sign in sign up
<<
Home , Avignon, Corsica, Guadeloupe, Martinique, Natural border

Facts

France Facts: French , Arc de Triomphe,

Here are some interesting France Facts which were chosen and researched by kids especially for kids.

 Population: 67.2 million people live in the country (2018)  Capital: , with 2.2 million inhabitants  Name: République Française (French Republic)  Motto: 'Liberté, Egalité, Fraternité' (Liberty, Equality, Fraternity)  Government: Democracy  Language: French  Religion: mainly (Roman Catholics 64%)  Currency: 1 =100cents, until 2002 French Franc  History: In 700-500BC the Celtic arrive in France. In 58- 50BC Roman Emperor Julius Caesar defeats the Gauls and France becomes part of the Roman until 476AD. French was ruled by kings for many centuries until the storming of the Bastille during the in 1789. Then becomes Emperor of the French Republic until he is sent to exile.

 Flag: blue, white and red. The French refer to the flag as 'Tricolore' (French for 'three colours')  Anthem: the French anthem is also called . France Map and Geography

Map of France

• France is situated in Western , 1 hr flight from London/England, 5.5 hrs from New York/USA. On the France outline you will see the little of , which belongs to France, also in the French flag colours.

• The western-european country shares with to the North East, Germany and Luxemburg in the East as well as with , to the South East. The Pyrenées, a mountain range to the South of France, form a natural between and France. The highest mountain in France is the Mont Blanc, that is 4,810 m/15780 ft high and stands at the border between France and Italy.

Mainland France is divided into 27 regions and these into 101 departments. The Mediterranean island of Corsica belongs to France too as you can see in the outline above. Of the 101 departments there are also 5 ROM ('régions d’outre mer' or overseas regions) also belonging to France: French Guyana in , and in the , La Reunion and in in the Indian Ocean.

France Facts: Tourist Attractions in France

Louvre Museum

 Paris: Eiffel Tower, Notre Dame, Louvre Museum (which you can see in the image above), Montmartre, Arc de Triomphe, the and many other great attractions  Versailles: castle near Paris, once home of the French kings  Caves: for 17,000 years old rock paintings

Mont St Michel

 Côte d’Azur for turquoise blue sea and great beaches  Corsica: island in the , known for being the birth place of Napoleon  French Alps: great for hiking, skiing and snowboarding  Mont St. Michel: island in northern France which can be reached on foot during low tide  Provence: with lavender fields and old historic towns like

There are so many exciting places and landmarks, gorgeous beaches, historic cities and villages, ancient ruins and majestic castles to visit.

Interesting Facts

French is the official language in France and it is also the second major language in Europe.

French is one of the Romance languages. These languages, including also Italian and Spanish, have their origins in the language. Today, French is the second most studied language after English and spoken by more than 300 million people around the world as first or second language.

Try these five useful expressions in French:

 bonjour - good day  salut - hello  merci - thank you  je m'appelle... - my name is....  bon appétit! - enjoy your meal!

And here is the French Alphabet. Enjoy!

France Facts: Famous

Gustave Eiffel (1832-1923), a French engineer who designed the famous Eiffel tower in Paris. The Eiffel tower is named after him. He also worked together with Auguste Bartholdi, designer of the Statue of Liberty in New York.

Eiffel Tower by Gustave Eiffel France is famous for the 'beaux-arts' (fine arts). The city was and is still home for many artists and great painters, artisans and sculptors.

Famous French painters are:

 Claude Monet  Pierre-Auguste Renoir  Edgar Degas  Paul Cezanne and Auguste Rodin is certainly one of the most famous French sculptors.

Sculpture by Auguste Rodin

French composers which are very famous are: Maurice Ravel (Bolero) and Georges Bizet (Carmen). Children all around the world love , like the famous “The Three Musketeers” by and “” by Antoine de Saint-Exupery.

French political leader Napoleon Bonaparte (1769-1821) was born on Corsica. He reformed the French . He declared himself Emperor of the French in 1804. Napoleon’s army was defeated by the British in the Battle of Waterloo (now in Belgium) in 1815. He was exiled to the island St. Helena in the Mediterranean Sea where he died in 1821.

The current is who became the youngest president in the , with 39 years of age.

France Facts: French Food

The French main dishes contain: fresh vegetables, meat and cheeses. is well known for its freshness and high quality dishes. The French people enjoy their main meal in the evening and this meal often consists of three courses starting with a 'hors d’oeuvre', a starter dish which often is soup or a salad and bread, then the main course and afterwards some cheese or fruit. Baguette - French Bread

The bread you will buy in France in a typical French "boulangerie" (bakery) is mostly white wheat bread or bread sticks, called "baguette".

Make sure to read our separate article on 'Food in France', but let's quickly tell you some typical French food:

 Baguette: long bread stick  Croque Monsieur/Croque Madame: ham and cheese grilled sandwich while Croque Madame is the more heavy version with ham, cheese and a fried egg on top  Escargots: snails  Foie Gras: goose liver pate

 Ratatouille: vegetable stew  Pain au chocolat: similar to a croissant filled with chocolate  Crepes: very thin pancakes with filling

Try to visit a patisserie for the wonderful sweet like cakes like the petit fours or pain au chocolat. Not to forget to eat some pancakes in the many creperies. In Paris, you will find the oldest café or shop in the world which was opened in 1694. It is called 'Le Procope'.

Here is a good picture of a typical boulangerie (bakery) in Paris. You can see the white church of Sacre Coeur in Montmartre in the background.

A French Bakery Did you know…?

…the , which is the world’s most famous cycle race, was started already in 1903. The winning bike rider gets to wear a yellow shirt to show that he is the leader of the race.

We hope you enjoyed reading our France Facts!