COUNTRY: FRENCH REPUBLIC

LOCAL ALPHABET: RÉPUBLIQUE

FRANÇAISE

BY: VIKTORIYA MOLCHANOVA

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 REASON FOR THE SELECTED COUNTRY

France has always been my passion for its rich and diverse history. It had a huge impact
on the other countries and colonies worldwide. It is located in Europe, has the best cuisine, and its
capital is Paris. It has always been interesting how France has survived the Roman rule, the
medieval times, and the World wars. There have been Germanic tribes that invaded Europe and,
as a result, they have settled in these lands and named them the land of the francs (France). I want
to know who is Napoleon, what is the One Hundred year war, and what is France’s impact on the
world in general.

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 GEOGRAPHIC FEATURES OF FRANCE

 Main Rivers:
 La Seine
 La Loire
 Le Rhône
 La Garonne

 Mountains:
 The Alps (between France and Italy)
 The Pyrenees (between France and Spain)

 Impact:
 Water Transport to other nations (Trade)
 Cultural Diffusion from England, Germany, and probably Spain

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 BELIEF SYSTEM: CATHOLISCISM

 Is Catholic, yet the constitution claims the country to be secular meaning that no
religion will gain political power

 Statistics:
o 80% of the population is Roman Catholic, but only 10% of population
attend services
o 15% are nonbelievers

 Population Count (Current):

o 1,000,000 Protestants
o 700,000 Jews
o 200,000 Orthodox Christians

 Religious Struggles:
o Catholics vs. Protestants in 16th century
o Protestants fled during 17Th century when religious rights were denied by
Louis XIV

 French Revolution:
o Catholic Church (1st estate) and the nobles (2nd estate) were the reason for
revolution
o 1905 the Third Republic passed law that separated church and state
o Decline of religious practice

 Lourdes:
o Pilgrimage site in Pyrenees region in southwest
o Visited by 5 million people yearly
 Legend:
 (1858) Virgin Mary appeared to young girl (Bernadette Soubirous)
at grotto
 Handicapped and ill people visit the place because it is believed
that the waters have healing powers

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 INVIENTION: THE STEAM CAR

The Background:

 Nicolas-Joseph Cugnot invented the first steam driven car in 1769

 Some of the first drafts had been created by Leonardo da Vinci and Isaac Newton
 Cugnot used a steam engine to power the vehicle every fifteen minutes when the
vehicle would run out of energy

The Impact:

 The steam car was used in the French military to haul artillery at a slow speed of
two miles per hour
 Other inventors evolved the steam cars to electrical power that supported later the
Industrious Revolution

Interesting facts:

 Cugnot was the first person to experience a car accident. As a result, he has died
and the money for his experiments has not supported the projects
 The engine was not popular for the people because it ran a risk of a boiler
explosion and was expensive to make
 The inspiration came from the steam boats invented before

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 TIMELINE OF WORLD WAR 1

1914

 August 3rd: Germany declares war on France

 August 26th: Britain and France conquer Togoland (German territory in West Africa)
 November 5th: Britain and France declare war on Ottoman Empire

1915

 February 19th: With the help of the British naval force, they conquer Dardanelles
(Gallipoli Campaign begins)
 November 27th: The Serbian army collapses and is evacuated to the Adriatic Sea with
help of France

1916

 July 3rd -July 7th: captures La Boisselle and Mametz Wood during the Second Battle of
Albert

1917

 April 16th- May 9th: The Second Battle of the Aisne (Nivelle Offensive) terminates in
disaster
 June 25th: First American troops land in France’s territory
 October 23rd-November 10th: Battle of La Malmaison delays the attack on Chemin des
Dames

1918

 March 26th: French Marshall Ferdinand Foch is Supreme Commander of all Allied forces
 September 15th: The Allies (French and Serbs) go beyond the Bulgarian lines (phase of
Vardar Offensive)

1919

 June 28th: Treaty of Versailles signed

 November 10th-11th: A banquet was held in the remembrance of the President of the
French Republic at the Buckingham Palace (Remembrance Day)

1920

 January 10th: First meeting of the League of Nations held in London (Official end to
World War 1)

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 OBITUARY FOR ALPHOSNE DE LAMARTINE

Birth: born in Mâcon, Burgundy, on 21st of October 1790

Religion: Catholic
Death: Paris, 1869

Lamartine was raised in a noble family where he lived at an estate manor. When he grew
up, he joined the French Embassy to work in Italy for three years. A year later he has
been elected as a member for the Académie française. He was then a Minister of Foreign
Affairs. The chairman of the Provisional Government gave credit to Lamartine. He was
part of France’s Executive commission.

He was part of the foundation of the Second Republic. He has agreed with other
republican deputies and journalists on their points of view and, as a result, with their help
he declared the country to be republican. His speech was made to the people in the Hôtel
de Ville.

He supported democracy and pacifism. His political efforts led to the abolishment of
slavery and death penalty. One of his main achievements for the people is the freedom of
work during the industrialization. He could not hold office as a president, therefore, he
retired from politics and dedicated himself in literature. His works are known for their
great symbolisms. He was added into the Legion of Honour.

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 THE MODERN FLAG

Origin and Date:

 During the French Revolution, the people have decided upon the colors of the
flag to be blue, white, and red aligned vertically
 White was the official color of France and then it gained red and blue which
symbolized the military and city of Paris
 Officially adopted on February 15, 1794
 Designed by Jacques-Louis David

Evolution:

 Traditionally it was represented by a white flag that symbolized purity, nobility,

and strength
 Some of the members of the military wore the colors on their hats as they
stormed into the Bastille on July 14, 1789
 During Napoleon’s rule, he used the tricolor flag
 After his downfall, the Bourbon dynasty resumed back to the white color
 The July Revolution in 1830 renewed the tricolor for it symbolized the
nationalism of the people
 In the constitutions of 1946 and 1958, the three colors of the flag had been
established as a national flag

Influences:

 Flags of Belgium, Italy, Mexico, Ireland, and Romania

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 RECENT MAP (2013/14)

Topography of France

and its location of cities.

Location of cities in France

France broken up into different regions

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 CAPITAL CITY: PARIS

Seine River

La Louvre

Arc de Triomphe

Tour de Eiffel

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 POTRAIT OF PRESENT LEADER

Name: François Hollande

Full Name: François

Gérard Georges Nicolas
Hollande

Occupation: President of
the Republic of France

Birth Date and Place of

Birth: August 12, 1954 in
Rouen, France

Party: Socialist Party

Other Facts:
France’s 24th
President

François Hollande’s Potrait

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 CURRENT EVENT AND MODERN DAY ISSUES

“Disapproval Is Swift for French Merger Plan”

By: Dan Bilefsky

In current France, national identity is very hard to achieve. However, the new

president, Francois Hollande, wants to unite 22 regions into 14 regions to cut the yearly

costs from each region. The average people in the regions are worried about cultural

homogenization and the bureaucrats' job loss. Mr. Hollande wants to unite Alsace and

Lorraine, and Poitou-Charentes, Centre and Limousin. Bourgogne, known for its great

taste of wine, will become Bourgogne-France-Comte. Marine Le Pen, leader of the far-

right National Front, proposes that Mr. Hollande is threatening national unity like the

Third Reich during World War Two. For the decision to be made, the Mr. Holland's

proposal must be voted in Parliament. Reunification of the regions is against the

European Union and Immigration System. Merging the regions that have no common

identity and history will be a huge problem for France in an effort to increase its failing

economy.

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 EVALUATION OF FRANCE

France is a very diverse country with its distinct culture and political system.

During the French Revolution, the people from the third estate changed the white flag of

France that represented nobility into blue, white, and red colors aligned vertically. White

changed its meaning to purity, blue symbolized military, and red represented the city of

Paris. The geographical features that united France with the Atlantic Ocean and

Mediterranean Sea have sustained trade and cultural diffusion since the Renaissance. The

Alps have kept France separated from Italy which helped the country’s defense against

the Fascists and Nazis during World War II. The belief system of France is Catholicism,

however, there are still struggles till this day with other religions that dominate the

majority of the population. For example, there are estimated about 1,000,000 Protestants,

700,000 Jews, and 200,000 Orthodox Christians. Catholics and Protestants were already

in conflict during the 16th century. The printing press and Inquisition were the causes of

the split of the church. At the start of the Industrial Revolution in Europe, Nicolas-Joseph

Cugnot invented the first steam driven car in 1769. The steam car was used in the French

military to haul artillery at a slow speed of two miles per hour. In addition, other

inventors evolved the steam cars to electrical power. At the beginning of World War I, on

August 3rd, Germany declared war on France. After the fighting with advanced weapons,

on June 28th, Treaty of Versailles was signed. On January 10th, the first meeting of the

League of Nations was held in London that marked the end of World War I. As France’s

history proceeds to the Modern Era, the diverse regions struggle with nationalism

because they do not have a common history or identity. As a result, this has a bad effect

on the economy since people have to reserve more positions in the government. François

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Hollande’s plan to unify some regions like Alsace and Lorraine will be voted in

Parliament in the near future. I hope that France will progress with its economy and

political system to democracy since Mr. Hollande is part of the socialist party. The way

France had overcome the obstacles in the past has overall inspired me to keep going and

pursuing my goals.

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 WORKS CITED

 "Timeline of World War I - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia." Wikipedia, the

free encyclopedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 19 Oct. 2013.
<http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Timeline_of_W
 "Alphonse de Lamartine." CATHOLIC ENCYCLOPEDIA:. N.p., n.d. Web. 22
Oct. 2013.
<http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/08754a.htm>.
 "French Flag." , Flag of France. N.p., n.d. Web. 31 Oct. 2013.
<http://www.mapsofworld.com/flags/france-flag.html>.
 “France”. Countries and Their Cultures. Web. May, 29th 2014.
<http://www.everyculture.com/Cr-Ga/France.html#b
 "François Hollande." Bio. A&E Television Networks, 2014. Web. 04 June 2014.

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