1. Chapter 4
France

2. France Country name: French Republic, France Capital: Paris
Location: Western Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay and English Channel, between Belgium and Spain, southeast of the UK; bordering the Mediterranean Sea, between Italy and Spain
Border countries: Andorra, Belgium, Germany, Italy, Luxembourg, Monaco, Spain, Switzerland.

4. Government type: republic
Population: 60,180,529 (July 2003 est.)
Languages: French 100%, rapidly declining regional dialects and languages (Provencal, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish)
Religions: Roman Catholic 83%-88%, Protestant 2%, Jewish 1%, Muslim 5%-10%, unaffiliated 4%
GDP – per capita: purchasing power parity - $26,000 (21st in the world) (2002 est.)

5. Industries: machinery, chemicals, automobiles, metallurgy, aircraft, electronics; textiles, food processing; tourism
Currency: euro (EUR) (CIA, World Fact Book)

6. Important Facts The top destination in the world Coastline: 3.427 km
77,0 million international tourist arrivals
$ 32,3 billion international tourism receipts (the third after US and Spain) (WTO, 2003)
Coastline: km
Terrain: mostly flat plains or gently rolling hills in north and west; remainder is mountainous, especially Pyrenees in south, Alps in east

7. Climate: generally cool winters and mild summers, but mild winters and hot summers along the Mediterranean; occasional strong, cold, dry, north-to-northwesterly wind known as mistral (CIA, World Fact Book)

8. Selling Points
Paris, museums, cathedrals, food, skiing, palaces, specialty tours (wine, culinary, hiking etc.), Versailles, mountain climbing, the Louvre, beaches, the Eiffel Tower, shopping, L’Arc de Triomphe, nightlife, the Champs Elysees, sidewalk cafes, health spas, carnivals, casinos, the Left Bank, Notre Dame, festivals, architecture, walled medieval towns, the Alps, the coasts, scenery, canal trips and art and culture

9. Main Attractions Attractions with more than one million visitors
Disneyland Paris 12,500,000
Tour Eiffel, Paris ,368,537
Louvre Museum, Paris ,265,000
Chateau de Versailles ,652,292
Musee d’Orsay, Paris ,240,808
Arc de Triomphe, Paris 1,218,113
(1999)

10. Brief History and Its Influence on Architecture
In 120 BC, Romans occupied France.
Beautiful arenas, villas, thermal-spring baths in towns
Followed by the medieval religious orders
St Jean Baptistery in Poitiers, the Trinity Chapel on the Bay of Cannes
1125, Gothic style began in the design of cathedrals
Such as the ones in Reims, Chartres, Mont-Saint-Michel
Renaissance influence
In the homes and chateaux of the Loire Valley

11. Paris
The Latin Quarter (meeting place for intellectuals and students), on the Left Bank of the Seine River
Boulevard St. Michel, St. Germain des Pres (oldest church in Paris), Rue Mouffetard (narrow road full of market stalls every morning, cafes, patisseries, boulangeries), Luxemburg Gardens, Pantheon (Voltaire, Rousseau, Victor Hugo)
Hotel des Invalides (military museum holding Napoleon’s tomb)
Eiffel Tower
Lle de la Cie (the island in the Seine, the Cathedral of Notre Dame)
Bateaux-Mouches (boat trips on Seine)

12. Bridges on the Seine ( 36 bridges in Paris, one of the most beautiful, Port Alexander III)
The Georges Pompidou Center (an example of 1970’s architecture, inside the building – the Musee National d’Art Moderne (the world’s largest contemporary-art museum, Picasso)
Bastille (was site of the prison, July Column in center of square and modern Opéra de la Bastille, Voltaire)
Louvre Museum (Mona Lisa, more than art work, Rembrandt section), glass pyramid
The Place de la Concorde (3300 year-old Egyptian obelisk of Rameses III from the temple at Luxor)
Place Vendome, Rue de St. Honore - place of designers (Hermes, Gucci, etc)

13. The old opera house (ceiling repainted by Marc Chagall), the Avenue de l’Opera
Boulevard des Champs Elysees (with shops, showrooms, sidewalk cafes, cinemas), the Arc de Triomphe
Hill of Montmartre, the Sacre Coeur Basilica (nice view over Paris), Montmartre Cemetery (graves of Degas, Offenbach, Berlioz)
Cabaret shows (e.g. Moulin Rouge)
Musee d’Orsay (impressionist collection)
La Defense, La Grande Arche (modern part of Paris, famous with its modern architecture)

14. Vicinity of Paris Chartres Disneyland Paris Fontainebleau
one of Europe’s best known cathedrals
constructed in pure Gothic style ( )
Disneyland Paris
France’s top tourist attraction, over the Eiffel Tower and the Louvre
Fontainebleau
Palace in a huge forest, home of Marie Antoinette, Napoleon

15. Giverny
home of the impressionist painter Claude Monet, the beautiful garden he painted
Loire Valley
the valley famous with its chateaux, countryside and villages
Usse (home of the Sleeping Beauty legend), Clos Luce (Leonardo da Vinci lived, died, buried), Azay-le-rideau, Chambord, Amboise.
barge cruises are available to see the valley (e.g. Burgundy, Canal du Midi, etc.)

16. Reims
Principal city of the region where champagne is produced
Gothic cathedral (kings of France were crowned)
Versailles
King Louis XIV
magnificent halls, the Hall of Mirrors
big enough to house the king and his 3000 people in a single building
famous gardens, Petit Trianon (home-away-from-home for Queen Marie Antoinette)

17. Southeastern France Aix-en-Provence
once a Roman spa
famous with its romantic streets
studio of painter Paul Cezanne
Carcassone (famous walled city, only completed one in Europe)
Arles
on the banks of the Rhone River
Vincent Van Gogh lived and painted

18. Cannes Marseilles Cannes Film Festival
La Croisette, the elegant seaside promenade
The Palm Beach Casino
Rue d’Antibes (flower gardens and shopping)
Marseilles
the second-most populous city in France
also an industrial port
examples of ancient and modern architecture (Notre-Dame-de-la-Garde Cathedral – 19th century basilica)
Puget sculptures at the town hall, Museum of the Roman Docks

19. Monaco Nice tiny independent principality
Visited by gamblers, rich and famous or those who want to say they have been there
Casino de Monte Carlo
beaches, the Oceanographic Museum and Aquarium (former director Jacques Cousteau), Princess Grace Rose Garden, the Royal Palace.
Formula 1 and Tennis Tournament
Nice
most famous Riviera town
in summer (beaches and carnival), in winter (festivals)

20. has strong cultural heritage (Opera House, the Chagall Museum, fine-arts museum (Monet, Degas, Renoir and Rodin collections)
Promenade des Anglais (very old and exclusive hotels)
Cagnes-sur-Mer (villa of Renoir)
Provence
famous with restaurants and scenery
The Riviera
also known as the Cote d’Azur
famous with its beaches
beautiful drive from Nice to Monaco
charming towns such as St. Raphael

21. St. Tropez poor beach, nice scenery
shopping, cafes, some museums, people-watch

22. Western France Biarritz Bordeaux Brittany
major city of the Basque region
top beach resort for rich, famous and retired, golf courses, casinos, nightlife
Bordeaux
wine region
18th century architecture in city of Bordeaux
Brittany
region of seaside towns and villages

23. Mont-Saint-Michel Normandy founded in the 11th century
at high tide, it becomes an island, at low tide, it links to mainland
Normandy
full of history, William the Conqueror launched his invasion of England, Allies landed in World War II
beautiful scenery, old towns

24. Things to Remember
Museums, chateaux and other historic monuments (operated by the government) are closed on Tuesdays
should be avoided in August (weather and holiday season)
best in May-October (except August)

25. Hotel des Invalides
founded in 1671 by Louis XIV as accommodation for disabled and impoverished war veterans
the Royal Chapel (church) inside has 107 meters high dome
remains of Emperor Napoleon Bonaparte (Napoleon I) from St Helena brought in 1840

26. Jardin de Luxembourg
most popular park in Paris, near the Sorbonne University
was design in 1612, in the 19th century opened for the public
at the center, there is a pond, children can rent small remote-controlled boats. There is also a puppet theatre.
popular with chess players

27. Pantheon originally decided to be a basilica to serve as a tomb
accommodate the remains of the great men of France – some of the most famous buried here; Victor Hugo, Jean Monnet, Marie/Pierre Curie, Emile Zola

28. Eiffel Tower the symbol of Paris
320 meters high, made with 7000 tones of iron, and 7 million nails, has 1652 steps
the highest building until the completion of the Chrysler Building in New York in 1930
designed by the engineer Gustave Eiffel in 1889

29. Notre Dame de Paris
not the largest cathedral in the world, but maybe the most famous
construction started in 1163 and completed around 1340
masterpiece of Gothic art; the first cathedral built on a monumental scale, became prototype for future cathedrals in France
has several large rose windows, most impressive is 21 meters high

30. located on the Ile de la Cite, a small island on Seine (there are three islands on Seine in Paris)
Napoleon Bonaparte was crowned Emperor in 1804
restored between 1991 and 2001

31. Pont Alexander III considered most beautiful bridge in Paris by many
decorated with lampposts and sculptures of cherubs and nymphs
each of the ornaments on the bridge was created by a different artist
in 1896, the first stone was laid by the Russian Tsar Nicholas II. It was named after his father, Tsar Alexander III.

32. Louvre Museum
one of the largest museums in the world, maybe the most famous
displays about works, among them some world-famous like the Monalisa from Leonardo da Vinci is present
the latest addition to the Louvre was the glass pyramid entrance (one of the finest examples of a combination of modern and historic architecture) designed by I. M. Pei

33. Place de la Concorde largest square in Paris (8 hectares)
sculptures stand all around the square symbolizing eight French cities
In 1792, during the French revolution, a guillotine was installed at the centre of the square people were beheaded, including Marie Antoinette.
at the square, there is a 33 century old obelisk brought back from Luxor in 1833.

34. Opera Garnier most important symbol of 19th century Baroque style
designed by Charles Garnier for Emperor Napoleon III
the largest theatre in the world by acreage (not seating capacity, 2200 seats)
interior is very luxuries, can be compared with the corridors in Versailles

35. construction started in 1862, not completed until 1875, partly because an underground lake was discovered. The small lake still exists under the building. It was the hiding place of the “Phantom of the Opera” in Paul Leroux’s famous play.
after the modern Opera de Paris Bastille’s opening in 1989, now mainly used for ballet performances
its large ceiling was painted by Marc Chagall in 1964

36. Champs-Elysees world’s most beautiful avenue
place of entertainment with cinemas, cafes, also where prestigious companies have headquarters

37. Arc de Triomphe built in the honor of Napoleonic armies
stands 49 meters high at the center of Place Charles de Gaulle
adorned with many reliefs, most of them commemorating previous battles (including Napoleon’s victory over the Turkish – battle of Aboukir)

38. At the top of the arc, there are 30 shield, representing one of Napoleon’s successful battles
12 street radiate from the circular square. The streets are named after French military leaders

39. Sacre Couer Basilica
located on Montmartre, where is known for its many artists who have been omnipresent since 1880
Roman-Byzantype style basilica, stands in sharp contrast with other contemporary buildings in France (Romanesque style)
built as moral condemnation of the signs of Paris which believed to be the cause of the defeat of the French army against Prussia in 1870

40. Musee d’Orsay former railway station (Gare d’Orsay)
has one of the most prominent site along Seine opposite Louvre
built in the beginning of the 20th century, after 30 years, around 1930, platforms became too short for the trains. In 1939, the place was out of use as a train station. Over time, it was used as a parking lot, theatre location, reception centre for prisoners of war

41. in 1978, decided to be used as a museum for 19th and 20th century art – including art forms of sculptures, photos, films etc. After its restoration, opened in 1986
contains 2300 paintings, 1500 sculptures, 100 other objects
contains works from Monet, Renoir, Cezanne, Van Gogh

42. La Defense
at the end of the I. World War, plans were made to develop the axis of the Arc de Triomphe, not realized because the Great Depression in 1930s.
in 1951, the area was chosen as an office center
in 1958, development of the area was started
now, international business district of Paris
Grande Arche de la Defense; the project was initiated by the French president Mitterrand who wanted a XXth century Arc de Triomphe

43. 106 meters high white building with middle part left open, sides contain offices, lift can be taken to the top (a nice view of Paris of 4km further)

44. Chateau de Versailles
at the time of Louis XIII, it was a modest hunting lodge
Louis XIV turned it into a royal palace, abandoned Louvre for this
until 1789, used as the royal palace
In 1837, decided to be converted into a museum

45. For More Info France Bridges in Paris Bateaux-Mouches
Bridges in Paris
Bateaux-Mouches
Chateau de Versailles