Terrain

The four Hercynian Massifs distinguish France topographically. These are the Ardennes and the Vosges to the east, the Armorican to the west, and finally, the Central Massif, which separates the north and south of France. Between the massifs lie undulating floors, which include the Paris Basin, the Poiteau Gate, the Basin of Aquitaine, the Garonne Basin and the coastal plain. Beyond these lowland corridors rise the walls of the Jura Mountains, the Alps and the Pyrenees. The drainage system of France is based on its rivers Garonne, Rhone, Rhine, Seine and the Loire. The country's highest elevation is Mont Blanc (4,807 m) and the longest river, the Loire.

Climate

France has a predominantly temperate climate, with mild winters, except in mountain areas and in the north-east. The Atlantic has a profound impact on the north-west, where the weather is characterised by high humidity, often-violent westerly winds and lots of rain. France's north-east has a continental climate, with fairly hot summers and cold winters. The southern coastal plains are subject to Mediterranean climate: The south is also the region of the "mistral", a cold, dry wind that blows down the Rhone Valley.

Fauna/Flora

France's mix of climates and terrains endowed it with a rich variety of flora and fauna. However, many fragile species such as the Pyrenees ibex, Corsican deer, brown bear, wolf and otter now face extinction. Some animals and birds, the chamois (a mountain antelope), the larger bouquetin (a type of ibex), beaver, stork and vulture, still live in the wild thanks to re-introduction programmes based in national parks. Forests, mostly beech, oak and pine, cover roughly one-fifth of the country.

History/Politics

The year BC 2000 saw the beginning of Celtic settlement activities in the area of present-day France. In BC 125 the Romans started to conquer the area then known as Gaul. The region remained part of the Roman Empire up to the times of reconquest by Chlodwig, the first King of Franks in the 5th century AD. The Treaty of Verdun (843) divided the territories, roughly corresponding to present-day France.

Absolute monarchy reached its apogee in the reign of Louis XIV, the Sun King, and France's cultural influence would never be so profound again like in those days. The French Revolution of 1789 put an end to absolutist rule, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen of 27 July 1789 and the proclamation of the First French Republic in August 1789 marked a new age dawning in human history.

A coup d'etat brought Napoleon Bonaparte to power in 1799. He crowned himself Emperor of France in 1804. Napoleon's reign ended with his defeat at Waterloo in 1815. The revolutions of 1830, 1848 and 1871 (the Paris Commune) and alterating state models (restauration, July Monarchy, Second Republic, Second Empire) dominated the country's turbulent history after Napoleon. The Third French Republic from 1870 right up to the mid-20th century came to be seen as one of the longest-lasting Republican periods throughout the country's history.

In World War I, France succeeded in regaining the territories of Alsace and Lorraine lost in the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1871). Germany occupied France in World War II. The year 1944 marked the liberation from German occupation. The constitution of the Fourth French Republic was ratified in October 1946.

After World War II, France's colonial power began to dwindle. French Indochina (Vietnam, Cambodia and Laos) had to be abandoned after the defeat of French forces at Dien Bien Phu in 1954. Rebellion by French citizens in Algeria against military retreat from the colony in 1958 finally brought down the Fourth French Republic. A new constitution adopted in 1958 considerably strengthened the powers of new French president General Charles de Gaulle. Algeria finally became independent in 1962 as one of France's last colonies.

Student protests and general strike sparked one of the worst social crises in the period of the Fifth French Republic in May 1968. De Gaulle eventually retired from politics after he had to suffer defeat in a self-initiated referendum in 1969. Georges Pompidou, who was in turn followed by Alain Poher, Valéry Giscard d'Estaing and François Mitterrand, followed him. Jacques Chirac was elected president in May 1995. Lionel Jospin, leader of the French Socialist Party, has been in office as prime minister since 1997.

Economy

Agriculture plays a larger role than in the economies of most other industrial countries. A large proportion of the value of total agricultural output derives from livestock. 4% of the population is employed in the agricultural sector, with 25% in manufacturing and 71% in the services sector.

France is among the foremost producers of wine in the world. The best-known vineyards are in Burgundy, Champagne, the Rhone and Loire valleys, and the Bordeaux region. France is among the world's largest producers of iron ore and bauxite. The unemployment rate amounted to 9.7% in 2000.

Culture

The 17th century literature is dominated by philosophers, among them Voltaire and Rousseau. Post-impressionism gave way to a diversity of styles in the 20th century, e.g. Cubism, personified by Pablo Picasso. Marcel Proust dominated early 20th century literature. After World War II, existentialism developed around Jean-Paul Sartre, Simone de Beauvoir and Albert Camus.