1.
Georges Passerieu
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George Leon Passerieu was a British-born French professional road bicycle racer, who won seven stages in the Tour de France, and reached the podium twice. He also was the winner of Paris–Roubaix and Paris–Tours, Passerieu first rode the Tour in 1906, after he had just become a professional cyclist. He was strong in the mountains, finishing second to René Pottier in the third stage, Pottier was dominant in that Tour, but Passerieu was the best of the rest. Passerieu won the first stage, beating Pottier in Marseille after they had climbed the mountains together, later he also won the twelfth stage, and finished second in the general classification. In 1907, Passerieu was riding for the Peugeot team, which saw potential in Belgian cyclist Cyrille Van Hauwaert, Van Hauwaert refused requests from Peugeot to ride as helper for Passerieu, but instead signed for the La Française team. In the 1907 edition of Paris–Roubaix, Passerieu finished first, followed by Van Hauwaert, Passerieu rode the 1908 Tour de France. He was the only cyclist to climb the Ballon dAlsace and the Chartreuse without dismounting his bicycle, georges Passerieu profile at Cycling Archives
2.
Louis Trousselier
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Louis Trousselier was a French racing cyclist. He was born in Levallois-Perret, Hauts de Seine in 1881, some say on January 29. He died in Paris on April 24,1939 and he is most famous for his 1905 victory in the 1905 Tour de France. His other major wins were Paris–Roubaix, also in 1905, and he came third in the 1906 Tour de France and won 13 stages of the Tour de France over his career. He also competed in the mens 25 kilometres event at the 1900 Summer Olympics, Trousselier, known as Trou-Trou, came from a rich family which had a flower business in central Paris. For that reason, when Henri Desgrange, the first organiser of the Tour, sought to popularise competitors by giving them nicknames, trousseliers brothers Léopold and André were also cyclists. After competing in the 1900 Summer Olympics, Trousselier turned professional, in 1903, Louis Trousselier rode Bordeaux–Paris, which was his first long race. He finished in place, behind Hippolyte Aucouturier. However, a few later he was disqualified, because he had taken shelter behind a car during the race. When the newspaper that organized Bordeaux–Paris organized the first Tour de France later that year and he dominated the race winning five stages, completing the 3,021 km in 110 hours 26 minutes and 58 second at an average speed of 27.48 km. He won with 35 points ahead of Hippolyte Aucouturier and Jean-Baptiste Dortignacq, victory brought him all his prizes, contracts to ride all over France and a bonus from his sponsor. But that night, in a cabin in Paris, he lost the whole lot playing dice with friends. Theres always another Tour to win it again, he is reputed to have said. The one bet that he did win was that the army would forgive him for overstaying his leave and he rode the Tour well again in 1906 but never to the level of the previous year, nevertheless winning stages and finishing third. He became a specialist in long-distance racing, in 1908 winning Bordeaux–Paris 26 minutes ahead of the next rider and he twice came second in the race and once third. He came second in the 1906 Bol dOr 24-hour race at the Vélodrome Buffalo in Paris and he rode a six-day event on the track, although he decided against specialising in what could have been a profitable career. He stopped racing just before World War I and took over the family business, Trousselier had an entertaining personality and a taste for practical jokes. He was known for training with friends and stopping them at the most expensive restaurant they could find
3.
1905 Tour de France
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The 1905 Tour de France was the third edition of the Tour de France, held from 9 to 30 July, organized by the newspaper LAuto. Following the disqualifications after the 1904 Tour de France, there were changes in the rules, the race saw the introduction of mountains in the Tour de France, and René Pottier excelled in the first mountain, although he could not finish the race. Due in part to some of the changes, the 1905 Tour de France had less cheating and sabotage than in previous years. It was won by Louis Trousselier, who won four of the eleven stages. Maurice Garin was originally banned for two years and Pothier for life, so they were ineligible to start the 1905 Tour de France, of these four, only Aucouturier, started the 1905 Tour. They were disqualified by the Union Vélocipédique Française, based on accusations of cheating when there were no race officials around. In 1904 Tour, it was difficult to observe the cyclists continuously, as significant portions of the race were run overnight, the number of stages increased to 11 stages, almost double from the previous year. The winner was selected on points, not time, the first cyclist to cross the finish line received 1 point. Other cyclists received one point more than the cyclist who passed the line directly before him, in this way, a cyclist could not get more than 11 points more than the cyclist that crossed the finish line just before him. As an example for this point system, the result for the first seven cyclists in the first stage is in this table, Desgrange accepted it, saying that Steinès would take the blame if the mountains would be too hard to climb. In the two editions, the highest point was the Col de la République at 1,145 metres. In 1905, Desgrange chose to overlook this, and focused instead on the introduction of the Ballon dAlsace, there were two categories of riders, the coureurs de vitesse and the coureurs sur machines poinçonnées. The riders in the first category were allowed to bicycles, which could be an advantage in the mountains. The riders in the machines poinçonnées category had to use the bicycle in the entire race. Before the race started,78 riders had signed up for the race, eighteen of those did not start the race, so the Tour began with 60 riders, including former winner Henri Cornet and future winners René Pottier and Lucien Petit-Breton. The riders were not grouped in teams, but most of them rode with an individual sponsor, two of the cyclists—Catteau and Lootens—were Belgian, all other cyclists were French. Leading up to the start of the Tour, Wattelier, Trousselier, Pottier, despite the rule changes, there were still protesters among the spectators, in the first stage all riders except Jean-Baptiste Dortignacq punctured due to 125 kg of nails spread along the road. The first stage was won by Louis Trousselier, Trousselier was serving the army, and had requested his commander leave for the Tour de France, this was allowed for 24 hours
4.
1907 Tour de France
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The 1907 Tour de France was the fifth running of the annual Tour de France, one of cyclings Grand Tours. From 8 July to 4 August, the 93 cyclists cycled 4488 km in fourteen stages around France, the winner, Lucien Petit-Breton, completed the race at an average speed of 28.47 km/h. For the first time, climbs in the Western Alps were included in the Tour de France, the race was dominated at the start by Émile Georget, who won five of the first eight stages. In the ninth stage, he borrowed a bicycle from a rider after his own broke. This was against the rules, initially he received only a small penalty, georgets penalty was then increased and Lucien Petit-Breton became the new leader. Petit-Breton won two of the stages and the overall victory of the Tour. The 1907 Tour de France incorporated 14 stages, which was one more than in 1906, for the first time, roads in Switzerland were included. The mountain stages in 1906 had been so successful, according to the organiser Henri Desgrange, the 1907 race was also the first time that a car with bicycle repairmen drove behind the riders, to give assistance in solving mechanical problems on bicycles. As in 1906, the race was decided by a points system, at the end of every stage, the winner was given one point, the next cyclist two points, and so on. René Pottier, the winner of the 1906 Tour de France, although the riders officially rode the Tour as individuals, some shared the same sponsor and cooperated as if they rode in teams. At the start of the race, it was expected that the sponsored by Alcyon. Alcyon started with three main contenders, Louis Trousselier, Marcel Cadolle and Léon Georget, Peugeot counted on Emile Georget, as in the previous years, there were two classes of cyclists, the coureurs de vitesse and the coureurs sur machines poinçonnées. The coureurs de vitesse could get help from the car with bicycle repairmen when they had to fix a bicycle, not all cyclists were competing for the victory, some only joined as tourists. The most notable of them was Henri Pépin, Pépin had hired two riders, Jean Dargassies and Henri Gauban, to ride with him. They treated the race as a ride, stopping for lunch when they chose. Dargassies and Gaubin became the first cyclists in the history of the Tour de France to ride not for their own placings, during the race, they found another Tour de France competitor, Jean-Marie Teychenne, lying in a ditch. They helped him get up and fed him, from then on Teychenne also helped Pépin, early in the race, Trousselier, François Faber and Emile Georget were the main contenders. Trousselier, winner of the 1905 Tour de France and eager to win again, in the second stage, the Tour passed the French-German border to finish in Metz, which was then part of Germany
5.
Tour de France
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The Tour de France is an annual multiple stage bicycle race primarily held in France, while also occasionally making passes through nearby countries. The race was first organized in 1903 to increase sales for the newspaper LAuto, the race has been held annually since its first edition in 1903 except when it was stopped for the two World Wars. As the Tour gained prominence and popularity the race was lengthened, participation expanded from a primarily French field, as riders from all over the world began to participate in the race each year. The Tour is a UCI World Tour event, which means that the teams compete in the race are mostly UCI WorldTeams. Traditionally, the race is primarily in the month of July. The modern editions of the Tour de France consist of 21 day-long segments over a 23-day period, the race alternates between clockwise and counterclockwise circuits of France. The number of teams usually varies between 20 and 22, with nine riders in each, all of the stages are timed to the finish, the riders times are compounded with their previous stage times. The rider with the lowest aggregate time is the leader of the race, gaining a stage win is also a hotly contested competition, fought for by a specialist cycling sprinter on each team. The Tour de France was created in 1903, the roots of the Tour de France trace back to the emergence of two rival sports newspapers in the country. On the one hand was Le Vélo, the first and the largest daily newspaper in France which sold 80,000 copies a day. On the other was LAuto, which had been set-up by journalists and business-people including Comte Jules-Albert de Dion, Adolphe Clément, the new newspaper appointed Henri Desgrange as the editor. He was a prominent cyclist and owner with Victor Goddet of the velodrome at the Parc des Princes, De Dion knew him through his cycling reputation, through the books and cycling articles that he had written, and through press articles he had written for the Clément tyre company. LAuto was not the success its backers wanted, stagnating sales lower than the rival it was intended to surpass led to a crisis meeting on 20 November 1902 on the middle floor of LAutos office at 10 Rue du Faubourg Montmartre, Paris. The last to speak was the most junior there, the chief cycling journalist, Desgrange had poached him from Giffards paper. Lefèvre suggested a six-day race of the sort popular on the track, long-distance cycle races were a popular means to sell more newspapers, but nothing of the length that Lefèvre suggested had been attempted. If it succeeded, it would help LAuto match its rival and it could, as Desgrange said, nail Giffards beak shut. Desgrange and Lefèvre discussed it after lunch, Desgrange was doubtful but the papers financial director, Victor Goddet, was enthusiastic. He handed Desgrange the keys to the safe and said
6.
Massif Central
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The Massif Central is an elevated region in the middle of southern France, consisting of mountains and plateaus. It covers approximately 15 percent of the country, the region was a barrier to transport within France until the opening of the A75 motorway, which not only made north-south travel easier, but also opened up the Massif Central itself. The Massif Central is an old massif, formed during the Variscan orogeny and it was powerfully raised and made to look geologically younger in the eastern section by the uplift of the Alps during the Paleogene period and in the southern section by the uplift of the Pyrenees. These tectonic movements created faults and are maybe at the origin of the volcanism in the Massif Central, in fact, above the crystalline foundation, we can observe many volcanoes of many different types and ages, volcanic plateaus, stratovolcanoes, and small, very recent monogenic volcanoes. The entire region contains a concentration of approximately 450 extinct volcanoes. The strip of Chaîne des Puys, running north to south and less than 60 square miles long, the Auvergne Volcanoes National Park is in the massif. In the south, one region, made up of features called causses in French. The most famous of these is the canyon of Tarn, the following régions are part of the Massif Central, Auvergne, Limousin. Part of the following régions are in the Massif Central, Languedoc-Roussillon, the largest cities are Clermont-Ferrand and Saint-Étienne
7.
Henri Desgrange
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Henri Desgrange was a French bicycle racer and sports journalist. He set 12 world track cycling records, including the record of 35.325 kilometres on 11 May 1893. He was the first organiser of the Tour de France, Henri Desgrange was born into a comfortably prosperous middle-class family living in Paris. His twin brother, Georges Desgrange, was described as having the air of a defrocked monk. Desgrange worked as a clerk at the Depeux-Dumesnil law office near the Place de Clichy in Paris, legend says he was fired from there either for cycling to work or for exposing the outline of his calves in tight socks as he did so. Preferring a life in sport to a career in law, he began a dedication to sport that lasted the rest of his life, Desgrange saw his first bicycle race in 1891 when he went to the finish of Bordeaux–Paris. He began racing on the track but suffered by lacking a powerful acceleration, endurance riding suited him better, and he set the first recognised hour record when on 11 May 1893 he rode 35.325 km on the Buffalo velodrome in Paris. He also established records at 50 and 100 km and 100 miles and he wrote a training book in 1894, La tête et les jambes, in which he conducted a conversation with an unnamed younger rider thought to be his younger self. The book included the advice that a rider has no more need of a woman than an unwashed pair of socks. In 1894 he wrote another book, Alphonse Marcaux, in 1897 he became director of the Parc des Princes velodrome and then in December 1903 of Frances first permanent indoor track, the Vélodrome dHiver, near the Eiffel Tower. France at the end of the 19th century was split over the guilt or innocence of a soldier, Alfred Dreyfus, who had been convicted of selling secrets to the Germans. The leading sports paper, Le Vélo - it sold 80,000 copies a day - mixed sports reporting with news and political comment, a row between them and the editor, Pierre Giffard, led to the advertisers withdrawing their custom and planning a paper of their own. An alternative version has it that Giffard banished the advertisers, the same went for the man who became Desgranges business partner, Victor Goddet, another velodrome director. Desgranges enthusiasm, his ability, his writing and the press work he had done for Clément persuaded the group to appoint him as editor. The writer Geoffrey Nicholson said of Desgrange, He was outwardly flamboyant, privately cautious, but he was clearly no political die-hard, for as a writer he modelled himself on Émile Zola, who had been the most reviled of all defenders of Dreyfus. Desgrange gave the impression - correctly - that he wasnt a man to welcome consultation, the first issue of LAuto-Vélo appeared on 16 October 1900. The title was chosen to reflect the enthusiasm at the time for car racing as the sport of the future, Geoffrey Nicholson pointed out the way in which Desgrange modelled his writing on Zola. Of riders in Paris–Brest–Paris, he wrote, There are four of them, and at night a peasant waiting for them by a deserted road will see four demons passing by, and the noise of their desperate panting will freeze his heart and fill it with terror
8.
Vosges
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The Vosges, also called the Vosges Mountains, are a range of low mountains in eastern France, near its border with Germany. Together with the Palatine Forest to the north on the German side of the border, they form a single geomorphological unit and it runs in a north-northeast direction from the Burgundian Gate to the Börrstadt Basin, and forms the western boundary of the Upper Rhine Plain. The Grand Ballon is the highest peak at 1424 m, followed by the Storkenkopf, and the Hohneck. The elongated massif is divided south to north into three sections, The Higher Vosges or High Vosges, extending in the part of the range from Belfort to the river valley of the Bruche. The rounded summits of the Hautes Vosges are called ballons in French, in addition, the term Central Vosges is used to designate the various lines of summits, especially those above 1000 metres in elevation. The French department of Vosges is named after the range, erosive glacial action was the primary catalyst for development of the representative highland massif feature. Geographically, the Vosges Mountains are wholly in France, far above the Col de Saverne separating them from the Palatinate Forest in Germany, the latter area logically continues the same Vosges geologic structure but traditionally receives this different name for historical and political reasons. From 1871 to 1918 the Vosges marked the border between Germany and France, due to the Franco-Prussian War, the Vosges in their southern and central parts are called the Hautes Vosges. These consist of a large Carboniferous mountain eroded just before the Permian Period with gneiss, granites, in the north, south and west, there are places less eroded by glaciers, and here Vosges Triassic and Permian red sandstone remains are found in large beds. The grès vosgien, are embedded sometimes up to more than 500 metres in thickness, the Lower Vosges in the north are dislocated plates of various sandstones, ranging from 300 to 600 metres high. The Col de Saales, between the Higher and Central Vosges, reaches nearly 579 m, both lower and narrower than the Higher Vosges, with Mont Donon being the highest point of this Nordic section. Both areas exhibit steeper slopes towards the Rhine River and a gradual descent on the other side. This occurs because both the Vosges and the Black Forest were formed by uplift, in a response to the opening of the Rhine Graben. The Rhine Graben is an extensional basin. When such basins form, the thinning of the crust causes uplift immediately adjacent to the basin, the temperature is much lower in the west front of the mountains than in the low plains behind the massif, especially in summer. On the eastern slope economic vineyards reach to a height of 400 metres, on the hand, in the mountains, it is a land of pasture. The Moselle, Meurthe and Sarre rivers and their numerous affluents all rise on the Lorraine side, in the High Moselle and Meurthe basins, moraines, boulders and polished rocks testify to the former existence of glaciers which once covered the top of the Vosges. Over the centuries, settlement increased gradually, as was typical for a forested region, forests were cleared for, inter alia, agriculture, livestock and early industrial factories and the water mills used water power
9.
Germany
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Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a federal parliamentary republic in central-western Europe. It includes 16 constituent states, covers an area of 357,021 square kilometres, with about 82 million inhabitants, Germany is the most populous member state of the European Union. After the United States, it is the second most popular destination in the world. Germanys capital and largest metropolis is Berlin, while its largest conurbation is the Ruhr, other major cities include Hamburg, Munich, Cologne, Frankfurt, Stuttgart, Düsseldorf and Leipzig. Various Germanic tribes have inhabited the northern parts of modern Germany since classical antiquity, a region named Germania was documented before 100 AD. During the Migration Period the Germanic tribes expanded southward, beginning in the 10th century, German territories formed a central part of the Holy Roman Empire. During the 16th century, northern German regions became the centre of the Protestant Reformation, in 1871, Germany became a nation state when most of the German states unified into the Prussian-dominated German Empire. After World War I and the German Revolution of 1918–1919, the Empire was replaced by the parliamentary Weimar Republic, the establishment of the national socialist dictatorship in 1933 led to World War II and the Holocaust. After a period of Allied occupation, two German states were founded, the Federal Republic of Germany and the German Democratic Republic, in 1990, the country was reunified. In the 21st century, Germany is a power and has the worlds fourth-largest economy by nominal GDP. As a global leader in industrial and technological sectors, it is both the worlds third-largest exporter and importer of goods. Germany is a country with a very high standard of living sustained by a skilled. It upholds a social security and universal health system, environmental protection. Germany was a member of the European Economic Community in 1957. It is part of the Schengen Area, and became a co-founder of the Eurozone in 1999, Germany is a member of the United Nations, NATO, the G8, the G20, and the OECD. The national military expenditure is the 9th highest in the world, the English word Germany derives from the Latin Germania, which came into use after Julius Caesar adopted it for the peoples east of the Rhine. This in turn descends from Proto-Germanic *þiudiskaz popular, derived from *þeudō, descended from Proto-Indo-European *tewtéh₂- people, the discovery of the Mauer 1 mandible shows that ancient humans were present in Germany at least 600,000 years ago. The oldest complete hunting weapons found anywhere in the world were discovered in a mine in Schöningen where three 380, 000-year-old wooden javelins were unearthed
10.
Alsace-Lorraine
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The Alsatian part lay in the Rhine Valley on the west bank of the Rhine River and east of the Vosges Mountains. The Lorraine section was in the upper Moselle valley to the north of the Vosges, the territory was made up of 93% of Alsace and 26% of Lorraine, the remaining portions of these regions continued to be part of France. For historical reasons, specific legal dispositions are still applied in the territory in the form of a local law, in relation to its special legal status, since its reversion to France following World War I, the territory has been referred to administratively as Alsace-Moselle. Alsace-Lorraine had an area of 14,496 km2. France long sought to attain and preserve its boundaries, which are the Pyrenees to the southwest, the Alps to the southeast. These strategic claims led to the annexation of territories located west of the Rhine river in the Holy Roman Empire of the German Nation. What is now known as Alsace was progressively conquered by Louis XIV in the 17th century and we Germans who know Germany and France know better what is good for the Alsatians than the unfortunates themselves. In the perversion of their French life they have no idea of what concerns Germany. In 1871, the newly created German Empires demand for Alsace from France after its victory in the Franco-Prussian War was not simply a punitive measure. The transfer was controversial even among the Germans, The German Chancellor, Otto von Bismarck, was opposed to it. Some German industrialists did not want the competition from Alsatian industries, from an ethnic perspective, the transfer involved people who for the most part spoke Alemannic German dialects. From a military perspective, by early 1870s standards, shifting the frontier away from the Rhine would give the Germans a strategic buffer against feared future French attacks, however, domestic politics in the new Reich may have been decisive. Although it was led by Prussia, the new German Empire was a decentralized federal state. As recently as the 1866 Austro-Prussian War, these states had been Prussias enemies, in the new Empires constitution, both states, but especially Bavaria, had been given concessions with regard to local autonomy, including partial control of their military forces. For this reason, the Prussian General Staff argued that it was necessary for the Reichs frontier with France to be under direct Prussian control, thus, by annexing Alsace-Lorraine, Berlin was able to avoid complications with Baden and Bavaria on such matters as new fortifications. Memories of the Napoleonic Wars were still fresh in the 1870s. In the years before 1870, it is arguable that the Germans feared the French more than the French feared the Germans. Many Germans at the thought that the creation of the new Empire in itself would be enough to earn permanent French enmity
11.
Ventimiglia
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Ventimiglia is a city and comune in Liguria, northern Italy, in the province of Imperia. Ventimiglias urban area has a population of 55,000, Ventimiglia is the ancient Albium Intemelium, the capital of the Intemelii, a Ligurian tribe which long resisted the Romans, until in 115 BC it was forced to submit to Marcus Aemilius Scaurus. Albintimilium became a municipium in 89 BC, in AD69 the city was sacked by the army of Otho and Vitellius, but recovered to remain prosperous into the 5th century, surrounded by walls with cylindrical towers built at each change of direction. In the Gothic Wars it was besieged by the Byzantines and the Goths, and later suffered from the raids of Rothari, King of the Lombards, in the 10th century it was attacked by the Saracens of Fraxinet. After a period as an independent commune, it was ruled by the Counts of Ventimiglia, in 1139 the Genoese attacked it by land and sea and forced it to surrender, the count continued to hold the city and countship as a vassal of the victors. The city rebelled more than once against the Genoese and sided with their enemies, in 1271 in a war with Genoa its podestà Luca Grimaldi was captured. Ventimiglia was thus held by the dukes of Savoy and King Ladislaus of Naples. In 1505 it was annexed to the Genoese Republic, sharing its history until the early 19th century, in 1269 the Count of Ventimiglia, Gugliemo Pietro I Balbo married Eudossia Laskaris, daughter of Emperor Theodore II Laskaris. From them started the dynasty of the Lascaris of Tenda and they maintained the sovereign County of Tenda until 1501 when the last of them, Anne Lascaris, married Renato of Savoy and transferred the County to his cadet branch of Savoy dynasty. The most famous exponent of this branch of Lascaris was Beatrice of Tenda, the ruins of the ancient Albintimilium are situated in the plain of Nervia, c.2 kilometres to the east of the modern town. The caves of the Balzi Rossi have proved rich in remains of the Quaternary period. Remains of a family of Cro-Magnon people were discovered, with skeletons of men, women and children. Very important architecturally and historically is the ancient medieval city centre, the Church of San Michele Arcangelo was erected in the 10th century by the Counts of Ventimiglia on the foundations of a pagan temple. Later it was entrusted to the Benedictines of Lirins, in the 11th-12th centuries it was rebuilt in Romanesque style. In 1628 it lost the aisles after an earthquake and it houses milestones from the old Via Iulia Augusta, two of which are used as stoups and one supports the crypts vault. The present Romanesque Cathedral, with an 11th-century baptistery, is built on the ruins of an earlier Lombard church, the municipal library has the second largest collection of 17th-century manuscripts and books in Italy. Near Ventimiglia are the Genoese fortresses of Castel dAppio, Forte San Paolo, Ventimiglia is a popular summer destination for tourists on the French Riviera. Particularly popular all year with visitors from France is the street market, along the seafront of the new town
12.
Spain
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By population, Spain is the sixth largest in Europe and the fifth in the European Union. Spains capital and largest city is Madrid, other urban areas include Barcelona, Valencia, Seville, Bilbao. Modern humans first arrived in the Iberian Peninsula around 35,000 years ago, in the Middle Ages, the area was conquered by Germanic tribes and later by the Moors. Spain is a democracy organised in the form of a government under a constitutional monarchy. It is a power and a major developed country with the worlds fourteenth largest economy by nominal GDP. Jesús Luis Cunchillos argues that the root of the span is the Phoenician word spy. Therefore, i-spn-ya would mean the land where metals are forged, two 15th-century Spanish Jewish scholars, Don Isaac Abravanel and Solomon ibn Verga, gave an explanation now considered folkloric. Both men wrote in two different published works that the first Jews to reach Spain were brought by ship by Phiros who was confederate with the king of Babylon when he laid siege to Jerusalem. This man was a Grecian by birth, but who had given a kingdom in Spain. He became related by marriage to Espan, the nephew of king Heracles, Heracles later renounced his throne in preference for his native Greece, leaving his kingdom to his nephew, Espan, from whom the country of España took its name. Based upon their testimonies, this eponym would have already been in use in Spain by c.350 BCE, Iberia enters written records as a land populated largely by the Iberians, Basques and Celts. Early on its coastal areas were settled by Phoenicians who founded Western Europe´s most ancient cities Cadiz, Phoenician influence expanded as much of the Peninsula was eventually incorporated into the Carthaginian Empire, becoming a major theater of the Punic Wars against the expanding Roman Empire. After an arduous conquest, the peninsula came fully under Roman Rule, during the early Middle Ages it came under Germanic rule but later, much of it was conquered by Moorish invaders from North Africa. In a process took centuries, the small Christian kingdoms in the north gradually regained control of the peninsula. The last Moorish kingdom fell in the same year Columbus reached the Americas, a global empire began which saw Spain become the strongest kingdom in Europe, the leading world power for a century and a half, and the largest overseas empire for three centuries. Continued wars and other problems led to a diminished status. The Napoleonic invasions of Spain led to chaos, triggering independence movements that tore apart most of the empire, eventually democracy was peacefully restored in the form of a parliamentary constitutional monarchy. Spain joined the European Union, experiencing a renaissance and steady economic growth
13.
Henri Cornet
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Henri Cornet was a French cyclist who won the 1904 Tour de France. He is its youngest winner, just short of his 20th birthday, Cornet was born in the Pas-de-Calais region of north-west France and been registered at birth under his mothers name. Then, he is recognized by his stepfather which given his name Jardry and its not really known why he changed his name from Henri Jardry to Henri Cornet. He was a talented amateur - he won Paris-Honfleur in 1903 - but little known beyond northern France and it was his first year as a professional. The organiser, Henri Desgrange, promoted his unknown competitors to readers of LAuto and he called Cornet Le Rigolo, or the joker, for his sense of fun. He is described as cheerful, with wide-spaced eyes, a described as trumpet-like. Fans beat up riders on the col de la République outside St-Étienne, other spectators threw nails on the road on the last day and Cornet rode the last 40 km on flat tires. After many complaints about widespread cheating, the top four finishers were disqualified by the French cycling union and it declared Cornet the winner although he had taken three hours more than Garin, the winner and receiving an official warning that suggests his own conduct was less than pristine. Desgrange said he would never run the race again, Cornet is the Tours youngest winner at 19 years 11 months and 20 days. Henri Cornet never had success in the Tour, dropping out in 1905 on the fourth day. He won Paris–Roubaix and came second in Bordeaux–Paris in 1906, and came eighth in the 1908 Tour de France and it was a demonstration race and did not count for the overall result of the Tour. He was a fluid rider talented at repeated short efforts, Cornet rode his last Tour de France in 1912, finishing 28th. He had repeated health problems, however, which brought his career to an end and he stopped racing with the start of World War I. He retired to work in the business and died after a hospital operation at 56. A road in Prunay-le-Gillon is named after him
14.
1904 Tour de France
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The 1904 Tour de France was the second Tour de France, held from 2 to 24 July. But the race became a victim of its own success, plagued by scandals, twelve cyclists, including the first four of the final classification and all stage winners, were disqualified by the Union Vélocipédique Française. Henri Cornet, originally the fifth-place finisher, was awarded the four months after the race. The problems caused the Tour de France to be provisionally cancelled, the initial Tour de France of 1903 had been a large success, and it was quickly decided to organize it again in 1904. The route was identical, with the six stages. The rules were the same as in 1903, with one exception, cyclists could not enter in just one stage, the favourites for the victory were Garin, Pothier and Aucouturier, who had performed well in the 1903 Tour de France. Among the competitors was Henri Paret who, at 50 years old, in the 1903 Tour de France, the organisation guaranteed that the first 50 cyclists in the final general classification would earn at least 5 francs per day. In 1904, if not more than 50 cyclists would finish and this rule was added to attract cyclists who otherwise would not enter, because the Tour needed enough competitors to remain credible. In the first stage, the riders fell after only a few kilometres, lipman broke a finger, and became the first rider to abandon this Tour. Around 100 km in the race, Lucien Pothier lost ten minutes to the group, led by Maurice Garin. In Cosne, at 174 km, Pothier had reached the leading group, Aucouturier had lost more than one hour at that point. Just before the control post in Nevers, Aucouturier fell on his face. In the last part of the race, Maurice Garin and Lucien Pothier rode away from the others and they were attacked by four masked men in a car, but still finished as the first two, with Garin beating Pothier by 50 m. The many flat tires and crashes of Aucouturier, seemingly the results of sabotage, chevallier, who had finished third, was disqualified for resting in a car for 45 minutes. During the stage, Ferdinand Payan had been disqualified, some sources indicate he was helped by a motor, other that he was helped by riders not in the race. In that first stage, Garin had asked the race official Lefèvre for food, which was illegal. Lefèvre, who knew that Garin was the star of the race, broke the rules and gave him the food, the news that Garin had received illegal help quickly spread, and caused the fanatical crowd to take action. For the second stage, the organisers had made the option to postpone the start by two hours, in case the mistral wind was making cycling difficult and this was not necessary, so the riders started at midnight as planned
15.
Hippolyte Aucouturier
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Hippolyte Aucouturier was a French professional road bicycle racer. Aucouturier, a professional between 1900 and 1908, won two stages at the first Tour de France in 1903 and won three stages and finished second in the 1905 Tour de France and he also won Paris–Roubaix twice, in 1903 and 1904. His elder brother Francois was also a racing cyclist, Aucouturier was an outspoken man whom the Tour organiser, Henri Desgrange, referred to in LAuto as Le Terrible. The 1903 Paris–Roubaix, on 11 April, was decided when Aucouturier organised a chase to bring back a group which had escaped on the côte de St-Germain, Aucouturier took up the pursuit on the way to Pontoise, taking with him Louis Trousselier and others. They caught the fugitives and a new group formed on the côte dEnnery, Aucouturier, recovered from typhoid the previous year, tested the group repeatedly before Doullens. He entered the velodrome at Roubaix alongside Claude Chapperon,50 metres ahead of the others, tradition had it that riders changed bikes at the entrance to the stadium, taking specialist track bikes to ride the three laps of the velodrome to the finish. Bikes waited for all the riders and Chapperon mistakenly took Trousseliers machine. In the time it took him to realise his error and change to his own bicycle, Aucouturier passed him, Aucouturier came to the Tour de France having won Paris–Roubaix. Speculation was that he and another prominent rider, Maurice Garin, the paper published their picture and that of the German, Joseph Fischer on its front page on 1 July 1903. But Aucouturier abandoned after La Palisse,320 km into the first stage, the previous year he had had typhoid fever and he may not have recovered. The historian Pierre Chany, wrote, The big athlete in his blue and he was crying and tears ran down the pink creases in his dusty face. Ive never felt like this before and my will is strong, my legs are good, but Im not making progress. My stomach is in a bad state, eat and youll feel better, Géo Lefèvre said. He ate, he stood up, clenched his hands and slowly took hold of his machine, the robust Hippolyte brought to ground by stomach pain, abandoned at La Palisse, 135km from the finish. Géo Lefèvre insisted the cause was food poisoning, Aucouturier has abandoned the race at La Palisse, telling me he could no longer continue the battle, that he had abominable stomach cramp caused by bad food. I followed Garin and Pagie from Nevers station to La Palisse, I saw Aucouturier demoralised at Moulins and he dropped out at La Palisse and he is now, it seems, in bed in his hotel, in a feverish sleep. The poor man has been beaten by his stomach, lack of care has killed him. Id foreseen Aucouturiers weakening, but I thought it would have happened a lot further on and your dream of glory has flown
16.
Lucien Petit-Breton
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Lucien Georges Mazan was a French racing cyclist. He was born in Plessé, Loire-Atlantique, a part of Brittany, when he was six he moved with his parents to Buenos Aires, Argentina, where he took the nationality. His cycling career started when he won a bike in a lottery at the age of sixteen, as his father wanted him to do a real job, he adapted the nickname Lucien Breton for races, to deceive his father. Later he changed it to Petit-Breton, because there already was another cyclist called Lucien Breton and his first notable victory was the track cycling championship of Argentina but in 1902 he was drafted in the French Army and he moved back to France. Two years later in 1904 he won the Bol dOr track event at the second attempt, in 1905 he broke the world hour record on the Buffalo cycling track in Paris with 41.110 km. The same year he started road-racing and finished the Tour de France in a fifth overall. In 1906, he won the third Paris–Tours race and improved on his previous performance by finishing fourth in the Tour, in 1907, he won the inaugural Milan–San Remo race before entering the Tour. However, by the end of five from Lyon to Grenoble. Losing contact with the riders on the Col de la Porte, he could only manage a tenth place. However, with the system, time was irrelevant. In the tenth stage, Georget illegally changed bicycles, and was placed last in the stage by the Tour jury and he also won the Tour in 1908, becoming the first rider to win the Tour twice, after winning the Paris–Brussels race. As part of the all-conquering Peugeot team that took the first four places, Petit-Breton won the Tour even more easily with just 36 points, behind him, team-mates Francois Faber and Georges Passerieu finished with 68 and 75 points respectively. That was his last great victory, first World War ended his career. He joined the French army as a driver and died in 1917 when he crashed into a horse, the cart driver was said to be insensible through drink. Before the war he had started a shop and high-quality bicycles bearing his name were made in Nantes until the 1960s. The French TV series Les Brigades du Tigre was a crime drama focusing on an elite squad of police detectives in the early 20th century. He himself is later assaulted by the man but defiantly continues the stage to the admiration of those present, Lucien Petit-Breton profile at Cycling Archives
17.
Col du Ballon d'Alsace
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The Col du Ballon dAlsace is a mountain pass situated close to the summit of the Ballon dAlsace in the Vosges Mountains of France. It connects Saint-Maurice-sur-Moselle with Masevaux and Belfort, the Ballon dAlsace was the first official mountain climb in the Tour de France on 11 July 1905 although the tour had crossed the slightly lower Col de la République in each of the previous two years. The first rider to the top of the Ballon was René Pottier, Stage 9 of the 2005 Tour crossed this pass on the centenary of the original climb. The historic ascent, as used in the early Tours de France, is from Saint-Maurice-sur-Moselle, from here, the ascent is 9.0 km long climbing 619 m at an average of 6. 9%. From the south, the starts at Malvaux,4.5 km north of Giromagny. The climb is 12.4 km long, gaining 643 m at an average of 5. 2%, from Sewen, the climb is 13.2 km long, at an average of 5. 1%, gaining 678 m in height. This climb starts on the D466 and joins the route from the south after 10 km, the middle section is steep, in excess of 8%. The Ballon dAlsace was first crossed by the Tour de France on the stage of the 1905 tour. In the first two Tours de France, the race had crossed the Col de la République south of Saint-Etienne. Although only 17 metres higher than the Col de la République, unfortunately, the pace of his ascent exacerbated injuries that he had sustained in a fall on Stage 1, and Pottier was forced to withdraw from the race the next day. Thus was the myth born that the Col dAlsace was the first mountain crossing in the history of the Tour de France, the Tour returned to the Ballon dAlsace the following year and Pottier was again the first rider over the summit. He arrived at Saint-Maurice-sur-Moselle in a group of 19 riders, according to LAuto, At the foot of the climb, Pottier bolted and he hadnt reached the first hairpin before the group was torn apart. The other riders soon dropped away with only Augustin Ringeval able to keep in contact with Pottier although even he was dropped well before the summit, Pottier. A brief but terrifying duel breaks out, until, making a demand from his boundless reserves. Ringeval loses ground, makes it up again with a magnificent effort, then back again. Pottier crossed the summit alone, over four minutes ahead of the rider and maintained his lead into the stage finish at Dijon. Pottier was found hanged at his home the following January, having committed suicide, following his death, a monument to him was erected at the summit of the Col du Ballon dAlsace. The Tour de France crossed over the Col du Ballon dAlsace every year between 1905 and 1914, and then five times in the 1930s
18.
Paris
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Paris is the capital and most populous city of France. It has an area of 105 square kilometres and a population of 2,229,621 in 2013 within its administrative limits, the agglomeration has grown well beyond the citys administrative limits. By the 17th century, Paris was one of Europes major centres of finance, commerce, fashion, science, and the arts, and it retains that position still today. The aire urbaine de Paris, a measure of area, spans most of the Île-de-France region and has a population of 12,405,426. It is therefore the second largest metropolitan area in the European Union after London, the Metropole of Grand Paris was created in 2016, combining the commune and its nearest suburbs into a single area for economic and environmental co-operation. Grand Paris covers 814 square kilometres and has a population of 7 million persons, the Paris Region had a GDP of €624 billion in 2012, accounting for 30.0 percent of the GDP of France and ranking it as one of the wealthiest regions in Europe. The city is also a rail, highway, and air-transport hub served by two international airports, Paris-Charles de Gaulle and Paris-Orly. Opened in 1900, the subway system, the Paris Métro. It is the second busiest metro system in Europe after Moscow Metro, notably, Paris Gare du Nord is the busiest railway station in the world outside of Japan, with 262 millions passengers in 2015. In 2015, Paris received 22.2 million visitors, making it one of the top tourist destinations. The association football club Paris Saint-Germain and the rugby union club Stade Français are based in Paris, the 80, 000-seat Stade de France, built for the 1998 FIFA World Cup, is located just north of Paris in the neighbouring commune of Saint-Denis. Paris hosts the annual French Open Grand Slam tennis tournament on the red clay of Roland Garros, Paris hosted the 1900 and 1924 Summer Olympics and is bidding to host the 2024 Summer Olympics. The name Paris is derived from its inhabitants, the Celtic Parisii tribe. Thus, though written the same, the name is not related to the Paris of Greek mythology. In the 1860s, the boulevards and streets of Paris were illuminated by 56,000 gas lamps, since the late 19th century, Paris has also been known as Panam in French slang. Inhabitants are known in English as Parisians and in French as Parisiens and they are also pejoratively called Parigots. The Parisii, a sub-tribe of the Celtic Senones, inhabited the Paris area from around the middle of the 3rd century BC. One of the areas major north-south trade routes crossed the Seine on the île de la Cité, this place of land and water trade routes gradually became a town
19.
Lille
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Lille is a city in northern France, in French Flanders. On the Deûle River, near Frances border with Belgium, it is the capital of the Hauts-de-France region, archeological digs seem to show the area as inhabited by as early as 2000 BC, most notably in the modern-day quartiers of Fives, Wazemmes, and Vieux Lille. The legend of Lydéric and Phinaert puts the foundation of the city of Lille at 640, in the 8th century, the language of Old Low Franconian was spoken here, as attested by toponymic research. Lilles Dutch name is Rijsel, which comes from ter ijsel, the French equivalent has the same meaning, Lille comes from lîle. From 830 until around 910, the Vikings invaded Flanders, after the destruction caused by Norman and Magyar invasion, the eastern part of the region was ruled by various local princes. The first mention of the dates from 1066, apud Insulam. At the time, it was controlled by the County of Flanders, the County of Flanders thus extended to the left bank of the Scheldt, one of the richest and most prosperous regions of Europe. A notable local in this period was Évrard, who lived in the 9th century and participated in many of the days political, there was an important Battle of Lille in 1054. From the 12th century, the fame of the Lille cloth fair began to grow, in 1144 Saint-Sauveur parish was formed, which would give its name to the modern-day quartier Saint-Sauveur. Infante Ferdinand, Count of Flanders was imprisoned and the county fell into dispute, it would be his wife, Jeanne, Countess of Flanders and Constantinople and she was said to be well loved by the residents of Lille, who by that time numbered 10,000. He pushed the kingdoms of Flanders and Hainaut towards sedition against Jeanne in order to recover his land and she called her cousin, Louis VIII. He unmasked the imposter, whom Countess Jeanne quickly had hanged, in 1226 the King agreed to free Infante Ferdinand, Count of Flanders. Count Ferrand died in 1233, and his daughter Marie soon after, in 1235, Jeanne granted a city charter by which city governors would be chosen each All Saints Day by four commissioners chosen by the ruler. On 6 February 1236, she founded the Countesss Hospital, which one of the most beautiful buildings in Old Lille. It was in her honour that the hospital of the Regional Medical University of Lille was named Jeanne of Flanders Hospital in the 20th century, the Countess died in 1244 in the Abbey of Marquette, leaving no heirs. The rule of Flanders and Hainaut thus fell to her sister, Margaret II, Countess of Flanders, then to Margarets son, Lille fell under the rule of France from 1304 to 1369, after the Franco-Flemish War. The county of Flanders fell to the Duchy of Burgundy next, after the 1369 marriage of Margaret III, Countess of Flanders, Lille thus became one of the three capitals of said Duchy, along with Brussels and Dijon. By 1445, Lille counted some 25,000 residents, Philip the Good, Duke of Burgundy, was even more powerful than the King of France, and made Lille an administrative and financial capital
20.
Douai
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Douai is a commune in the Nord département in northern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department, located on the river Scarpe some 40 kilometres from Lille and 25 km from Arras, Douai is home to one of the regions most impressive belfries. The population of the area, including Lens, was 552,682 in 1999. The main industries in the town are in the chemical and metal engineering sectors, Renault has a large vehicle assembly plant near the town, which has produced many well known Renault vehicles, such as the R14, R11, R19, and the Megane and Scenic of today. The Gare de Douai railway station is served by trains towards Lille, Arras, Lens, Amiens, Saint-Quentin. It is also connected to the TGV network, with high speed trains to Paris, Lyon, Nantes and its site probably corresponds to that of a 4th-century Roman fortress known as Duacum. From 10th century the town was a fiefdom of the counts of Flanders. The town became a textile market centre during the Middle Ages. In 1384, the county of Flanders passed into the domains of the Dukes of Burgundy, in 1667, Douai was taken by the troops of Louis XIV of France, and by the 1668 Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle, the town was ceded to France. During successive sieges from 1710 to 1712, Douai was almost completely destroyed by the British Army, by 1713, the town was fully integrated into France. Douai became the seat of the Parliament of Flanders, the town is still a transportation and commercial center for the area, which was known up to the Sixties for its coalfield, the richest in northern France. Douais ornate Gothic style belfry was begun in 1380, on the site of an earlier tower, the 80 m high structure includes an impressive carillon, consisting of 62 bells spanning 5 octaves. The originals, some dating from 1391 were removed in 1917 during World War I by the occupying German forces and they were reinstalled after repairs in 1924, but 47 of them were replaced in 1954 to obtain a better sound. An additional larger bell in the summit, a La called Joyeuse, dates from 1471, the chimes are rung by a mechanism every quarter-hour, but are also played via a keyboard on Saturday mornings and at certain other times. The substantial Porte de Valenciennes town gate, a reminder of the towns past military importance, was built in 1453, one face is built in Gothic style, while the other is of Classical design. The University of Douai was founded under the patronage of Phillip II and it was prominent, from the 1560s until the French Revolution, as a centre for the education of English Catholics escaping the persecution in England. Connected with the University were not only the English College, Douai, founded by William Allen, but also the Irish and Scottish colleges and the Benedictine, Franciscan and Jesuit houses. However, the community was expelled at the time of the French Revolution in 1793 and, after years of wandering, finally settled at Downside Abbey, Somerset
21.
Nancy, France
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Nancy is the capital of the north-eastern French department of Meurthe-et-Moselle, and formerly the capital of the Duchy of Lorraine, and then the French province of the same name. The metropolitan area of Nancy had a population of 410,509 inhabitants at the 1999 census,103,602 of whom lived in the city of Nancy proper. The motto of the city is Non inultus premor, Latin for Im not touched with impunity—a reference to the thistle, the earliest signs of human settlement in the area date back to 800 BC. Early settlers were attracted by easily mined iron ore and a ford in the Meurthe River. A small fortified town named Nanciacum was built by Gérard, Duke of Lorraine around 1050, Duke Charles the Bold of Burgundy, was defeated and killed in the Battle of Nancy in 1477, René II, Duke of Lorraine became the ruler. In 1736 Emperor Charles arranged her marriage to Duke François of Lorraine, exiled Polish king Stanisław Leszczyński, father-in-law of French king Louis XV, was given the vacant duchy instead. Under his nominal rule, Nancy experienced growth and a flowering of Baroque culture and architecture, with his death in 1766, the duchy became a regular French province and Nancy lost its position as a residential capital city with its own princely court and patronage. As unrest surfaced within the French armed forces during the French Revolution, a few reliable units laid siege to the town and shot or imprisoned the mutineers. In 1871, Nancy remained French when Prussia annexed Alsace-Lorraine, the flow of refugees reaching Nancy doubled its population in three decades. Artistic, academic, financial and industrial excellence flourished, establishing what is still the Capital of Lorraines trademark to this day, Nancy was freed from Nazi Germany by the U. S. Third Army in September 1944, during the Lorraine Campaign of World War II at the Battle of Nancy ), in 1988, Pope John Paul II visited Nancy. In 2005, French President Jacques Chirac, German Chancellor Gerhard Schröder, Nancy is situated on the left bank of the river Meurthe, about 10 km upstream from its confluence with the Moselle. The Marne–Rhine Canal runs through the city, parallel to the Meurthe, Nancy is surrounded by hills that are about 150 m higher than the city center, which is situated at 200 m amsl. The area of Nancy proper is small,15 km2. Its built-up area is continuous with those of its adjacent suburbs, the neighboring communes of Nancy are, Jarville-la-Malgrange, Laxou, Malzéville, Maxéville, Saint-Max, Tomblaine, Vandœuvre-lès-Nancy and Villers-lès-Nancy. Adjacent to its south is the quarter Charles III – Centre Ville and this quarter contains the famous Place Stanislas, the Nancy Cathedral, the Opéra national de Lorraine and the main railway station. The old city centers heritage dates from the Middle Ages to the 18th century, the cathedral of Nancy, the Triumphal Arch and the Place de la Carriere are a fine examples of 18th-century architecture. The Palace of the Dukes of Lorraine is the princely residence of the rulers
22.
Dijon
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Dijon is a city in eastern France, capital of the Côte-dOr département and of the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region. The earliest archaeological finds within the city limits of Dijon date to the Neolithic period, Dijon later became a Roman settlement named Divio, located on the road from Lyon to Paris. Population,151,576 within the city limits,250,516 for the greater Dijon area, the city has retained varied architectural styles from many of the main periods of the past millennium, including Capetian, Gothic and Renaissance. Many still-inhabited town houses in the central district date from the 18th century. Dijon architecture is distinguished by, among other things, toits bourguignons made of tiles glazed in terracotta, green, yellow and black, Dijon holds an International and Gastronomic Fair every year in autumn. With over 500 exhibitors and 200,000 visitors every year, Dijon is also home, every three years, to the international flower show Florissimo. The historical center of the city has been registered since July 4,2015 as a UNESCO World Heritage site, the earliest archaeological finds within the city limits of Dijon date to the Neolithic period. Dijon later became a Roman settlement called Divio, which may mean sacred fountain, saint Benignus, the citys apocryphal patron saint, is said to have introduced Christianity to the area before being martyred. The Duchy of Burgundy was a key in the transformation of medieval times toward early modern Europe, the Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy now houses city hall and a museum of art. In 1513, Swiss and Imperial armies invaded Burgundy and besieged Dijon, the siege was extremely violent, but the town succeeded in resisting the invaders. After long negotiations, Louis II de la Trémoille managed to persuade the Swiss, during the siege, the population called on the Virgin Mary for help and saw the towns successful resistance and the subsequent withdrawal of the invaders as a miracle. For those reasons, in the following the siege the inhabitants of Dijon began to venerate Notre-Dame de Bon-Espoir. Although a few areas of the town were destroyed, there are no signs of the siege of 1513 visible today. However, Dijons museum of arts has a large tapestry depicting this episode in the towns history. Dijon is situated at the heart of a plain drained by two small converging rivers, the Suzon, which crosses it mostly underground from north to south, farther south is the côte, or hillside, of vineyards that gives the department its name. Dijon lies 310 km southeast of Paris,190 km northwest of Geneva, the average low of winter is −1 °C, with an average high of 4.2 °C. The average high of summer is 25.3 °C with a low of 14.7 °C. Average normal temperatures are between 2.3 °C and 5.3 °C from November to March, and 17.2 to 19.7 °C from June to August, the climate is oceanic but with a greater temperature range than closer to the Atlantic coastline
23.
Grenoble
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Grenoble is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère, the city advertises itself as the Capital of the Alps, due to its size and its proximity to the mountains. Grenobles history goes back more than 2,000 years, to a time when it was a small Gallic village, industrial development increased the prominence of Grenoble, through several periods of economic expansion over the last three centuries. The city has grown to be one of Europes most important research, technology, the population of the city of Grenoble was 160,215 at the 2013 census, while the population of the Grenoble metropolitan area was 664,832. The residents of the city are called Grenoblois, the many communes that make up the metropolitan area include three suburbs with populations exceeding 20,000, Saint-Martin-dHères, Échirolles, and Fontaine. For the ecclesiastical history, see Bishopric of Grenoble, the first references to Grenoble date back to 43 BC. Cularo was at time a little Gallic village founded by the Allobroges tribe near a bridge across the Isère River. Three centuries later and with insecurity rising in the late Roman empire, the Emperor Gratian visited Cularo and, touched by the peoples welcome, made the village a Roman city. In honour of this, Cularo was renamed Gratianopolis in 381, Christianity spread to the region during the 4th century, and the diocese of Grenoble was founded in 377 AD. From that time on, the bishops exercised significant political power over the city, until the French Revolution, they styled themselves the bishops and princes of Grenoble. Arletian rule was interrupted between 942 and 970 due to Arabic rule based in Fraxinet, Grenoble grew significantly in the 11th century when the Counts of Albon chose the city as the capital of their territories. At the time, their possessions were a patchwork of several territories sprawled across the region, the central position of Grenoble allowed the Counts to strengthen their authority. When they later took the title of Dauphins, Grenoble became the capital of the State of Dauphiné, despite their status, the Counts had to share authority over the city with the Bishop of Grenoble. One of the most famous of those was Saint Hugh, under his rule, the citys bridge was rebuilt, and both a regular hospital and a leper one were built. The inhabitants of Grenoble took advantage of the conflicts between the Counts and the bishops and obtained the recognition of a Charter of Customs that guaranteed their rights and that charter was confirmed by Kings Louis XI in 1447 and Francis I in 1541. In 1336 the last Dauphin Humbert II founded a court of justice, the Conseil delphinal and he also established the University of Grenoble in 1339. Aging and heirless, Humbert sold his state to France in 1349, the first one, the future Charles V, spent nine months in Grenoble. The city remained the capital of the Dauphiné, henceforth a province of France, the only Dauphin who really governed his province was Louis XI, whose reign lasted from 1447 to 1456
24.
Nice
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Nice is the fifth most populous city in France and the capital of the Alpes-Maritimes département. The urban area of Nice extends beyond the city limits. Nice is about 13 kilometres from the principality of Monaco, the city is nicknamed Nice la Belle, which means Nice the Beautiful, which is also the title of the unofficial anthem of Nice, written by Menica Rondelly in 1912. The area of todays Nice contains Terra Amata, a site which displays evidence of a very early use of fire. Around 350 BC, Greeks of Marseille founded a permanent settlement and called it Nikaia, after Nike, through the ages, the town has changed hands many times. Its strategic location and port significantly contributed to its maritime strength, for centuries it was a dominion of Savoy, and was then part of France between 1792 and 1815, when it was returned to Piedmont-Sardinia until its re-annexation by France in 1860. The citys main seaside promenade, the Promenade des Anglais owes its name to visitors to the resort, for decades now, the picturesque Nicean surroundings have attracted not only those in search of relaxation, but also those seeking inspiration. The clear air and soft light have particularly appealed to some of Western cultures most outstanding painters, such as Marc Chagall, Henri Matisse, Niki de Saint Phalle and Arman. Their work is commemorated in many of the museums, including Musée Marc Chagall, Musée Matisse. Nice has the second largest hotel capacity in the country and it is one of its most visited cities and it also has the third busiest airport in France, after the two main Parisian ones. It is the capital city of the County of Nice. Nice was probably founded around 350 BC by the Greeks of Massalia, the ruins of Cemenelum are in Cimiez, now a district of Nice. In the 7th century, Nice joined the Genoese League formed by the towns of Liguria. In 729 the city repulsed the Saracens, but in 859 and again in 880 the Saracens pillaged and burned it, during the Middle Ages, Nice participated in the wars and history of Italy. As an ally of Pisa it was the enemy of Genoa, during the 13th and 14th centuries the city fell more than once into the hands of the Counts of Provence, but it regained its independence even though related to Genoa. The medieval city walls surrounded the Old Town, the landward side was protected by the River Paillon, which was later covered over and is now the tram route towards the Acropolis. The east side of the town was protected by fortifications on Castle Hill, another river flowed into the port on the east side of Castle Hill. Engravings suggest that the area was also defended by walls
25.
Marseille
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Marseille, also known as Marseilles in English, is a city in France. Known to the ancient Greeks and Romans as Massalia, Marseille was the most important trading centre in the region, Marseille is now Frances largest city on the Mediterranean coast and the largest port for commerce, freight and cruise ships. The city was European Capital of Culture, together with Košice, Slovakia and it hosted the European Football Championship in 2016, and will be the European Capital of Sport in 2017. The city is home to campuses of Aix-Marseille University and part of one of the largest metropolitan conurbations in France. Marseille is the second largest city in France after Paris and the centre of the third largest metropolitan area in France after Paris, further east still are the Sainte-Baume, the city of Toulon and the French Riviera. To the north of Marseille, beyond the low Garlaban and Etoile mountain ranges, is the 1,011 m Mont Sainte Victoire. To the west of Marseille is the artists colony of lEstaque, further west are the Côte Bleue, the Gulf of Lion. The airport lies to the north west of the city at Marignane on the Étang de Berre, the citys main thoroughfare stretches eastward from the Old Port to the Réformés quarter. Two large forts flank the entrance to the Old Port—Fort Saint-Nicolas on the south side and Fort Saint-Jean on the north. Further out in the Bay of Marseille is the Frioul archipelago which comprises four islands, one of which, If, is the location of Château dIf, the main commercial centre of the city intersects with the Canebière at rue St Ferréol and the Centre Bourse. To the south east of central Marseille in the 6th arrondissement are the Prefecture and the fountain of Place Castellane. To the south west are the hills of the 7th arrondissement, the railway station—Gare de Marseille Saint-Charles—is north of the Centre Bourse in the 1st arrondissement, it is linked by the Boulevard dAthènes to the Canebière. Marseille has a Mediterranean climate with mild, humid winters and warm to hot, december, January, and February are the coldest months, averaging temperatures of around 12 °C during the day and 4 °C at night. Marseille is officially the sunniest major city in France with over 2,900 hours of sunshine while the average sunshine in France is around 1,950 hours, less frequent is the Sirocco, a hot, sand-bearing wind, coming from the Sahara Desert. Snowfalls are infrequent, over 50% of years do not experience a single snowfall, Massalia, whose name was probably adapted from an existing language related to Ligurian, was the first Greek settlement in France. It was established within modern Marseille around 600 BC by colonists coming from Phocaea on the Aegean coast of Asia Minor. The connection between Massalia and the Phoceans is mentioned in Thucydidess Peloponnesian War, he notes that the Phocaean project was opposed by the Carthaginians, the founding of Massalia has also been recorded as a legend. Protis was invited inland to a banquet held by the chief of the local Ligurian tribe for suitors seeking the hand of his daughter Gyptis in marriage, at the end of the banquet, Gyptis presented the ceremonial cup of wine to Protis, indicating her unequivocal choice
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Toulouse
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Toulouse is the capital city of the southwestern French department of Haute-Garonne, as well as of the Occitanie region. The city lies on the banks of the River Garonne,150 kilometres from the Mediterranean Sea,230 km from the Atlantic Ocean and it is the fourth-largest city in France with 466,297 inhabitants in January 2014. The Toulouse Metro area is, with 1312304 inhabitants as of 2014, Frances 4th metropolitan area after Paris, Lyon and Marseille and ahead of Lille and Bordeaux. Toulouse is the centre of the European aerospace industry, with the headquarters of Airbus, the Galileo positioning system, the SPOT satellite system, the Airbus Group, ATR and the Aerospace Valley. The city also hosts the European headquarters of Intel and CNESs Toulouse Space Centre, thales Alenia Space, and Astrium Satellites, Airbus Groups satellite system subsidiary, also have a significant presence in Toulouse. The University of Toulouse is one of the oldest in Europe and, with more than 103,000 students, is the fourth-largest university campus in France, after the Universities of Paris, Lyon and Lille. The air route between Toulouse Blagnac and Paris Orly is the busiest in Europe, transporting 2.4 million passengers in 2014, according to the rankings of LExpress and Challenges, Toulouse is the most dynamic French city. It is now the capital of the Occitanie region, the largest region in metropolitan France, sernin, the largest remaining Romanesque building in Europe, designated in 1998 because of its significance to the Santiago de Compostela pilgrimage route. Toulouse is in the south of France, north of the department of Haute-Garonne, the city is traversed by the Canal de Brienne, the Canal du Midi and the rivers Garonne, Touch and Hers-Mort. Toulouse has a subtropical climate which can be qualified as submediterranean due to its proximity to the Mediterranean climate zone. The Garonne Valley was a point for trade between the Pyrenees, the Mediterranean and the Atlantic since at least the Iron Age. The historical name of the city, Tolosa, it is of unknown meaning or origin, possibly from Aquitanian, or from Iberian, Tolosa enters the historical period in the 2nd century BC, when it became a Roman military outpost. After the conquest of Gaul, it was developed as a Roman city of Gallia Narbonensis. In the 5th century, Tolosa fell to the Visigothic kingdom and became one of its cities, in the early 6th century even serving as its capital. From this time, Toulouse was the capital of Aquitaine within the Frankish realm, in 721, Duke Odo of Aquitaine defeated an invading Umayyad Muslim army at the Battle of Toulouse. Odos victory was an obstacle to Muslim expansion into Christian Europe. Charles Martel, a later, won the Battle of Tours. The Frankish conquest of Septimania followed in the 750s, and a quasi-independent County of Toulouse emerged within the Carolingian sub-kingdom of Aquitaine by the late 8th century
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Bayonne
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Bayonne is a city and commune and one of the two sub-prefectures of the department of Pyrénées-Atlantiques, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region of south-western France. Archaeological studies have confirmed the presence of a Roman castrum, a stronghold in Novempopulania at the end of the 4th century before the city was populated by the Vascones. In 1023 Bayonne was the capital of Labourd and, in the 12th century, extended to, at that time the first bridge was built over the Adour. The city came under the domination of the English in 1152 through the marriage of Eleanor of Aquitaine, it became militarily and, above all and it was separated from the Viscount of Labourd in 1177 by Richard the Lion Heart. In 1451 the city was taken by the Crown of France after the Hundred Years War, the loss of trade with the English and the silting up of the river as well as the movement of the city towards the north weakened it. The district of Saint-Esprit developed anyway thanks to the arrival of a Jewish population fleeing the Spanish Inquisition, from this community Bayonne gained its reputation for chocolate. The course of the Adour was changed in 1578 under the direction of Louis de Foix, in the 17th century the city was fortified by Vauban. In 1951 the Lacq gas field was discovered whose extracted sulphur, Bayonne was, in 2014, a commune with over 45,000 inhabitants, the heart of the urban area of Bayonne and of the Agglomeration Côte Basque-Adour which includes Anglet and Biarritz. It is an important part of the Basque Bayonne-San Sebastián Eurocity, modern industry—metallurgy and chemicals—are established to take advantage of procurement opportunities and sea shipments through the harbour. It is now mostly business services which today represent the largest source of employment, Bayonne is also a cultural capital, a city with strong Basque and Gascon influences and a rich historical past. Its heritage lies in its architecture, the diversity of collections in museums, its gastronomic specialties, the inhabitants of the commune are known as Bayonnais or Bayonnaises. Bayonne is located in the south-west of France on the border between Basque Country and Gascony. It developed at the confluence of the Adour and its tributary on the left bank, the commune was part of the Basque province of Labourd. Bayonne occupies a territory characterized by a relief to the west and to the north towards the Landes forest, tending to slightly raise towards the south. The city has developed at the confluence of the Adour and Nive 6 kilometres from the ocean, the meeting point of the two rivers coincides with a narrowing of the Adour valley. Downstream from this point the river has shaped a large bed in the dunes creating a significant bottleneck at the confluence. The occupation of the hill that dominates this narrowing of the valley developed through a gradual spread across the lowlands by building embankments, the drainage network of the western Pre-Pyrenees evolved mostly from the Quaternary from south-east to northwest oriented east-west. The Adour was then captured by the gaves and this system, together with the Nive, led to the emergence of a new alignment of the lower Adour and this capture has been dated to the early Quaternary
28.
Bordeaux
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Bordeaux is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France. The municipality of Bordeaux proper has a population of 243,626, together with its suburbs and satellite towns, Bordeaux is the centre of the Bordeaux Métropole. With 749,595 inhabitants and 1,178,335 in the area, it is the fifth largest in France, after Paris, Lyon, Marseille and Lille. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture of the Gironde department and its inhabitants are called Bordelais or Bordelaises. The term Bordelais may also refer to the city and its surrounding region, Bordeaux is the worlds major wine industry capital. It is home to the main wine fair, Vinexpo. Bordeaux wine has been produced in the region since the 8th century, the historic part of the city is on the UNESCO World Heritage List as an outstanding urban and architectural ensemble of the 18th century. After Paris, Bordeaux has the highest number of preserved buildings of any city in France. In historical times, around 300 BC it was the settlement of a Celtic tribe, the Bituriges Vivisci, the name Bourde is still the name of a river south of the city. In 107 BC, the Battle of Burdigala was fought by the Romans who were defending the Allobroges, a Gallic tribe allied to Rome, the Romans were defeated and their commander, the consul Lucius Cassius Longinus, was killed in the action. The city fell under Roman rule around 60 BC, its importance lying in the commerce of tin, later it became capital of Roman Aquitaine, flourishing especially during the Severan dynasty. In 276 it was sacked by the Vandals, further ravage was brought by the same Vandals in 409, the Visigoths in 414 and the Franks in 498, beginning a period of obscurity for the city. In the late 6th century, the city re-emerged as the seat of a county and an archdiocese within the Merovingian kingdom of the Franks, the city started to play a regional role as a major urban center on the fringes of the newly founded Frankish Duchy of Vasconia. Around 585, a certain Gallactorius is cited as count of Bordeaux, the city was plundered by the troops of Abd er Rahman in 732 after storming the fortified city and overwhelming the Aquitanian garrison. After Duke Eudess defeat, the Aquitanian duke could still save part of its troops, the following year, the Frankish commander descended again over Aquitaine, but clashed in battle with the Aquitanians and left to take on hostile Burgundian authorities and magnates. In 745, Aquitaine faced yet another expedition by Charles sons Pepin and Carloman against Hunald, Hunald was defeated, and his son Waifer replaced him, who in turn confirmed Bordeaux as the capital city. During the last stage of the war against Aquitaine, it was one of Waifers last important strongholds to fall to King Pepin the Shorts troops. Next to Bordeaux, Charlemagne built the fortress of Fronsac on a hill across the border with the Basques, in 778, Seguin was appointed count of Bordeaux, probably undermining the power of the Duke Lupo, and possibly leading to the Battle of Roncevaux Pass that very year
29.
Nantes
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Nantes is a city in western France, located on the Loire River,50 km from the Atlantic coast. The city is the sixth largest in France, with almost 300,000 inhabitants within its limits. Together with Saint-Nazaire, a located on the Loire estuary. Nantes is the seat of the Loire-Atlantique département and of the Pays de la Loire région. Historically and culturally, Nantes belongs to Brittany, a former duchy, the fact that it is not part of the modern administrative Brittany région is subject to debate. Nantes appeared during the Antiquity as a port on the Loire and it became the seat of a bishopric at the end of the Roman era, before being conquered by the Breton people in 851. Nantes was the residence of the dukes of Brittany in the 15th century. The French Revolution was a period of turmoil resulted in an economic decline. Nantes managed to develop a strong industry after 1850, chiefly in ship building, however, deindustrialisation in the second half of the 20th century pushed the city to reorient its economy towards services. In 2012, the Globalization and World Cities Research Network ranked Nantes as a Gamma- world city and it is the fourth highest ranking city in France after Paris, Lyon and Marseilles. The Gamma- category gathers other large cities such as Algiers, Orlando, Porto, Turin, Nantes has often been praised for its quality of life and it was awarded the European Green Capital Award in 2013. The settlement is mentioned in Ptolemys Geography as Κονδηούινϰον and Κονδιούινϰον, during the Gallo-Roman period, this name was latinised and adapted as Condevincum, Condevicnum, Condivicnum, Condivincum, etc. Condevincum seems to be related to the Gaulish word condate meaning confluence, at the end of the Roman period, Condevincum became known as Portus Namnetum and civitas Namnetum. This phenomenon can be observed on most of the ancient cities of France throughout the 4th century, for instance, Lutecia became Paris, city of the Parisii, Darioritum became Vannes, city of the Veneti. Portus Namnetum evolved in Nanetiæ and Namnetis in the 5th century, the name of the Namnetes people could either come from the Gaulish root *nant-, from the pre-Celtic root *nanto or from the other tribe name Amnites, which could mean men of the river. The name Nantes is pronounced and the city inhabitants are called Nantais, in Gallo, the romance dialect traditionally spoken in the region around Nantes, the city is called Naunnt or Nantt, according to the various spelling systems. The Gallo pronunciation is the same as the French one, although northern speakers pronounce it with a long, in Breton language, Nantes is known as Naoned or An Naoned. The latter, meaning the Nantes, is common and reflects the fact that articles are more frequent in Breton toponyms than in French ones
30.
Brest, France
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Brest is a city in the Finistère département in Brittany in northwestern France. The city is located on the edge of continental Europe. Although Brest is by far the largest city in Finistère, the préfecture of the department is the much smaller Quimper, during the Middle Ages, the history of Brest was the history of its castle. Then Richelieu made it a military harbour, Brest grew around its arsenal, until the second part of the 20th century. Heavily damaged by the Allies bombing raids during World War II, at the end of the 20th century and the beginning of the 21st century, the deindustrialization of the city was followed by the development of the service sector. Nowadays, Brest is an important university town with 23,000 students, Brest is also an important research centre, mainly focused on the sea, with among others the largest Ifremer centre, le Cedre and the French Polar Institute. Brest’s history has always been linked to the sea, the Académie de Marine was founded in 1752 in this city, the aircraft carrier Charles de Gaulle was built there. Every four years, Brest hosts the festival of the sea, boats and sailors. Nothing definite is known of Brest before about 1240, when a count of Léon ceded it to John I, in 1342, John IV, Duke of Brittany, surrendered Brest to the English, in whose possession it was to remain until 1397. The importance of Brest in medieval times was great enough to rise to the saying. With the marriage of Francis I of France to Claude, the daughter of Anne of Brittany, the advantages of Brests situation as a seaport town were first recognized by Cardinal Richelieu, who in 1631 constructed a harbor with wooden wharves. This soon became a base for the French Navy, jean-Baptiste Colbert, finance minister under Louis XIV, rebuilt the wharves in masonry and otherwise improved the harbour. Fortifications by Vauban followed in 1680–1688 and these fortifications, and with them the naval importance of the town, were to continue to develop throughout the 18th century. In 1694, an English squadron under Lord Berkeley, was defeated in its attack on Brest. In 1917, during the First World War, Brest was used as the port for many of the troops coming from the United States. Thousands of such men came through the port on their way to the front lines, the United States Navy established a naval air station on 13 February 1918 to operate seaplanes. The base closed shortly after the Armistice of 11 November 1918, in the Second World War, the Germans maintained a large U-boat submarine base at Brest. In 1944, after the Allied invasion of Normandy, the city was almost totally destroyed during the Battle for Brest, with only a tiny number of buildings left standing
31.
Caen
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Caen is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the Calvados department, the city proper has 108,365 inhabitants, while its urban area has 420,000, making Caen the largest city in former Lower Normandy. It is also the second largest municipality in all of Normandy after Le Havre, the metropolitan area of Caen, in turn, is the second largest in Normandy after that of Rouen, the 21st largest in France. It is located 15 kilometres inland from the English Channel, two hours north-west of Paris, and connected to the south of England by the Caen--Portsmouth ferry route. Caen is located in the centre of its region, and it is a centre of political, economic. Located a few miles from the coast, the landing beaches, the city has now preserved the memory by erecting a memorial and a museum dedicated to peace, the Memorial de Caen. Current arms, Gules, an open castle Or, windowed and masoned sable. Under the Ancien Régime, Per fess, gules and azure,3 fleurs de lys Or, during the First French Empire, Gules, a single-towered castle Or, a chief of Good Imperial Cities. Today, Caen has no motto, but it used to have one, as a result, its spelling is archaic and has not been updated, Un Dieu, un Roy, une Foy, une Loy. This motto is reflected in a notable old Chant royal, Caens home port code is CN In 1346, King Edward III of England led his army against the city, hoping to loot it. During the attack, English officials searched its archives and found a copy of the 1339 Franco-Norman plot to invade England, devised by Philip VI of France and this was subsequently used as propaganda to justify the supplying and financing of the conflict and its continuation. Only the castle of Caen held out, despite attempts to besiege it, a few days later, the English left, marching to the east and on to their victory at the Battle of Crécy. It was later captured by Henry V in 1417 and treated harshly for being the first town to put up any resistance to his invasion. During the Battle of Normandy in the Second World War, Caen was liberated from the Nazis in early July, British and Canadian troops had intended to capture the town on D-Day. However they were held up north of the city until 9 July, the Allies seized the western quarters, a month later than Field Marshal Montgomerys original plan. During the battle, many of the inhabitants sought refuge in the Abbaye aux Hommes. Both the cathedral and the university were destroyed by the British. Post-Second World War work included the reconstruction of complete districts of the city and it took 14 years and led to the current urbanization of Caen
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Emile Georget (FRA)
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Aloïs Catteau (BEL)
Media related to 1906 Tour de France at Wikimedia Commons
