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Vichy France was established on 10 July 1940 to govern the unoccupied part of France and its colonies. It was led by Philippe Pétain , the aging war hero of the First World War. Petain's representatives signed a harsh Armistice on 22 June, whereby Germany kept most of the French army in camps in Germany, and France had to pay out large sums in ...
France, [IX] officially the French Republic, [X] is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the North Atlantic, the French West Indies, and many islands in Oceania and the Indian Ocean, giving it one of the largest discontiguous exclusive economic zones in the world.
Around 60 countries gained independence from the United Kingdom throughout its history, the most in the world, followed by around 40 countries that gained independence from France throughout its history. [1] Over 50% of the world's borders today were drawn as a result of British and French imperialism. [2] [3] [4]
France obtains Lille and other territories of Flanders from Spain. 1678: Treaties of Nijmegen: A series of treaties ending the Franco-Dutch War. France obtains the Franche-Comté and some cities in Flanders and Hainaut (from Spain). 1684: 15 August: Truce of Ratisbon: End of the War of the Reunions. France obtains further territories in the ...
The World: A Third World Guide: 1995/96. Montevideo: Instituto del Tercer Mundo. ISBN 978-0-85598-291-1. OCLC 476299738. "Countries or areas, codes and abbreviations". Statistics Division, United Nations. 1 April 2010. Archived from the original on 28 June 2014; Davis, Tim (19 February 2009). "World Countries and States List".
France's most important Caribbean colonial possession was established in 1664, when the colony of Saint-Domingue (today's Haiti) was founded on the western half of the Spanish island of Hispaniola. In the 18th century, Saint-Domingue grew to be the richest sugar colony in the Caribbean.
To a large extent, modern France lies within clear limits of physical geography.Roughly half of its margin lies on sea coasts: one continuous coastline along "La Manche" ("the sleeve" or English Channel) and the Atlantic Ocean forming the country's north-western and western edge, and a shorter, separate coastline along the Mediterranean Sea forming its south-eastern edge.
With an estimated population of 11 million in 1400, 20 million in the 17th century, and 28 million in 1789, until 1795 France was the most populated country in Europe (even twice the size of Britain or the Dutch Republic) and the third most populous country in the world, behind only China and India. [4]