The Comoros islands unilaterally declared independence in 1975; however, Mayotte,
one of the islands, rejected independence. The Territory of the Afars and Issas became
the Republic of Djibouti in 1977.

France After Algeria
Following the agreement on Algerian independence, De Gaulle reached new heights
of popularity and power. Elections in 1962 gave the Gaullists a majority in
parliament. De Gaulle stepped up his efforts to give France primacy in western
Europe by developing nuclear weapons and a space program. In 1963 France rejected
proposals by the United States and the United Kingdom for a multilateral NATO
force. It also blocked the United Kingdom's entry into the Common Market and
refused to sign the international nuclear test ban treaty. France had begun atomic
bomb tests in 1960 and sent its first Earth satellite into orbit in 1965. It launched its
first nuclear-powered submarine in 1967.
In 1962 voters backed De Gaulle's proposed constitutional amendment that would
allow French voters to directly elect the president. In 1965 De Gaulle was reelected
for a second term, becoming the first French president elected by popular vote since
1848. In 1966 he withdrew France from all NATO military activities and required
NATO forces and headquarters to leave French soil.

The mid-1960s were considered the golden years of De Gaulle's rule. The country
enjoyed economic growth, it had restored its role in international affairs, and it was
taking the lead in uniting Europe economically. Not all of the French people were
happy with De Gaulle's rule, however. In 1968 students and workers led violent
protests that grew into a national crisis. De Gaulle left Paris on May 29, returning the
following day with a promise of armed support from French commanders to put down
the demonstrations. The country rallied around De Gaulle. Nevertheless, in April
1969 De Gaulle resigned after voters rejected a referendum he supported.
Former prime minister Georges Pompidou was elected president in 1969, but he died
in office on April 2, 1974. The following month Valéry Giscard d'Estaing, finance
minister in the De Gaulle and Pompidou cabinets, was elected president. Giscard
appointed as his prime minister Jacques Chirac, and he pushed through policies
designed to appeal to younger voters, such as environmental-protection laws,
legalized abortion, and a lower voting age. Chirac and Giscard soon had a falling out,
and Chirac resigned. He formed a new party, the Rally for the Republic, and was
elected mayor of Paris.

A New Socialist Era



François Mitterrand.

When Giscard's presidential term ended in May 1981, it seemed as though he would
win a second term. He overcame a strong challenge by Chirac in the first round of
voting and seemed poised to defeat the Socialist François Mitterrand in the runoff.
However, Mitterrand narrowly defeated Giscard, becoming the country's first
popularly elected Socialist president. The Socialists, who soon won control of the
National Assembly, raised taxes on businesses and the wealthy and nationalized
several key industries. In 1986, however, the Socialists lost control of the National
Assembly, and for two years Mitterrand had to share power with Chirac as prime
minister—an arrangement known as cohabitation. Chirac reversed many of
Mitterrand's policies, but Chirac's popularity fell as a result of a transport strike and a
wave of terrorist attacks in Paris. In 1988 Mitterrand was reelected for another sevenyear term.
In the late 1980s and early 1990s France, along with Germany, led efforts to further
integrate the countries in the European Community (from 1993, the European Union

[EU]) both politically and economically. Mitterrand strongly supported the Maastricht
Treaty (1991), a blueprint for European federalism and a single currency. When the
treaty faced severe criticism in France, including riots by farmers, Mitterrand called a
referendum to solidify support. His move nearly backfired, and his prestige was
reduced as only 51 percent of voters backed the treaty.
In 1991 Mitterrand appointed Edith Cresson as France's first woman prime minister.
In 1992, however, she was dismissed after the government's defeat in regional
elections. Mitterrand then named Pierre Bérégovoy to take her place. In the early
1990s the country was confronted by a wave of strikes, a weak economy that brought
record unemployment, violent police clashes with immigrants, and political
corruption. In 1993 conservative parties won a landslide victory and took control of
80 percent of the seats in the National Assembly. Mitterrand had to face cohabitation
again. He appointed the Gaullist Édouard Balladur as prime minister.

Conservative Presidencies
Though Chirac had organized Balladur's appointment as prime minister, in 1995 he
ran against Balladur and the Socialist party candidate, Lionel Jospin, for the
presidency. Chirac captured the presidency by beating Balladur in the first round and
narrowly defeating Jospin in the second round. He appointed Alain Juppé, a former
foreign minister, as prime minister.
Chirac made reducing France's budget deficit his top priority. He wanted France to
qualify for participation in a single common European currency, the euro, which
replaced the franc as France's sole currency in 2002. Chirac's measures to cut
government spending included freezing the wages of public-sector employees and
reducing social welfare programs. Chirac continued to pursue his policies despite a
massive general strike in late 1995 and record unemployment levels by 1997.
Hoping to win support for his program, Chirac called for parliamentary elections in
May 1997. He lost the gamble when voters overwhelmingly cast their ballots for the
left. Forced to enter a power-sharing arrangement, Chirac appointed Jospin as prime
minister. Jospin's Socialist government followed a moderate path, attempting to
balance economic growth with social progress. Yet unemployment remained very
high. In an attempt to ease the problem, the National Assembly shortened the national
work week from 39 hours to 35 hours.
In 2002 Chirac won reelection over Jean-Marie Le Pen, leader of the National Front, a
far-right party with an anti-immigration platform. In a surprisingly strong showing, Le
Pen had defeated Jospin in the first round of voting. His second-place finish rallied
the French political community–both left and right—in support of Chirac in the
second round.
France took the world spotlight in 2003 when Chirac, along with the leaders of Russia
and Germany, opposed the United States and blocked United Nations authorization of
the use of force against Iraq. Nevertheless, the United States and the United Kingdom,
France's traditional allies, invaded Iraq, touching off an intense diplomatic conflict.

Although the French public largely agreed with Chirac on Iraq, his party suffered
losses in both regional and European Parliament elections in 2004.
French pride in the country's ethnic diversity wavered in 2005 when the accidental
deaths of two immigrant teenagers sparked violence in Paris that spread rapidly to
other parts of the country. Nearly 9,000 cars were torched and nearly 3,000 arrests
made during the riots, which were fueled by high unemployment, discrimination, and
lack of opportunity within the primarily North African immigrant community. In
2006, in another display of dissatisfaction with the government, more than a million
people gathered around the country to protest a law that would have eased the
dismissal of young employees. Chirac, already suffering a sharp decline in popularity,
was forced to suspend the law.
Chirac chose not to run for president again in 2007. Echoing the public's desire for
change, the two main political parties nominated a pair of relative newcomers to
replace him. The Socialist party selected Ségolène Royal, a former adviser to
Mitterrand, while Chirac's rival Nicolas Sarkozy won the nomination of the UMP. In
the second round of voting, Sarkozy won a decisive victory. He promised to reduce
unemployment, cut taxes, and toughen immigration laws.

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