1.
Prefectures in France
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There are 101 prefectures in France, one for each department. The official in charge is the prefect, the prefect represents the national government at the local level and as such exercises the powers that are constitutionally attributed to the national government. The prefect issues ordinances written for the application of law, to close a building that does not conform to safety codes. In the past, the prefect was head of the department, but since 1982, there is an exception in Paris and its three surrounding departments. These departments are administered by a prefecture for law enforcement and security purposes, called the Prefecture of Police. The power of law enforcement is usually invested in the mayor in other French communes, the departments are divided into arrondissements, themselves divided into cantons. The chef-lieu darrondissement is the subprefecture, the official in charge is the subprefect (French, sous-préfet. Cantons have relatively few competences, the most important one being the local organisation of elections, administrative divisions of France French National Police
2.
Communes of France
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The commune is a level of administrative division in the French Republic. French communes are roughly equivalent to civil townships incorporated municipalities in the United States or Gemeinden in Germany, the United Kingdom has no exact equivalent, as communes resemble districts in urban areas, but are closer to parishes in rural areas where districts are much larger. Communes are based on historical geographic communities or villages and have received significant powers of governance to manage the populations, the communes are the fourth-level administrative divisions of France. A French commune may be a city of 2.2 million inhabitants like Paris, communes typically are based on pre-existing villages and facilitate local governance. All communes have names, but not all named geographic areas or groups of people residing together are communes, a commune is a town, city, or municipality. Use of commune in English is a habit, and one that might be corrected. There is nothing in commune in French that is different from town in English. The French word commune appeared in the 12th century, from Medieval Latin communia, as of January 2015, there were 36,681 communes in France,36,552 of them in metropolitan France and 129 of them overseas. This is a higher total than that of any other European country. The whole territory of the French Republic is divided into communes and this is unlike some other countries, such as the United States, where unincorporated areas directly governed by a county or a higher authority can be found. There are only a few exceptions, COM of Saint-Martin and it was previously a commune inside the Guadeloupe région. The commune structure was abolished when Saint-Martin became an overseas collectivity on 22 February 2007, COM of Wallis and Futuna, which still is divided according to the three traditional chiefdoms. It was previously a commune inside the Guadeloupe region, the commune structure was abolished when Saint-Barthélemy became an overseas collectivity on 22 February 2007.88 square kilometres. The median area of metropolitan Frances communes at the 1999 census was even smaller, the median area is a better measure of the area of a typical French commune. This median area is smaller than that of most European countries. In Italy, the area of communes is 22 km2, in Belgium it is 40 km2, in Spain it is 35 km2, and in Germany. Switzerland and the Länder of Rhineland-Palatinate, Schleswig-Holstein, and Thuringia in Germany were the places in Europe where the communes had a smaller median area than in France. The communes of Frances overseas départements such as Réunion and French Guiana are large by French standards and they usually group into the same commune several villages or towns, often with sizeable distances among them
3.
Geographic coordinate system
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A geographic coordinate system is a coordinate system used in geography that enables every location on Earth to be specified by a set of numbers, letters or symbols. The coordinates are chosen such that one of the numbers represents a vertical position. A common choice of coordinates is latitude, longitude and elevation, to specify a location on a two-dimensional map requires a map projection. The invention of a coordinate system is generally credited to Eratosthenes of Cyrene. Ptolemy credited him with the adoption of longitude and latitude. Ptolemys 2nd-century Geography used the prime meridian but measured latitude from the equator instead. Mathematical cartography resumed in Europe following Maximus Planudes recovery of Ptolemys text a little before 1300, in 1884, the United States hosted the International Meridian Conference, attended by representatives from twenty-five nations. Twenty-two of them agreed to adopt the longitude of the Royal Observatory in Greenwich, the Dominican Republic voted against the motion, while France and Brazil abstained. France adopted Greenwich Mean Time in place of local determinations by the Paris Observatory in 1911, the latitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle between the equatorial plane and the straight line that passes through that point and through the center of the Earth. Lines joining points of the same latitude trace circles on the surface of Earth called parallels, as they are parallel to the equator, the north pole is 90° N, the south pole is 90° S. The 0° parallel of latitude is designated the equator, the plane of all geographic coordinate systems. The equator divides the globe into Northern and Southern Hemispheres, the longitude of a point on Earths surface is the angle east or west of a reference meridian to another meridian that passes through that point. All meridians are halves of great ellipses, which converge at the north and south poles, the prime meridian determines the proper Eastern and Western Hemispheres, although maps often divide these hemispheres further west in order to keep the Old World on a single side. The antipodal meridian of Greenwich is both 180°W and 180°E, the combination of these two components specifies the position of any location on the surface of Earth, without consideration of altitude or depth. The grid formed by lines of latitude and longitude is known as a graticule, the origin/zero point of this system is located in the Gulf of Guinea about 625 km south of Tema, Ghana. To completely specify a location of a feature on, in, or above Earth. Earth is not a sphere, but a shape approximating a biaxial ellipsoid. It is nearly spherical, but has an equatorial bulge making the radius at the equator about 0. 3% larger than the radius measured through the poles, the shorter axis approximately coincides with the axis of rotation
4.
France
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France, officially the French Republic, is a country with territory in western Europe and several overseas regions and territories. The European, or metropolitan, area of France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, Overseas France include French Guiana on the South American continent and several island territories in the Atlantic, Pacific and Indian oceans. France spans 643,801 square kilometres and had a population of almost 67 million people as of January 2017. It is a unitary republic with the capital in Paris. Other major urban centres include Marseille, Lyon, Lille, Nice, Toulouse, during the Iron Age, what is now metropolitan France was inhabited by the Gauls, a Celtic people. The area was annexed in 51 BC by Rome, which held Gaul until 486, France emerged as a major European power in the Late Middle Ages, with its victory in the Hundred Years War strengthening state-building and political centralisation. During the Renaissance, French culture flourished and a colonial empire was established. The 16th century was dominated by civil wars between Catholics and Protestants. France became Europes dominant cultural, political, and military power under Louis XIV, in the 19th century Napoleon took power and established the First French Empire, whose subsequent Napoleonic Wars shaped the course of continental Europe. Following the collapse of the Empire, France endured a succession of governments culminating with the establishment of the French Third Republic in 1870. Following liberation in 1944, a Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the Algerian War, the Fifth Republic, led by Charles de Gaulle, was formed in 1958 and remains to this day. Algeria and nearly all the colonies became independent in the 1960s with minimal controversy and typically retained close economic. France has long been a centre of art, science. It hosts Europes fourth-largest number of cultural UNESCO World Heritage Sites and receives around 83 million foreign tourists annually, France is a developed country with the worlds sixth-largest economy by nominal GDP and ninth-largest by purchasing power parity. In terms of household wealth, it ranks fourth in the world. France performs well in international rankings of education, health care, life expectancy, France remains a great power in the world, being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council with the power to veto and an official nuclear-weapon state. It is a member state of the European Union and the Eurozone. It is also a member of the Group of 7, North Atlantic Treaty Organization, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, the World Trade Organization, originally applied to the whole Frankish Empire, the name France comes from the Latin Francia, or country of the Franks
5.
Regions of France
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France is divided into 18 administrative regions, including 13 metropolitan regions and 5 overseas regions. The current legal concept of region was adopted in 1982, the term région was officially created by the Law of Decentralisation, which also gave regions their legal status. The first direct elections for representatives took place on 16 March 1986. In 2016, the number of regions was reduced from 27 to 18 through amalgamation, in 2014, the French parliament passed a law reducing the number of metropolitan regions from 22 to 13 with effect from 1 January 2016. However, the region of Upper and Lower Normandy is simply called Normandy. Permanent names were to be proposed by the new regional councils by 1 July 2016, the legislation defining the new regions also allowed the Centre region to officially change its name to Centre-Val de Loire with effect from January 2015. Two regions, Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes and Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, opted to retain their interim names, between 1982 and 2015, there were 22 regions in Metropolitan France. Before 2011, there were four regions, in 2011 Mayotte became the fifth. Regions lack separate legislative authority and therefore cannot write their own statutory law and they levy their own taxes and, in return, receive a decreasing part of their budget from the central government, which gives them a portion of the taxes it levies. They also have considerable budgets managed by a council made up of representatives voted into office in regional elections. A regions primary responsibility is to build and furnish high schools, in March 2004, the French central government unveiled a controversial plan to transfer regulation of certain categories of non-teaching school staff to the regional authorities. Critics of this plan contended that tax revenue was insufficient to pay for the costs. In addition, regions have considerable power over infrastructural spending, e. g. education, public transit, universities and research. This has meant that the heads of regions such as Île-de-France or Rhône-Alpes can be high-profile positions. Number of regions controlled by each coalition since 1986, Overseas region is a recent designation, given to the overseas departments that have similar powers to those of the regions of metropolitan France. Radio France Internationale in English Overseas regions Ministère de lOutre-Mer some explanations about the past and current developments of DOMs and TOMs
6.
Grand Est
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Grand Est, previously Alsace-Champagne-Ardenne-Lorraine, is a French administrative region in northeastern France. It superseded three former administrative regions—Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne, and Lorraine—on 1 January 2016, as a result of reform which was passed by the French legislature in 2014. Frances Conseil dÉtat approved Grand Est as the new name of the region on 28 September 2016, the administrative capital and largest city is Strasbourg. The formula for the name of the region was established by the territorial reform law and applied to all. The provisional name of the region was retired on 30 September 2016, in Alsace and in Lorraine, the new region has frequently been called ALCA, for Alsace-Lorraine-Champagne-Ardennes, on the internet. In a poll conducted in November 2014 by France 3 in Champagne-Ardenne, Grand Est, Grand Est also topped a poll the following month conducted by LEst Republicain, receiving 42% of 3,324 votes. The term has commonly used and has topped the polls mentioned above. Grand Est Europe is a variant of Grand Est that alludes to the region being a gateway to Europe both through trade and since Strasbourg is home to several European institutions, however, the name has been mocked for how it could suggest that the region is in Eastern Europe. Austrasie, which refers to a region spanning parts of present-day northeast France, the Benelux. Quatre frontières, which refers to the border with four countries, has also been discussed. Grand Est covers 57,433 square kilometres of land and is the sixth-largest of the regions of France effective 1 January 2016, Grand Est borders four countries—Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, and Switzerland—along its northern and eastern sides. It is the only French region to more than two countries. To the west and south, it borders the French regions Nord-Pas-de-Calais-Picardie, Île-de-France, Grand Est contains ten departments, Ardennes, Aube, Bas-Rhin, Marne, Haute-Marne, Haut-Rhin, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Meuse, Moselle, Vosges. The main ranges in the include the Vosges to the east. The region is border on the east by the Rhine which forms most of the border with Germany, other major rivers which flow through the region include, the Meuse, Moselle, Marne, and Saône. Lakes in the include, lac de Gérardmer, lac de Longemer, lac de Retournemer, lac des Corbeaux, Lac de Bouzey, lac de Madine, étang du Stock. ACAL is the merger of three regions, Alsace, Champagne-Ardenne, and Lorraine, the merger has been strongly opposed in Alsace. The region has an population of 5,554,645
7.
Departments of France
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In the administrative divisions of France, the department is one of the three levels of government below the national level, between the administrative regions and the commune. There are 96 departments in metropolitan France and 5 overseas departments, each department is administered by an elected body called a departmental council. From 1800 to April 2015, they were called general councils, the departments were created in 1791 as a rational replacement of Ancien Régime provinces with a view to strengthen national unity, the title department is used to mean a part of a larger whole. Almost all of them were named after geographical features rather than after historical or cultural territories which could have their own loyalties. The earliest known suggestion of it is from 1764 in the writings of dArgenson and they have inspired similar divisions in many countries, some of them former French colonies. Most French departments are assigned a number, the Official Geographical Code. Some overseas departments have a three-digit number, the number is used, for example, in the postal code, and was until recently used for all vehicle registration plates. For example, inhabitants of Loiret might refer to their department as the 45 and this reform project has since been abandoned. The first French territorial departments were proposed in 1665 by Marc-René dArgenson to serve as administrative areas purely for the Ponts et Chaussées infrastructure administration, before the French Revolution, France gained territory gradually through the annexation of a mosaic of independent entities. By the close of the Ancien Régime, it was organised into provinces, during the period of the Revolution, these were dissolved, partly in order to weaken old loyalties. Their boundaries served two purposes, Boundaries were chosen to break up Frances historical regions in an attempt to erase cultural differences, Boundaries were set so that every settlement in the country was within a days ride of the capital of the department. This was a security measure, intended to keep the national territory under close control. This measure was directly inspired by the Great Terror, during which the government had lost control of rural areas far from any centre of government. The old nomenclature was carefully avoided in naming the new departments, most were named after an areas principal river or other physical features. Even Paris was in the department of Seine, the number of departments, initially 83, was increased to 130 by 1809 with the territorial gains of the Republic and of the First French Empire. Following Napoleons defeats in 1814-1815, the Congress of Vienna returned France to its pre-war size, in 1860, France acquired the County of Nice and Savoy, which led to the creation of three new departments. Two were added from the new Savoyard territory, while the department of Alpes-Maritimes was created from Nice, the 89 departments were given numbers based on their alphabetical order. The department of Bas-Rhin and parts of Meurthe, Moselle, Vosges and Haut-Rhin were ceded to the German Empire in 1871, following Frances defeat in the Franco-Prussian War
8.
Marne
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Marne is a department in north-eastern France named after the river Marne which flows through the department. The prefecture of Marne is Châlons-en-Champagne, the subprefectures are Épernay, Reims, Sainte-Menehould, and Vitry-le-François. The Champagne vineyards producing the world-famous sparkling wine are located within Marne, Marne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4,1790. It was created from the province of Champagne, Marne has a long association with the French Army. The smaller Camp de Moronvilliers lies to the east of Reims and these are all on the chalk of the Champagne plateau, a feature comparable in geology but not size, with the British military training ground on Salisbury Plain. Marne is part of the region of Grand Est and is surrounded by the departments of Ardennes, Meuse, Haute-Marne, Aube, Seine-et-Marne, and Aisne. Geologically, it divides into two parts, the Upper Cretaceous chalk plain in the east and the more wooded. Rivers draining the department include the Marne, Vesle, Ardre, numerous other rivers, such as the Grande and the Petite Morin rise in the department but flow mainly in others. Conversely, the Aube joins the Seine in the department of Marne, the inhabitants of the department are called Marnais. Reims, with its famous cathedral in which the kings of France were traditionally crowned, is a major attraction, other branches of tourism are provided by the bird reserve on the Lake Der-Chantecoq and the fishing lakes nearby. The Parc Naturel Régional de la Montagne de Reims is an area of country recreation. In the west of the département there are scenic routes to be explored as also are the several wine cellars of Épernay
9.
Daylight saving time
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Daylight saving time is the practice of advancing clocks during summer months by one hour so that evening daylight lasts an hour longer, while sacrificing normal sunrise times. Typically, regions that use Daylight Savings Time adjust clocks forward one hour close to the start of spring, American inventor and politician Benjamin Franklin proposed a form of daylight time in 1784. New Zealander George Hudson proposed the idea of saving in 1895. The German Empire and Austria-Hungary organized the first nationwide implementation, starting on April 30,1916, many countries have used it at various times since then, particularly since the energy crisis of the 1970s. The practice has both advocates and critics, DST clock shifts sometimes complicate timekeeping and can disrupt travel, billing, record keeping, medical devices, heavy equipment, and sleep patterns. Computer software often adjusts clocks automatically, but policy changes by various jurisdictions of DST dates, industrialized societies generally follow a clock-based schedule for daily activities that do not change throughout the course of the year. The time of day that individuals begin and end work or school, North and south of the tropics daylight lasts longer in summer and shorter in winter, with the effect becoming greater as one moves away from the tropics. However, they will have one hour of daylight at the start of each day. Supporters have also argued that DST decreases energy consumption by reducing the need for lighting and heating, DST is also of little use for locations near the equator, because these regions see only a small variation in daylight in the course of the year. After ancient times, equal-length civil hours eventually supplanted unequal, so civil time no longer varies by season, unequal hours are still used in a few traditional settings, such as some monasteries of Mount Athos and all Jewish ceremonies. This 1784 satire proposed taxing window shutters, rationing candles, and waking the public by ringing church bells, despite common misconception, Franklin did not actually propose DST, 18th-century Europe did not even keep precise schedules. However, this changed as rail transport and communication networks came to require a standardization of time unknown in Franklins day. Modern DST was first proposed by the New Zealand entomologist George Hudson, whose shift work job gave him time to collect insects. An avid golfer, he also disliked cutting short his round at dusk and his solution was to advance the clock during the summer months, a proposal he published two years later. The proposal was taken up by the Liberal Member of Parliament Robert Pearce, a select committee was set up to examine the issue, but Pearces bill did not become law, and several other bills failed in the following years. Willett lobbied for the proposal in the UK until his death in 1915, william Sword Frost, mayor of Orillia, Ontario, introduced daylight saving time in the municipality during his tenure from 1911 to 1912. Starting on April 30,1916, the German Empire and its World War I ally Austria-Hungary were the first to use DST as a way to conserve coal during wartime, Britain, most of its allies, and many European neutrals soon followed suit. Russia and a few other countries waited until the year
10.
Central European Summer Time
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It corresponds to UTC + two hours. Other names which have been applied to Central European Summer Time are Middle European Summer Time, Central European Daylight Saving Time, and Bravo Time. Since 1996 European Summer Time has been observed between 1,00 UTC on the last Sunday of March and 1,00 on the last Sunday of October, the following countries and territories use Central European Summer Time. In addition, Libya used CEST during the years 1951–1959, 1982–1989, 1996–1997, European Summer Time Other countries and territories in UTC+2 time zone Other names of UTC+2 time zone
11.
Reims
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Reims, a city in the Grand Est region of France, lies 129 km east-northeast of Paris. The 2013 census recorded 182,592 inhabitants in the city of Reims proper and its river, the Vesle, is a tributary of the Aisne. Founded by the Gauls, it became a city during the period of the Roman Empire. Reims played a prominent ceremonial role in French monarchical history as the site of the crowning of the kings of France. The Cathedral of Reims housed the Holy Ampulla containing the Saint Chrême and it was used for the anointing, the most important part of the coronation of French kings. Reims functions as a subprefecture of the department of Marne, in the region of Grand Est. Although Reims is by far the largest commune in both its region and department, Châlons-en-Champagne is the capital and prefecture of both. Before the Roman conquest of northern Gaul, Reims, founded circa 80 BC as *Durocorteron, at its height in Roman times the city had a population in the range of 30,000 -50,000 or perhaps up to 100,000. Christianity had become established in the city by 260, at which period Saint Sixtus of Reims founded the bishopric of Reims, for centuries the events at the crowning of Clovis I became a symbol used by the monarchy to claim the divine right to rule. Meetings of Pope Stephen II with Pepin the Short, and of Pope Leo III with Charlemagne, took place at Reims, Louis IV gave the city and countship of Reims to the archbishop Artaldus in 940. Louis VII gave the title of duke and peer to William of Champagne, archbishop from 1176 to 1202, by the 10th century Reims had become a centre of intellectual culture. Archbishop Adalberon, seconded by the monk Gerbert, founded schools which taught the liberal arts. Louis XI cruelly suppressed a revolt at Reims, caused in 1461 by the salt tax, during the French Wars of Religion the city sided with the Catholic League, but submitted to Henri IV after the battle of Ivry. In August 1909 Reims hosted the first international meet, the Grande Semaine dAviation de la Champagne. Major aviation personages such as Glenn Curtiss, Louis Blériot and Louis Paulhan participated, hostilities in World War I greatly damaged the city. German bombardment and a subsequent fire in 1914 did severe damage to the cathedral, from the end of World War I to the present day an international effort to restore the cathedral from the ruins has continued. The Palace of Tau, St Jacques Church and the Abbey of St Remi also were protected and restored, the collection of preserved buildings and Roman ruins remains monumentally impressive. During World War II the city suffered additional damage, but in Reims, at 2,41 on the morning of 7 May 1945, General Eisenhower and the Allies received the unconditional surrender of the German Wehrmacht
12.
Roman emperor
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The Roman emperor was the ruler of the Roman Empire during the imperial period. The emperors used a variety of different titles throughout history, often when a given Roman is described as becoming emperor in English, it reflects his taking of the title Augustus or Caesar. Another title often used was imperator, originally a military honorific, early Emperors also used the title princeps. Emperors frequently amassed republican titles, notably Princeps Senatus, Consul, the first emperors reigned alone, later emperors would sometimes rule with co-Emperors and divide administration of the Empire between them. The Romans considered the office of emperor to be distinct from that of a king, the first emperor, Augustus, resolutely refused recognition as a monarch. Although Augustus could claim that his power was authentically republican, his successor, Tiberius, nonetheless, for the first three hundred years of Roman Emperors, from Augustus until Diocletian, a great effort was made to emphasize that the Emperors were the leaders of a Republic. Elements of the Republican institutional framework were preserved until the end of the Western Empire. The Eastern emperors ultimately adopted the title of Basileus, which had meant king in Greek, but became a title reserved solely for the Roman emperor, other kings were then referred to as rēgas. In addition to their office, some emperors were given divine status after death. The Western Roman Empire collapsed in the late 5th century, Romulus Augustulus is often considered to be the last emperor of the west after his forced abdication in 476, although Julius Nepos maintained a claim to the title until his death in 480. Constantine XI was the last Byzantine Roman emperor in Constantinople, dying in the Fall of Constantinople to the Ottomans in 1453, a Byzantine group of claimant Roman Emperors existed in the Empire of Trebizond until its conquest by the Ottomans in 1461. In western Europe the title of Roman Emperor was revived by Germanic rulers, the Holy Roman Emperors, in 800, at the end of the Roman Republic no new, and certainly no single, title indicated the individual who held supreme power. Insofar as emperor could be seen as the English translation of imperator, then Julius Caesar had been an emperor, however, Julius Caesar, unlike those after him, did so without the Senates vote and approval. Julius Caesar held the Republican offices of four times and dictator five times, was appointed dictator in perpetuity in 45 BC and had been pontifex maximus for a long period. He gained these positions by senatorial consent, by the time of his assassination, he was the most powerful man in the Roman world. In his will, Caesar appointed his adopted son Octavian as his heir, a decade after Caesars death, Octavians victory over his erstwhile ally Mark Antony at Actium put an end to any effective opposition and confirmed Octavians supremacy. His restoration of powers to the Senate and the people of Rome was a demonstration of his auctoritas, some later historians such as Tacitus would say that even at Augustus death, the true restoration of the Republic might have been possible. Instead, Augustus actively prepared his adopted son Tiberius to be his successor, the Senate disputed the issue but eventually confirmed Tiberius as princeps
13.
Aurelian
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Aurelian was Roman Emperor from 270 to 275. Born in humble circumstances, he rose through the ranks to become emperor. During his reign, he defeated the Alamanni after a devastating war and he also defeated the Goths, Vandals, Juthungi, Sarmatians, and Carpi. Aurelian restored the Empires eastern provinces after his conquest of the Palmyrene Empire in 273, the following year he conquered the Gallic Empire in the west, reuniting the Empire in its entirety. He was also responsible for the construction of the Aurelian Walls in Rome, and his successes were instrumental in ending the Roman Empires Crisis of the Third Century, earning him the title Restitutor Orbis or Restorer of the World. Although Domitian was the first emperor who had demanded to be hailed as dominus et deus. Aurelian was born on 9 September, most likely in 214 AD, the ancient sources are not agreed on his place of birth, although he was generally accepted as being a native of Illyricum. Sirmium in Pannonia Inferior is the location, which was created by Aurelian as Emperor when he abandoned the old trans-Danubian territory of Dacia. The academic consensus is that he was of humble birth and that his father was a peasant-farmer who took his Roman nomen from his landlord, however, it seems that this pleasant extrapolation of dubious facts is now generally accepted as being no more than just that. It is commonly accepted that Aurelian probably joined the army in 235 AD at around age twenty and it is also generally assumed that, as a member of the lowest rank of society - albeit a citizen - he would have enlisted in the ranks of the legions. This would have opened up for him the tres militia - the three steps of the military career - one of the routes to higher equestrian office in the Imperial Service. This could be a more expeditious route to senior military and procuratorial offices than that pursued by ex-rankers and his suggestion has not been taken up by other academic authorities. Whatever his origins, Aurelian certainly must have built up a solid reputation for military competence during the tumultuous mid-decades of the century. His successes as a cavalry commander ultimately made him a member of emperor Gallienus entourage, in 268, Aurelian and his cavalry participated in general Claudius victory over the Goths at the Battle of Naissus. Later that year Gallienus traveled to Italy and fought Aureolus, his former general, driving Aureolus back into Mediolanum, Gallienus promptly besieged his adversary in the city. However, while the siege was ongoing the Emperor was assassinated, one source says Aurelian, who was present at the siege, participated and supported general Claudius for the purple – which is plausible. Aurelian was married to Ulpia Severina, about whom little is known, like Aurelian she was from Dacia. They are known to have had a daughter together, Claudius was acclaimed Emperor by the soldiers outside Mediolanum
14.
Tetricus I
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Gaius Pius Esuvius Tetricus was Emperor of the Gallic Empire, reigning 271-274, succeeding the murdered Victorinus and ending with his surrender on the battlefield to the Roman emperor Aurelian. Tetricus, who ruled with his son, Tetricus II, was the last of the Gallic emperors, Tetricus was a senator born to a noble family of Gallic extraction. He was appointed to the position of praeses provinciae of Gallia Aquitania in 270. Tetricus accepted the nomination and took the purple at Burdigala in Gaul. Moving from Burdigala, he was on his way to Augusta Treverorum when Tetricus was forced to repel Germanic tribes that took advantage of the following the death of Victorinus to invade Gaul. However, continued invasions across the Rhine and along the coasts forced Tetricus to abandon the frontier forts, nevertheless, his regime was destabilised by attempts of certain areas to declare their allegiance to the Roman emperor Aurelian, such as the city of Argentoratum in 272. It was to shore up his support that Tetricus eventually appointed his son, Tetricus II, as Caesar sometime in 273. It did little to stem his faltering regime as in late 273 or early 274, Faustinus, provincial governor of Gallia Belgica, rebelled against him in Augusta Treverorum. To add to his woes, by the middle of 273, preparing for his advance, Tetricus and his son celebrated their joint consulship on 1 January 274 before marching southward from his capital to meet Aurelian, who was advancing into northern Gaul. The decisive battle took place near Châlons-sur-Marne, in late February 274, by March 274, both Tetricus and his son had surrendered to Aurelian. It was claimed that Tetricus quoted Virgil in his letter to Aurelian, eripe me his, invicte, Tetricus died at an unknown date in Italy, he is listed as one of Romes Thirty Tyrants in the Historia Augusta. The antoninianii of Tetricus were the most frequently imitated prototypes for barbarous radiates, the Roman Empire from Severus to Constantine, Routledge,2001 Potter, David Stone, The Roman Empire at Bay, AD 180-395, Routledge,2004 Jones, A. H. M. The Prosopography of the Later Roman Empire, Vol
15.
Gallic Empire
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The Gallic Empire is the modern name for a breakaway part of the Roman Empire that functioned de facto as a separate state from 260 to 274. It originated during the Crisis of the Third Century and it was established by Postumus in 260 in the wake of barbarian invasions and instability in Rome, and at its height included the territories of Germania, Gaul, Britannia, and Hispania. After Postumus assassination in 268 it lost much of its territory and it was retaken by Roman emperor Aurelian after the Battle of Châlons in 274. This left his son Gallienus in very shaky control, shortly thereafter, the Palmyrene Empire, which came to encompass Egypt, Syria, Judea, and Arabia Petraea also broke away. The governors in Pannonia staged unsuccessful local revolts, the Emperor left for the Danube to attend to their disruption. This left Postumus, who was governor of Germania Superior and Inferior, an exceptional administrator, Postumus had also protected the Germania Inferior against an invasion led by the Franks in the summer of 260 very well. In fact, Postumus defeated the Frankish forces at Empel so decisively and this all would have combined to make Postumus one of the most powerful men in the western reaches of the Roman empire. The imperial heir Saloninus and the praetorian prefect Silvanus remained at Colonia Agrippina, to keep the young out of danger. Before long, however, Postumus besieged Colonia Agrippina and put the young heir and his guardian to death, Postumus is thought to have established his capital at Cologne or Augusta Treverorum, with Lugdunum also becoming an important city in the empire. The Gallic Empire had its own praetorian guard, two elected consuls and probably its own senate. According to the evidence, Postumus himself held the office of consul five times. Postumus successfully fended off an incursion by Gallienus in 263. However, in early 268 he was challenged by Laelianus, probably one of his commanders, Postumus quickly retook Mogontiacum and Laelianus was killed. Postumus himself, however, was overthrown and killed by his own troops, after the death of Postumus, the Gallic Empire began to decline. Subsequently Victorinus came to power, being recognized as Emperor in northern Gaul and Britannia, Victorinus spent most of his reign dealing with insurgencies and attempting to recover the Gaulish territories taken by Claudius Gothicus. He was assassinated in 271, but his mother Victoria took control of his troops, with Victorias support, Tetricus was made Emperor, and was recognized in Britannia and the parts of Gaul still controlled by the Empire. He established the court at Trier, and in 273 he elevated his son, also named Tetricus. The following year the younger Tetricus was made co-consul, but the Empire grew weak from internal strife, by that time Aurelian had defeated the Palmyrene Empire and had made plans to re-conquer the west
16.
Battle of the Catalaunian Plains
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It was one of the last major military operations of the Western Roman Empire, although Germanic foederati composed the majority of the coalition army. Whether the battle was strategically conclusive is disputed, The Romans stopped the Huns attempt to establish vassals in Roman Gaul, however, the Huns successfully looted and pillaged much of Gaul and crippled the military capacity of the Romans and Visigoths. The Hunnic Empire was later dismantled by a coalition of their Germanic vassals at the Battle of Nedao in 454, by 450 AD Roman authority over Gaul had been restored in much of the province, although control over all of the provinces beyond Italy was continuing to diminish. Armorica was only part of the empire, and Germanic tribes occupying Roman territory had been forcibly settled. Northern Gaul between the Rhine north of Xanten and the Leie river had unofficially been abandoned to the Salian Franks, the Visigoths on the River Garonne were growing restive, but still holding to their treaty. The Burgundians in Sapaudia were more submissive, but likewise awaiting an opening for revolt, the Alans on the Loire and in Valentinois were more loyal, having served the Romans since the defeat of Jovinus in 411 and the siege of Bazas in 414. The historian Jordanes states that Attila was enticed by the Vandal king Gaiseric to wage war on the Visigoths, at the same time, Gaiseric would attempt to sow strife between the Visigoths and the Western Roman Empire. However, Jordanes account of Gothic history is biased and unreliable. Other contemporary writers offer different motivations, Honoria, the sister of the emperor Valentinian III, had been betrothed to the former consul Herculanus the year before. In 450, she sent the eunuch Hyacinthus to the Hunnic king asking for Attilas help in escaping her confinement, allegedly Attila interpreted it as offering her hand in marriage, and he had claimed half of the empire as a dowry. He demanded Honoria to be delivered along with the dowry, Valentinian rejected these demands, and Attila used it as an excuse to launch a destructive campaign through Gaul. Hughes suggests otherwise, saying that the reality of this interpretation should be that Honoria was using Attilas status as honorary Magister Militum for political leverage, another possible explanation is that in 449, the King of the Franks, Chlodio, died. Aetius had adopted the son of the Franks to secure the Rhine Frontier. Bona and more recently Kim take this theory a step further, reasoning that it was the cause of the war. Bona argues that Childeric was a vassal of Attila, and he identifies the founders of the Merovingian dynasty as the two claimants to the Frankish throne, Attila crossed the Rhine early in 451 with his followers and a large number of allies, sacking Divodurum on April 7. Lupus, bishop of Troyes, is credited with saving his city by meeting Attila in person. Many other cities also claim to have been attacked in these accounts and this explanation would support the literary evidence claiming North Gaul was attacked, and the archaeological evidence showing major population centers were not sacked. Attilas army had reached Aurelianum before June, according to Jordanes, the Alan king Sangiban, whose Foederati realm included Aurelianum, had promised to open the city gates
17.
Attila
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Attila, frequently referred to as Attila the Hun, was the ruler of the Huns from 434 until his death in March 453. Attila was a leader of the Hunnic Empire, a confederation consisting of Huns, Ostrogoths. During his reign, he was one of the most feared enemies of the Western and Eastern Roman Empires and he crossed the Danube twice and plundered the Balkans, but was unable to take Constantinople. His unsuccessful campaign in Persia was followed in 441 by an invasion of the Eastern Roman Empire and he also attempted to conquer Roman Gaul, crossing the Rhine in 451 and marching as far as Aurelianum before being defeated at the Battle of the Catalaunian Plains. He subsequently invaded Italy, devastating the northern provinces, but was unable to take Rome and he planned for further campaigns against the Romans but died in 453. After Attilas death his close adviser Ardaric of the Gepids led a Germanic revolt against Hunnic rule, there is no surviving first-hand account of Attilas appearance, but there is a possible second-hand source provided by Jordanes, who cites a description given by Priscus. He was a man born into the world to shake the nations, the scourge of all lands and he was haughty in his walk, rolling his eyes hither and thither, so that the power of his proud spirit appeared in the movement of his body. He was indeed a lover of war, yet restrained in action, mighty in counsel, gracious to suppliants, the Gothic etymology can be tracked up to Jacob Grimm and Wilhelm Grimm in the early 19th century. Maenchen-Helfen noted that Hunnic names were not the names of the Hun princes. The names of Attilas brother Bleda, and most powerful minister Onegesius, mikkola connected it with Turkic āt. Gerd Althoff considered it was related to Turkish atli, or Turkish at, the Gothic origin of the name Attila is questionable, Snædal writes. It is at least as likely to be of Hunnic origin, the article points out that the word atta is a migratory term for father/forefather common in multiple languages, including many Turkic languages. He concludes, Of course we do not know how the name sounded in the language of the Huns, sometime, somewhere, somehow a proto-form like *agtala- changed to *attila. We cannot tell if the assimilation of gt to tt, and/or if loss of a final consonant took place in Hunnic or if these changes were part of the process into Latin, Gothic. Truly, our knowledge of the Hunnic language is almost zero, One can only guess a solution to this riddle of Attilas name. The historiography of Attila is faced with a challenge, in that the only complete sources are written in Greek. Attilas contemporaries left many testimonials of his life, but only fragments of these remain and he wrote a history of the late Roman Empire in eight books covering the period from 430 to 476. Today we have fragments of Priscus work, but it was cited extensively by 6th-century historians Procopius and Jordanes,413 especially in Jordanes The Origin
18.
Notre-Dame-en-Vaux
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The Notre-Dame-en-Vaux is a Roman Catholic church located in Châlons-en-Champagne and Verdun. It is a masterpiece in Marne. Started around 1157, ended in 1217, the church was classified a historic monument in 1840. In 1998 it was registered on the World Heritage List by UNESCO under the title of roads to St Jacques de Compostela in France
19.
Louis XVI of France
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Louis XVI, born Louis-Auguste, was the last King of France and Navarre before the French Revolution, during which he was also known as Louis Capet. In 1765, at the death of his father, Louis, Dauphin of France, son and heir apparent of Louis XV of France, Louis XVI was guillotined on 21 January 1793. The first part of his reign was marked by attempts to reform France in accordance with Enlightenment ideas and these included efforts to abolish serfdom, remove the taille, and increase tolerance toward non-Catholics. The French nobility reacted to the reforms with hostility. Louis implemented deregulation of the market, advocated by his liberal minister Turgot. In periods of bad harvests, it would lead to food scarcity which would prompt the masses to revolt, from 1776, Louis XVI actively supported the North American colonists, who were seeking their independence from Great Britain, which was realized in the 1783 Treaty of Paris. The ensuing debt and financial crisis contributed to the unpopularity of the Ancien Régime and this led to the convening of the Estates-General of 1789. In 1789, the storming of the Bastille during riots in Paris marked the beginning of the French Revolution. Louiss indecisiveness and conservatism led some elements of the people of France to view him as a symbol of the tyranny of the Ancien Régime. The credibility of the king was deeply undermined, and the abolition of the monarchy, Louis XVI was the only King of France ever to be executed, and his death brought an end to more than a thousand years of continuous French monarchy. Louis-Auguste de France, who was given the title Duc de Berry at birth, was born in the Palace of Versailles. Out of seven children, he was the son of Louis, the Dauphin of France. His mother was Marie-Josèphe of Saxony, the daughter of Frederick Augustus II of Saxony, Prince-Elector of Saxony and King of Poland. A strong and healthy boy, but very shy, Louis-Auguste excelled in his studies and had a taste for Latin, history, geography, and astronomy. He enjoyed physical activities such as hunting with his grandfather, and rough-playing with his brothers, Louis-Stanislas, comte de Provence. From an early age, Louis-Auguste had been encouraged in another of his hobbies, locksmithing, upon the death of his father, who died of tuberculosis on 20 December 1765, the eleven-year-old Louis-Auguste became the new Dauphin. His mother never recovered from the loss of her husband, and died on 13 March 1767, throughout his education, Louis-Auguste received a mixture of studies particular to religion, morality, and humanities. His instructors may have also had a hand in shaping Louis-Auguste into the indecisive king that he became
20.
Kingdom of France
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The Kingdom of France was a medieval and early modern monarchy in Western Europe. It was one of the most powerful states in Europe and a great power since the Late Middle Ages and it was also an early colonial power, with possessions around the world. France originated as West Francia, the half of the Carolingian Empire. A branch of the Carolingian dynasty continued to rule until 987, the territory remained known as Francia and its ruler as rex Francorum well into the High Middle Ages. The first king calling himself Roi de France was Philip II, France continued to be ruled by the Capetians and their cadet lines—the Valois and Bourbon—until the monarchy was overthrown in 1792 during the French Revolution. France in the Middle Ages was a de-centralised, feudal monarchy, in Brittany and Catalonia the authority of the French king was barely felt. Lorraine and Provence were states of the Holy Roman Empire and not yet a part of France, during the Late Middle Ages, the Kings of England laid claim to the French throne, resulting in a series of conflicts known as the Hundred Years War. Subsequently, France sought to extend its influence into Italy, but was defeated by Spain in the ensuing Italian Wars, religiously France became divided between the Catholic majority and a Protestant minority, the Huguenots, which led to a series of civil wars, the Wars of Religion. France laid claim to large stretches of North America, known collectively as New France, Wars with Great Britain led to the loss of much of this territory by 1763. French intervention in the American Revolutionary War helped secure the independence of the new United States of America, the Kingdom of France adopted a written constitution in 1791, but the Kingdom was abolished a year later and replaced with the First French Republic. The monarchy was restored by the great powers in 1814. During the later years of the elderly Charlemagnes rule, the Vikings made advances along the northern and western perimeters of the Kingdom of the Franks, after Charlemagnes death in 814 his heirs were incapable of maintaining political unity and the empire began to crumble. The Treaty of Verdun of 843 divided the Carolingian Empire into three parts, with Charles the Bald ruling over West Francia, the nucleus of what would develop into the kingdom of France. Viking advances were allowed to increase, and their dreaded longboats were sailing up the Loire and Seine rivers and other waterways, wreaking havoc. During the reign of Charles the Simple, Normans under Rollo from Norway, were settled in an area on either side of the River Seine, downstream from Paris, that was to become Normandy. With its offshoots, the houses of Valois and Bourbon, it was to rule France for more than 800 years. Henry II inherited the Duchy of Normandy and the County of Anjou, and married Frances newly divorced ex-queen, Eleanor of Aquitaine, after the French victory at the Battle of Bouvines in 1214, the English monarchs maintained power only in southwestern Duchy of Guyenne. The death of Charles IV of France in 1328 without male heirs ended the main Capetian line, under Salic law the crown could not pass through a woman, so the throne passed to Philip VI, son of Charles of Valois
21.
TGV
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TGV is Frances intercity high-speed rail service, operated by SNCF, the national rail operator. It was developed in the 1970s by GEC-Alsthom and SNCF, originally designed as turbotrains to be powered by gas turbines, the prototypes evolved into electric trains with the 1973 oil crisis. A TGV test train set the record for the fastest wheeled train, in mid-2011, scheduled TGV trains operated at the highest speeds in conventional train service in the world, regularly reaching 320 km/h on the LGV Est, LGV Rhin-Rhône, and LGV Méditerranée. The commercial success of the first LGV, the LGV Sud-Est, led to an expansion of the network to the south, and new lines in the west, north, and east. Eager to emulate the TGVs success, neighbouring countries Italy, Spain, Several future lines are planned, including extensions within France and to surrounding countries. Cities such as Tours have become part of a TGV commuter belt around Paris, in 2007, SNCF generated profits of €1.1 billion driven largely by higher margins on the TGV network. The idea of the TGV was first proposed in the 1960s, at the time the French government favoured new technology, exploring the production of hovercraft and the Aérotrain air-cushion vehicle. Simultaneously, SNCF began researching high-speed trains on conventional tracks, in 1976, the government agreed to fund the first line. By the mid-1990s, the trains were so popular that SNCF president Louis Gallois declared TGV The train that saved French railways, TGV001 was not a wasted prototype, its gas turbine was only one of its many new technologies for high-speed rail travel. It also tested high-speed brakes, needed to dissipate the large amount of energy of a train at high speed, high-speed aerodynamics. It was articulated, i. e. two adjacent carriages shared a bogie, allowing free yet controlled motion with respect to one another and it reached 318 km/h, which remains the world speed record for a non-electric train. Its interior and exterior were styled by British-born designer Jack Cooper, whose work formed the basis of early TGV designs, changing the TGV to electric traction required a significant design overhaul. The first electric prototype, nicknamed Zébulon, was completed in 1974, testing such as innovative body mounting of motors, pantographs, suspension. Body mounting of motors allowed over 3 tonnes to be eliminated from the power cars, the prototype travelled almost 1,000,000 km during testing. In 1976 the French government funded the TGV project, and construction of the LGV Sud-Est, the line was given the designation LN1, Ligne Nouvelle 1. After two pre-production trainsets had been tested and substantially modified, the first production version was delivered on 25 April 1980, the LGV opened to the public between Paris and Lyon on 27 September 1981. Contrary to its earlier fast services, SNCF intended TGV service for all types of passengers and this commitment to a democratised TGV service was enhanced in the Mitterrand era with the promotional slogan Progress means nothing unless it is shared by all. The TGV was considerably faster than normal trains, cars, or aeroplanes, the trains became widely popular, the public welcoming fast and practical travel
22.
Gare de l'Est
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Paris Est is one of the six large SNCF termini in Paris. It is in the 10th arrondissement, not far from the Gare du Nord, facing the Boulevard de Strasbourg and it is one of the largest and the oldest railway stations in Paris, the western terminus of the Paris–Strasbourg railway and the Paris–Mulhouse railway. The Gare de lEst was opened in 1849 by the Compagnie du Chemin de Fer de Paris à Strasbourg under the name Strasbourg platform and this platform corresponds today with the hall for main-line trains, and was designed by the architect François Duquesnay. It was renamed the Gare de lEst in 1854, after the expansion of service to Mulhouse, renovations to the station followed in 1885 and 1900. In 1931 it was doubled in size, with the new part of the station built symmetrically with the old part and this transformation changed the surrounding neighborhood significantly. These two cities are important destinations serviced by Gare de lEst, on 4 October 1883, the Gare de lEst saw the first departure of the Orient Express for Istanbul. In the main-line train hall, a painting by Albert Herter, dating from 1926. SNCF started LGV Est Européenne services from the Gare de lEst on 10 June 2007, with TGV and ICE services to north-eastern France, Luxembourg, southern Germany and Switzerland. Trains are initially planned to run at 320 km/h, with the potential to run at 350 km/h, Line 7 Travelling between Gare de lEst and other Paris main line stations, Gare du Nord, Walk to the station, or take Métro Line 4 or 5. Gare Montparnasse, Take Métro Line 4, Gare de Lyon, Take Métro Line 4 to Châtelet and then Line 1,14 or RER A to Gare de Lyon, or take bus 65. Gare dAusterlitz, Take Métro Line 5, Gare Saint-Lazare, Take Métro Line 7 to Opéra and then Line 3 to Saint-Lazare, or take RER E from Magenta. Travelling to points of interest Disneyland Paris, Take Métro Line 4 to Gare de Châtelet – Les Halles then take the RER Line A to Marne-la-Vallée – Chessy, List of stations of the Paris RER List of stations of the Paris Métro TER Champagne-Ardenne Transilien Network Map Transilien
23.
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
24.
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
25.
Charles de Gaulle Airport
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Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport, also known as Roissy Airport, is the largest international airport in France. It is named after Charles de Gaulle, leader of the Free French Forces during the Second World War, founder of the French Fifth Republic, Charles de Gaulle Airport is located within portions of several communes 25 km to the northeast of Paris. The airport serves as the hub for Air France as well as a European hub for fellow SkyTeam alliance partner Delta Air Lines. In 2016, the airport handled 65,933,145 passengers and 472,950 aircraft movements, thus making it the worlds ninth-busiest airport and it is also the worlds tenth-busiest and it is Europes second-busiest airport in aircraft movements. In terms of traffic, the airport is the twelfth-busiest in the world. The incumbent director of the airport, Franck Goldnadel, was appointed to his position on 1 March 2011, Paris Charles de Gaulle Airport covers 32.38 square kilometres of land. Management of the airport lies solely on the authority of Paris Aéroport, which also manages Orly, Le Bourget, Marsa Alam in Egypt, the planning and construction phase of what was known then as Aéroport de Paris Nord began in 1966. On 8 March 1974 the airport, renamed Charles de Gaulle Airport, Terminal 1 was built in an avant-garde design of a ten-floors-high circular building surrounded by seven satellite buildings, each with six gates allowing sunlight to enter through apertures. The main architect was Paul Andreu, who was also in charge of the extensions during the following decades, the Frutiger typeface was commissioned for use in the airport and implemented on signs throughout the building in 1975. Initially called Roissy, it was renamed after its designer Adrian Frutiger, until 2005, every PA announcement made at Terminal 1 was preceded by a distinctive chime, nicknamed Indicatif Roissy and composed by Bernard Parmegiani in 1971. The chime can be heard in the Roman Polanski film Frantic, the chime was officially replaced by the Indicatif ADP chime. Charles de Gaulle Airport has three terminals, Terminal 1 is the oldest and situated opposite to Terminal 3, Terminal 2 is located at another side with 7 sub-terminal buildings. Terminal 2 was originally exclusively for Air France, since then it has been expanded significantly. Terminals 2A to 2F are interconnected by elevated walkways and situated next to each other, Terminal 2G is a satellite building connected by shuttle bus. Terminal 3 hosts charter and low-cost airlines, the CDGVAL light-rail shuttle connects Terminal 2 to Terminals 1/3 and their parking lots. Refer to Ground Transportation below for inter-terminal transfers and transport to central Paris, the first terminal, designed by Paul Andreu, was built in the image of an octopus. It consists of a terminal building which houses key functions such as check-in counters. Seven satellites with boarding gates are connected to the building by underground walkways
26.
A4 autoroute
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The A4 Autoroute, also known as autoroute de lEst is a French autoroute that travels 482 km between the cities of Paris and Strasbourg. It forms parts of European routes E25 and E50 and its construction began in the 1970s near Paris. The first section between Pariss Porte de Bercy and Joinville-le-Pont opened in 1974 with a single carriageway, a second carriageway was added in 1975, and the following sections between Joinville and Metz were opened in 1975 and 1976. Former autoroutes A32 and A34 were integrated into the A4 in 1982, from Paris, the autoroute passes the new town of Marne-la-Vallée and Disneyland Paris. It continues on to the cities of Frances northeast, including Rheims. Local roads provide a connection to southern Germany and its westernmost part between the Périphérique and the A86 ring road in Paris is reputed to be one of the busiest sections of road in Europe, with 257,000 vehicles a day recorded in 2002. A4 autoroute in Saratlas Fiche autoroutière de lA4
27.
Strasbourg
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Strasbourg is the capital and largest city of the Grand Est region of France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany in the region of Alsace. In 2014, the city proper had 276,170 inhabitants, Strasbourgs metropolitan area had a population of 773,347 in 2013, making it the ninth largest metro area in France and home to 13% of the Grand Est regions inhabitants. The transnational Eurodistrict Strasbourg-Ortenau had a population of 915,000 inhabitants in 2014, Strasbourg is the seat of several European institutions, such as the Council of Europe and the Eurocorps, as well as the European Parliament and the European Ombudsman of the European Union. The city is also the seat of the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine, Strasbourgs historic city centre, the Grande Île, was classified a World Heritage site by UNESCO in 1988, the first time such an honour was placed on an entire city centre. The largest Islamic place of worship in France, the Strasbourg Grand Mosque, was inaugurated by French Interior Minister Manuel Valls on 27 September 2012. Economically, Strasbourg is an important centre of manufacturing and engineering, as well as a hub of road, rail, the port of Strasbourg is the second largest on the Rhine after Duisburg, Germany. Before the 5th century, the city was known as Argantorati, a Celtic Gaulish name Latinized first as Argentorate, after the 5h century, the city became known by a completely different name Gallicized as Strasbourg. That name is of Germanic origin and means Town of roads, Strasbourg is situated on the eastern border of France with Germany. This border is formed by the River Rhine, which forms the eastern border of the modern city. The historic core of Strasbourg however lies on the Grande Île in the River Ill, which flows parallel to, and roughly 4 kilometres from. The natural courses of the two eventually join some distance downstream of Strasbourg, although several artificial waterways now connect them within the city. This section of the Rhine valley is an axis of north-south travel, with river traffic on the Rhine itself. The city is some 400 kilometres east of Paris, in spite of its position far inland, Strasbourgs climate is classified as Oceanic, with warm, relatively sunny summers and cold, overcast winters. Precipitation is elevated from mid-spring to the end of summer, but remains largely constant throughout the year, on average, snow falls 30 days per year. The highest temperature recorded was 38.5 °C in August 2003. The lowest temperature recorded was −23.4 °C in December 1938. Nonetheless, the disappearance of heavy industry on both banks of the Rhine, as well as effective measures of traffic regulation in and around the city have reduced air pollution
28.
Metz
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Metz is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Great East region, located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, the city forms a central place of the European Greater Region and the SaarLorLux euroregion. The city has been steeped in Romance culture, but has strongly influenced by Germanic culture due to its location. Because of its historical, cultural, and architectural background, Metz has been submitted on Frances UNESCO World Heritage Tentative List, Metz is home to some world-class venues including the Arsenal Concert Hall and the Centre Pompidou-Metz museum. A basin of urban ecology, Metz gained its nickname of The Green City, as it has extensive open grounds, the historic city centre is one of the largest commercial pedestrian areas in France. A historic garrison town, Metz is the heart of the Lorraine region, specialising in information technology. In ancient times, the town was known as city of Mediomatrici, after its integration into the Roman Empire, the city was called Divodurum Mediomatricum, meaning Holy Village or Holy Fortress of the Mediomatrici, then it was known as Mediomatrix. During the 5th century AD, the name evolved to Mettis, Metz has a recorded history dating back over 3,000 years. Before the conquest of Gaul by Julius Caesar in 52 BC, between the 6th and 8th centuries, the city was the residence of the Merovingian kings of Austrasia. After the Treaty of Verdun in 843, Metz became the capital of the Kingdom of Lotharingia and was integrated into the Holy Roman Empire. During the 12th century, Metz rose to the status of Republic, with the signature of the Treaty of Chambord in 1552, Metz passed to the hands of the Kings of France. Under French rule, Metz was selected as capital of the Three Bishoprics, with creation of the departments by the Estates-General of 1789, Metz was chosen as capital of the Department of Moselle. Metz remained German until the end of World War I, when it reverted to France, however, after the Battle of France during the Second World War, the city was annexed once more by the German Third Reich. In 1944, the attack on the city by the U. S, Third Army freed the city from German rule and Metz reverted one more time to France after World War II. During the 1950s, Metz was chosen to be the capital of the newly created Lorraine region, with the creation of the European Community and the later European Union, the city has become central to the Greater Region and the SaarLorLux Euroregion. Metz is located on the banks of the Moselle and the Seille rivers,43 km from the Schengen tripoint where the borders of France, Germany, and Luxembourg meet. The city was built in a place where branches of the Moselle river creates several islands. The terrain of Metz forms part of the Paris Basin and presents a plateau relief cut by river valleys presenting cuestas in the north-south direction
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A26 autoroute
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The A26 is a 357.6 km long French motorway connecting Calais and Troyes. Before the opening of the A16 in the 1990s the A26 formed part of the route between London and Paris. The road forms part of European route E-15 and E-17, the motorway starts at Calais, at a junction with the A16 and N216. From there it runs southeast past Saint-Omer, Béthune, Lens, near Arras is a major intersection with the A1, which runs south to Paris. The A26 continues southeast, passing near Cambrai, Saint-Quentin and Laon before meeting the A4 at Reims, the two motorways merge for 36 km before splitting up near Châlons en Champagne, with the A26 heading south. The terminus is at Troyes, where the A26 meets the A5, A26 is completely covered by Sanef 107.7, but slightly different, before Reims, it is on northern zone, after Reims, it is on eastern zone. 1 Junction with A16 (Paris to Dunkerque, A216 spur to RN216 and the Calais Ferry Port, and it would, if completed, replace N77 and N151 as part of the second version of the Grand contournement de Paris
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Lyon
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Lyon or Lyons is a city in east-central France, in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region, about 470 km from Paris and 320 km from Marseille. Inhabitants of the city are called Lyonnais, Lyon had a population of 506,615 in 2014 and is Frances third-largest city after Paris and Marseille. Lyon is the capital of the Metropolis of Lyon and the region of Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes, the metropolitan area of Lyon had a population of 2,237,676 in 2013, the second-largest in France after Paris. The city is known for its cuisine and gastronomy and historical and architectural landmarks and is a UNESCO World Heritage Site, Lyon was historically an important area for the production and weaving of silk. It played a significant role in the history of cinema, Auguste, the city is also known for its famous light festival, Fête des Lumières, which occurs every 8 December and lasts for four days, earning Lyon the title of Capital of Lights. Economically, Lyon is a centre for banking, as well as for the chemical, pharmaceutical. The city contains a significant software industry with a focus on video games. Lyon hosts the headquarters of Interpol, Euronews, and International Agency for Research on Cancer. Lyon was ranked 19th globally and second in France for innovation in 2014 and it ranked second in France and 39th globally in Mercers 2015 liveability rankings. These refugees had been expelled from Vienne by the Allobroges and were now encamped at the confluence of the Saône and Rhône rivers, dio Cassius says this task was to keep the two men from joining Mark Antony and bringing their armies into the developing conflict. The Roman foundation was at Fourvière hill and was officially called Colonia Copia Felix Munatia, a name invoking prosperity, the city became increasingly referred to as Lugdunum. The earliest translation of this Gaulish place-name as Desired Mountain is offered by the 9th-century Endlicher Glossary, in contrast, some modern scholars have proposed a Gaulish hill-fort named Lugdunon, after the Celtic god Lugus, and dúnon. It then became the capital of Gaul, partly due to its convenient location at the convergence of two rivers, and quickly became the main city of Gaul. Two emperors were born in city, Claudius, whose speech is preserved in the Lyon Tablet in which he justifies the nomination of Gallic senators. Today, the archbishop of Lyon is still referred to as Primat des Gaules, the Christians in Lyon were martyred for their beliefs under the reigns of various Roman emperors, most notably Marcus Aurelius and Septimus Severus. Local saints from this period include Blandina, Pothinus, and Epipodius, in the second century AD, the great Christian bishop of Lyon was the Easterner, Irenaeus. Burgundian refugees fleeing the destruction of Worms by the Huns in 437 were re-settled by the commander of the west, Aëtius. This became the capital of the new Burgundian kingdom in 461, in 843, by the Treaty of Verdun, Lyon, with the country beyond the Saône, went to Lothair I
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Troyes
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Troyes is a commune and the capital of the department of Aube in north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about 150 km southeast of Paris and this area is known as the Champagne region of Northern France. Many half-timbered houses survive in the old town, Troyes has been in existence since the Roman era, as Augustobona Tricassium, which stood at the hub of numerous highways, primarily the Via Agrippa. It was the civitas of the Tricasses, who had separated by Augustus from the Senones. Of the Gallo-Roman city of the early Empire, some scattered remains have been found, by the Late Empire the settlement was reduced in extent, and referred to as Tricassium or Tricassae, the origin of French Troyes. In the early cathedral on the present site, Louis the Stammerer in 878 received at Troyes the imperial crown from the hands of Pope John VIII, the Abbey of Saint-Loup developed a renowned library and scriptorium. During the Middle Ages, it was an important trading town, the Champagne cloth fairs and the revival of long-distance trade and new extension of coinage and credit were the real engines that drove the medieval economy of Troyes. In 1285, when Philip the Fair united Champagne to the royal domain, the high-water mark of Plantagenet hegemony in France was reversed when the Dauphin, afterwards Charles VII, and Joan of Arc recovered the town of Troyes in 1429. In medieval times Troyes was an important international centre, centring on the Troyes Fair. The name troy weight for gold derives from the standard of measurement evolving here, the great fire of 1524 destroyed much of the medieval city, in spite of the citys numerous canals. Many half-timbered houses survive in the old town Hôtels Particuliers of the old town The Hôtel de Ville and they include, Saint-Pierre-et-Saint-Paul Cathedral Saint-Nizier Church, in Gothic and Renaissance style, with remarkable sculptures. The Gothic Saint-Urbain Basilica, with a covered by polished tiles. Proclaimed basilica in 1964, it was built by Jacques Pantaléon, elected pope in 1261, under the name of Urbain IV, very early Gothic, with east end rebuilt around 1500. Remarkably elaborate stone screen of 1508-17 in Flamboyant Gothic style, sculpted by Jean Gailde. The Saint-Jean Church, with a Renaissance chancel, tabernacle of the altar by Giraudon. On the portal, coat of arms of Charles IX, the Gothic Saint-Nicolas Church, dating to the beginning of the sixteenth century, with a calvary chapel shaped rostrum is reached by a monumental staircase. On the south portal, two sculptures by François Gentil, David and Isaiah, saint-Pantaléon Church, with numerous statuary from the sixteenth century. It includes a spire, from a height of 60 m, its external clock with only one hand
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"Châlons-sur-Marne". Encyclopædia Britannica (11th ed.). 1911.
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