While in the second half of 1932 and at the beginning of 1933 the crisis could be considered partially attenuated, the devaluation of the dollar occurred in March which, in addition to hindering the already difficult adaptation of prices to the new world situation, could not fail to seriously affect France, both for the large […]

Paleolithic and Mesolithic According to Topb2bwebsites.com, the richness of the Paleolithic deposits in France testifies to the occupation by man since the most archaic times. The most ancient traces seem to be represented by the findings of the Vallonet cave (Roquebrune-Cap Martin, Provence), with Villafranchian fauna. The Acheulean is very widespread: in the northern part […]

In the years between 1932 and 1939, French musical life continued to unfold with the usual intensity and richness of practical and cultural manifestations, without however that, in terms of composition, new figures of great importance emerged. The most fervent and broadest interest therefore always led to the activity of masters who had already been […]

Sculpture followed the path of painting with some delay. The academic school lasted longer there with the gracious J. Pradier and his rivals A.-A. Préault, É.-H. Maindron. But the two great artists of the time were the Burgundian François Rude, author of the epic bas-relief of the Arc de Triomphe (1845), and the mighty A.-L. […]

Preparation and armament. – France, mindful of the double invasion suffered by Germany in the space of less than half a century, had not neglected its military preparation in the twenty years between the first and second world wars. However, above all, a kind of reaction against the military doctrine dominant in France and essentially […]

Despite the stability of the French population, migrations have to be reported that have modified and continue to slightly modify the distribution of the groupings. Long before modern communication routes developed, relatively poor and over-populated countries sent a certain number of seasonal immigrants to lands rich in agricultural products and especially to urban centers. The […]

According to Shopareview.com, the coin was known and used in France throughout the Middle Ages. Only from the reign of Theodbert I (534-548), grandson of Clovis (481-511), did the name of a Frankish ruler appear in clear letters on solids, which in type and weight are indistinguishable from Roman coins. Subsequently, the emissions were limited […]

Reduced to geographical expression, the France, due to its shape, is the Hexagone, like Italy is the boot. The Romans gave a proper name to this geometric figure. The Celts who settled in northern Italy from the century onwards had called Gauls. 4th BC, believing that they had to do with the rooster. Resolved to […]

The data that French medieval archeology has brought to light in recent decades contribute in a fundamental way to the clarification and definition of relevant aspects of the Middle Ages; they concern both daily life with its environments, its tools, its food uses, and artistic production, for which new fundamental documents of architecture, sculpture and […]

. – The Thirty Years’ Wars of Religion with Spain had annihilated the already vital French navy. When the Colbert took power, the tonnage of the navy was 80,000 tons. (those of Hansa and England weighed 100,000 tons each; the Dutch one 560,000); the minister took care of the navy by issuing the de commerce ordinance of […]

In the past, farming was done only in natural meadows and mountain pastures, which cover an area of ​​about 5 million hectares; but it acquired greater importance due to the extension of artificial lawns (clover, alfalfa, etc.), the surface of which increased by 28% from 1892 to 1909, continuing to increase after 1918. It should […]

France is a constitutional republic, with a semi-presidential parliamentary regime (with strong powers in the hands of the president of the republic) and, following the constitutional reform of 2003, with a decentralized organization. The legislative body consists of a bicameral parliament: next to the National Assembly (577 members elected for five years), there is the […]

Foreign wealth continues to be given by the industrial sector, which represents 47.2% of the gross national product (1972). But a group of industries for about fifteen years – also in connection with the entry of France into the EEC – has suffered a stagnation or a decline: the coal industry due to the high […]

According to Oxfordastronomy.com, the French wealth, however, is given today especially by the industry which participates for 48% in the formation of the national product. Certainly joining the Common European Market has created major problems for the French industry which in some branches (e.g. shipbuilding) has very high costs, and in various fields (manufacturing of […]

According to Neovideogames.com, the political crisis had worsened in recent years, among other things due to the scandalous attitudes adopted by some political groups. Since Chirac’s turnaround in October 1995, when, five months after his election to the presidency of the Republic, he renounced the program on the basis of which he had been elected […]

Preceded by some signs in November 1967, in January 1968 the student protest also reached France, with the first epicenter being the campus of Nanterre, on the outskirts of Paris. In May, Nanterre closed, the center of the turmoil moved to the Sorbonne. In the night between 3 and 4 May, after the police intervened to clear […]

According to Militarynous.com, the first problem that presented itself to Bonaparte was the institutional one. But the constitution of the year VIII he created fell into the opposite excess of that of the year III: the paralysis was replaced by the omnipotence of the executive power and the legislative power was substantially absorbed by it […]

In the presidential elections of 1995 the Socialist Party nominated L. Jospin. On the right, Chirac got the better of Balladur, but the most relevant figure was the 15% of the votes obtained by Le Pen. In the ballot Chirac had the upper hand, becoming the new president of the Republic, with A. Juppé at the head of […]

According to Internetsailors.com, the Minister of Finance Pinay implemented a liberal program based on two fundamental principles: 1) respect for the commitments made towards the European Common Market and towards the freeing of exchanges; 2) devaluation of the currency of 17.55% in order to favor foreign trade: at the same time creation of a “new […]

Born from the armistice and raised at the same time against the occupier and against the “French State”, the history of the resistance dates back to the first. Already on June 18, 1940 on the London radio, General De Gaulle launched his first appeal denying any legitimacy to the Pétain government and inciting France to […]

On September 28, 1958, 80% of the voters approved by referendum the new Constitution according to which the nation was led by a president elected by local representatives. The president appointed his prime minister and, in fact, the ministers, and could have the referendum instrument, in front of a Parliament which, although weakened and easy […]

For many citizens the ultraliberal idea that the West is ripe for living in conditions of absolute freedom is no less utopian – and no less dogmatic – than the revolutionary ambition of absolute egalitarianism. They ask themselves how to imagine the future and express the need for another utopia, a new rationalization of the […]

Strengthened by the success obtained in the referendum, De Gaulle went to Algeria for the fourth time, where he announced the Plan of Constantine for the economic and social development of the country (2-5 October 1958). On 23 October he launched an appeal to the rebels for a “paix des braves” and invited the leaders of the […]

Administrative Division According to Ezinereligion.com, the local government is divided into 90 departments (including the territory of Belfort). Since 1881, the three departments of Algeria have been part of the local government. The department is divided into neighborhoods (arrondissements: 279), the district in cantons (3024) and the canton in communes (37.981). The department has a […]

According to Extrareference.com, France has established itself as a leader in Europe since modern times and, during the twentieth century, has been able to secure the limelight in the most important international organizations. By virtue of its role in the United Nations (where it holds one of the five permanent seats on the Security Council), […]

Forestry. – In 1913 the forests covered an area of ​​9.890.000 ha., That is a little more than the sixth part of the French territory; and the acreage, far from diminishing, had increased in a century by over a million hectares. The French forests suffered the damage of the war (166,000 ha. Destroyed, out of […]

In 1737 the first excavations of Herculaneum began, which Caylus (v.) Soon made known in France; shortly after, the memorable discovery of the temples of Pesto took place. Those discoveries were the signal of a general reaction, very fruitful of consequences, to which the names of Winckelmann and Lessing must be added. The Baroque had […]

Romanticism and naturalism. – In painting, which had a great flowering in France, the first sign of Romanticism was given as early as 1812 by J.-L.-A. Géricault, whose Radeau de la Méduse (1818) fascinated the public and artists. There is no need to insist on the long rivalry of Ingres and Delacroix. The first, after spending twenty […]

After a long period of crisis, in the changed moral atmosphere a new society develops and consolidates; among its essential features is the foundation of monastic orders: Grandmont, Cîteaux, Chartreux, Fontevrault, Prémontrés: indication of a great spiritual movement. The noblest of these noble abbeys is Cluny (v.), Founded in 910. There is no need to […]

The vaults, due to their weight, gave rise to various inconveniences; to limit them, medieval architects resorted to transverse supporting arches, transverse arches, thus dividing the entire roof into isolated sectors. It wasn’t enough. Diagonal arches were thrown into each sector, the ribs or ribs, which cross at the top of the vault, and were […]

The oldest Christian inscription preserved in Gaul is from 334; and even before the barbarian invasions a certain number of churches had been built. At the time of Clovis the bishops had great political importance; they represented the Roman order, and extended the traditions of the old regime under the new masters. On the other […]

Painting and sculpture. – As continuers of Impressionism and the great French colourist tradition, two recently deceased painters are now held in high regard: Pierre Bonnard (1867-1947) and Èdouard Vuillard (1868-1940). They are in fact considered post-impressionists although they have operated with a new awareness of color, which is not tonal in them, and of […]

19th century The public’s enthusiasm for theater continued in the 19th century and the theater became a magnet for large groups of the population. The popular theater remained located on the Boulevard du Temple, where the “mélodrame” (melodrama), an exaggeratedly sentimental and pathetic touching and shuddering piece from the end of the 18th century, fascinated […]

Annecy – Venice of the Alps Annecy – The Venice of the Alps – as the city is also called, is located north of the lake of the same name, which means it is in France, very close to Italy and Switzerland. In the course of its history, Annecy has always had to share the seat […]