France
Par Michael Matkowski
L’Europe
Important Facts

Located in Western Europe; Capital is Paris

French is the official language; English, Spanish, and German are also spoken

Most immigrants are Portuguese, Italian, Spanish, Poles, or are from former French
colonies; 7% of the population are immigrants

Population of about 65 million people

85% of people are Catholic; only 8% are active Catholics
Geography

Many kinds of terrain; hills, mountains, plains, forests, farmland

5 major mountain ranges; Alps, Pyrenees, Massif Central, Jura and Vosges

Borders the Atlantic Ocean, English Channel and Mediterranean Sea

Borders Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy and Spain

Climate differs throughout France; north is temperate and rainy, south has dry summers and wet
winters, central and east have temperatures that vary throughout the year
Key Dates

Napoleon took power in 1804

Tour de France (occurs every year but the date varies)

Bastille Day (July 14th)

Mardi Gras

La Fete de la Musique (Music Party)
Main Tourist Attractions

Arc de Triomphe

Eiffel Tower

Notre Dame Cathedral

The Louvre

Crepes and Ratatouille
Famous People

Victor Hugo (wrote Les Misérables and Hunchback of Notre Dame)

Louis Pasteur (created pasteurization)

Gustave Eiffel (Eiffel Tower)

Claude Monet (made many impressionist paintings)
Victor Hugo
Louis Pasteur
Claude Monet Painting
Famous Monuments
Rich History
Great Food
Fine Art
Sources Cited

"France." World Book Discover. World Book, 2011. Web. 31 Oct. 2011.

“Monet, Claude." World Book Discover. World Book, 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2011.

"Paris." World Book Discover. World Book, 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2011.

"Eiffel Tower." World Book Discover. World Book, 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2011.

"Notre Dame, Cathedral of." World Book Discover. World Book, 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2011.

“Louvre." World Book Discover. World Book, 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2011.

"Eiffel, Gustave." World Book Discover. World Book, 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2011.

"Pasteur, Louis." World Book Discover. World Book, 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2011.

"Mona Lisa." World Book Discover. World Book, 2011. Web. 29 Oct. 2011.

"France." CultureGrams Online Edition. ProQuest, 2011. Web. 29 Oct 2011.

Arc de Triomphe. 2006. Photograph. Collection of CultureGrams. ProQuest, 2011. Web. 29 Oct
2011.

Notre Dame. 2006. Photograph. Collection of CultureGrams. ProQuest, 2011. Web. 29 Oct 2011.

Roman Colosseum. 2006. Photograph. Collection of CultureGrams. ProQuest, 2011. Web. 29 Oct
2011.

Cocoa and Bûche de Noël. 2007. Photograph. Collection of CultureGrams. ProQuest, 2011. Web.
29 Oct 2011.

Dictionary.com (for translation)