French History

Origins of France

Before about 200 BCE, the history of France is obscure at best. Although the nation is home to some of the oldest cave art in the world, the stories of its early inhabitants have rarely survived. By the time it came to the attention of Greek and Roman writers, the region was a mixing ground of cultures. Celtic tribes, Phoenician traders, Germanic peoples, Greek settlers, and many others all inhabited the area. To the Romans, it was known as Gaul, and its majority Celtic population the Gauls. The republic began expanding into what is now Southern France in the 2nd century BCE. By 51 BCE, Gaius Julius Caesar had brought the region fully under Roman control. The last free leader of the Gauls, Vercingetorix, was strangled in Rome five years later.

The Romans built new forts and cities in Gaul, mingling its native culture with their own. Its provinces became a major source of wealth and resources for the growing empire. It also proved to be one of its most contentious territories, sharing a border with independent Germanic peoples. When the empire lost its grip on the region in the 5th century, it soon fell into the hands of a Germanic tribe known as the Franks. Their leader, Clovis I, converted to Christianity as part of his rise. This alliance with Rome would set the stage for the later Holy Roman Empire.

The next few centuries saw the birth of Islam and its rapid conquests to the edges of Christian strongholds. In 732, at the Battle of Tours, Charles Martel halted the Muslim invasion of Europe that had already swept through much of Spain. Martel was not the king of the Franks, but instead held a powerful position as mayor of the palace. His son, Pepin the Short, deposed the final Merovingian king in 751. Pepin’s Carolingian dynasty continued through his son Charlemagne, who came to control the majority of central and western Europe. Charlemagne’s reign is remembered as a time of religious and cultural growth in Europe. After his death, his empire splintered into a number of states, including the early Kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire.

France in the Medieval Era

During the Middle Ages, France continued to acts as a mixing ground of European cultures. Viking raiders from the north, led by a man named Rollo, converted to Christianity and settled what is now Normandy in the 10th century. The Normans would later lead a series of invasions into England, Ireland, Southern Italy, and Sicily as well as participating in the Crusades.

The House of Capet replaced the Carolingian dynasty in 987. Its founder, Hugh Capet, succeeded after the last Carolingian king died without an heir. The Capets ruled for about 350 years and oversaw France’s transition from West Francia to the Kingdom of France. The House gave rise to two other major dynasties: the Valois and Bourbons. The Valois took the throne when the last Capetian ruler, Charles IV, died without a male child in 1328. Another royal house, the Plantagenets of England, traced descent from the Normans and possessed significant holdings in France. The succession crisis that followed launched the Hundred Years’ War. During the war, England captured Paris and nearly conquered France. Joan of Arc, claiming guidance from God, emerged as a folk hero as the tides turned again in France’s favor. The Valois emerged victorious by 1453.

Renaissance France and the Revolution

By the Renaissance era, France had settled into a strong national identity centered on the city of Paris. It experienced a period of flourishing arts and colonial expansion, particularly in the Americas. The Protestant Reformation shook the traditionally Catholic monarchy, leading to Huguenot revolts and subsequent massacres. Unlike many other European kingdoms at the time, however, the state remained officially Catholic. In the meantime, France established colonial holdings overseas, generating immense wealth in the process. Its nobility built elaborate parks, estates, and palaces, most notably the Palace of Versailles.

The Enlightenment, a philosophy of individual freedom, rationality, and expression, proved especially popular among 18th-century Parisian intellectuals. When the British Colonies of North America declared independence in 1776, they cited the words of prominent French philosophers. The French monarchy provided military and economic support for the colonies against its major rival, the British Empire. In this way, French intervention likely made the United States of America possible.

This spirit of freedom and democracy, paired with growing poverty among the lower classes, led to the demise of the French monarchy. In 1789, the peasants rose up against the monarchy. They abolished feudalism, demanded greater representation, and toppled the ancient power structures of France. King Louis XVI and his wife, Marie Antoinette, were executed in 1793.

Napoleon’s Empire

The French Revolution did not end simply, and it would have a wide-ranging impact on the world. In France, it gave rise to General Napoleon Bonaparte, who conquered much of Europe before a final defeat in 1815. Although he founded an empire, Napoleon’s reign is remembered as a time of social reform that radiated outward to other monarchies. When he deposed the King of Spain in favor of his brother, he kicked off a sequence of revolutions in the former Spanish colonies of Central and South America. Most of France’s colonial holdings were also lost during this period, though it would claim new lands later in regions such as North Africa and East Asia.

After Napoleon’s defeat, the Bourbon monarchy was restored. This proved to be a brief restoration. For several decades, France swung between republic, monarchy, and another empire under Napoleon Bonaparte’s nephew, Napoleon III. The Third Republic of France emerged in 1870 and has since served as the foundation of modern France.

Modern France

In the 20th century, France faced two World Wars fought over its own soil. In the trenches of World War I, the nation resisted German invasion at heavy costs. Toward the end of the war, it pushed German forces into retreat with the assistance of incoming American troops. World War II saw France conquered and placed under the control of Nazi Germany. What remained of its leadership, known as the Vichy government, collaborated with Germany. Thousands of Jewish French citizens were caught and shipped to their deaths in concentration camps. French resistance to that occupation, led by Charles de Gaulle, became a national rallying point in the decades to follow.

The 20th century witnessed the gradual loss of many of France’s overseas colonies, including Vietnam and Algeria. Today, France is a parliamentary republic and remains one of the major powers of Europe. The nation still possesses diverse regional cultures and is also home to dozens of major immigrant groups.

References

Haine, W. Scott. The History of France. Greenwood Press. 2000.

Hewitt, Nicholas. The Cambridge Companion to Modern French Culture. Cambridge University Press. 2003.

Price, Roger. A Concise History of France. Cambridge University Press. 2014.

Simons, Gary F., and Charles D. Fennig. “Summary by Language Size.” Ethnologue, SIL International, www.ethnologue.com/statistics/size.

Small, Graeme. Late Medieval France. Palgrave Macmillan. 2009.

“The World Factbook: France.” Central Intelligence Agency, Central Intelligence Agency, 4 June 2018, www.cia.gov/library/publications/the-world-factbook/geos/fr.html.

TOTA

Traditions of the Ancestors

This group is for articles produced or approved by TOTA staff, covering a wide variety of cultures and topics.

View Group