France

Great wine, great love stories!

France occupies much of the ancient Roman province of Gaul. The main part of the territory of present-day France was united under Clovis 486 (united against the Frankish domination of the Alemanni, Burgundians and Visigoths north of the Pyrenees). Subsequently, the possession was repeatedly divided between the heirs of the Merovingian dynasty. The Frankish empire was divided between the grandsons of Charlemagne into three parts, the western one later being called France. The heirs of Charlemagne (called Carolingians) ruled the West Frankish kingdom until 987, when South Capet was crowned king. His successors, the Capetians, ruled until the Revolution of 1848, intermittently during the French Revolution and the reign of Napoleon (1789-1815). Although one of the victors of the First and Second World Wars, France suffered heavy material and human losses. During the Second World War in the South of France there was the so-called Vichy regime that actively supported Nazi Germany. Since1958, the political regime has been a presidential republic (fifth republic), which is more stable than the previous parliamentary democracy. Reconciliation and cooperation with Germany in the post – World War II period laid the foundation for European integration, which led to the creation of the European Union.