Toulon

Thursday, 31 January 2013

Heineken Cup 2012-2013: Toulon - Cardiff

Heineken Cup 2012-2013: Toulon - Montpellier

[H-Cup 2012-2013] 4ème journée: Toulon VS Sale

Tries in Europe 2011 2012 quarter final Toulon - Harlequins

Résumé Toulon - Bordeaux Bègles (42-12) Top 14 Rugby

Heineken Cup 2012-2013: Cardiff Blues - Toulon

[Top 14 2012-2013] 16ème journée : Toulon VS Mont de Marsan

Top14 Toulon vs Mont de Marsan Pilou Pilou Garcia Youn

[Top 14 2012-2013] 12ème journée : Toulon VS Grenoble

Rugby in Europe 2012 2013 round 04 Toulon Sale

Résumé Biarritz - Toulon (9-36) Top 14 Rugby

Open Collage in a new Window

Email the Collage

Loading suggestions ...

Agen
Coordinates: 44°12′18″N 0°37′16″E / 44.2049°N 0.6212°E / 44.2049; 0.6212
Agen (French pronunciation: [aʒɛ̃]) is a commune in the Lot-et-Garonne department in Aquitaine in south-western France. It lies on the river Garonne 135 kilometres (84 mi) southeast of Bordeaux. It is the capital of the department.
The town has a higher level of unemployment than the national average. Major employers include UPSA, the pharmaceutical factory.
The old centre of town contains a number of medieval buildings.
The twelfth century Agen Cathedral, dedicated to Saint Caprasius, is one of the few large churches in France with a double nave; the curious and impractical plan may be a regional trait, since one of the others is the Church of the Jacobins in relatively nearby Toulouse.
The Saint Hilaire church, dedicated to the theme of the Holy Trinity which the Saint in question did a lot to defend, is notable for its unusual statues in front of the Church – Moses on the right, and St Peter on the left.
The Fine Arts museum, Musée des Beaux Arts contains artefacts furniture and sculptures from prehistoric times onwards. The art gallery contains several hundred works including several by Goya, and others by Bonnard, Seurat. The collection also contains a large number of works by artists who lived locally. The museum is made up of twenty or so rooms.

wn.com/Agen
Aiguines
Coordinates: 43°46′33″N 6°14′35″E / 43.7757°N 6.2431°E / 43.7757; 6.2431
Aiguines is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Aiguines
Ain
Ain (French pronunciation: [ɛ̃]; Arpitan: En) is a department named after the Ain River on the eastern edge of France. Being part of the region Rhône-Alpes and bordered by the rivers Saône and Rhône, the department of Ain enjoys a privileged geographic situation. It has an excellent transport network (TGV, highways) and benefits from the proximity to the international airports of Lyon and Geneva.
Ain is composed of four geographically different areas (Bresse, Dombes, Bugey and Pays de Gex) which – each with its own characteristics – contribute to the diversity and the dynamic economic development of the department. In the Bresse agriculture and agro-industry are dominated by the cultivation of cereals, cattle breeding, milk and cheese production as well as poultry farming. In the Dombes, pisciculture assumes greater importance as does viticulture in the Bugey. The high diversification of the department's industry is accompanied by a strong presence of the plastics sector in and around Oyonnax (so-called "Plastics Valley").

wn.com/Ain
Aisne
Aisne (French pronunciation: [ɛːn]) is a department in the northern part of France, named after a river.
Aisne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Île-de-France, Picardie, and Champagne.
Most of the old growth forests in the area were destroyed during battles in World War I. The French offensive against the Chemin des Dames in spring 1917 is sometimes referred to as the Second Battle of the Aisne.
Aisne borders the Ardennes Forest and Belgium to the northeast. The Aisne River crosses the area from east to west, where it joins the Oise River. The Marne forms part of the southern boundary of the department with the department of Seine-et-Marne. The southern part of the department is the geographical region known as la Brie poilleuse, a drier plateau known for its dairy products and Brie cheese.
The landscape is dominated by masses of rock which often have steep flanks. These rocks appear all over the region, but the most impressive examples are at Laon and the Chemin des Dames ridge.

wn.com/Aisne
Ajaccio
Coordinates: 41°55′36″N 8°44′13″E / 41.9267°N 8.7369°E / 41.9267; 8.7369
Ajaccio (Latin: Adiacium; French: Ajaccio, [aʒaksjo]; Corsican: Aiacciu [aˈjattʃu]; Italian: Ajaccio, [aˈjattʃo]), is a commune on the island of Corsica in France. It is the capital and largest city of the region of Corsica and the prefecture of the department of Corse-du-Sud.
The geopolitical arrangements of the commune are slightly different from those typical of Corsica and France. Usually an arrondissement includes cantons and a canton includes one to several communes including the chef-lieu, "chief place", from which the canton takes its name. The city of Ajaccio is one commune, but it contains six cantons, Cantons 1–6, and a fraction of Canton 7. The latter contains five other communes: Bastelicaccia, Alata, Afa, Appietto and Villanova, making a total of six communes for the seven cantons of Ajaccio.
Each canton contains a certain number of quartiers, "quarters". Cantons 1, 2, 3, 6, 7 are located along the Gulf of Ajaccio from west to east, while 4 and 5 are a little further up the valleys of the Gravona and the Prunelli Rivers. These political divisions subdivide the population of Ajaccio into units that can be more democratically served but they do not give a true picture of the size of Ajaccio. In general language, "greater Ajaccio" includes about 100,000 people with all the medical, educational, utility and transportational facilities of a big city. Up until World War II it was still possible to regard the city as being a settlement of narrow streets localized to some part of the harbor or the Gulf of Ajaccio; such bucolic descriptions do not fit the city of today, and travellogues intended for mountain or coastal recreational areas do not generally apply to Corsica's few big cities.

wn.com/Ajaccio
Albi
Coordinates: 43°55′44″N 2°08′47″E / 43.9289°N 2.1464°E / 43.9289; 2.1464
Albi (French pronunciation: [albi]; Occitan: Albi [ˈalβi]) is a commune in southern France. It is the prefecture of the Tarn department. It is located on the River Tarn, c. 85 km northeast of Toulouse. Its inhabitants are called Albigensians (French: Albigeois, Albigeoise(s), Occitan: albigés -esa(s)). It was the seat of the Archbishop of Albi and is the seat of the Diocese of Albi. The episcopal city, situated in the center of the actual city, around the cathedral, was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 2010.
Albi is the seat of 6 cantons, covering 18 communes, with a total population of 67,729.
The first human settlement in Albi was in the Bronze Age (3000-600 BC). After the Roman conquest of Gaul in 51 BC, the town became Civitas Albigensium, the territory of the Albigeois, Albiga. Archaeological digs have not revealed any traces of Roman buildings, which seems to indicate that Albi was a modest Roman settlement.

wn.com/Albi
Alençon
Coordinates: 48°25′50″N 0°05′35″E / 48.4306°N 0.0931°E / 48.4306; 0.0931
Alençon (French pronunciation: [a.lɑ̃.sɔ̃]) is a commune in Normandy, France, capital of the Orne department. It is situated 105 miles (169 km) west of Paris. Alençon belongs to the intercommunality of Alençon (with 52,000 people).
It was probably during the fourth century, while the area was being Christianised, that the city of Alençon was founded. The name is first seen in a document dated in the seventh century. During the tenth century, Alençon was a buffer state between Normandy and the Maine regions. In 1047, William Duke of Normandy, later known as William the Conqueror and king of England, laid siege to the town. The citizens insulted William by hanging animal skins from the walls, in reference to his ancestry as the illegitimate son of Duke Robert and a tanner's daughter. On capturing the town, William had a number of the citizens' hands cut off in revenge. Alençon was occupied by the English during the Anglo-Norman wars of 1113 to 1203.

wn.com/Alençon
Algeria
Coordinates: 28°N 2°E / 28°N 2°E / 28; 2
Algeria ⁱ/ælˈdʒɪəriə/ (Arabic: الجزائر‎, al-Jazā'ir; Berber: ⴷⵣⴰⵢⴻⵔ Dzayer), officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria (الجمهورية الجزائرية الديمقراطية الشعبية, al-Jumhūriyyah al-Jazāʾiriyyah ad-Dīmuqrāṭiyyah ash-Shaʿbiyyah), also formally referred to as the Democratic and Popular Republic of Algeria, is a large country in the Maghreb region of Northwest Africa with Algiers as its capital.
When referring to its land area, Algeria is the largest country in Africa, Maghreb and the Arab World. It is also the largest of the countries bordering the Mediterranean Sea; it is also the tenth-largest country in the world. The country is bordered in the northeast by Tunisia, in the east by Libya, in the west by Morocco, in the southwest by Western Sahara, Mauritania, and Mali, in the southeast by Niger, and in the north by the Mediterranean Sea. Its size is almost 2,400,000 square kilometres (926,645 sq mi) with an estimated population of 37.1 million as of 2012. Algeria is a member of the African Union, the Arab League, OPEC and the United Nations. The country is also a founding member of the Arab Maghreb Union.

wn.com/Algeria
Allier
Allier (French pronunciation: [a.lje]; Occitan: Alèir) is a department in central France named after the river Allier.
Allier is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Auvergne and Bourbonnais.
In 1940, the government of Marshal Philippe Pétain chose the town of Vichy as its capital. Vichy also became the department's second sub-prefecture in 1940, since the department now found itself split by the demarcation line between the occupied and (relatively, at least initially) free zones of France.
The department belongs to the region Auvergne and is surrounded by the following French departments: Cher, Nièvre, Saône-et-Loire, Loire, Puy-de-Dôme, and Creuse.
The following rivers run through Allier:
Allier is the most productive agricultural area of the Auvergne. Vichy has long been known for its water, which is exported worldwide.
Montluçon, Vichy, and Moulins are the principal cities. The rest of the department consists of smaller towns, mostly along the rivers. In general, the department is sparsely populated. The population increased until the end of the 19th century because of the growth of industry in Montluçon and Moulins and development of the thermal resources at Vichy. At that time the department had over 420,000 inhabitants. After the losses of World War I, the population stagnated, with a small increase in the 1960s. Since then, it has decreased slightly from 386,533 in 1968 to 344,721 in 1999.

wn.com/Allier
Amiens
Coordinates: 49°53′31″N 2°17′56″E / 49.892°N 2.299°E / 49.892; 2.299
Amiens (French pronunciation: [amjɛ̃]) is a city and commune in northern France, 120 km (75 mi) north of Paris and 100 km (62 mi) south-west of Lille. It is the capital of the Somme department in Picardy. The city had a population of 136,105 according to the 2006 census.
Originally called Samarobriva ("Somme bridge") by the Gauls, the town was later given the name Ambianum by the Romans as it was a settlement of the Gallic Ambiani people. The Ambiani derive their name from the Gaulish word ambe meaning 'river' – a reference to the Somme that flows through Amiens.

The Paleolithic culture named Acheulean was named for its first identified site, in Saint-Acheul, a neighbourhood of Amiens.
Amiens, the Roman Samarobriva, was the central settlement of the Ambiani, one of the principal tribes of Gaul, who were issuing coinage, probably from Amiens, in the 1st century BC. By tradition, it was at the gates of Amiens that Saint Martin of Tours, at the time still a Roman soldier, shared his cloak with a naked beggar. The prosperity of the city made it a target for barbarian tribes such as the Alans, the Burgundians or the Vandals. They conquered the city several times.

wn.com/Amiens
Ampus
Coordinates: 43°36′22″N 6°22′53″E / 43.6062°N 6.3814°E / 43.6062; 6.3814
Ampus is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
The hilltop village of Ampus is situated 14 km northwest of Draguignan.

wn.com/Ampus
Angers
Coordinates: 47°28′25″N 0°33′15″W / 47.4736°N 0.5542°W / 47.4736; -0.5542
Angers (French pronunciation: [ɑ̃.ʒe]) is the main city in the Maine-et-Loire department in western France about 300 km (190 mi) south-west of Paris. Angers is located in the French region known by its pre-revolutionary, provincial name, Anjou, and its inhabitants are called Angevins.
Angers proper has a population of 157,000 inhabitants, while c. 283,000 live in its metropolitan area. The city traces its roots to early Roman times. It occupies both banks of the Maine, which is spanned by six bridges. The district along the river has flourishing nurseries and market gardens. It is known for its fresh produce and cut flowers.
The first sign of human presence on the site of Angers is a stone tool dated back to 400,000 BCE (Lower Paleolithic).^{[citation needed]}
The earliest known inhabitants were the Andecavi, a Gallic tribe that was overrun by the Romans. The city, while under Roman rule, was called Juliomagus.
The Council of Angers was held here in 453.

wn.com/Angers
Angoulême
Coordinates: 45°38′56″N 0°09′39″E / 45.6489°N 0.1608°E / 45.6489; 0.1608
Angoulême [ɑ̃ɡulɛm] ( listen) is a commune in southwestern France. It is the capital of the Charente department, in Poitou-Charentes. Based on a plateau overlooking a meander of the Charente River, the city is nicknamed the "balcony of the southwest". The city proper's population is a little less than 50,000 but is the center of an urban area of 110,000 people, stretched over fifteen kilometers from north to south.
When it was the old capital of the Angoumois in the Ancien Régime, Angoulême was a fortified town which was highly coveted due to its position at the center of many roads important to communication, and therefore suffered many sieges. From its tumultuous past, the city, perched on a rocky spur, inherited a large historical, religious and urban patrimony, which attracts a lot of tourists.
Nowadays, Angoulême is the center of an agglomeration which is one of the most industrialised between Loire and Garonne (paper industry in 15th century, foundry and electromechanical engineering until a recent period). It is also a commercial and administrative city, with its own university and a very animated cultural life.

wn.com/Angoulême
Annecy
Coordinates: 45°54′58″N 6°07′59″E / 45.916°N 6.133°E / 45.916; 6.133
Annecy (French pronunciation: [an.si]; Èneci / Ènneci in Arpitan language) is a commune in the Haute-Savoie department in the Rhône-Alpes region in south-eastern France.
It lies on the northern tip of Lake Annecy (Lac d'Annecy), 35 kilometres south of Geneva.
Annecy is the capital of the department of Haute-Savoie.
The metropolitan area of Annecy includes 13 municipalities.
Annecy is the capital of three cantons:
Starting as the capital of the county of Geneva, after the demise of the counts of Geneva, it became integrated into the House of Savoy's possessions in 1401. In 1444, it was set up by the Princes of Savoy as the capital of a region covering the possessions of the Genevois, Faucigny and Beaufortain. With the advance of Calvinism in 1535, it became a center for the Counter-Reformation and the bishop's see of Geneva was transferred here.
During the French Revolution the Savoy region was conquered by France. Annecy became attached to the département of Mont Blanc, of which the capital was Chambéry. After the Bourbon Restoration in 1815, it was returned to the Kingdom of Sardinia (heir of the Duchy of Savoy). When Savoy was sold to France in 1860, it became the capital of the new département of Haute-Savoie.

wn.com/Annecy
Ardèche
Ardèche (French pronunciation: [aʁ.dɛʃ]; Occitan and Arpitan: Ardecha) is a department in south-central France named after the Ardèche River.
The area has been inhabited by humans at least since the Upper Paleolithic, as attested by the famous cave paintings at Chauvet Pont d'Arc. The plateau of the Ardeche River has extensive standing stones (dolmens and menhirs), erected thousands of years ago.^{[citation needed]} The river is the largest natural canyon in Europe and the caves that dot the cliffs (which go as high as 300 m (1,000 feet) are known for signs of prehistoric inhabitants (arrowheads and flint knives are often found).
The Vivarais, as the Ardèche is still called, takes its name and coat-of-arms from Viviers, which was the capital of the Gaulish tribe of Helvii, part of Gallia Narbonensis, after the destruction of their previous capital at Alba-la-Romaine. Saint Andéol, a disciple of St Polycarp, is supposed to have evangelized the Vivarais during the reign of Emperor Septimius Severus, and was supposedly martyred in 208. (Legend tells of Andéol's burial by Amycia Eucheria Tullia.) Auxonius, in 430, transferred the see to Viviers as a result of the problems suffered at its previous site in Alba Augusta.

wn.com/Ardèche
Ariège
Ariège (French pronunciation: [aʁjɛʒ]; Occitan: Arièja) is a department in southwestern France named after the Ariège River.
Ariège is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from the counties of Foix and Couserans.
Foix is the administrative capital of the Ariège. It is an ancient medieval town with a fortress Chateau de Foix perched on a hill overlooking it. The fortress has been attacked many times without capture, including an attempt by Simon de Montfort. It has also been used as a prison, and the names of English Prisoners of War can still be seen on the cell walls. Another famous chateau in the Ariège is Montségur, located on a rocky outcrop at a height of 1200 metres (3,900 ft). During the Albigensian Crusade and siege of 1244 AD the chateau was largely destroyed, with more than two hundred Cathar priests burnt at the stake as heretics. The chateau was gradually rebuilt by Royalists over a period of the next three hundred years.

wn.com/Ariège
Arras
Coordinates: 50°17′23″N 2°46′51″E / 50.2897°N 2.7808°E / 50.2897; 2.7808
Arras (French pronunciation: [aʁɑːs]; Dutch: Atrecht) is the capital of the Pas-de-Calais department in northern France on the Scarpe river. The historic centre of the Artois region, its local speech is characterized as a Picard dialect. Unlike many French words, the final "s" in the name should be pronounced.
Arras was founded on the hill of Baudimont by the Belgic tribe of the Atrebates, who named it Nemetacum or Nemetocenna in reference to a nemeton (sacred grove) that probably existed there. It was later renamed Atrebatum by the Romans, under whom it became an important garrison town.
The town's people were converted to Christianity in the late 4th century by Saint Inoccent, who was killed in 410 during a barbarian attack on the town. Around 130 years later, St. Vedast (also known as St. Vaast) established an episcopal see in the town and a monastic community, which developed during the Carolingian period into the immensely wealthy Benedictine Abbey of St. Vaast. The modern town of Arras initially grew up around the abbey as a grain market. Both town and abbey suffered during the 9th century from the attacks of the Vikings, who later settled to the west in Normandy. The abbey revived its strength in the 11th century and played an important role in the development of medieval painting, successfully synthesising the artistic styles of Carolingian, Ottonian and English art.

wn.com/Arras
Aube
Aube (French pronunciation: [ob]) is a department in the northeastern part of France named after the Aube River. In 1995, its population was 293,100 inhabitants.
Aube is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Champagne.
The territory making up Aube was first attached to France in 843, following the Treaty of Verdun.
After the allied victory over Napoleon at Waterloo the department was occupied by Russian troops between June 1815 and November 1818.
In 1911, following the revolt of the Champagne producers, a series of major riots erupted in Aube. Dozens of serious injuries resulted.
In 1919, by a new decree, Aube wine producers were authorized to produce champagne.
Aube is perhaps best known for the 1932 visit of the late Turkish president Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, who signed a friendship treaty with France there on 4 July 1938.
The department is part of the current region of Champagne-Ardenne. It is surrounded by the departments of Marne, Haute-Marne, Côte-d'Or, Yonne, and Seine-et-Marne.

wn.com/Aube
Auch
Coordinates: 43°38′47″N 0°35′08″E / 43.6465°N 0.5855°E / 43.6465; 0.5855
Auch (French pronunciation: [ɔʃ]; Gascon: Aush [awʃ]) is a commune in southwestern France. Located in the region of Midi-Pyrénées, it is the capital of the Gers department. Auch is the historical capital of Gascony.
Auch is a very ancient town. The name of Auch comes from the Aquitanian tribe that inhabited the area at the time of the Roman conquest in the 50s BC. The name of this tribe, as recorded by the Romans, was Ausci (pronounced [awski] in Latin), singular Auscus. Aquitanians spoke a language related to the old Basque language, and a striking fact is that the name Ausci seems related to the native name of the modern Basques, who call themselves Euskal (pronounced [euskal] in Basque).^{[citation needed]}
At the time of the Roman conquest, the native name of Auch, as recorded by the Romans, was Elimberris. Elimberris is itself a variant of Iliberri, where Ili- comes from the Iberian word iltir' or iltur (the "t" is mute) meaning town, city, oppidum, a frequent prefix in names of Iberian cities, and which was probably borrowed into Basque and also Aquitanian (cf. modern Basque hiri, meaning "town"). In modern Basque there is also the word berri which means "new", so Iliberri is often interpreted as meaning "new oppidum" (based on the fact that Aquitanian and old Basque are related). However, this interpretation should be taken with caution. In the south of Spain, near Granada, an area far away from the Basque homeland, there was an Iberian city whose name the Romans also recorded as Iliberi, and here it seems the name recorded by the Romans is the phonetic transcription of Iberian Ilbirir, which comes from the Iberian stem ilbi- (meaning unknown), and not at all from an hypothetical il(t)i- (town) and Basque berri.

wn.com/Auch
Aude
Aude (French pronunciation: [od]; Occitan: Aude) is a department in south-central France named after the river Aude. The local council also calls the department "Cathar Country".
Aude is also a frequent feminine French given name in Francophone countries, deriving initially from Aude or Oda, a wife of Bertrand, Duke of Aquitaine, and mother of Saint Hubertus's brother Eudo. Aude was the name of Roland's fiancée in the chansons de gestes.
Human traces have been found in the department from 1,500,000 years BCE in the form of hammers and worked tools on the hill of Grazailles at Carcassonne. The most interesting discovery, however, is that of the skull of ‘Tautavel Man’ made by Henry de Lumley in the commune of Tautavel in the Pyrénées-Orientales. It is the oldest skull known in Europe. It dates from about 450,000 years BCE. It is likely that Tautavel Man lived in all of this region.
The Romans, led by the consul-general Domitius Ahenobarbus, installed themselves first of all at Narbonne in 118 BCE on the oppidum of Montlaurès, which became the provincial capital and a very active mercantile port. The position was strategically important since it stood at the cross roads of two Roman roads, the Via Aquitania and the Via Domitia, as well as by the sea and near the mouth of the River Aude. Carcassonne became Latin in 30 BCE with the creation of numerous grain farms. For almost two centuries, the Aude enjoyed peace and strong economic growth.

wn.com/Aude
Aups
Coordinates: 43°37′42″N 6°13′29″E / 43.62840°N 6.2248°E / 43.62840; 6.2248
Aups (French pronunciation: [o]; Provençal Occitan: Aups in the classical norm, Aup in the Mistralian norm, pronounced [ˈaw]) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Located in Provence at 500m alt, Aups is in the first foothills of the Alps. The town is at the gates of Verdon River, at 60 km from the sea and 80 km from the snow stations.
Aups is named Capital of Haut-Var and Capital of truffle and is integrated in the Parc naturel régional du Verdon since 2000. Its typically Mediterranean climate makes the village a healthy place to live.
The village was named Oppidum de Alpibus then Castrum de Alpibus, castrum de Almis, then Alps and now Aups. The place was colonized by the Oxybians during the Ancient Rome, near of Via Aurelia going from Fréjus (Forum Julii) to Riez (Forum Reii). Julius Caesar has visited Aups (Castrum de Alpibus) on the way of the conquest of Gaul and has said « I prefer to be the first in Aups than to be the second in Roma ».

wn.com/Aups
Aurillac
Coordinates: 44°55′34″N 2°26′26″E / 44.9261°N 2.4406°E / 44.9261; 2.4406
Aurillac (Orlhac in Occitan) is a commune in the Auvergne region in south-central France, capital of the Cantal department.
Aurillac's inhabitants are called Aurillacois, and are also Cantaliens (from Cantal) or Cantalous in Occitan.
Aurillac is 558km away from Paris and 223km from Toulouse. Aurillac was part of a former Auvergne province called Haute-Auvergne and is only 20km away from the heart of the Auvergne Volcano Park.

Aurillac is often thought to be one of the coldest cities in France. However, this is untrue, as it is simply the city at the highest altitude shown on the TV weather forecasts.

Aurillac stands on the Jordanne River.
The historical capital of the umbrella, Aurillac makes more than half the umbrellas produced in France. In 1999, Aurillac produced around 250,000 umbrellas, generating around 100 jobs.^{[citation needed]}
After declining for several decades at the end of the 20th century, Aurillac umbrella producers decided to join their forces and created the Economic Interest Group, or GIE in 1997. They then launched their products under a single label, L'aurillac Parapluie.^{[citation needed]}

wn.com/Aurillac
Auxerre
Coordinates: 47°47′55″N 3°34′02″E / 47.7986°N 3.5672°E / 47.7986; 3.5672
Auxerre (French pronunciation: [osɛʁ]) is a commune in the Bourgogne region in north-central France, between Paris and Dijon. It is the capital of the Yonne department.
Auxerre's population today is about 45,000. People there are called Auxerrois. Auxerre's urban area accounts for more than 88,000 people.
It is a commercial and industrial centre, with industries including food production, woodworking and batteries. Auxerre is also world-famous for the wine produced in the neighbourhood, including the renowned Chablis.
Auxerre was a flourishing Gallo-Roman centre, Antissiodorum through which passed one of the main roads of the area, the Via Agrippa (1st century AD) which crossed the Yonne River (Gallo-Roman Icauna) here. In the third century it became the seat of a bishop and a provincial capital of the Roman Empire. In the 5th century it received a Cathedral. In the late 11th-early 12th century the existing communities were included inside a new line of walls built by the feudal Counts of Auxerre.

wn.com/Auxerre
Aveyron
Aveyron (French pronunciation: [avɛʁɔ̃]; Occitan: Avairon [avajˈɾu]) is a département in southern France named after the Aveyron River.
Aveyron is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790.
The first known historical inhabitants of the region were the Rutenii tribe, but the area was inhabited previously to this, boasting many prehistoric ruins.
During the medieval and early modern periods, and until the 1790s, the territory covered by Aveyron was a province known as Rouergue.
In 1817, a local prosecutor Antoine Bernardin Fualdès was assassinated. The sordid circumstances of his death, following which his body was found floating in the Aveyron River, led to the matter becoming publicised as a cause célèbre. Recent studies have indicated that he met his end on the initiative of a right wing royalist organisation known as the Chevaliers de la Foi (Knights of the Faith).
The department is part of the current Midi-Pyrénées region. It is surrounded by the départements of Tarn, Tarn-et-Garonne, Lot, Hérault, Gard, Lozère, and Cantal.

wn.com/Aveyron
Avignon
Coordinates: 43°57′N 4°49′E / 43.95°N 4.81°E / 43.95; 4.81
Avignon (French pronunciation: [aviˈɲɔ̃]; Occitan: Avinhon in classical norm or Avignoun in Mistralian norm) is a French commune in southeastern France in the départment of the Vaucluse bordered by the left bank of the Rhône river. Of the 94,787 inhabitants of the city (as of 1 January 2010), about 12,000 live in the ancient town centre surrounded by its medieval ramparts.
Often referred to as the "City of Popes" because of the presence of popes and antipopes from 1309 to 1423 during the Catholic schism, it is currently the largest city and capital of the département of Vaucluse. This is one of the few French cities to have preserved its ramparts, its historic centre, the palace of the popes, Rocher des Doms, and the bridge of Avignon. It was classified a World Heritage Site by UNESCO under the criteria I, II and IV.
As a showcase of arts and culture, the fame of its annual theatre festival, known as the Festival of Avignon, has far exceeded the French borders.

wn.com/Avignon
Bandol
Coordinates: 43°08′00″N 5°45′00″E / 43.1333°N 5.75°E / 43.1333; 5.75
Bandol is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Bandol
Bargemon
Coordinates: 43°37′12″N 6°33′01″E / 43.62°N 6.5504°E / 43.62; 6.5504
Bargemon (Occitan: Barjamon) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Bargemon
Bargème
Coordinates: 43°43′51″N 6°34′25″E / 43.7308°N 6.5736°E / 43.7308; 6.5736
Bargème is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Bargème
Barjols
Coordinates: 43°33′32″N 6°00′29″E / 43.5589°N 6.0081°E / 43.5589; 6.0081
Barjols is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
At the gateway to Haute Provence and the hills of Var, near the Verdon gorges and the Lake of St. Croix , this peaceful village, set on a limestone cliff, is an inviting stop for visitors.
A refreshing place with 42 man made fountains, Barjols' architecture and life have been determined for centuries by the omnipresence of water.
Its rich past is shown clearly in the 11th century Collegiate Church, the Fountain Trail, the Regional Water Museum, the Carmes waterfall, the Fête des Tripettes, and the leather fair.
In town you will be able to find everything you need :
a tourist office, hotels, restaurants, gites, chambres d'hotes, a swimming pool, municipal tennis courts, large areas for playing petanque (French bowls), and lots of shady café terraces.

wn.com/Barjols
Bastia
Coordinates: 42°42′03″N 9°27′01″E / 42.7008°N 9.4503°E / 42.7008; 9.4503
Bastia (French pronunciation: [bas.tja], French and Corsican: Bastia) is a commune in the Haute-Corse department of France located in the northeast of the island of Corsica at the base of Cap Corse. It is also the second-largest city in Corsica after Ajaccio and the capital of the department.
Bastia is the principal port of the island and its principal commercial town, especially famous for its wines. According to the 2006 census, Bastia has 43,577 inhabitants. Approximately 10% of the population are immigrants. The unemployment rate in the commune has persistently been one of the highest in France, standing at over 20% in 2004.
Before the occupation of Corsica by the Genoese, Cardo was a large city. Around the city were little villages where the fishermen of Cardo lived. This little port was called Porto Cardo, meaning "the port of Cardo."
The Genoese felt the need for shelter from the sea storms and in 1380 began to construct, under Governor Leonello Lomellini, a bastiglia, Italian for stronghold or citadel. With time, the bastiglia (Bastia) became more prosperous and important than Cardo. Bastia was the capital of Corsica until 1791.

wn.com/Bastia
Bauduen
Coordinates: 43°44′05″N 6°10′36″E / 43.7347°N 6.1767°E / 43.7347; 6.1767
Bauduen is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Bauduen
Beauvais
Coordinates: 49°25′49″N 2°05′43″E / 49.4303°N 02.09520°E / 49.4303; 02.09520
Beauvais (French pronunciation: [bovɛ]) is a city approximately 79 kilometres (49 mi) by highway north of central Paris, in the northern French region of Picardie. It currently has a population of over 60,000 inhabitants.
Beauvais was known to the Romans by the Gallo-Roman name of Caesaromagus (magos is Common Celtic for "field".) . The post-Renaissance Latin rendering is Bellovacum from the Belgic tribe the Bellovaci, whose capital it was. In the ninth century it became a countship, which about 1013 passed to the bishops of Beauvais, who became peers of France from the twelfth century. At the coronations of kings the Bishop of Beauvais wore the royal mantle and went, with the Bishop of Langres, to raise the king from his throne to present him to the people.
In 1346 the town had to defend itself against the English, who again besieged it in 1433. The siege which it endured in 1472 at the hands of the Duke of Burgundy, was rendered famous by the heroism of the town's women, under the leadership of Jeanne Hachette, whose memory is still celebrated by a procession on the 14 October (the feast of Sainte Angadrême), during which women take precedence over men.

wn.com/Beauvais
Belfort
Coordinates: 47°38′30″N 6°51′00″E / 47.6417°N 6.85°E / 47.6417; 6.85
Belfort (French pronunciation: [bɛl.fɔʁ-]) is a city in north-east France in the Franche-Comté région, situated between Lyon and Strasbourg. It is the biggest town and the administrative town of the Territoire de Belfort département in the Franche-Comté region. Belfort is located at 400 km (249 mi) from Paris, 141 km (88 mi) from Strasbourg, 290 km (180 mi) from Lyon and 150 km (93 mi) from Zürich. The residents of the city are called ‘’Belfortains’’. It is located on the Savoureuse, on the strategically important natural route between the Rhine and the Rhône – the Belfort Gap (Trouée de Belfort) or Burgundian Gate (Porte de Bourgogne). The city of Belfort has 50,199 inhabitants. Together with its suburbs and satellite towns, Belfort forms the largest agglomeration (metropolitan area) in Franche-Comté region with an urban population of 308,601 inhabitants.
Belfort's strategic location, in a natural gap between the Vosges and the Jura, on a route linking the Rhine and the Rhône, has attracted human settlement and made it a target for armies.

wn.com/Belfort
Belgentier
Coordinates: 43°14′45″N 6°00′01″E / 43.2458°N 6.0003°E / 43.2458; 6.0003
Belgentier is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It was the birthplace of the astronomer, antiquary and savant, Nicolas-Claude Fabri de Peiresc (1580–1637).

wn.com/Belgentier
Besançon
Coordinates: 47°14′35″N 6°01′19″E / 47.2431°N 6.0219°E / 47.2431; 6.0219
Besançon (French and Arpitan: [bəzɑ̃sɔ̃]; archaic German: Bisanz, Spanish: Besanzón), is the capital and principal city of the Franche-Comté region in eastern France. It had a population of about 237,000 inhabitants in the metropolitan area in 2008. Located close to the border with Switzerland, it is the capital of the department of Doubs.
Once proclaimed first green city of France, it has been labeled a 'Town of Art and History' since 1986, and has been on the UNESCO world heritage list since 2008.
The city is first recorded in 58 BC as Vesontio in the Book I of Julius Caesar's Commentarii de Bello Gallico. The etymology of Vesontio is uncertain. The most common explanation is that the name is of Celtic origin, derivated from wes, meaning 'mountain'. During the 4th century, the letter B took the place of the V, and the city name changed to Besontio or Bisontion and then underwent several transformation to become Besançon in 1243.

wn.com/Besançon
Blois
Coordinates: 47°35′38″N 1°19′41″E / 47.5939°N 1.3281°E / 47.5939; 1.3281
Blois (French pronunciation: [blwɑ]) is the capital of Loir-et-Cher department in central France, situated on the banks of the lower river Loire between Orléans and Tours.
Though of ancient origin, Blois is first distinctly mentioned by Gregory of Tours in the 6th century, and the city gained some notability in the 9th century, when it became the seat of a powerful countship with «Blesum castrum» («Le château de Blois»). In 1171, Blois was the site of a blood libel accusation against its Jewish community that led to 31 Jews (by some accounts 40) being burned to death. In 1196, Count Louis granted privileges to the townsmen; a commune, which survived throughout the Middle Ages, probably dated from this time. The counts of the Châtillon line resided at Blois more often than their predecessors, and the oldest parts of the château (from the thirteenth century) were built by them. In 1429, Joan of Arc made Blois her base of operations for the relief of Orléans. Joan of Arc rode the thirty-five miles on Wednesday 29 April to Blois to relieve Orléans. After his captivity in England, Charles of Orléans in 1440 took up his residence in the château, where in 1462 his son, afterwards Louis XII, was born. In the 16th century Blois was often the resort of the French court. The Treaty of Blois, which temporarily halted the Italian Wars, was signed there in 1504–1505.

wn.com/Blois
Bobigny
Coordinates: 48°54′38″N 2°26′23″E / 48.9106°N 2.4397°E / 48.9106; 2.4397
Bobigny (French pronunciation: [bo.bi.ɲi]) is a commune, or town, in the northeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 9.1 km (5.7 mi) from the center of Paris. Bobigny is the préfecture (capital) of the Seine-Saint-Denis département, as well as the seat of the Arrondissement of Bobigny. It is only the 12th-largest commune in Seine-Saint-Denis (1999 census).
Inhabitants are called Balbyniens.
Bobigny is served by two stations on Paris Métro Line 5: Bobigny – Pantin – Raymond Queneau and Bobigny – Pablo Picasso.
Valeo has management branches (Valeo Transmissions group and Valeo Friction Materials group) here. It was also the manufacturing base by Meccano of French Dinky Toys from 1933 to 1971.
During WW II, approximately 20,000 Jews were shipped from a railway station in Bobigny. Their ultimate destination was the Nazi camps.
Bobigny is the place where the registrations for the guns bought for the war before 1930s are kept.refer,"the nostradamus prophecies"by Mario Reading.

wn.com/Bobigny
Bordeaux
Coordinates: 44°50′19″N 0°34′42″W / 44.8386°N 0.5783°W / 44.8386; -0.5783
Bordeaux (French pronunciation: [bɔʁdo]; Gascon: Bordèu; Basque: Bordele) is a port city on the Garonne River in the Gironde department in southwestern France.
The Bordeaux metropolitan area has a population of 1,105,000 and constitutes the sixth-largest urban area in France. It is the capital of the Aquitaine region, as well as the prefecture of the Gironde department. Its inhabitants are called Bordelais.
Bordeaux is the world's major wine industry capital. It is home to the world's main wine fair, Vinexpo, while the wine economy in the metro area moves 14.5 billion euros each year.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.
Between 30,000 and 20,000 years ago the area of Bordeaux was inhabited by the Neanderthal, whose remains have been found at a famous cave known as Pair-non-Pair, near Bourg sur Gironde, just north of Bordeaux. In historical times, around 300 BC it was the settlement of a Celtic tribe, the Bituriges Vivisci, who named the town Burdigala, probably of Aquitainian origin. The name Bourde is still the name of a river south of the city.

wn.com/Bordeaux
Bourges
Coordinates: 47°05′04″N 2°23′47″E / 47.0844°N 2.3964°E / 47.0844; 2.3964
Bourges (French pronunciation: [buʁʒ]) is a city in central France on the Yèvre river. It is the capital of the department of Cher and also was the capital of the former province of Berry.
The name of the city is either derived from the Bituriges, the name of the original inhabitants, or from the Germanic Burg (French: Bourg. Spanish: Burgos. English, others: Burgh, Berg, or Borough), for "hill/village". Its Celtic name was Avaricon and its Latin name was Avaricum. In the Gallic Wars, the Gauls practised a scorched-earth policy, but the inhabitants of Avaricum begged not to have their city burned, and it was spared due to its good defences provided by the surrounding marshes and a strong southern wall. Following the siege of Avaricum in the winter of 52 BC, Julius Caesar's forces destroyed the city and killed all but 800 of its inhabitants.
The city was reconstructed as a Roman city, with a monumental gate, aqueducts, thermae and an amphitheatre, reaching a greater size than it would attain during the Middle Ages. The massive walls surrounding the late Roman city, enclosing 40 hectares, were built in part re-using stone from earlier public buildings.

wn.com/Bourges
Brenon
Coordinates: 43°46′13″N 6°32′33″E / 43.7703°N 6.54250000°E / 43.7703; 6.54250000
Brenon is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Brenon
Brignoles
Coordinates: 43°24′21″N 6°03′41″E / 43.4058°N 6.0615°E / 43.4058; 6.0615
Brignoles is a commune in the Var département in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department.
It was the summer residence of the counts of Provence. Their castle dates from the thirteenth century.
It was the birthplace of:
Brignoles is twinned with the towns of:

wn.com/Brignoles
Caen
Coordinates: 49°10′59″N 0°22′10″W / 49.1831°N 0.3694°W / 49.1831; -0.3694
Caen (French pronunciation: [kɑ̃]; Norman: Kaem) is a commune in northwestern France. It is the prefecture of the Calvados department and the capital of the Basse-Normandie region. It is located 15 km (9.3 mi) inland from the English Channel.
Caen is known for its historical buildings built during the reign of William the Conqueror, who was buried there, and for the Battle for Caen—heavy fighting that took place in and around Caen during the Battle of Normandy in 1944, destroying much of the city.
Two hours north-west of Paris, and connected to the south of England by the Caen-(Ouistreham)-Portsmouth ferry route, Caen is located in the centre of its northern region, over which it is a centre of political, economic and cultural power.
As the city of William the Conqueror, the city has a long and complex history. In the Second World War, it was a key site of the Battle of Normandy. The city has preserved the memory by erecting a memorial for peace.

wn.com/Caen
Cahors
Coordinates: 44°26′54″N 1°26′29″E / 44.4483°N 1.4414°E / 44.4483; 1.4414
Cahors (French pronunciation: [kaɔʁ]; Occitan: Caors [kaˈurs, ˈkɔws, ˈkɔw]) is the capital of the Lot department in south-western France.
Its site is dramatic being contained on three sides within an udder shaped twist in the river Lot known as a 'presqu'île' or peninsula. Today it is perhaps best known as the centre of the famous AOC 'black' wine known since the Middle Ages and exported via Bordeaux, long before that region had developed its own viticulture industry.
Cahors has had a rich history since Celtic times. The original name of the town was Divona or Divona Cadurcorum, "Divona of the Cadurci," a Celtic people of Gaul before the Roman conquest in the 50s BC. Cahors derives from Cadurcorum. It has declined economically since the Middle Ages, and lost its university in the eighteenth century. Today it is a popular tourist centre with people coming to enjoy its mediaeval quarter and the unique 14th century fortified Valentré bridge. It is the seat of the Diocese of Cahors.

wn.com/Cahors
Calvados
The French department of Calvados (pronounced: [kal.va.dos]) is part of the region of Basse-Normandie in Normandy. It takes its name from a cluster of rocks off the English Channel coast. The pronunciation varies: in French the final 's' is not mute; in English usually Calvadoss with stress on the first syllable.
Calvados is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from a part of the former province of Normandy. The name "Orne inférieure" was originally proposed for the department, but it was ultimately decided to call the area Calvados.
Its etymology is most likely derived from the Salvador, a ship from the Spanish Armada that sank by the rocks near Arromanches-les-bains in 1588. However, others insist that the name Calvados was derived from calva dorsa, meaning bare backs, in reference to two sparsely vegetated rocks off its shore.
After the allied victory at Waterloo the department was occupied by Prussian troops between June 1815 and November 1818.

wn.com/Calvados
Cantal
Cantal (French pronunciation: [kɑ̃.tal]; Occitan: Cantal, Cantau, Chantal, Chantau) is a department in south-central France. It is named after the Cantal mountain range, a group of extinct, eroded volcanic peaks, which covers much of the department. Residents are known as Cantaliens or Cantalous.
Cantal is part of the current region of Auvergne. It borders the departments of Puy-de-Dôme, Haute-Loire, Aveyron, Lot, Lozère, and Corrèze. Its principal towns are Aurillac, Saint-Flour, and Mauriac. The highest point in Cantal is Le Plomb du Cantal at 1858 metres.
Cantal remains, with Lozère and Creuse, one of the most sparsely populated and geographically isolated French departments. Aurillac is the farthest removed departmental capital from a major motorway.
Cantal is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from a part of the former province of Auvergne, called Haute-Auvergne.
The Occitan language was historically dominant in Cantal.

wn.com/Cantal
Carcassonne
Coordinates: 43°12′47″N 2°21′07″E / 43.2131°N 2.352°E / 43.2131; 2.352
Carcassonne (French pronunciation: [kaʁ.ka.sɔn]; Occitan: Carcassona) is a fortified French town in the Aude department, of which it is the prefecture, in the former province of Languedoc.
It is divided into the fortified Cité de Carcassonne and the more expansive lower city, the ville basse. Carcassone was founded by the Visigoths in the fifth century, though the Romans had fortified the settlement earlier. The fortress, which was thoroughly restored in 1853 by the theorist and architect Eugène Viollet-le-Duc, was added to the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites in 1997. The folk etymology – involving a châtelaine named Carcas, a ruse ending a siege and the joyous ringing of bells ("Carcas sona") – though memorialized in a neo-Gothic sculpture of Mme. Carcas on a column near the Narbonne Gate, is of modern invention. The name can be derived as a hyperbole of the name Carcas. Similarly in the Italian language, there are derived names like Castellino (little castle) – Castello – Castellone (big castle), or Ombrellino (small umbrella) – Ombrello – Ombrellone (large umbrella). A double 's' in the name appears for phonetic reasons, otherwise as a self standing 's' it would be pronounced as 'z'.

wn.com/Carcassonne
Carcès
Coordinates: 43°28′37″N 6°11′01″E / 43.4769°N 6.1836°E / 43.4769; 6.1836
Carcès (Carces in Occitan) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Carcès
Carnoules
Coordinates: 43°18′10″N 6°11′21″E / 43.3028°N 6.1892°E / 43.3028; 6.1892
Carnoules is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Carnoules
Carqueiranne
Coordinates: 43°05′45″N 6°04′27″E / 43.0958°N 6.0742°E / 43.0958; 6.0742
Carqueiranne is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It is known now as a tourist seaside resort with good windsurfing nearby, at Almanarre Beach, and a nudist beach at Ile du Levant.
The town has a literary claim to fame as well. In early August 1944, an unidentifiable body wearing French military colours was found near here, which was long believed to be that of famous novelist Antoine de Saint Exupéry, author of The Little Prince.
In 1998, a bracelet known to be his, with a fragment of cloth still attached, was found in the sea east of Riou Island (south of Marseille). In 2000, a crashed P-38 Lightning was found in the seabed off the coast of Marseille, near where the bracelet was found, and it was confirmed to be the one that St. Exupéry was flying.
However, it remains plausible that ocean currents could have carried the body from the crash site to Carqueiranne - a distance less than 80 km by sea - over the course of several days, which is the time difference between the crash in 31 July 1944, and the discovery of the body.

wn.com/Carqueiranne
Cayenne
Coordinates: 4°55′22″N 52°19′37″W / 4.9227°N 52.3269°W / 4.9227; -52.3269
Cayenne (French pronunciation: [kajɛn]) is the capital of French Guiana, an overseas region and department of France located in South America. The city stands on a former island at the mouth of the Cayenne River on the Atlantic coast. The city's motto is "Ferit Aurum Industria" which means "Work brings wealth". Most geosynchronous satellites are launched from Cayenne.
At the 2006 census, there were 100,323 inhabitants in the urban area of Cayenne (as defined by INSEE), 50,594 of whom lived in the city (commune) of Cayenne proper, and the remainder in the neighbouring commune of Remire-Montjoly. The commune of Matoury (18,032 inhabitants in 1999), where Cayenne-Rochambeau Airport is located, is also a suburb of Cayenne, but it was not included in the official definition of the urban area by INSEE in 1999.
Cayenne is located on the banks of the estuary of the Cayenne River on the Atlantic Ocean. The city occupies part of the Ile de Cayenne. It is located 268 km from Saint-Laurent-du-Maroni and 64 km from Kourou.

wn.com/Cayenne
Cergy
Coordinates: 49°02′10″N 2°03′47″E / 49.0361°N 2.0631°E / 49.0361; 2.0631
Cergy (French pronunciation: [sɛʁ.ʒi]) is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 27.8 km (17.3 mi) from the center of Paris, in the "new town" of Cergy-Pontoise, created in the 1960s, of which it is the central and most populated commune.
Although neighboring Pontoise is the official préfecture (capital) of the Val-d'Oise département, the préfecture building and administration, as well as the department council (conseil général), are located inside the commune of Cergy, which is regarded as the de facto capital of Val-d'Oise. The sous-préfecture building and administration, on the other hand, are located inside the commune of Pontoise.
The name Cergy comes from Medieval Latin Sergiacum, meaning "estate of Sergius", a Gallo-Roman landowner.
Cergy is the chief town of two cantons:
When Cergy was selected to become the center of a "new town", it was only a village. The commune had only 2,895 inhabitants in 1968. It then started to develop very quickly, exceeding 10,000 inhabitants in the mid-1970s and then 20,000 in the early-1980s. It is in this decade that its growth was most spectacular, since the city exceeded 48,000 inhabitants in 1990. The increase continued since, but at a notably slower pace, to reach 54,500 as of 2004 estimates. However, on 1 January 2000, the commune lost a portion of its territory (net 0.03 km² (0.012 sq mi) with a 1999 population of 62 persons) to the adjacent commune of Courdimanche. The official census figures have thus been revised downward from the 1999 official 54,781 to 54,719, and the land area from 11.68 km² (4.51 sq mi) to 11.65 km².

wn.com/Cergy
Chambéry
Coordinates: 45°34′12″N 5°54′42″E / 45.57°N 5.9118°E / 45.57; 5.9118
Chambéry (French pronunciation: [ʃɑ̃.be.ʁi]; Italian: Ciamberì; Piemontese: Ciamberì; Arpitan: Chambèri) is a city in the department of Savoie, located in the Rhône-Alpes region in southeastern France.
It is the capital of the department and has been the historical capital of the Savoy region since the 13th century, when Amadeus V of Savoy made the city his seat of power.
Chambéry was founded at crossroads of ancient routes through the Dauphiné (Dôfenâ), Burgundy, Switzerland, and Italy, in a wide valley between the Bauges and the Chartreuse Mountains on the Leysse River. The metropolitan area has more than 125,000 residents, extending from the vineyard slopes of the Combe de Savoie, almost to the shores of the Lac du Bourget, the largest natural lake in France. The city is a major railway hub, at the mid-point of the Franco-Italian "Lyon-Turin Ferroviaire" rail link.
Chambéry is situated in the south-east of France, 523 km from Paris, 326 km from Marseille, 214 km from Turin, 100 km from Lyon and 85 km from Geneva. It is found in a large valley, surrounded by massif des Bauges to the east (dominated by le Nivolet, upon which la croix du Nivolet is found), le Mont Granier (Chartreuse) and la Chaîne de Belledonne to the south, la chaîne de l'Épine (the most southern mountain of the Jura) to the west and le lac du Bourget to the north.

wn.com/Chambéry
Charente
Charente (French pronunciation: [ʃa.ʁɑ̃t], Saintongeais: Chérente, Occitan: Charanta) is a department in southwestern France, in the Poitou-Charentes region, named after the Charente River, the most important river in the department, and also the river beside which the department's two largest towns, Angoulême and Cognac, are sited.
Charente is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from the former province of Angoumois, west and south of Saintonge.
Prior to the creation of the department, the area was not a natural unit, but much of it was commercially prosperous thanks to traditional industries such as salt and cognac production. Although the river became silted up and was unnavigable for much of the twentieth century, in the eighteenth century it provided important links with coastal shipping routes both for traditional businesses and for newly evolving ones such as paper goods and iron smelting.
The accelerating pace of industrial and commercial development during the first half of the nineteenth century led to a period of prosperity, and the department's population peaked in 1851. During the second half of the nineteenth century Charente, like many of France's rural departments, experienced a declining population as the economic prospects available in the cities and in France's overseas empire attracted the working age generations away. Economic ruin came to many in the Charentais wine industry with the arrival in 1872 of phylloxera.

wn.com/Charente
Chartres
Coordinates: 48°27′21″N 1°29′03″E / 48.4558°N 1.4842°E / 48.4558; 1.4842
Chartres (French pronunciation: [ʃaʁtʁ]) is a commune and capital of the Eure-et-Loir department in northern France. It is located 96 km (60 mi) southwest of Paris.
Chartres is built on the left bank of the Eure River, on a hill crowned by its famous cathedral, the spires of which are a landmark in the surrounding country. To the south-east stretches the fruitful plain of Beauce, the "granary of France", of which the town is the commercial centre.
Chartres was one of the principal towns of the Carnutes, and by the Romans was called Autricum, from the river Autura (Eure), and afterwards civitas Carnutum. The name "Chartres" derives from "Carnutes".The American name is "Chartrey". It was burnt by the Normans in 858, and unsuccessfully besieged by them in 911.
During the Middle Ages it was the chief town of Beauce, and gave its name to a countship which was held by the counts of Blois and Champagne and afterwards by the house of Châtillon, a member of which in 1286 sold it to the crown. It was raised to the rank of a duchy in 1528 by Francis I. After the time of Louis XIV the title of duke of Chartres was hereditary in the family of Orléans.

wn.com/Chartres
Châteauroux
Coordinates: 46°48′37″N 1°41′28″E / 46.8103°N 1.6911°E / 46.8103; 1.6911
Châteauroux (French pronunciation: [ʃa.to.ru]) is the capital of the Indre department in central France and the second-largest town in the province of Berry, after Bourges.
Its residents are called Castelroussins.
Châteauroux lies on the Indre River 250 km south of Paris and 142 km south of Orléans. It is situated on the edge of the government-owned Châteauroux forest and the Brenne national park. The city boasts 450 hectares (1112 acres) of parks, amounting to 52 m² (560 sq ft) for each resident. Châteauroux's average elevation is 154 m above sea level.
Châteauroux enjoys a mild climate. Temperature extremes range from an average January low of 0.8 °C (33 °F) to an average August high of 25.1 °C (77 °F).
The old town, close to the river, forms a nucleus around which a newer and more extensive quarter, bordered by boulevards, has grown up; the suburbs of St. Christophe and Déols lie on the right bank of the Indre. The castle from which the city takes its name was built in the latter part of the 10th century by Raoul, prince of Déols. During the Middle Ages it was the seat of a seigniory, which was raised to the rank of countship in 1497. In 1616, when it was held by Henry II, prince of Condé, it was raised to the rank of duchy. In 1736 it returned to the crown, and was given to Marie Anne de Mailly-Nesle, duchess of Châteauroux, by Louis XV in 1744. The present Château Raoul housing the préfecture offices dates from the 15th century.

wn.com/Châteauroux
Châteauvert
Coordinates: 43°30′03″N 6°01′36″E / 43.5008°N 6.0267°E / 43.5008; 6.0267
Châteauvert is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Châteauvert
Claviers
Coordinates: 43°36′04″N 6°33′50″E / 43.6012°N 6.5638°E / 43.6012; 6.5638
Claviers is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It is approximately 60 km (37 mi) west of Cannes.
Like much of France, there is evidence of the Roman presence during the early part of the past millennium. There can be seen evidence of Gallo-Roman occupation south of Claviers.

wn.com/Claviers
Cogolin
Coordinates: 43°15′09″N 6°31′48″E / 43.2526°N 6.530°E / 43.2526; 6.530
Cogolin is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Cogolin
Collobrières
Coordinates: 43°14′17″N 6°18′35″E / 43.2381°N 6.3097°E / 43.2381; 6.3097
Collobrières is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Collobrières main exports are edible chestnuts which are made into things like marron glace and ice cream. They also grow trees for cork production.

wn.com/Collobrières
Colmar
Coordinates: 48°04′54″N 7°21′20″E / 48.0817°N 7.3556°E / 48.0817; 7.3556
Colmar (French: Colmar, pronounced: [kɔlmaʁ]; Alsatian: Colmer [ˈkolməʁ]; German: Colmar, between 1871–1918 and 1940–1945: Kolmar) is a commune in the Haut-Rhin department in Alsace in north-eastern France.
It is the capital of the department. Colmar is also the seat of the highest jurisdiction in Alsace, the appellate court.
It is situated along the Alsatian Wine Route and considers itself to be the "Capital of Alsatian Wine" (capitale des vins d'Alsace).
In 2006, the city of Colmar had a population of 65,713 and the metropolitan area of Colmar had a population of 120,367. Colmar is the center of the arrondissement of Colmar, which has 144,700 inhabitants in 2006.
Colmar is the home town of the painter and engraver Martin Schongauer and the sculptor Frédéric Bartholdi, who designed the Statue of Liberty. The city is renowned for its well preserved old town, its numerous architectural landmarks and its museums, among which is the Unterlinden Museum.

wn.com/Colmar
Correns
Coordinates: 43°29′18″N 6°04′49″E / 43.4883°N 6.0803°E / 43.4883; 6.0803
Correns is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Its name in the Provençal language is Courrens.
It is at the entry of two gorges: Vallon Sourn and the Bagarède. The village is on the banks of the Argens river. Correns bills itself as "le Premier Village Bio de France". 'Bio’ is what the French say when they mean ‘organic’. Its main produce is wine.

wn.com/Correns
Corrèze
Corrèze (French pronunciation: [kɔ.ʁɛːz]; Occitan: Corresa) is a department in south central France, named after the Corrèze River.
The inhabitants of the department are called Corréziens or Corréziennes according to gender.
Corrèze is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It includes part of the former province of Limousin (the Bas-Limousin).
The 1851 census recorded a population of 320,866: this remained relatively constant for the rest of the nineteenth century. During the twentieth century, however, Corrèze shared the experience of many of the country's rural departments as the population fell steadily.
Within Corrèze the nineteenth-century railway planners, influenced in part by the department's topography, endowed Brive-la-Gaillarde with good connections and a major junction from which railway lines fanned out in six different directions. The railways arrived in 1860, at an opportune moment, directly after phylloxera had destroyed the local wine industry. The new railways enabled the farms in the area surrounding Brive to specialise in fruits and vegetables which they could now transport rapidly to the larger population centres of central and southern France. Locally, the new agriculture triggered the development, in the Brive basin, of related businesses and industries such as the manufacture of jams and liquors, as well as timber/paper-based packaging businesses.

wn.com/Corrèze
Corsica
Corsica ( /ˈkɔːrsɪkə/; French: Corse, IPA: [kɔʁs]; Corsican: Corsica; Italian: Corsica, IPA: [ˈkɔrsika]) is a French island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is located west of Italy, southeast of the French mainland, and north of the Italian island of Sardinia. Mountains comprise two-thirds of the island, forming a single chain.
Corsica is one of the 27 régions of France, although strictly speaking Corsica is designated as a territorial collectivity (collectivité territoriale) by law. As a territorial collectivity, it enjoys greater powers than other French régions, but for the most part its status is quite similar. Corsica is referred to as a "région" in common speech, and is almost always listed among the other régions of France.
Although the island is separated from the continental mainland by the Ligurian Sea and is closer to Italy than to the French mainland, politically Corsica is part of Metropolitan France. It was once briefly an independent Corsican Republic, until being incorporated into France in 1769. Its culture has French and Italian elements blended into it.

wn.com/Corsica
Cosquer Cave
The Cosquer cave is located in the Calanque de Morgiou near Marseille, France, not very far from Cap Morgiou. The entrance to the cave is located 37 meters underwater, due to the rise of the Mediterranean in Paleolithic times. It was discovered by diver Henri Cosquer in 1985, but its contents were not made public until 1991, when three divers became lost in the cave and died.
Today, the cave can be accessed through a 175 meters (574 ft) long tunnel, the entrance of which is located 37 meters (121 ft) below the surface of the sea, because of changes in sea level since the time the cave was inhabited. The shore of the Mediterranean sea at the time the cave was occupied was then several kilometers away and many meters below the cave mouth. Sea level was lower because at that time there was an ice age and large volumes of water were retained in enormous icecaps on land, making the level of the sea 110 to 120 meters (361 to 394 ft) lower than today, affecting Mean Sea Level as calculated for approximately 20,000 years ago during the peak of the (last major glaciation).

wn.com/Cosquer_Cave
Cotignac
Coordinates: 43°31′47″N 6°09′00″E / 43.5297°N 6.15000000°E / 43.5297; 6.15000000
Cotignac is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Cotignac
Creuse
Creuse (French pronunciation: [kʁøz]; Occitan: Cruesa) is a department in central France named after the Creuse River.
Creuse is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from the former province of La Marche.
The County of Marche (Occitan: la Marcha) was a medieval French county, approximately corresponding to the modern département of Creuse. Marche first appeared as a separate fief about the middle of the 10th century, when William III, Duke of Aquitaine, gave it to one of his vassals named Boso, who took the title of count. In the 12th century, the countship passed to the family of Lusignan. They also were sometimes counts of Angoulême and counts of Limousin. With the death of the childless Count Guy in 1308, his possessions in La Marche were seized by Philip IV of France. In 1316 the king made La Marche an appanage for his youngest son the Prince, afterwards Charles IV. Several years later in 1327, La Marche passed into the hands of the House of Bourbon. The family of Armagnac held it from 1435 to 1477, when it reverted to the Bourbons. In 1527 La Marche was seized by Francis I and became part of the domains of the French crown. It was divided into Haute Marche and Basse Marche, the estates of the former continuing until the 17th century. From 1470 until the Revolution, the province was under the jurisdiction of the parlement of Paris.

wn.com/Creuse
Créteil
Coordinates: 48°47′28″N 2°27′46″E / 48.7911°N 2.4628°E / 48.7911; 2.4628
Créteil (French pronunciation: [kʁe.tɛj]) is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 11.5 km (7.1 mi) from the center of Paris. Créteil is the préfecture (capital) of the Val-de-Marne department as well as the seat of the Arrondissement of Créteil. The city is, moreover, the seat of a Roman Catholic diocese (bishopric) and of one of France's 30 nationwide académies (districts) of the Ministry of National Education.
The name Créteil was recorded for the first time as Cristoïlum in the martyrology written by a monk named Usuard in 865. The name Cristoïlum is made of the Celtic word ialo (meaning "clearing, glade", "place of") suffixed to a pre-Latin radical crist- whose meaning is still unclear. Some believe crist is a Celtic word meaning "ridge", a cognate of Latin crista and modern French crête, in which case the meaning of Cristoïlum would be "clearing on the ridge" or "place on the ridge." A more traditional etymology was that crist referred to Jesus Christ, due to the very ancient presence of Christianity in Créteil and the veneration of Saint Agoard and Saint Aglibert, martyred in Créteil around AD 400.

wn.com/Créteil
Cuers
Coordinates: 43°14′18″N 6°04′18″E / 43.2383°N 6.0717°E / 43.2383; 6.0717
Cuers is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Cuers
Dijon
Coordinates: 47°17′26″N 5°02′34″E / 47.2906°N 5.0428°E / 47.2906; 5.0428
Dijon (French pronunciation: [diʒɔ̃] ( listen)) is a city in eastern France, and is the capital of the Côte-d'Or département and of the Burgundy region.
Dijon is the historical capital of the region of Burgundy. Population (2008): 151,576 within the city limits; 250,516 (2007) for the greater Dijon area.
Dijon began as a Roman settlement called Divio, located on the road from Lyon to Paris. Saint Benignus, the city's patron saint, is said to have introduced Christianity to the area before being martyred.
This province was home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th centuries and Dijon was a place of tremendous wealth and power and one of the great European centres of art, learning and science. The Duchy of Burgundy was a key in the transformation of medieval times toward early modern Europe. The Palais des ducs de Bourgogne (Palace of the Dukes of Burgundy) now houses city hall and a museum of medieval art.

wn.com/Dijon
Dordogne
Dordogne (French pronunciation: [dɔʁ.dɔɲ]; Occitan: Dordonha) is a départment in south-west France. The départment is located in the region of Aquitaine, between the Loire valley and the High Pyrénées named after the great Dordogne River that runs through it. It roughly corresponds with the ancient county of Périgord.
The county of Périgord dates back to when the area was inhabited by the Gauls, it was home to four tribes, the name for "four tribes" in the Gaulish language was "Petrocore". The area eventually became known as the county of Le Périgord and its inhabitants became known as the Périgordins (or Périgourdins). There are four Périgords in the Dordogne: the "Périgord Vert" (Green Périgord) with its main town of Nontron, consists of verdant valleys in a region crossed by many rivers and streams; the "Périgord Blanc" (White Périgord) situated around the department's capital of Périgueux, is a region of limestone plateaux, wide valleys and meadows; the "Périgord Pourpre" (Purple Périgord) with its capital of Bergerac, is a wine region; and the "Périgord Noir" (Black Périgord) surrounding the administrative center of Sarlat, overlooks the valleys of the Vézère and the Dordogne, where the woods of oak and pine give it its name.

wn.com/Dordogne
Doubs
Doubs (French pronunciation: [du]; Arpitan: Dubs) is a department the Franche-Comté region of eastern France named after the Doubs River.
As early as the 13th century, inhabitants of the northern two-thirds of Doubs spoke the Franc-Comtois language, a dialect of Langue d'Oïl. Residents of the southern third of Doubs spoke a dialect of the Arpitan language. Both languages co-existed with French, the official language of law and commerce, and continued to be spoken frequently in rural areas into the 20th century. They are both still spoken today but not on a daily basis.
Doubs was important as a portal to Switzerland through the pass at Joux. Many famous people, including Mirabeau, Toussaint Louverture and Heinrich von Kleist, were imprisoned in the Château de Joux.
Doubs is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Franche-Comté. The prefecture (capital) is Besançon.
In 1793, the republic of Mandeure was annexed by France and incorporated into the department. This district was passed between various territories and departments in the ensuing administrative reorganisations and wars, but was restored to Doubs in 1816 when the former principality of Montbéliard was also added to the department.

wn.com/Doubs
Draguignan
Coordinates: 43°32′25″N 6°28′00″E / 43.5403°N 6.4667°E / 43.5403; 6.4667
Draguignan (French pronunciation: [dʁa.ɡi.ɲɑ̃]) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in southeastern France.
It is a sub-prefecture of the department and self-proclaimed "capital of Artillery" and "Porte du Verdon".
The city is only 42 km (26 mi) from St. Tropez, and 80 km (50 mi) from Nice.

According to legend, the name of the city is derived from the Latin name “Draco/Draconem” (dragon) : a bishop, called Saint Hermentaire, killed a Dragon and saved people.
The Latin motto of Draguignan is : Alios nutrio, meos devoro (I feed others, I devour my children).
The elevation is 200 m, the highest hill near Draguignan being the “Malmont” (551 m). The main river near Draguignan is the “Nartuby”.
The city is set in a valley NW-SE, about 2 km (1 mi) wide.
The Dolmen Pierre de la fée.
The Town Theatre of Draguignan (Théatre Municipal).
The old Railway Station, which is still called Gare SNCF even though the tracks from Les Arcs to Draguignan were dismantled or closed down.

wn.com/Draguignan
Drôme
Drôme (French pronunciation: [dʁom]; Droma in Occitan, Drôma in Arpitan), a département in southeastern France, takes its name from the Drôme River.
St Vallier in Drôme, was the birthplace of one of France's most famous courtesans, the noble-born Diane de Poitiers (1499-1566), long-term mistress of King Henri II (1547-1559).
The French National Constituent Assembly set up Drôme as one of the original 83 departments of France on March 4, 1790, during the French Revolution. The territory formed part of the former French province of Dauphiné.
Drôme lies within the region of Rhône-Alpes (Rôno-Arpes) and is surrounded by the departments of Ardèche, Isère, Hautes-Alpes, Alpes-de-Haute-Provence and Vaucluse.
The boundaries of the department have changed several times with the incorporation of the Comtat Venaissin in 1792 and the creation of the department of Vaucluse in 1793. Drôme surrounds an enclave of the department of Vaucluse, the Canton of Valréas (Enclave des Papes).
The President of the General Council is Didier Guillaume of the Socialist Party.

wn.com/Drôme
Entrecasteaux
Coordinates: 43°31′00″N 6°14′33″E / 43.5167°N 6.24250000°E / 43.5167; 6.24250000
Entrecasteaux is a commune in the Var department in Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It is noted for its Chateau, and a public square designed by Le Nôtre.

wn.com/Entrecasteaux
Essonne
Essonne (pronounced: [ɛ.sɔn]) is a French department in the region of Île-de-France. It is named after the Essonne River.
It was formed on 1 January 1968 when Seine-et-Oise was split into smaller departments.
The Essonne department was created on 1 January 1968, from the southern portion of the former department of Seine-et-Oise.
In June 1963 Carrefour S.A. opened the first hypermarket in the Paris region at Sainte-Geneviève-des-Bois (although the word "hypermarche" was first used only in 1966). Based on the ideas put forward by the American logistics pioneer Bernardo Trujillo, the centre offered on a single 2,500 m² (26,909.78 sq ft) site a hitherto unknown combination of wide choice and low prices, supported by 400 car parking spaces.
In 1969, the communes of Châteaufort and Toussus-le-Noble were separated from Essonne and added to the department of Yvelines.
Essonne belongs to the region of Île-de-France.
It has borders with the departments of:
All of northern Essonne department belongs to the Parisian agglomeration and is very urbanized. The south remains rural.

wn.com/Essonne
Eure
Eure (French pronunciation: [œʁ]) is a department in the north of France named after the river Eure.
Eure is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Normandy.
After the allied victory at Waterloo, Eure was occupied by Prussian troops between June 1815 and November 1818.
In the wake of Louis-Napoléons December coup of 1851, Eure was one of the departments placed under a state of emergency in order to avert resistance to the post-republican régime. In the event fewer than 100 government opponents in Eure were arrested.
Eure is part of the current region of Haute-Normandie and is surrounded by the departments of Seine-Maritime, Oise, Val-d'Oise, Yvelines, Eure-et-Loir, Orne, and Calvados.
The department is a largely wooded plateau intersected by the valleys of the Seine River and its tributaries.
The altitude varies from sea level to 248 metres in the south.
The President of the General Council is Jean-Louis Destans of the Socialist Party.

wn.com/Eure
Fayence
Coordinates: 43°37′27″N 6°41′41″E / 43.6242°N 6.6947°E / 43.6242; 6.6947
Fayence is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Fayence is one of a series of "perched villages" overlooking the plain between the southern Alps and the Esterel massif, which borders the sea between Cannes and Saint-Raphaël. Fayence is a charming old Provençal village popular with tourists. The village is located on the road to Mons, which later on joins the Route Napoléon (linking Nice to Grenoble through the Alps).
Some high-standing resorts have settled nearby the village in the recent years: the Domaine de Terre Blanche at Tourrettes, Var and Domaine de Fayence attracting a foreign clientele. The aerodrome of Fayence-Tourettes was one of the most active in Europe.

wn.com/Fayence
Figanières
Coordinates: 43°34′11″N 6°29′52″E / 43.5697°N 6.4978°E / 43.5697; 6.4978
Figanières is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Figanières
Finistère
Finistère (French pronunciation: [fi.nis.tɛʁ]; Breton: Penn-ar-Bed) is a département of France, in the extreme west of Brittany.
The name Finistère derives from the Latin Finis Terræ, meaning end of the earth, and may be compared with Land's End on the opposite side of the English Channel. The Breton name for Finistère Penn ar Bedd translates as Head/End of the World and is cognate with the Cornish equivalent for Land's End Pen-an-Wlas (Head/End of the country). Finistère is not to be confused with Finisterre in Spain.
The present department consists of the historical region of Léon and parts of Cornouaille and Trégor.
The largest population center in Finistère is Brest. Other large towns in the department include Quimper (the capital), Morlaix, Carhaix, and Douarnenez. Finistère includes the island of Ushant (Eusa in Breton, Ouessant in French).
Finistère is the westernmost region of France (excluding the overseas departments). By several criteria, Finistère can also claim to be the most coastal department in Metropolitan France. Of its 283 communes, 118 are located on the coast. Its total coastline of approximately 1,250 km (776.71 mi) accounts for almost a quarter of the entire French coast-line.

wn.com/Finistère
Flayosc
Coordinates: 43°32′06″N 6°23′51″E / 43.535°N 6.3975°E / 43.535; 6.3975
Flayosc is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, in southeastern France.
Flayosc is far 7 km (4.3 mi) from Draguignan, and about 35 km (22 mi) from the Mediterranean sea.
The village is located on a rocky hill, near the church. Three very small rivers crosses the village : the Pontchalade, the Florieyes and the Rimalte.
The place allowed to watch over the valley and to protect villages in the neighbourhood, for example Saint-Lambert (far from 5 km).
After the destruction of Antea, a village in the neighbourhood, by Roman Empire, people decided the live in this place.
The lord of Flayosc lost his powers and his castle during the French Revolution.
In the 19th century, the village became a place where shoes were made : many factories were created. The village had, thanks to this activity, a long prosperous period. About 3,000 people lived in Flayosc in 1914.
The village is classified in Zone Natura 2000 and in Zone Naturelle d'Intérêt Ecologique, Faunistique et Floristique.

wn.com/Flayosc
Foix
Coordinates: 42°57′59″N 1°36′28″E / 42.9664°N 1.6078°E / 42.9664; 1.6078
Foix (French pronunciation: [fwa]; Occitan: Fois [ˈfujs, ˈfujʃ]; Catalan: Foix [ˈfoʃ]) is a commune, the capital of the Ariège department in southwestern France. It is the least populous administrative centre of a department in all of France, although it is only very slightly smaller than Privas. It lies south of Toulouse, close to the border with Spain and Andorra.
The town of Foix probably owes its origin to an oratory founded by Charlemagne, which afterwards became the Abbey of Saint Volusianus in 849. The current area was preceded by the County of Foix.
The coat of arms used by the commune has the blazon Or, three pallets gules. This is replicated on the flag, and in the arms of the département. It originates from the arms of the Counts of Foix, and, as such, dates back into medieval times. It bears a resemblance to the coat of arms of Aragon, both featuring in the coat of arms of Andorra.
Foix was the birthplace of Charles de Freycinet (1828–1923), statesman and prime minister.

wn.com/Foix
Forcalqueiret
Coordinates: 43°20′14″N 6°04′53″E / 43.3372°N 6.0814°E / 43.3372; 6.0814
Forcalqueiret is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Forcalqueiret
France
France (English ⁱ/ˈfræns/ FRANSS or /ˈfrɑːns/ FRAHNSS; French: [fʁɑ̃s] ( listen)), officially the French Republic (French: République française [ʁepyblik fʁɑ̃sɛz]), is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. It is often referred to as l’Hexagone ("The Hexagon") because of the geometric shape of its territory. It is the largest western European country and it possesses the second-largest exclusive economic zone in the world, covering 11,035,000 km² (4,260,000 sq mi), just behind that of the United States (11,351,000 km² / 4,383,000 sq mi).
Over the past 500 years, France has been a major power with strong cultural, economic, military and political influence in Europe and around the world. During the 17th and 18th centuries, France colonised great parts of North America and Southeast Asia; during the 19th and early 20th centuries, France built the second largest colonial empire of the time, including large portions of North, West and Central Africa, Southeast Asia, and many Caribbean and Pacific Islands.

wn.com/France
French Guiana
French Guiana (French: Guyane française; French pronunciation: [ɡɥijan fʁɑ̃sɛz]; officially just Guyane) is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department located on the northern Atlantic coast of South America. It has borders with two nations: Brazil to the east and south, and Suriname to the west. Its 83,534 km² (32,253 sq mi) have a very low population density of less than 3 /km² (7.8 /sq mi), with almost half of its 229,000 people in 2009 living in the urban area of Cayenne, its capital.
The addition of the adjective "French" in English comes from colonial times when five such colonies existed (The Guianas), namely from west to east: Spanish Guiana (now Guayana Region in Venezuela), British Guiana (now Guyana), Dutch Guiana (now Suriname), French Guiana, and Portuguese Guiana (now Amapá, a state in far northern Brazil). French Guiana and the two larger countries to the north and west, Guyana and Suriname, are still often collectively referred to as the Guianas and comprise one large shield landmass.

wn.com/French_Guiana
Fréjus
Coordinates: 43°25′59″N 6°44′13″E / 43.4330°N 6.737°E / 43.4330; 6.737
Fréjus (Occitan: Frejús, French pronunciation: [fʁe.ʒys]) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It neighbours Saint-Raphaël, effectively forming one town. The north of the commune forms part of the Estérel Massif.
On 2 December 1959, the Malpasset Dam, on the Reyran river above Fréjus, ruptured, killing over 400 people.
Fréjus contains a medieval city as well as a popular seaside resort. Created by the Romans, it attracts many tourists because of its history, cultural and artistic qualities, its well maintained beaches, the sea and sporting facilities. There are numerous places of interest in the area, all are reasonably accessible from Fréjus because of its convenient location. The history of city is very similar to that of Provence. It was destroyed many times in spite of the presence of the Roman Legions. In 49 B.C., Julius Caesar decided to have the Adrian Way built linking Italy with Spain. In those days the Phoenicians of Marseille had already set up a colony on the site, but it was the Roman emperor who gave the port its prosperity and the city its name of 'Forum Julii' meaning 'market of Julius;' he also named its port 'Claustra Maris' (The sea bolt). It went on to become one of the most important ports in the Mediterranean, until the Pax Romana, by denying Forum Julii its military activity, marked the beginning of its decline. The decay of Rome led to that of the cities of its empire. Between the 7th and the 9th centuries, Muslim invaders repeatedly raided the city. The sea encroached on the land while invasions by the Muslims and pirates left the monuments in ruin. By the 10th century there was very little left of the colony, mostly rubble. Sea-borne silt clogged up the port and led to the formation of a huge swampy plain, which then separated the village from the sea.

wn.com/Fréjus
Gard
Gard (French pronunciation: [ɡaʁ]; Occitan: Gard) is a département located in southern France in the Languedoc-Roussillon region.
The department is named after the River Gardon, and the Occitan name of the river has been replacing the French name of the department in recent decades, even among French speakers.
The Gard area was settled by the Romans in classical times. It was crossed by the Via Domitia, which was constructed in 118 BC.
Gard is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from the ancient province of Languedoc.
It was originally intended to include the canton of Ganges in the department which would have been geographically logical, but Ganges was transferred to the neighbouring department of Hérault at the outset. In return, Gard received from Hérault the fishing port of Aigues Mortes which gave the department its own outlet to the Gulf of Lion.
During the middle of the nineteenth century the prefecture, traditionally a centre of commerce with a manufacturing sector focused on textiles, was an early beneficiary of railway development, becoming an important railway junction. Several luxurious hotels were built, and the improved market access provided by the railways also encouraged, initially, a rapid growth in wine growing: however, many of the department's viticulturalists were ruined by the arrival in 1872 of phylloxera.

wn.com/Gard
Gare de Toulon
Gare de Toulon is a railway station serving the city Toulon, Var department, southeastern France. It is situated on the Marseille–Ventimiglia railway.
As of August 2011 the following services call at Toulon:
Coordinates: 43°7′43″N 5°55′47″E / 43.12861°N 5.92972°E / 43.12861; 5.92972

wn.com/Gare_de_Toulon
Garéoult
Coordinates: 43°19′42″N 6°02′44″E / 43.3282°N 6.0456°E / 43.3282; 6.0456
Garéoult is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Garéoult
Gassin
Coordinates: 43°13′47″N 6°35′09″E / 43.2297°N 6.5858°E / 43.2297; 6.5858
Gassin is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It is located right next to Saint-Tropez. Perched high up on a rock, it is less than 4 km (2.5 mi) from the sea. Many Tropezian tourists attracted by a more affordable life prefer to stay in Gassin and enjoy the same kind of "Cote d'Azur" life.
It lies 2 kilometres from route D559 which links Hyères (41 km) and Sainte-Maxime (12 km).

wn.com/Gassin
Genoa
Genoa /ˈdʒɛnoʊ.ə/ (Italian: Genova [ˈdʒɛːnova] ( listen); Genoese and Ligurian Zena [ˈzeːna]; Latin and, archaically, English Genua) is the capital of Liguria and the sixth largest city in Italy, with a population of 608,676 within its administrative limits on a land area of 243.6 km² (94 sq mi). The urban zone of Genoa extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of 718,896. The urban area of Genoa has a population of 800,709. In the metropolitan area live between 859,000 and 1.4 million or 1.5 million people. Genoa is one of Europe's largest cities on the Mediterranean Sea and the largest seaport in Italy.
Genoa has been nicknamed la Superba ("the Superb one") due to its glorious past and impressive landmarks. Part of the old town of Genoa was inscribed on the World Heritage List (UNESCO) in 2006 (see below). The city's rich art, music, gastronomy, architecture and history, allowed it to become the 2004's European Capital of Culture. It is the birthplace of Christopher Columbus.

wn.com/Genoa
Germany
Germany (ⁱ/ˈdʒɜrməni/), officially the Federal Republic of Germany (German: Bundesrepublik Deutschland, pronounced [ˈbʊndəsʁepuˌbliːk ˈdɔʏtʃlant] ( listen)), is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km² and has a largely temperate seasonal climate. With 81.8 million inhabitants, it is the most populous member state and the largest economy in the European Union. It is one of the major political powers of the European continent and a technological leader in many fields.
A region named Germania, inhabited by several Germanic peoples, was documented before AD 100. During the Migration Period, the Germanic tribes expanded southward, and established successor kingdoms throughout much of Europe. 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 while southern and western parts remained dominated by Roman Catholic denominations, with the two factions clashing in the Thirty Years' War, marking the beginning of the Catholic–Protestant divide that has characterized German society ever since. Occupied during the Napoleonic Wars, the rise of Pan-Germanism inside the German Confederation resulted in the unification of most of the German states into the German Empire in 1871 which was Prussian dominated. After the German Revolution of 1918–1919 and the subsequent military surrender in World War I, the Empire was replaced by the Weimar Republic in 1918, and partitioned in the Treaty of Versailles. Amidst the Great Depression, the Third Reich was proclaimed in 1933. The latter period was marked by Fascism and World War II. After 1945, Germany was divided by allied occupation, and evolved into two states, East Germany and West Germany. In 1990 Germany was reunified.

wn.com/Germany
Gers
The Gers (French: le Gers, Gascon: Gers, pronounced: [ʒɛʁs] or [ʒɛʁ]) is a department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in the southwest of France named after the Gers River.
Inhabitants are called les Gersois or Gersoises.
In the Middle Ages, the Lordship of L'Isle-Jourdain was nearby.
The Gers is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Guyenne and Gascony.
In 1808 it lost Lavit on its the north-eastern side to the newly created department of Tarn-et-Garonne.
The culture is largely agricultural, with great emphasis on the local gastronomical specialties such as:
Also, some prominent cultivated crops are corn, colza, sunflowers and grain.
The Gascon language is a dialect of Occitan, but it is not widely spoken.The department is characterised by sleepy bastide villages and rolling hills with the Pyrenees visible to the south.
Alexandre Dumas, père created the famous Gersois d'Artagnan, the fourth musketeer of The Three Musketeers. A museum to d'Artagnan is found in the Gersois village of Lupiac.

wn.com/Gers
Ginasservis
Coordinates: 43°40′19″N 5°50′58″E / 43.6719°N 5.8494°E / 43.6719; 5.8494
Ginasservis is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Ginasservis
Gironde
For the Revolutionary party, see Girondists.
Gironde (French pronunciation: [ʒiʁɔ̃d]; in Gascon Gironda) is a common name for the Gironde estuary, where the mouths of the Garonne and Dordogne rivers merge, and for a department in the Aquitaine region situated in southwest France. The Bordeaux wine region is in the Gironde.
Gironde is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Guyenne and Gascogne.
From 1793 to 1795, the department's name was changed to Bec-d'Ambès to avoid the association with the revolutionary party, the Girondists.
Gironde is part of the current region of Aquitaine and is surrounded by the departments of Landes, Lot-et-Garonne, Dordogne and Charente-Maritime and the Atlantic Ocean on the west. With an area of 10,000 km², Gironde is the largest department in metropolitan France. If overseas departments are included, however, Gironde's land area is dwarfed by the 83,846 km² of Guyane.

wn.com/Gironde
Gonfaron
Coordinates: 43°19′17″N 6°17′23″E / 43.3214°N 6.2897°E / 43.3214; 6.2897
Gonfaron is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Its detached clock tower is topped with an unusual decorative wrought iron frame housing a bell. Gonfaron is best known for the local 'Village des Tortues', a rescue and breeding centre for tortoises.

wn.com/Gonfaron
Grenoble
Coordinates: 45°12′01″N 5°43′20″E / 45.2002°N 5.7222°E / 45.2002; 5.7222
Grenoble (French pronunciation: [ɡʁə.nɔbl]; Arpitan: Grenoblo) is a city in southeastern France, at the foot of the French Alps where the river Drac joins the Isère. Located in the Rhône-Alpes region, Grenoble is the capital of the department of Isère. The proximity of the mountains has led to the city being known as the "Capital of the Alps."
Grenoble's history goes back more than 2,000 years, and it has been the capital of the Dauphiné since the 11th century. It experienced a period of economic expansion in the nineteenth and 20th centuries, symbolized by the holding of the X Olympic Winter Games in 1968. The city is now a significant scientific centre in Europe.
The population of the city (commune) of Grenoble at the 2008 census was 156,659. The population of the Grenoble metropolitan area (French: aire urbaine de Grenoble) at the 2008 census was 664,832. The residents of the city are called "Grenoblois".
Among the numerous communes that make up Grenoble are the city's largest suburbs, Saint-Martin-d'Hères, Échirolles, and Fontaine, each with a population exceeding 20,000.

wn.com/Grenoble
Guadeloupe
Coordinates: 16°15′N 61°35′W / 16.25°N 61.583°W / 16.25; -61.583
Guadeloupe ( /ɡwɑːdəˈluːp/; French pronunciation: [ɡwadəlup]; Antillean Creole: Gwadloup) is a Caribbean island located in the Leeward Islands, in the Lesser Antilles, with a land area of 1,628 square kilometres (629 sq. mi) and a population of 400,000. It is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. Its departmental code is "971". As the other overseas departments, Guadeloupe is also an integral part of the Republic. Besides Guadeloupe island, the smaller islands of Marie-Galante, La Désirade, and the Îles des Saintes are included in Guadeloupe.
As part of France, Guadeloupe is part of the European Union and the Eurozone; hence, as for all Eurozone countries, its currency is the euro. However, Guadeloupe is not part of the Schengen Area. The prefecture and the capital of Guadeloupe is Basse-Terre. Christopher Columbus named the island Santa María de Guadalupe in 1493 after the Virgin Mary, venerated in the Spanish town of Guadalupe, in Extremadura.

wn.com/Guadeloupe
Guéret
Coordinates: 46°10′17″N 1°52′09″E / 46.1714°N 1.8692°E / 46.1714; 1.8692
Guéret (Occitan: Garait) is a commune and the prefecture of the Creuse department in the Limousin region in central France.
A light industrial town, the largest in the department, with a big woodland and a little farming not far from the town centre. It is approximately 45 miles (72 km) northeast of Limoges at the junction of the D942, D940 and the N145 roads.

Guéret is twinned with: Stein, Bavaria, Germany since 1991

wn.com/Guéret
Herzliya
Herzliya (Hebrew: הֶרְצְלִיָּה‎‎) is a city in the central coast of Israel, at the western part of the Tel Aviv District. It has a population of 87,000 residents. Named after Theodor Herzl, the founder of modern Zionism, Herzliya covers an area of 26 km². At its western municipal boundaries is Herzliya Pituah, one of Israel's most affluent districts, home to ambassadors, foreign diplomats and businessmen.
Herzliya, named after Theodor (Benyamin Zeev) Herzl, was founded in 1924 as a semi-cooperative farming community (moshava) with a mixed population of new immigrants and veteran residents. In the 1920s, the father and grandfather of Tal Brody helped build the country's first airfield in Herzliya. After the establishment of the state in 1948, large numbers of immigrants settled there. In 1960, when the population reached 25,000, Herzliya was declared a city.
According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics, residents of Herzliya are among the wealthiest in Israel. In 2003–2005, average monthly salaries were NIS 8,211, or about NIS 1,500 above average in a survey of Israel's 15 largest cities. However, there is a large gap between the city's seven working class neighborhoods, among them Yad Tisha, Neve Yisrael and Neve Amal, and upscale Herzliya Pituah. The population is older than that of other cities in the Sharon region: 18% are under 14 years old, compared to a national average of 27.5%.

wn.com/Herzliya
Hyères
Coordinates: 43°07′12″N 6°07′54″E / 43.1199°N 6.1316°E / 43.1199; 6.1316
Hyères (French pronunciation: [jɛːʁ]), Provençal Occitan: Ieras in classical norm, or Iero in Mistralian norm) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
The old town lies 4 km (2.5 mi) from the sea clustered around the Castle of Saint Bernard, which is set on a hill. Between the old town and the sea lies the pine-covered hill of Costebelle, which overlooks the peninsula of Giens. Hyères is the oldest resort on the French Riviera.
The Hellenic city of Olbia was refounded on the Phoenician settlement that dated to the fourth century BCE; Olbia is mentioned by the geographer Strabo (IV.1.5) as a city of the Massiliotes that was fortified "against the tribe of the Salyes and against those Ligures who live in the Alps." Greek and Roman antiquities have been found in the area. The first reference to the town dates from 964.
Originally a possession of the Viscount of Marseilles, it was later transferred to Charles of Anjou. Louis IX King of France (often known as "St Louis") landed at Hyères in 1254 when returning from the Crusades.

wn.com/Hyères
Hérault
Hérault (French pronunciation: [eʁo]; Occitan: Erau) is a department in the south of France named after the Hérault river.
Hérault is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on 4 March 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Languedoc.
At the beginning of the 20th century, viticulture in the region was devastated by a slump in sales combined with disease affecting the vines, and thousands of small scale producers revolted. This revolt was suppressed very harshly by the government of Georges Clemenceau.
The catastrophic frost of the winter of 1956 damaged the olive trees, and the olive-growing regions did not recover until the late 1980s. Many of the olive-industry co-ops closed.
During the second half of the twentieth century the Montpellier basin underwent one of the most rapid population increases experienced anywhere in France.
Hérault is part of the current region of Languedoc-Roussillon and is surrounded by the departments of Aude, Tarn, Aveyron, Gard, and the Mediterranean (Gulf of Lion) on the south.

wn.com/Hérault
Indre
Indre (French pronunciation: [ɛ̃dʁ]) is a department in the center of France named after the river Indre. The inhabitants of the department are called Indriens.
Indre is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Berry.
Indre is part of the current region of Centre (Val de Loire) and is surrounded by the departments of Indre-et-Loire, Loir-et-Cher, Cher, Creuse, Vienne, and Haute-Vienne.
The President of the General Council is Louis Pinton of the Union for a Popular Movement.
The Indre has two villages classified among the most beautiful villages of France: Saint-Benoît-du-Sault and Gargilesse-Dampierre.
Media related to Indre (department) at Wikimedia Commons

wn.com/Indre
Israel
Coordinates: 31°N 35°E / 31°N 35°E / 31; 35
Israel, officially the State of Israel ( /ˈɪzriːəl/ or /ˈɪzreɪəl/; Hebrew: מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל‎, Medīnat Yisrā'el, IPA: [me̞diˈnät jisʁäˈʔe̞l] ( listen); Arabic: دَوْلَة إِسْرَائِيل‎, Dawlat Isrāʼīl, IPA: [dawlat ʔisraːˈʔiːl]), is a parliamentary republic in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea. It borders Lebanon in the north, Syria in the northeast, Jordan and the West Bank in the east, Egypt and the Gaza Strip on the southwest, and the Gulf of Aqaba in the Red Sea to the south, and it contains geographically diverse features within its relatively small area. Israel is defined as a Jewish and Democratic State in its Basic Laws and is the world's only Jewish-majority state.
Following the adoption of a resolution by the General Assembly of the United Nations on 29 November 1947 recommending the adoption and implementation of the United Nations plan to partition Palestine, on 14 May 1948 David Ben-Gurion, the Executive Head of the World Zionist Organization and president of the Jewish Agency for Palestine, declared the establishment of a Jewish state in Eretz Israel, to be known as the State of Israel, a state independent from the British Mandate for Palestine. Neighboring Arab states invaded the next day in support of the Palestinian Arabs. Israel has since fought several wars with neighboring Arab states, in the course of which it has occupied the West Bank, Sinai Peninsula, Gaza Strip and the Golan Heights. Portions of these territories, including east Jerusalem, have been annexed by Israel, but the border with the neighboring West Bank has not yet been permanently defined.^{[neutrality is disputed]} Israel has signed peace treaties with Egypt and Jordan, but efforts to resolve the Israeli–Palestinian conflict have so far not resulted in peace.

wn.com/Israel
Isère
Isère (pronounced: [izɛːʁ]; Arpitan: Isera, Occitan: Isèra) is a department in the Rhône-Alpes (Rôno-Arpes in Arpitan) region in the east of France named after the river Isère.
Isère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Dauphiné. Its area has been reduced twice, in 1852 and again in 1967, on both occasions losing territory to the department of Rhône.
In 1852 in response to rapid urban development round the edge of Lyon, the (hitherto Isère) communes of Bron, Vaulx-en-Velin, Vénissieux and Villeurbanne were transferred to Rhône. In 1967 the redrawing of local government frontiers led to the creation of the Urban Community of Lyon (more recently known simply as Greater Lyon / Grand Lyon). At that time intercommunal groupings of this nature were not permitted to straddle departmental frontiers, and accordingly 23 more Isère communes (along with 6 communes from Ain) found themselves transferred to Rhône. The affected Isère communes were Chaponnay, Chassieu, Communay, Corbas, Décines-Charpieu, Feyzin, Genas, Jonage, Jons, Marennes, Meyzieu, Mions, Pusignan, Saint-Bonnet-de-Mure, Saint-Laurent-de-Mure, Saint-Pierre-de-Chandieu, Saint-Priest, Saint-Symphorien-d'Ozon, Sérézin-du-Rhône, Simandres, Solaize, Ternay and Toussieu.

wn.com/Isère
Italy
Italy ⁱ/ˈɪtəli/ (Italian: Italia [iˈtaːlja]), officially the Italian Republic or the Republic of Italy (Italian: Repubblica italiana), is a unitary parliamentary republic in south-central Europe. To the north, it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and Slovenia along the Alps. To the south, it consists of the entirety of the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Sardinia–the two largest islands in the Mediterranean Sea–and many other smaller islands. The independent states of San Marino and the Vatican City are enclaves within Italy, while Campione d'Italia is an Italian exclave in Switzerland. The territory of Italy covers some 301,338 km² (116,347 sq mi) and is influenced by a temperate seasonal climate. With 60.6 million inhabitants, it is the fifth most populous country in Europe, and the 23rd most populous in the world.
Rome, the capital of Italy, was for centuries a political and religious centre of Western civilisation as the capital of the Roman Empire and site of the Holy See. After the decline of the Roman Empire, Italy endured numerous invasions by foreign peoples, from Germanic tribes such as the Lombards and Ostrogoths, to the Byzantines and later, the Normans, among others. Centuries later, Italy became the birthplace of Maritime republics and the Renaissance, an immensely fruitful intellectual movement that would prove to be integral in shaping the subsequent course of European thought.

wn.com/Italy
Khemisset
Khemisset (lang-Amazigh / arabic |ⵅⴻⵎⵉⵙⵙⴻⵜ / الخميسات is a city in Morocco, population 111,971 (2008 census). It is situated on the A2 motorway between Rabat (81 km) and Meknès (57 km), and is the capital of the province Zemmour.
The French built in 1912 - 1914 a 600 mm narrow gauge railway from Rabat via Souk el Abra des Sehoul, Tiflet, Dar Caid Bou Driss to Khemissit. It was abandoned in 1935 and lifted before 1942. Between Tiflet, and Khemessit the old track bed of narrow gauge line was later built to Rabat Khemissed main road. The 18 of November Stadium has a capacity of 10,000 and hosts the home games of Ittihad Khémisset. A synthetic grass pitch will be installed in 2011. The population of khemisset ( Zemmour) are Berbers of the middle atlas. the belong to the zemmour group. They belong originally to the Beraber of the Semi Nomad.
Coordinates: 33°49′N 6°04′W / 33.817°N 6.067°W / 33.817; -6.067

wn.com/Khemisset
Kronstadt
Kronshtadt (Russian: Кроншта́дт), also spelled Kronstadt, Cronstadt (German: Krone for "crown" and Stadt for "city"; Finnish: Retusaari), is a municipal town in Kronshtadtsky District of the federal city of St. Petersburg, Russia, located on Kotlin Island, 30 kilometers (19 mi) west of Saint Petersburg proper near the head of the Gulf of Finland. Population: 42,999 (2010 Census preliminary results); 43,385 (2002 Census).
It is also St. Petersburg's main seaport. In March 1921 it was the site of the Kronstadt rebellion.
Traditionally, the seat of the Russian admiralty and the base of the Russian Baltic Fleet were located in Kronstadt guarding the approaches to Saint Petersburg. The historic centre of the city and its fortifications are part of the World Heritage Site Saint Petersburg and Related Groups of Monuments.
Kronstadt has been a place of pilgrimage for Orthodox Christians for many years due to the holy memory of Saint John of Kronstadt. Bus and water tours to Kronstadt are taken daily from Saint Petersburg

wn.com/Kronstadt
La Crau
Coordinates: 43°09′02″N 6°04′29″E / 43.1506°N 6.0747°E / 43.1506; 6.0747
La Crau is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/La_Crau
La Farlède
Coordinates: 43°10′07″N 6°02′37″E / 43.1686°N 6.0436°E / 43.1686; 6.0436
La Farlède is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/La_Farlède
La Môle
Coordinates: 43°12′33″N 6°27′58″E / 43.2092°N 6.4661°E / 43.2092; 6.4661
La Môle is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/La_Môle
La Rochelle
Coordinates: 46°09′33″N 1°09′06″W / 46.1591°N 1.1517°W / 46.1591; -1.1517
La Rochelle (French pronunciation: [la ʁɔ.ʃɛl]) is a city in western France and a seaport on the Bay of Biscay, a part of the Atlantic Ocean. It is the capital of the Charente-Maritime department.
The city is connected to the Île de Ré by a 2.9 km (1.8 mi) bridge completed on 19 May 1988. Its harbour opens into a protected strait, the Pertuis d'Antioche.
The area of La Rochelle was occupied in antiquity by the Gallic tribe of the Santones, who gave their name to the nearby region of Saintonge and the city of Saintes.
The Romans then occupied the area, where they developed salt production along the coast as well as wine production, which was then re-exported throughout the Empire. Roman villas have been found at Saint-Éloi and at Les Minimes, as well as salt evaporation ponds dating from the same period.
La Rochelle was founded during the 10th century and became an important harbour in the 12th century. The establishment of La Rochelle as a harbour was a consequence of the victory of Guillaume X, Duke of Aquitaine over Isambert de Châtelaillon in 1130 and the subsequent destruction of his harbour of Châtelaillon. In 1137, Guillaume X to all intents and purposes made La Rochelle a free port and gave it the right to establish itself as a commune. Fifty years later Eleanor of Aquitaine upheld the communal charter promulgated by her father, and for the first time in France, a city mayor was appointed for La Rochelle, Guillaume de Montmirail. Guillaume was assisted in his responsibilities by 24 municipal magistrates, and 75 notables who had jurisdiction over the inhabitants. Under the communal charter, the city obtained many privileges, such as the right to mint its own coins, and to operate some businesses free of royal taxes, factors which would favour the development of the entrepreuneurial middle-class (bourgeoisie).

wn.com/La_Rochelle
La Roquebrussanne
Coordinates: 43°20′28″N 5°58′37″E / 43.3411°N 5.9769°E / 43.3411; 5.9769
La Roquebrussanne is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/La_Roquebrussanne
La Spezia
La Spezia (Italian: [la ˈspɛtsi̯a] ( listen); Spèza in the local dialect of Ligurian), at the head of the Gulf of La Spezia in the Liguria region of northern Italy, is the capital city of the province of La Spezia. Located between Genoa and Pisa on the Ligurian Sea, it is one of the main Italian military and commercial harbours and hosts one of Italy's biggest military industries, OTO Melara.
The area of La Spezia has been settled since pre-historic times. In Roman times the most important centre was Luni now located in the vicinity of Sarzana (city near La Spezia). Capital of the short-lived Niccolò Fieschi Signoria in the period between 1256 and 1273, inevitably linked with the Genoese vicissitudes until the fall of the Republic of Genoa, it grew and changed to develop following the lines of the Ligurian capital.
In fact this Ligurian influence is still visible in the urban layout as well as in the types of buildings and decorations. It can be seen by going along the carrugio, the narrow street dividing the Old Town into two, called via del Prione taking its name from pietrone or large stone, in local dialect in fact prione, from where public announcements were read. Going up from the sea it is possible to see partly hidden but evident traces of history: engraved stones, capitals and portals in 14th century sandstone, double lancet windows vaguely reminiscent of the future renaissance style, mannerism and baroque pediments and decorations similar to those adorning the portals of the palaces once belonging to the Doria family and the Princes of Massa.

wn.com/La_Spezia
La Verdière
Coordinates: 43°38′22″N 5°56′12″E / 43.6394°N 5.9367°E / 43.6394; 5.9367
La Verdière is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Perched at the top of the village, the Château of La Verdière embraces a vast panorama. To the north one can see the communes of Moustiers-Sainte-Marie and Castellane, to the west the Mont Ventoux and the Luberon, south-west, the mountains of Sainte-Baume and Sainte-Victoire and south-east, the Montagnes des Maures (chain of mountains from the Alps to the Rhone).
In 980, the family of the Counts de Castellane, one of the most ancient and illustrious families of Provence, built a fortress: La Verdière. Having belonged to the Counts of Ventimiglia from 1262 to 1437, the building returned to the house of Castellane and in 1613, the family of the Counts of Forbin. These three great families gave the castle of La Verdière special architecture born out of these different periods of development.

wn.com/La_Verdière
Laon
Coordinates: 49°33′50″N 3°37′28″E / 49.5639°N 3.6244°E / 49.5639; 3.6244
Laon (French pronunciation: [lɑ̃]) is the capital city of the Aisne department in Picardy in northern France.
The hilly district of Laon, which rises a hundred metres above the otherwise flat Picardy plain, has always held strategic importance. In the time of Julius Caesar there was a Gallic village named Bibrax where the Remis (inhabitants of the country round Reims) had to meet the onset of the confederated Belgae. Whatever may have been the precise locality of that battlefield, Laon was fortified by the Romans, and successively checked the invasions of the Franks, Burgundians, Vandals, Alans and Huns. At that time it was known as Alaudanum or Lugdunum Clavatum.
Remigius, archbishop of Reims, who baptised Clovis, was born in the Laonnais, and it was he who, at the end of the fifth century, instituted the bishopric of Laon. Thenceforward Laon was one of the principal towns of the kingdom of the Franks, and the possession of it was often disputed. Charles the Bald had enriched its church with the gift of very numerous domains. About 847 the Irish philosopher John Scotus Eriugena appeared at the court of Charles the Bald, and was appointed head of the palace school. Eriugena spent the rest of his days in France, probably at Paris and Laon. After the fall of the Carolingians Laon took the part of Charles of Lorraine, their heir, and Hugh Capet only succeeded in making himself master of the town by the connivance of the bishop, who, in return for this service, was made second ecclesiastical peer of the kingdom.

wn.com/Laon
Le Beausset
Coordinates: 43°11′56″N 5°48′12″E / 43.1989°N 5.8033°E / 43.1989; 5.8033
Le Beausset is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Le_Beausset
Le Bourguet
Coordinates: 43°47′06″N 6°31′10″E / 43.78500000°N 6.5194°E / 43.78500000; 6.5194
Le Bourguet is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It is also a very small commune.

wn.com/Le_Bourguet
Le Lavandou
Coordinates: 43°08′19″N 6°22′06″E / 43.1386°N 6.3683°E / 43.1386; 6.3683
Le Lavandou (pronounced: [lə lavɑ̃du]; Occitan: Lo Lavandor) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It derives its name either from the flower lavender (lavanda in Provençal) that is prevalent in the area, or more prosaicly from the local form of the Occitan name for lavoir, lavandor (for lavador, a public place for washing clothes).
The (then) village is where the famous popular song A Nightingale Sang in Berkeley Square was written in the summer of 1939. The words were by Eric Maschwitz and the music by Manning Sherwin, with its title ‘stolen’ from a story by Michael Arlen. The song had its first performance in a local bar, where the melody was played on piano by Manning Sherwin with the help of the resident saxophonist. Maschwitz sang the words while holding a glass of wine, but nobody seemed impressed.
In the spring of 2002, at attempt was made to find the bar where this classic song was first performed with the view to having a blue plaque set up. With the help of the local tourist office, elderly residents were questioned, but it proved impossible to establish the venue.

wn.com/Le_Lavandou
Le Luc
Coordinates: 43°23′44″N 6°18′48″E / 43.3956°N 6.3133°E / 43.3956; 6.3133
Le Luc (also known as Le Luc-en-Provence) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Le Luc is the capital of its own canton Canton of Luc.
Residents of Luc are called the Lucois.
With 119.3 days per year (source: Meteo France, calculated over the period 1971-2000), Le Luc is the municipality with the most "summer day" in France , that is to say, days for which the maximum temperature is greater than or equal to 25°C.

wn.com/Le_Luc
Le Mans
Coordinates: 48°00′28″N 0°11′54″E / 48.0077°N 0.1984°E / 48.0077; 0.1984
Le Mans (French pronunciation: [ləmɑ̃]) is a city in France, located on the Sarthe River. Traditionally the capital of the province of Maine, it is now the capital of the Sarthe department and the seat of the Roman Catholic diocese of Le Mans. Le Mans is a part of the Pays de la Loire region.
Its inhabitants are called Manceaux and Mancelles. It has been host to the famous 24 Hours of Le Mans sports car race since 1923.
First mentioned by Ptolemy, the Roman city Vindinium was the capital of the Aulerci, a sub tribe of the Aedui. Le Mans is also known as Civitas Cenomanorum (City of the Cenomani). Their city, seized by the Romans in 47 BC, lies in the ancient Roman province of Gallia Lugdunensis. An amphitheatre built in the third century AD is still visible, but the thermae were demolished during the crisis of the third century to build the city's walls, which remain some of the most complete circuit of Gallo-Roman city walling that survives.

wn.com/Le_Mans
Le Mourillon
Le Mourillon is a small seaside neighborhood to the east of the French city of Toulon, near the entrance to the Rade or roadstead. It was once a fishing village, and then became the home of many of the officers of the French fleet and to part of the naval dockyard. Mourillon has a small fishing port, next to a 16th-century fort, Fort Saint Louis, which was reconstructed by Vauban. In the 1970s the city of Toulon built a series of sheltered sandy beaches in Mourillon, which today are very popular with the Toulonais and with naval families. The Museum of Asian Art is located in a house on the waterfront near Fort St. Louis.
Coordinates: 43°06′25″N 5°55′55″E / 43.10694°N 5.93194°E / 43.10694; 5.93194

wn.com/Le_Mourillon
Le Muy
Coordinates: 43°28′25″N 6°34′00″E / 43.4736°N 6.5667°E / 43.4736; 6.5667
Le Muy is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It was one of the first places to be liberated in the Allied invasion of Southern France in August 1944.
It lies near Draguignan and Saint-Tropez.
In Tour Charles Quint, we must visit the Liberation Museum, about Operation Dragoon in 1944.

wn.com/Le_Muy
Le Pradet
Coordinates: 43°06′23″N 6°01′26″E / 43.1064°N 6.0239°E / 43.1064; 6.0239
Le Pradet is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Olive oil, vegetables and wine grape (including rare Tibouren variety used for rose wine) are produced in the local farms.
Le Pradet, is twinned with:

wn.com/Le_Pradet
Le Thoronet
Coordinates: 43°27′10″N 6°18′16″E / 43.4528°N 6.3044°E / 43.4528; 6.3044
Le Thoronet is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It is known for the romanesque Le Thoronet Abbey, built in the 12th and 13th century.

wn.com/Le_Thoronet
Le Val
Coordinates: 43°26′25″N 6°04′26″E / 43.4403°N 6.0739°E / 43.4403; 6.0739
Le Val (Lo Vau in Occitan) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Le_Val
Les Mayons
Coordinates: 43°18′50″N 6°21′31″E / 43.3139°N 6.3586°E / 43.3139; 6.3586
Les Mayons is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It lies approximately 30 km from St Tropez and 10 km from Le Luc.

wn.com/Les_Mayons
Lille
Coordinates: 50°38′14″N 3°03′48″E / 50.6372°N 3.0633°E / 50.6372; 3.0633
Lille (French pronunciation: [lil] ( listen); Dutch: Rijsel) is a city in northern France (French Flanders). It is the principal city of the Lille Métropole, the fourth-largest metropolitan area in the country behind those of Paris, Lyon and Marseille. Lille is situated on the Deûle River, near France's border with Belgium. It is the capital of the Nord-Pas de Calais region and the prefecture of the Nord department.
The city of Lille, which annexed Lomme on 27 February 2000, had a population of 226,014 at the 2006 census. Meanwhile, the Lille Métropole, which also includes Roubaix, Tourcoing and numerous suburban communities, had a population of 1,091,438. The eurodistrict of Lille-Kortrijk, which also includes the areas of the Belgian cities of Kortrijk, Tournai, Mouscron and Ypres, had 1,905,000 residents.^{[citation needed]}
The legend of "Lydéric and Phinaert" puts the foundation of the city of "L'Isle" at 640. Although the first mention of the town appears in archives from the year 1066, some archeological digs seem to show the area as inhabited by as early as 2000 BC^{[citation needed]}, most notably in the modern-day quartiers of Fives, Wazemmes, and Old Lille.

wn.com/Lille
Limoges
Coordinates: 45°50′07″N 1°15′45″E / 45.8353°N 1.2625°E / 45.8353; 1.2625
Limoges (French pronunciation: [li.mɔʒ], Lemòtges or Limòtges in the Limousin dialect of Occitan) is a city and commune, the capital of the Haute-Vienne department and the administrative capital of the Limousin région in west-central France.
Limoges is known for its medieval enamels (Limoges enamels) on copper, for its 19th-century porcelain (Limoges porcelain) and for its oak barrels (Limousin oak), which are used for Cognac production.
Limoges is the chief-town of 16 cantons: Limoges-Beaupuy, Limoges-Carnot, Limoges-Centre, Limoges-Cité, Limoges-Condat, Limoges-Corgnac, Limoges-Couzeix, Limoges-Émailleurs, Limoges-Grand-Treuil, Limoges-Isle, Limoges-La Bastide, Limoges-Landouge, Limoges-Le Palais, Limoges-Panazol, Limoges-Puy-las-Rodas, and Limoges-Vigenal.
Scarce remains of pre-urban settlements have been found in the area of Limoges. The capital of the Gaulish people of the Lemovices, who lived in the area, was probably some kilometres south-east of Saint-Léonard-de-Noblat.

wn.com/Limoges
Loiret
Loiret (French pronunciation: [lwaʁɛ]) is a department in north-central France
The department is named after the river Loiret, a tributary of the Loire. The Loiret is located wholly within the department.
Loiret is one of the original 83 departments that was created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from the former province of Orléanais.
Loiret is part of the current region of Centre and is surrounded by the departments of Essonne, Seine-et-Marne, Yonne, Nièvre, Cher, Loir-et-Cher, and Eure-et-Loir.
Orléans is a popular tourist destination, with its cathedral of Ste. Croix.

wn.com/Loiret
Lorgues
Coordinates: 43°29′42″N 6°21′40″E / 43.4949°N 6.3612°E / 43.4949; 6.3612
Lorgues is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Lorgues is located in the middle of wineries and fields of olive trees. It's in the center of the department of the Var between the Mediterranean Sea and the Gorges du Verdon.
You can access it via freeway A8 (20 km) or the SNCF train station of Les Arcs-Draguignan (12 km), Toulon Airport at 45 mn, Nice Airport at 1 h and Marignane airport 1 h 30 away.
Lorgues Memory and Patrimony : [1]

See also: Lorgues Memory and Patrimony : [2]

wn.com/Lorgues
Lozère
Lozère (French pronunciation: [lɔzɛʁ]; Occitan: Losera), is a department in southeast France near the Massif Central, named after Mont Lozère.
Lozère is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the former province of Languedoc.
The Beast of Gévaudan was a creature that terrorized the general area of the former province of Gévaudan, with nearly identical borders to today's Lozère, in the Margeride Mountains, in the general timeframe of 1764 to 1767.
Pliny's Natural History praised the cheese of Lozère:
The geography of Lozère is complicated, covering four mountain ranges. In the north-west, the basalt plateau of Aubrac rises between 1,000 and 1,450m, with a cold humid climate influenced by the Atlantic. The north and north-east of the department contains the Margeride mountains, which are formed of granite, and have peaks between 1,000 and 1,550m. The climate here is also cold, but dryer than Aubrac, with less snow.

wn.com/Lozère
Lyon
Coordinates: 45°45′35″N 4°50′32″E / 45.7597°N 4.8422°E / 45.7597; 4.8422
Lyon (French pronunciation: [ljɔ̃] ( listen), locally: [lijɔ̃]; Occitan: Lion [liˈu]; Arpitan: Liyon [ʎjɔ̃]; English: /liːˈɒn/), traditionally spelt Lyons in English, is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located approximately 470 km (292 mi) from Paris, 320 km (199 mi) from Marseille, 420 km (261 mi) from Strasbourg, 160 km (99 mi) from Geneva, 280 km (174 mi) from Turin. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais.
The city of Lyon has 483,181 inhabitants. Together with its suburbs and satellite towns, Lyon forms the largest conurbation in France outside Paris with a population estimated to be 1,422,331; its overall metropolitan area was estimated to have a population of 2,118,132. Its urban region represents half of the Rhône-Alpes region population with 2.9 million inhabitants. Lyon is the capital of this region, as well as the capital of the smaller Rhône département.

wn.com/Lyon
Mamoudzou
Coordinates: 12°46′50″S 45°13′40″E / 12.7806°S 45.2278°E / -12.7806; 45.2278
Mamoudzou is the capital of the French overseas region and department of Mayotte, in the Indian Ocean. Mamoudzou, known as Momoju in the local Shimaore language, is the most populated commune (municipality) of Mayotte. It is located on Grande-Terre (or Mahoré), the main island of Mayotte. The former capital of Mayotte was Dzaoudzi, on the small island of Petite-Terre (or Pamanzi), but Mamoudzou was chosen as the capital in 1977. The island is located in the Mozambique Channel, between northern Mozambique and northern Madagascar.
The commune is composed of 6 villages in addition to its central habitation, also called Mamoudzou. These are: Kawéni, Mtsapéré, Passamainti, Vahibé, Tsoundzou I and Tsoundzou II.
The commune is also subdivided into 3 cantons; Mamoudzou I, Mamoudzou II and Mamoudzou III.

wn.com/Mamoudzou
Manche
Manche (French pronunciation: [mɑ̃ʃ]) is a French department in Normandy named after La Manche ("the sleeve"), which is the French name for the English Channel.
Manche is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the province of Normandie.
The first capital was Coutances until 1796, and it resumed that role after World War II because of the almost complete destruction of Saint-Lô during the D-Day invasion of Normandy. When Saint-Lô was rebuilt, it again became the capital.
The Department includes the Cotentin Peninsula down to the famous Mont St Michel; though not the off-shore Îles Anglo-Normandes, which are British Crown Dependencies. These islands are a wonderful example of when Normandy invaded England and vice-versa, and oaths of allegiance to new kings got mixed up. Other reefs and not quite islands such as the Minquiers are technically British, though they are annually contested in good fun by French and Channel Island fishermen. The coast is fantastic for sailing and boating though the unusually fast tidal races require a certain yachting skill to navigate safely.

wn.com/Manche
Marikina
The City of Marikina, in the Philippines, is one of the 17 cities that make up Metro Manila, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. Marikina was former capital of the province of Manila during the declaration of Philippine Independence. The city divided into two districts and composed of 16 barangays. Marikina is one of the top 20 largest cities in terms of population and one of the wealthiest local government unit in the country.
Marikina was given the title the "Shoe Capital of the Philippines" because of its notable shoe industry, being the biggest manufacturer of shoes in the Philippines, producing almost 70% of shoe production in the country. Shoemakers in the city recently finished creating the "World's Largest Pair of Shoes" and it was only recently that the Guinness World Records recognized this feat. The Shoe Museum is home of the famous shoe collection of the former First Lady Imelda Marcos, shoes of the world leaders, past presidents, famous people, and shoes of different countries around the world, and making it the largest collection of pair of shoes in the world.

wn.com/Marikina
Marne
Marne (French pronunciation: [maʁn]) is a department in north-eastern France named after the river Marne (Matrona in Roman times) which flows through the department. The prefecture (capital) of Marne is Châlons-en-Champagne (formerly known as Châlons-sur-Marne). 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 training ground of the Camp Militaire de Mailly straddles the border with the département of Aube in the south while that of the Camp de Mourmelon occupies a large area north of Châlons-en-Champagne. The smaller Camp de Moronvilliers lies to the east of Reims and the Camp Militaire de Suippes lies to the east of that. 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.

wn.com/Marne
Marseille
Coordinates: 43°17′47″N 5°22′12″E / 43.2964°N 5.37°E / 43.2964; 5.37
Marseille ( /mɑrˈseɪ/; also Marseilles in English; French: [maʁsɛj], locally: [mɑχˈsɛjə]; Occitan: Marselha [maʀˈsejɔ, maʀˈsijɔ]), known in antiquity as Massilia or Massalia (from Greek: Μασσαλία), is the second largest city in France, after Paris, with a population of 852,395 within its administrative limits on a land area of 240.62 km² (93 sq mi). The urban area of Marseille extends beyond the city limits with a population of over 1,420,000 on an area of 1,204 km² (465 sq mi). 1,530,000 or 1,601,095 people live in the Marseille metropolitan area, ranking it third among French metropolitan areas after Paris and Lyon. Located on the southeast coast of France, Marseille is France's largest city on the Mediterranean coast and largest commercial port. Marseille is the capital of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region, as well as the capital of the Bouches-du-Rhône department. Its inhabitants are called Marseillais.
Marseille is the second largest city in France after Paris and the centre of the third largest metropolitan area in France after Paris and Lyon. To the east, starting in the small fishing village of Callelongue on the outskirts of Marseille and stretching as far as Cassis, are the Calanques, a rugged coastal area interspersed with small fjords. Further east still are the Sainte-Baume, a 1,147 m (3,763 ft) mountain ridge rising from a forest of deciduous trees, the town of Toulon and the French Riviera. To the north of Marseille, beyond the low Garlaban and Etoile mountain ranges, is the 1,011 m (3,317 ft) Mont Sainte Victoire. To the west of Marseille is the former artists' colony of l'Estaque; further west are the Côte Bleue, the Gulf of Lion and the Camargue region in the Rhône delta. The airport lies to the north west of the city at Marignane on the Étang de Berre.

wn.com/Marseille
Martinique
Martinique (French pronunciation: [maʁtinik]) is an island in the Lesser Antilles in the eastern Caribbean Sea, with a land area of 1,128 km² (436 sq mi). Like Guadeloupe, it is an overseas region of France, consisting of a single overseas department. To the northwest lies Dominica, to the south St Lucia, and to the southeast Barbados. As with the other overseas departments, Martinique is one of the twenty-seven regions of France (being an overseas region) and an integral part of the Republic. The first European to encounter the island was Christopher Columbus in 1502.
As part of France, Martinique is part of the European Union, and its currency is the Euro. Its official language is French, although many of its inhabitants also speak Antillean Creole (Créole Martiniquais).
The island was occupied first by Arawaks, then by Caribs. It was charted by Columbus in 1493, but Spain had little interest in the territory. It was claimed by France in 1635 and, despite several interludes of British occupation, once during the Seven Years' War and twice during the Napoleonic Wars, has remained a French possession. In 1946, the French National Assembly voted unanimously to transform the colony into an overseas department.

wn.com/Martinique
Mayenne
Mayenne (French pronunciation: [majɛn]) is a department in northwest France named after the Mayenne River.
Mayenne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. The northern two thirds correspond to the western part of the former province of Maine. The southern third of Mayenne corresponds to the northern portion of the old province of Anjou.
After the Coalition's victory at Waterloo, between June 1815 and November 1818, Mayenne was occupied by Prussian troops.
Mayenne is part of the current region of Pays de la Loire and is surrounded by the departments of Manche, Orne, Sarthe, Maine-et-Loire, and Ille-et-Vilaine.
The inhabitants of the department are called Mayennais. This demonym is not the source of the word mayonnaise.
The town is featured as a level in the World War II video game Call of Duty 3.

wn.com/Mayenne
Mayotte
Mayotte (French: Mayotte, pronounced: [majɔt]; Shimaore: Maore, IPA: [maˈore]; Malagasy: Mahori) is an overseas department and region of France consisting of a main island, Grande-Terre (or Mahoré), a smaller island, Petite-Terre (or Pamanzi), and several islets around these two. The archipelago is located in the northern Mozambique Channel in the Indian Ocean, namely between northwestern Madagascar and northeastern Mozambique. Mayotte's area is 374 square kilometres (144 sq mi), and with its estimated 194,000 people is very densely populated (520 /km² or 1,300 /sq mi). Its biggest city and prefecture is Mamoudzou. The territory is geographically part of the Comoro Islands, but has been politically separate since a 1974 referendum in which it elected to remain under French rule. The territory is also known as Mahoré, the native name of its main island, especially by advocates of its inclusion in the Union of Comoros. In a 2009 referendum, the population overwhelmingly approved accession to status of department (95.2% voted in favour of departmental status). On March 31, 2011, Mayotte became an overseas department.

wn.com/Mayotte
Mazaugues
Coordinates: 43°20′55″N 5°55′21″E / 43.3486°N 5.9225°E / 43.3486; 5.9225
Mazaugues is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Mazaugues
Melun
Coordinates: 48°32′26″N 2°39′36″E / 48.5406°N 2.66°E / 48.5406; 2.66
Melun is a commune in the Seine-et-Marne department in the Île-de-France region in north-central France. Located in the south-eastern suburbs of Paris, Melun is the capital of the department, as the seat of an arrondissement. Its inhabitants are called Melunais.
Meledunum began as a Gaulish town; Caesar noted Melun as "a town of the Senones, situated on an island in the Seine"; at the island there was a wooden bridge, which his men repaired. Roman Meledunum was a mutatio where fresh horses were kept available for official couriers on the Roman road south-southeast of Paris, where it forded the Seine.
The Normans sacked it in 845. The castle of Melun became a royal residence of the Capetian kings. Hugh Capet (See also: House of Capet) gave Melun to Bouchard, his favorite. In the reign of Hugh's son, Robert II of France, Eudes, the count of Champagne, bought the city, and the king took it back for the viscount in 999. Le Chatelain and his wife, who had sold the city, were hanged. Robert died there in July 1031.

wn.com/Melun
Metz
Metz (French pronunciation: [mɛs] ( listen); German: [ˈmɛts]) is a city in the northeast of France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers.
Metz is the capital of the Lorraine region and prefecture of the Moselle department. Located near the tripoint along the junction of France, Germany, and Luxembourg, Metz forms a central place of the European Greater Region and of the SaarLorLux Euroregion. So, Metz is a fellow member of the QuattroPole union of cities, along with Luxembourg City and German Saarbrücken and Trier.
A Celtic oppidum, an important Gallo-Roman city, the Merovingian capital of the Austrasia kingdom, the birthplace of the Carolingian dynasty, a cradle of the Gregorian chant, and one of the oldest republics of the common era in Europe, Metz has a rich 3,000 year history. The city has been steeped in Romance culture, but has been strongly influenced by Germanic culture due to its location and history. A basin of urban ecology, pioneered under the leadership of people like Jean-Marie Pelt, Metz gained its nickname, The Green City, boasting over 37 m² (398 sq ft) of open ground per inhabitant and the city's historic downtown also displays one of the largest commercial, pedestrian areas in France.

wn.com/Metz
Meuse
Meuse (French pronunciation: [møz]) is a department in northeast France, named after the River Meuse.
Meuse is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from the former provinces of Barrois (area of Bar-le-Duc) and Three Bishoprics (area of Verdun).
The department was one of the great battlefields of World War I; an important battle was fought in 1916 at Verdun.
Meuse is part of the current region of Lorraine and is surrounded by the French departments of Ardennes, Marne, Haute-Marne, Vosges, Meurthe-et-Moselle, and Belgium on the north. Parts of Meuse belong to Parc naturel régional de Lorraine.
The important rivers are the following:
The population has decreased sharply since the 19th century, with the rural exodus to the cities.

wn.com/Meuse
Montauban
Coordinates: 44°01′05″N 1°21′21″E / 44.0181°N 1.3558°E / 44.0181; 1.3558
Montauban (French pronunciation: [mɔ̃.to.bɑ̃]; Montalban in Occitan) is a commune in the Tarn-et-Garonne department in the Midi-Pyrénées region in southern France. It is the capital of the department and lies 50 kilometres (31 mi) north of Toulouse.
The town, built mainly of a reddish brick, stands on the right bank of the Tarn River at its confluence with the Tescou.
Montauban is the second oldest (after Mont-de-Marsan) of the bastides of southern France. Its foundation dates from 1144 when Alphonse Jourdain, count of Toulouse, granted it a liberal charter. The inhabitants were drawn chiefly from Montauriol, a village which had grown up around the neighbouring monastery of St Théodard.
In the 13th century the town suffered much from the ravages of the Albigensian war and from the Inquisition, but by 1317 it had recovered sufficiently to be chosen by John XXII as the head of a diocese of which the basilica of St Théodard became the cathedral.

wn.com/Montauban
Montauroux
Coordinates: 43°37′09″N 6°45′57″E / 43.6192°N 6.7658°E / 43.6192; 6.7658
Montauroux is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Its neighbor town is the picturesque Callian which can be seen across a small valley.
Montauroux is situated in the east of the Var and at the border of the Alpes-Maritimes. Montauroux rises in tiers of altitudes from 150 m to 400 m. The village has a southern exposure, facing the Esterel massif and the St Cassien Lake. Montauroux is located mid-way between the sea which is 30 km (19 mi) away and the first ski resort which is 40 km (25 mi), away. Montauroux benefits from an exceptional amount of sunny days and is visited by tourists in the summer months,many hotels are often fully booked for the summer by mid-April or earlier.
There is a house of sisters of the Community of the Glorious Ascension, an Anglican order, at Prasada in Montauroux.

wn.com/Montauroux
Montmeyan
Coordinates: 43°38′51″N 6°03′50″E / 43.6475°N 6.0639°E / 43.6475; 6.0639
Montmeyan (Mount-Meyan in Provençal language of Mistralian norm and Montmejan in classical norm) is a French commune (municipality), located in the department of Var, in the region of Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur.
Montmeyan is a fortified medieval village, built at 504 m altitude on a rocky promontory in the middle of the plain, near the gorges du Verdon and lac de Sainte-Croix.
The towers of the fortifications still overlook a charming village with narrow streets, vaulted passages, stairs and retaining sleepers arches.
With an area of 3943 hectares, the commune of Montmeyan now totals 532 permanent inhabitants.
Overview southwest side.
Former chapel Holy Spirit.
Overview southeast side.
Ramparts dating from the 12th century.
The syncline of Montmeyan is a rift oriented north-south, created by the first Alpine movement dating from the Oligocene epoch, which extends over 12 km between Quinson and Fox-Amphoux. It is filled with red clays dating from the Lower Eocene, divided into two masses by a limestone bank.

wn.com/Montmeyan
Montpellier
Coordinates: 43°36′43″N 3°52′38″E / 43.6119°N 3.8772°E / 43.6119; 3.8772
Montpellier (French pronunciation: [mɔ̃.pe.lje]; Occitan: Montpelhièr; Catalan: Montpeller) is a city in southern France. It is the capital of the Languedoc-Roussillon region, as well as the Hérault department. Montpellier is the 8th largest city of the country, and is also the fastest growing city in France over the past 25 years.
Montpellier is one of the few large cities in France without any (Gallo-)Roman heritage and also one of the few cities in southern France without a Greek foundation.

wn.com/Montpellier
Morbihan
Morbihan (French pronunciation: [mɔʁbi.ɑ̃]; Breton: Mor-Bihan) is a department in Brittany, situated in the northwest of France. It is named after the Morbihan (small sea in Breton), the enclosed sea that is the principal feature of the coastline. It is famous for the Carnac stones, which are more extensive and predates the more familiar Stonehenge.
Morbihan is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from a part of the Duchy of Brittany. It is the only French department which has no French name; the word Morbihan is Breton. It is also the only department in France which has kept its original name.
Morbihan is part of the current region of Brittany and is surrounded by the departments of Finistère, Côtes-d'Armor, Ille-et-Vilaine, and Loire-Atlantique, and the Atlantic Ocean on the southwest.
The Gulf of Morbihan has many islands: 365 according to legend, but, in reality, between 30 and 40, according to how they are counted. There are also many islets which are too small to be built on. Of these islands, all but two are private: l'Île aux Moines and l'Île D'Arz. The others are privately owned, some by movie stars or fashion designers.

wn.com/Morbihan
Morocco
Morocco (Arabic: المغرب‎ al-Maghrib ; Berber: ⵍⵎⴻⵖⵔⵉⴱ / ⴰⵎⴻⵔⵔⵓⴽElmeɣrib / Amerruk), officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country located in North Africa. It has a population of about 32 million and an area of 710,850 km², including the disputed region of the Western Sahara, seen by and mostly administered by Morocco as the Southern Provinces. Morocco is part of the Maghreb region, in addition to Tunisia, Algeria, Mauritania, and Libya, with which it shares cultural, historical and linguistic ties.
Morocco is a constitutional monarchy with an elected parliament. The King of Morocco holds vast executive powers, including the power to dissolve the parliament. Executive power is exercised by the government but more importantly by the king himself. Legislative power is vested in both the government and the two chambers of parliament, the Assembly of Representatives and the Assembly of Councillors. The king can also issue decrees called dahirs which have the force of law. The latest Parliamentary elections were held in November 25, 2011, and were considered by some neutral observers to be mostly free and fair. Voter turnout in these elections was estimated to be 43% of registered voters, but only about 25% of Moroccan adult citizens actually voted. The rest either chose not to vote or they were not registered as voters. The political capital is Rabat, but the largest city is Casablanca; other main cities include Marrakesh, Tetouan, Tangier, Salé, Fes, Agadir, Meknes, Oujda, Kenitra, and Nador.

wn.com/Morocco
Moselle
Moselle (French pronunciation: [mɔ.zɛl]) is a department in the east of France named after the river Moselle.
Moselle is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from the former province of Lorraine.
In 1793, the foreign enclaves of Manderen, Lixing-lès-Rouhling, Momerstroff, and Créhange (Kriechingen), all possessions of princes of the German Holy Roman Empire, were annexed by France and incorporated into the Moselle département.
By the Treaty of Paris of 1814 following the first defeat and abdication of Napoleon, France had to surrender almost all its conquests since 1792. On the northeastern border, France was not restored to its 1792 borders, but a new border was established to put an end to the convoluted nature of the border, with all its enclaves and exclaves. As a result, the French exclave of Tholey (now in Saarland, Germany) as well as a few communes near Sierck-les-Bains (both territories until then part of the Moselle département) were ceded to Austria. On the other hand, the French annexations of 1793 were confirmed, and furthermore, the south of the Napoleonic département of Sarre was ceded to France, including the town of Lebach, the city of Saarbrücken, and the rich coal basin nearby. France was thus a net beneficiary of the Treaty of Paris, all the new territories ceded to her being far larger and more strategic than the few territories ceded to Austria. All these new territories were incorporated into the Moselle department, and so Moselle had now a larger territory than ever since 1790.

wn.com/Moselle
Mâcon
Coordinates: 46°18′23″N 4°49′53″E / 46.30630°N 4.8313°E / 46.30630; 4.8313
Mâcon (French pronunciation: [ma.kɔ̃]) is a small city (commune) in central France. It is prefecture of the Saône-et-Loire department, in the region of Bourgogne, and the capital of the Mâconnais district. Mâcon is home to over 35,000 residents, called Mâconnais.
The city lies on the western bank of the Saône river, between Bresse in the East and the Beaujolais hills in the South. Mâcon is the southernmost city in the region of Burgundy. It is located 65 kilometres north of Lyon and 400 kilometres from Paris.
The Saône river runs through the town. The climate is temperate with a slight continental tendency.
The agglomeration of Mâcon originates from the establishment of an oppidum and of a river port by the Celts from the Aedui, probably at the beginning of the first century BC. Known then under the name of Matisco, the town developed significantly during the age of the Roman Empire. During the 4th century, the town was fortified.

wn.com/Mâcon
Nanterre
Coordinates: 48°53′56″N 2°11′49″E / 48.8988°N 2.1969°E / 48.8988; 2.1969
Nanterre (French pronunciation: [nɑ̃.tɛʁ]) is a commune in the western suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 11.1 km (6.9 mi) west of the center of Paris.
Nanterre is the capital of the Hauts-de-Seine department as well as the seat of the Arrondissement of Nanterre.
The eastern part of Nanterre, bordering the communes of Courbevoie and Puteaux, contains a small part of the La Defense business district of Paris and some of the tallest buildings in the Paris region. Because the headquarters of many major corporations are located in La Défense, the court of Nanterre is well known in the media for the number of high-profile lawsuits and trials that take place in it. The city of Nanterre also includes the University Paris X – Nanterre, one of the largest universities in the Paris region.
The name of Nanterre originated before the Roman conquest of Gaul. The Romans recorded the name as Nemetodorum. It is composed of the Celtic word nemeto meaning "shrine" or "sacred place" and the Celtic word duron (neuter) "hard, tough, enduring". The sacred place referred to is supposed to have been a famous shrine that existed in antiquity on the top of the hill known as Mont-Valérien.

wn.com/Nanterre
Nantes
Coordinates: 47°13′05″N 1°33′10″W / 47.2181°N 1.5528°W / 47.2181; -1.5528
Nantes (French pronunciation: [nɑ̃t]) (Breton: Naoned, Gallo: Naunnt) is a city in western France, located on the Loire River, 50 km (31 mi) from the Atlantic coast. The city is the 6th largest in France, while its metropolitan area ranks 8th with over 800,000 inhabitants.
Nantes is the capital city of the Pays de la Loire region and Loire-Atlantique département. Together with Vannes, Rennes and Carhaix, it was one of the major cities of the historic province of Brittany, and the ancient Duchy of Brittany. Culturally, Nantes is a Breton city.
In 2004, Time described Nantes as "the most liveable city in Europe". In 2010, Nantes was named a hub city for innovation in the Innovation Cities Index by innovation agency, 2thinknow. The city was ranked 36th globally from 289 cities and 4th overall in France, behind Paris, Lyon and Strasbourg for innovation across multiple sectors of the economy.
The name Nantes, pronounced [nɑ̃t] in French, derives from that of its pre-Roman-era inhabitants, the Gaulish tribe known as the Namnetes, who founded a town there around 70 BC. The city was called Portus Namnetum during the Roman occupation that began in 56 BC. The inhabitants of Nantes are known in French as Nantais ([nɑ̃tɛ]).

wn.com/Nantes
Nevers
Coordinates: 46°59′36″N 3°09′26″E / 46.9933°N 3.1572°E / 46.9933; 3.1572
Nevers (French pronunciation: [nəˈvɛʀ]; Latin: Noviodunum, later Nevirnum and Nebirnum) is a commune in – and the administrative capital of – the Nièvre department in the Bourgogne region in central France. It was the principal city of the former province of Nivernais, and is located 260 km (160 mi) SSE of Paris.
Nevers first enters written history as Noviodunum, a town held by the Aedui at Roman contact. The quantities of medals and other Roman antiquities found on the site indicate the importance of the place, and in 52 BCE, Julius Caesar made Noviodunum, which he describes as in a convenient position on the banks of the Loire, a depot (B. G. vii. 55). There he had his hostages, corn, his military chest, with the money in it allowed him from home for the war, his own and his army's baggage and a great number of horses which had been bought for him in Spain and Italy. After his failure before Gergovia, the Aedui at Noviodunum massacred those who were there to look after stores, the negotiatores, and the travellers who were in the place. They divided the money and the horses among themselves, carried off in boats all the corn that they could, and burnt the rest or threw it into the river. Thinking they could not hold the town, they burnt it. This was a great loss to Caesar; and it may seem that he was imprudent in leaving such great stores in the power of treacherous allies. But he was in straits during this year, and probably he could not do otherwise than he did. Dio Cassius (xl. 38) tells the story out of Caesar of the affair of Noviodunum. He states incorrectly what Caesar did on the occasion, and he shows that he neither understood his original nor knew what he was writing about.

wn.com/Nevers
Nice
Coordinates: 43°42′12″N 7°15′59″E / 43.7034°N 7.2663°E / 43.7034; 7.2663
Nice ( /ˈniːs/, French pronunciation: [nis]; Niçard Occitan: Niça [classical norm] or Nissa [nonstandard], Italian: Nizza or Nizza Marittima, Greek: Νίκαια, Latin: Nicaea) is the fifth most populous city in France, after Paris, Marseille, Lyon and Toulouse, with a population of 348,721 within its administrative limits on a land area of 71.92 km² (28 sq mi). The urban area of Nice extends beyond the administrative city limits with a population of about 1 million on an area of 721 km² (278 sq mi). Located on the south east coast of France on the Mediterranean Sea, Nice is the second-largest French city on the Mediterranean coast after Marseille.
The city is called Nice la Belle (Nissa La Bella in Niçard), which means Nice the Beautiful, which is also the title of the unofficial anthem of Nice, written by Menica Rondelly in 1912. Nice is the capital of the Alpes Maritimes département and the second biggest city of the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region after Marseille.

wn.com/Nice
Niort
Coordinates: 46°19′33″N 0°27′38″W / 46.3258°N 0.4606°W / 46.3258; -0.4606
Niort is a commune in the Deux-Sèvres department in western France.
The Latin name of the city was Novioritum.
The population of Niort is 60,486 and more than 137,000 people live in the urban area.
Near Niort at Maisonnay there is one of the tallest radio masts in France (height: 330 metres).
The town is located on the Sèvre Niortaise River and is a centre of angelica cultivation in France.
Niort is the French capital of mutual insurance and bank companies, with the headquarters of MAAF, MAIF, MACIF, SMACL and regional branches of national mutual companies such as Groupama, Banque Populaire. Niort is a main financial centre of France (fourth ranked after Paris, Lyon and Lille). Chemistry and aeronautics are the main industries.
Niort is a major administrative and commercial centre.
Niort has a railway station on the TGV route between Paris and La Rochelle, Gare de Niort. Direct TGV to Paris Montparnasse station takes 2 hours and 15 minutes Niort is a road and motorway junction, connected to Paris and Bordeaux by the A10 motorway, with Nantes by the A83, and with La Rochelle by the N11.

wn.com/Niort
Nièvre
Nièvre (IPA: [njɛvʁ]) is a department in the centre of France named after the Nièvre River.
Nièvre is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from the former province of Nivernais.
Nièvre is part of the current region of Burgundy, although historically it was not part of the province of Burgundy, and it is surrounded by the departments of Yonne, Côte-d'Or, Saône-et-Loire, Allier, Cher, and Loiret. The département is crossed by the Loire river, the longest river in France.
Nièvre is a rural department with about 50 inhabitants / km². The main cities are : Nevers, Cosne-sur-Loire, Varennes-Vauzelles, Marzy, Decize, Imphy and La Charité. Only three cities reach 10 000 inhabitants. It indicates the characteristic of the département, which is predominantly rural.
Nièvre is also well known for its white wine, Pouilly Fumé. The vineyards are scattered around villages including Pouilly-Sur-Loire, which lends its name to the appellation, Tracy sur Loire, Boisgibault, Saint Andelain. The word fumé is French for "smoky", and it's said the name comes from the smoky or flinty quality of these wines. The only grape allowed in the Pouilly-Fumé AC is Sauvignon Blanc, which produces wines that are generally crisp, tart, and somewhat grassy.

wn.com/Nièvre
Néoules
Coordinates: 43°18′43″N 6°00′48″E / 43.3119°N 6.0133°E / 43.3119; 6.0133
Néoules is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Néoules
Nîmes
Coordinates: 43°50′16″N 4°21′39″E / 43.8378°N 4.3608°E / 43.8378; 4.3608
Nîmes (/niːm/; French: [nim]; Provençal Occitan: Nimes) is the capital of the Gard department in the Languedoc-Roussillon region in southern France. Nîmes has a rich history, dating back to the Roman Empire, and is a popular tourist destination.
The city derives its name from that of a spring in the Roman village. The contemporary coat of arms of the city of Nîmes includes a crocodile chained to a palm tree with the inscription COLNEM, for Colonia Nemausus, meaning the "colony" or "settlement" of Nemausus, the local Celtic god of the Volcae Arecomici. Veterans of the Roman legions who had served Julius Caesar in his Nile campaigns, at the end of fifteen years of soldiering, were given plots of land to cultivate on the plain of Nîmes.
The city was located on the Via Domitia, a Roman road constructed in 118 BC which connected Italy to Spain.
The site on which the built-up area of Nîmes has become established in the course of centuries is part of the edge of the alluvial plain of the Vistrenque River which butts up against low hills: to the northeast, Mont Duplan; to the southwest, Montaury; to the west, Mt. Cavalier and the knoll of Canteduc.

wn.com/Nîmes
Oise
Oise (French pronunciation: [waz]) is a department in the north of France. It is named after the river Oise.
Oise is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790. It was created from part of the province of Île-de-France and Picardy.
After the coalition victory at Waterloo, the department was occupied by British troops between June 1815 and November 1818.
Oise is part of the current region of Picardie and is situated 35 km north of Paris. It is surrounded by the departments of Somme, Aisne, Seine-et-Marne, Val-d'Oise, Eure, and Seine-Maritime.
Natives of the department are called Isariens.
The major tourist attraction of the department is the Parc Astérix, which opened in 1989. Another very interesting site is Beauvais Cathedral. Also to be seen is the Chateau de Pierrefonds, restored by Viollet-le-Duc.
Oise is twinned with Bedfordshire. One of the villages along the river Oise is Auvers-sur-Oise, famous for having been visited by several impressionist artists. This is where Vincent Van Gogh spent his last 70 days and it is his and his brother Theo's resting place.

wn.com/Oise
Ollioules
Coordinates: 43°07′59″N 5°51′00″E / 43.133°N 5.850°E / 43.133; 5.850
Ollioules is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
Ollioules is twinned with:

wn.com/Ollioules
Ollières
Coordinates: 43°28′58″N 5°49′46″E / 43.4829°N 5.8295°E / 43.4829; 5.8295
Ollières is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Ollières
Operation Torch
Operation Torch (initially called Operation Gymnast) was the British-American invasion of French North Africa in World War II during the North African Campaign, started on 8 November 1942.
The Soviet Union had pressed the U.S. and Britain to start operations in Europe and open a second front to reduce the pressure of German forces on the Soviet troops. While the American commanders favored Operation Sledgehammer, landing in Occupied Europe as soon as possible, the British commanders believed that such a course would end in disaster. An attack on French North Africa was proposed instead, which would clear the Axis Powers from North Africa, improve naval control of the Mediterranean Sea and prepare for an invasion of Southern Europe in 1943. American President Franklin D. Roosevelt suspected the African operation would rule out an invasion of Europe in 1943 but agreed to support British Prime Minister Winston Churchill.

wn.com/Operation_Torch
Orléans
Coordinates: 47°54′09″N 1°54′32″E / 47.9025°N 1.9090°E / 47.9025; 1.9090
Orléans (pronounced: [ɔʁleɑ̃]) is a city in north-central France, about 130 kilometres (81 mi) southwest of Paris. It is the capital of the Loiret department and of the Centre region.
Orléans is located on the Loire River where the river curves south towards the Massif Central.
The city of New Orleans (in French, La Nouvelle-Orléans), in the United States is named after the commune of Orléans.
Orléans is located in the northern bend of the Loire, which crosses from east to west. Orléans belongs to the vallée de la Loire sector between Sully-sur-Loire and Chalonnes-sur-Loire, which was in 2000 inscribed by UNESCO as a World Heritage Site. The capital of Orléanais, 120 kilomètres south-south-west of Paris, it is bordered to the north by the Beauce region and the forêt d'Orléans, and the Orléans-la-Source neighbourhood and the Sologne region to the south.
Five bridges in the town cross the river :
To the south of the Loire (on the "rive gauche") is to be found a small hill (102 m (335 ft) at the pont Georges-V, 110 m (360 ft) at the place du Martroi) which gently rises to 125 m (410 ft) at la Croix Fleury, at the limits of Fleury-les-Aubrais.

wn.com/Orléans
Orne
Orne (French pronunciation: [ɔʁn]) is a department in the northwest of France, named after the river Orne.
Orne is one of the original 83 departments created during the French Revolution, on March 4, 1790. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Normandy and Perche.
Orne is in the region of Basse-Normandie neighbouring Eure, Eure-et-Loir, Sarthe, Mayenne, and Calvados. It is the only department of Basse Normandie and Haute Normandie to be landlocked.
The largest town by a considerable margin is the prefecture, Alençon which is an administrative and commercial centre for what is still an overwhelmingly rural department. There are no large industrial centres: agriculture remains the economic focus of Orne.
The inhabitants of the department are called Ornais.
The recorded population level peaked at 443,688 in 1836. Declining farm incomes and the lure of better prospects in the overseas empire led to a sustained reduction in population levels in many rural departments, and by the time of the 1936 census the recorded population stood at just 269,331. Once motor car ownership started to surge in the 1960s employment opportunities became less restricted and by 2008 the population level had recovered a little to 292,282.

wn.com/Orne
Paris
Coordinates: 48°51′24″N 2°21′03″E / 48.8567°N 2.3508°E / 48.8567; 2.3508
Paris (ⁱ/ˈpærɨs/; French: [paʁi] ( listen)) is the capital and largest city of France. It is situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region (or Paris Region, French: Région parisienne). As of January 2008 the city of Paris, within its administrative limits (the 20 arrondissements) largely unchanged since 1860, has an estimated population of 2,211,297 and a metropolitan population of 12,089,098, and is one of the most populated metropolitan areas in Europe. Paris was the largest city in the Western world for about 1,000 years, prior to the 19th century, and the largest in the entire world between the 16th and 19th centuries.
Paris is today one of the world's leading business and cultural centres, and its influences in politics, education, entertainment, media, fashion, science, and the arts all contribute to its status as one of the world's major global cities. It hosts the headquarters of many international organizations such as UNESCO, the OECD, the International Chamber of Commerce or the European Space Agency. Paris is considered one of the greenest and most liveable cities in Europe. It is also one of the most expensive.

wn.com/Paris
Perpignan
Coordinates: 42°41′55″N 2°53′44″E / 42.6986°N 2.8956°E / 42.6986; 2.8956
Perpignan (French pronunciation: [pɛʁpiɲɑ̃], Catalan: Perpinyà [pərpiˈɲa]) is a commune and the capital of the Pyrénées-Orientales department in southern France. Perpignan was the capital of the former province and county of Roussillon (Rosselló in Catalan) and continental capital of the Kingdom of Majorca in the 13th and 14th centuries.
As of 2009^[update], Perpignan had 120,100 inhabitants (Perpignanais, Perpinyanés) in the city proper. The metropolitan area has a total population of 300,221 in 2009.
Though settlement in the area goes back to Roman times, the medieval town of Perpignan seems to have been founded around the beginning of the 10th century (first mentioned in a document as villa Perpiniarum in 927). Soon Perpignan became the capital of the counts of Roussillon. In 1172 Count Girard II bequeathed his lands to the Counts of Barcelona. Perpignan acquired the institutions of a partly self-governing commune in 1197. French feudal rights over Roussillon were given up by Louis IX in the Treaty of Corbeil (1258).

wn.com/Perpignan
Philippines
The Philippines ⁱ/ˈfɪlɨpiːnz/ FI-lə-peenz (Filipino: Pilipinas [ˌpɪlɪˈpinɐs]), officially known as the Republic of the Philippines (Filipino: Republika ng Pilipinas) is a sovereign country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam. The Sulu Sea to the southwest lies between the country and the island of Borneo, and to the south the Celebes Sea separates it from other islands of Indonesia. It is bounded on the east by the Philippine Sea. Its location on the Pacific Ring of Fire and its tropical climate make the Philippines prone to earthquakes and typhoons but have also endowed the country with natural resources and made it one of the richest areas of biodiversity in the world. An archipelago comprising 7,107 islands, the Philippines is categorized broadly into three main geographical divisions: Luzon, Visayas, and Mindanao. Its capital city is Manila.
With an estimated population of about 98 million people, the Philippines is the 7th most populated Asian country and the 12th most populated country in the world. An additional 12.5 million Filipinos live overseas. Multiple ethnicities and cultures are found throughout the islands. In prehistoric times, Negritos were some of the archipelago's earliest inhabitants. They were followed by successive waves of Austronesian peoples who brought with them influences from Malay, Hindu, and Islamic societies. Trade introduced Chinese cultural influences which remain to this day.

wn.com/Philippines
Pignans
Coordinates: 43°18′05″N 6°13′38″E / 43.3014°N 6.2272°E / 43.3014; 6.2272
Pignans is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Pignans
Poitiers
Coordinates: 46°34′55″N 0°20′10″E / 46.5819°N 0.3361°E / 46.5819; 0.3361
Poitiers [pwatje] ( listen) is a city on the Clain river in west central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and of the Poitou-Charentes region. The centre is picturesque and its streets are interesting for predominant remains of historical architecture, especially from the Romanesque period. Two major military battles occurred near the city: in 732, the Battle of Poitiers (also known as the Battle of Tours), in which the Franks commanded by Charles Martel halted the expansion of the Umayyad Caliphate, and in 1356, the Battle of Poitiers, a key victory for English forces during the Hundred Years' War.
Poitiers is strategically situated on the Seuil du Poitou, a shallow zone which is a gap between the Armorican and the Central Massif and connects the Aquitaine Basin to the Paris Basin. Poitiers's primary site sits on a vast promontory between the valleys of the Boivre and the Clain. The old town occupies the slopes and summit of a plateau which rises 130 feet (40 m) above the streams which surround it on three sides.

wn.com/Poitiers
Pontevès
Coordinates: 43°33′16″N 6°01′48″E / 43.5544°N 6.03000000°E / 43.5544; 6.03000000
Pontevès is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Pontevès
Pontoise
Coordinates: 49°03′06″N 2°06′06″E / 49.0516°N 02.1017°E / 49.0516; 02.1017
Pontoise is a commune in the northwestern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 28.4 km (17.6 mi) from the centre of Paris, in the "new town" of Cergy-Pontoise.
Pontoise is the official préfecture (capital) of the Val-d'Oise département, although in reality the préfecture building and administration, as well as the department council (conseil général), are located inside the neighboring commune of Cergy, which is regarded as the de facto capital of Val-d'Oise.
Pontoise is also the seat of the Arrondissement of Pontoise. The sous-préfecture building and administration, unlike the préfecture, are located inside the commune of Pontoise.
Pontoise is the historical capital of the Vexin français. Its foundation dates from the Roman times (Pontisara). At that time, the rock piton overhanging the river Oise supported the defense of the ford which was on the Roman road, the Chaussée Jules César, between Lutetia (Paris) and Rotomagus (Rouen). The road still exists and is now part of the N14 from Paris to Rouen.

wn.com/Pontoise
Pourcieux
Coordinates: 43°28′12″N 5°47′10″E / 43.4701°N 5.7861°E / 43.4701; 5.7861
Pourcieux is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
The small village provides a typical image of the Provence of Frédéric Mistral, with vine-grower's houses built around a castle, and a town square and fountain shaded by hundred year-old plane trees. Its sunny hillsides sit at the foot of the Monts Auréliens, a short distance from the Montagne Sainte-Victoire made famous by Paul Cézanne.

wn.com/Pourcieux
Pourrières
Coordinates: 43°30′12″N 5°44′00″E / 43.5034°N 5.7334°E / 43.5034; 5.7334
Pourrières is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It is the home town of the French poet Germain Nouveau.

wn.com/Pourrières
Privas
Coordinates: 44°44′09″N 4°35′49″E / 44.7358°N 4.597°E / 44.7358; 4.597
Privas is a commune of France, capital of the Ardèche department. It is the second-smallest administrative center of any department in France, larger than only the commune of Foix. It is the fifth-largest commune in the Ardèche, behind Annonay, Aubenas, Guilherand-Granges, and Tournon-sur-Rhône. It was the location of the 1629 Siege of Privas. today Privas is known for the puree made from the local chestnuts, and for its sweetened marron glacé.
The earliest traces of the commune are attested in the hamlet of Lac where recent archaeological excavations have revealed a Roman villa dating to the beginning of the Empire, as well as a medieval burying-ground. Moulds for counterfeiting coinage found in the 19th century on the slopes of Mont-Toulon had not been interpretable as signifying a local centre of population.
The earliest bourg of Privas developed around the church of Saint-Thomas (place de la République), a dependency of the Cluniac priory of Rompon. The château (castri) of Privas on the site of the present collège-couvent des Récollets is not attested prior to the 13th century, when the town was walled. Laid waste in 1621 and again following the siege of 1629, nothing of it remains.

wn.com/Privas
Périgueux
Coordinates: 45°11′34″N 0°43′18″E / 45.1929°N 0.7217°E / 45.1929; 0.7217
Périgueux (French pronunciation: [peʁiɡø] ( listen); Occitan: Peireguers [pejɾeˈɣɥes, pejɾeˈɡœː] or Periguers [peɾiˈɣɥes, peɾiˈɡœː]) is a commune in the Dordogne department in Aquitaine in southwestern France.
Périgueux is the prefecture of the department and the capital of the region. It is also the seat of a Roman Catholic diocese.
The name Périgueux comes from Petrocorii, a Latinization of Celtic words meaning "the four tribes" – the Gallic people that held the area before the Roman conquest. Périgueux was their capital city. In 200 BC, the Petricorii came from the North and settled at Périgueux and established an encampment at La Boissière. After the Roman invasion, they left this post and established themselves on the plaine of L'Isle, and the town of Vesunna was created. This Roman city was eventually embellished with amenities such as temples, baths, amphitheatres, and a forum. At the end of the third century AD, the Roman city was surrounded by ramparts, and the town took the name of Civitas Petrocoriorum.

wn.com/Périgueux
Ramatuelle
Coordinates: 43°13′00″N 6°36′43″E / 43.2167°N 6.6119°E / 43.2167; 6.6119
Ramatuelle is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It lies near St-Tropez, Sainte-Maxime and Gassin. It was built on a hill to defend itself against enemies. The town was known in the Middle Ages as Ramatuella and was part of the area ruled by the Moors of nearby Fraxinet in the ninth and tenth centuries.

wn.com/Ramatuelle
Rennes
Coordinates: 48°06′53″N 1°40′46″W / 48.1147°N 1.6794°W / 48.1147; -1.6794
Rennes ([ʁɛn] ( listen) French: Rennes, Gallo: Resnn, Breton: Roazhon, Latin: Condate, Civitas Redonum) is a city in the east of Brittany in northwestern France. Rennes is the capital of the region of Brittany, as well as the Ille-et-Vilaine department.
Rennes is the administrative capital of the French department Ille-et-Vilaine.
Prior to the French Revolution, when France was a Kingdom, Rennes was considered the capital of the Province of Brittany. Prior to the integration of the Duchy of Brittany into the Kingdom of France, Rennes was at times the capital of the Duchy, with the other historical capitals of Brittany's Ducal period being Nantes and Vannes. It has a long history due to its location at the confluence of two rivers and its proximity to the bordering regions from which arose various challenges to the borders of Brittany.
The eastern Armorican people of Redones founded Condate —an ancient Celtic word meaning confluent— at the confluence of the Ille and Vilaine rivers and made it the capital of a territory that extended to the Bay of Mont Saint-Michel. The name of the city of Redon also reflects that of the Redones. Early in the 1_st century BCE, they adopted the Greek and Roman practice of issuing coinage, adapting the widely imitated gold staters of Philip II of Macedon, in the characteristic Celtic coin metal alloy called billion. Without inscriptions, as the Celtic practice was, the Redones coinage features a charioteer whose pony has a human head. Large hoards of their coins were unearthed in the "treasure of Amanlis" found in June 1835 and that of Saint-Jacques-de-la-Lande, discovered in February 1941. The Museum at Rennes contains a large representative collection.

wn.com/Rennes
Riboux
Coordinates: 43°18′15″N 5°45′25″E / 43.3042°N 5.7569°E / 43.3042; 5.7569
Riboux is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Riboux
Rocbaron
Coordinates: 43°18′18″N 6°05′30″E / 43.305°N 6.0917°E / 43.305; 6.0917
Rocbaron is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Rocbaron
Rodez
Coordinates: 44°21′02″N 2°34′30″E / 44.3506°N 2.5750°E / 44.3506; 2.5750
Rodez (Occitan: Rodés) is a town and commune in southern France, in the Aveyron department, of which it is the capital. Its inhabitants are called Ruthénois.
Existing from at least the 5th century BC, Rodez was founded by the Celts. After the Roman occupation, the oppidum (fortified place) was renamed Segodunum, while in late Imperial times it was known as Civitas Rutenorum, whence the modern name. After the fall of the Western Roman Empire, it was captured by the Visigoths and then by the Franks, being also ravaged by the Arabs in 725. Later it was occupied by the armies of the Dukes of Aquitaine and of the Counts of Toulouse. English troops occupied Rodez during the Hundred Years War.
However, in medieval times the city's history was marked by strong rivalry between the Counts and the Bishops of Rodez, who exerted their authorities in different sectors of the city, divided by a wall. The counts were able to defy the royal French authority until the submission of count John IV by the future King Louis XI in the 15th century. In the following century bishop François d'Estaing built the Rodez Cathedral.

wn.com/Rodez
Rouen
Coordinates: 49°26′28″N 1°05′47″E / 49.4412°N 1.0963°E / 49.4412; 1.0963
Rouen (French pronunciation: [ʁwɑ̃]), in northern France on the River Seine, is the capital of the Haute-Normandie (Upper Normandy) region and the historic capital city of Normandy. Once one of the largest and most prosperous cities of medieval Europe^{[citation needed]}, it was the seat of the Exchequer of Normandy in the Middle Ages. It was one of the capitals of the Anglo-Norman dynasties, which ruled both England and large parts of modern France from the 11th to the 15th centuries. It was here that Joan of Arc was executed in 1431. People from Rouen are called Rouennais.
The population of the metropolitan area (in French: agglomération) at the 1999 census was 518,316, and 532,559 at the 2007 estimate. The city proper had an estimated population of 110,276 in 2007.
Haute-Normandie (Upper Normandy) région, as well as a commune and the préfecture (capital) of the Seine-Maritime département.
Rouen and 70 suburban communes of the metropolitan area form the Agglomeration community of Rouen-Elbeuf-Austreberthe (CREA), with 494,382 inhabitants at the 2010 census. In descending order of population, the largest of these suburbs are Sotteville-lès-Rouen, Saint-Étienne-du-Rouvray, Le Grand-Quevilly, Le Petit-Quevilly, and Mont-Saint-Aignan, each with a population exceeding 20,000.

wn.com/Rouen
Rougiers
Coordinates: 43°23′32″N 5°51′03″E / 43.3923°N 5.8509°E / 43.3923; 5.8509
Rougiers is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Rougiers
Russia
Russia ⁱ/ˈrʌʃə/ or /ˈrʊʃə/ (Russian: Россия, tr. Rossiya; IPA: [rɐˈsʲijə] ( listen)), also officially known as the Russian Federation (Russian: Российская Федерация, tr. Rossiyskaya Federatsiya; IPA: [rɐˈsʲijskəjə fʲɪdʲɪˈratsɨjə] ( listen)), is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects. From northwest to southeast, Russia shares borders with Norway, Finland, Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania and Poland (both via Kaliningrad Oblast), Belarus, Ukraine, Georgia, Azerbaijan, Kazakhstan, China, Mongolia, and North Korea. It also has maritime borders with Japan by the Sea of Okhotsk, and the US state of Alaska by the Bering Strait. At 17,075,400 square kilometres (6,592,800 sq mi), Russia is the largest country in the world, covering more than one eighth of the Earth's inhabited land area. Russia is also the eighth most populous nation with 143 million people. It extends across the whole of northern Asia and 40% of Europe, spanning nine time zones and incorporating a wide range of environments and landforms. Russia has the world's largest reserves of mineral and energy resources and is the largest producer of oil and natural gas globally. Russia has the world's largest forest reserves and its lakes contain approximately one-quarter of the world's fresh water.

wn.com/Russia
Régusse
Coordinates: 43°39′00″N 6°08′00″E / 43.65°N 6.1333°E / 43.65; 6.1333
Régusse is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Régusse
Réunion
Réunion (French: La Réunion, IPA: [la 'ʁeynjɔ̃] ( listen); previously Île Bourbon) is a French island with a population of about 800,000 located in the Indian Ocean, east of Madagascar, about 200 kilometres (120 mi) south west of Mauritius, the nearest island.
Administratively, Réunion is one of the overseas departments of France. Like the other overseas departments, Réunion is also one of the 27 regions of France (being an overseas region) and an integral part of the Republic with the same status as those situated on the European mainland.
Réunion is an outermost region of the European Union and, as an overseas department of France, is part of the Eurozone.
Before the arrival of the Portuguese in the early sixteenth century, there is little to Réunion's recorded history. Arab traders were familiar with it by the name Dina Morgabin,. The island possibly features on a map from 1153 AD by Al Sharif el-Edrisi. The island may also have been visited by Swahili or Malay sailors.
The first European discovery of the area was made around 1507 by Portuguese explorers, but the specifics are unclear. The uninhabited island may have been first sighted by the expedition led by Don Pedro Mascarenhas, who gave his name to the island group around Réunion, the Mascarenes. Réunion itself was dubbed Santa Apolonia after a favorite saint, which suggests that the date of the Portuguese discovery may have been February 9, her saint day. Diego Lopes de Sequeira is claimed to have landed on the island in 1509.

wn.com/Réunion
Salernes
Coordinates: 43°33′00″N 6°14′00″E / 43.55°N 6.2333°E / 43.55; 6.2333
Salernes is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Salernes
Sarthe
Sarthe (French pronunciation: [saʁt]) is a French department, named after the Sarthe River.
The department was created during the French Revolution on March 4, 1790, pursuant to the law of December 22, 1789, starting from a part of the province of Maine which was divided into two departments, Sarthe to the east and Mayenne to the west.
In Roman Times, this province contained the city of Mans, and many of its ruins are still left standing. The Thermal Bathhouse attracts many tourists, as does the Theater of Aubigné-Racan, both located on the outskirts of Anjou, Maine, and Touraine.
Marin Mersenne, perhaps the most important scientific figure in the early 1600s, was born in the vicinity of Sarthe.
The department of Sarthe is at the north end of the administrative region of Pays-de-la-Loire. This places it south of Basse-Normandie and on the south edge of the Armorican Massif. It is bordered by the departments of Orne, Eure-et-Loir, Loir-et-Cher, Indre-et-Loire, Maine-et-Loire and Mayenne.
Approximately 300,000 people, comprising more than half of the department's population, live in Le Mans, its conurbation or the essentially urban communes close by. The rest of the department retains its rural character, however, being dominated economically by agriculture.

wn.com/Sarthe
Savoie
Savoie (pronounced: [sa.vwa]; Arpitan: Savouè d’Avâl, Italian: Savoia, pronounced [saˈvɔja], English: Savoy, /səˈvɔɪ/) is a French department located in the Rhône-Alpes region in the French Alps.
Together with the Haute-Savoie, Savoie is one of the two departments of the historic region of Savoy that was annexed by France on June 14, 1860, following the signature of the Treaty of Turin on March 24, 1860. For history before 1860, details of the annexation, and modern regionalism, see Savoy.
It is widely accepted that Savoie takes its name from the Latin Sapaudia or Sabaudia, meaning land covered in fir trees.
Savoie was long part of the states of Savoy, though it was occupied many times by France starting in the 16th century. It was integrated into the Mont-Blanc department from 1792 to 1815 (and partially into the Léman department from 1798 to 1814). The province was annexed by France in 1860. The former Duchy of Savoy became the two departments of Savoie and Haute-Savoie.
Moûtiers, capital of the former province of Tarentaise Valley (French: Vallée de la Tarentaise) ceased to be the county seat after a law passed on September 10, 1926.

wn.com/Savoie
Seillans
Coordinates: 43°37′59″N 6°37′59″E / 43.633°N 6.633°E / 43.633; 6.633
Seillans is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It is a ville perché (perched hill-top village) overlooking the plain between the southern Alps and the Esterel, which borders the sea between Cannes and Saint-Raphaël. It has been recognized as one of the prettiest villages of France.
Seillans has a steeply-inclined medieval centre, accessible only on foot, and a number of small squares and old buildings. It is the western-most of a line of such towns and villages (including Montauroux, Callian, Tourrettes and Fayence) that face south and attract tourists and each offer a variety of cultural pursuits. They are most striking when viewed from the plain below. Other local attractions include the nearby Lac St. Cassien.
Seillans is also a destination for holiday-makers, retirees and second-home owners from other parts of France and northern Europe, lured by the charming houses and scenery combined with the sunny climate and proximity to the Mediterranean and Nice International Airport. Seillans features a castle and C13 church at its summit. Nearby are rustic chapels, vineyards, forests and olive groves.

wn.com/Seillans
Siege of Toulon
The Siege of Toulon (18 September - 18 December 1793) was an early Republican victory over a Royalist rebellion in the Southern French city of Toulon. It is also often known as the Fall of Toulon.
After the arrest of the Girondist deputies on the 31 May 1793, there followed a series of insurrections within the French cities of Lyon, Avignon, Nîmes and Marseille. In Toulon, the revolutionaries evicted the existing Jacobin faction but were soon supplanted by the more numerous royalists. Upon the announcement of the recapture of Marseille and of the reprisals which had taken place there at the hands of the revolutionaries, the royalist forces, directed by the Baron d'Imbert, called for aid from the Anglo-Spanish fleet. On 28 August, Admiral Lord Hood of the Royal Navy and Admiral Juan de Lángara of the Spanish Navy, committed a force of 13,000 British, Spanish, Neapolitan and Piedmontese troops to the French royalists' cause. This was a serious blow to the arms of the republic, as it was a key naval arsenal of the country. If France were to lose this port, there was no hope for her naval ambitions. Which would mean by proxy that any ambition to challenge the Allies, and specifically the English, for control of the seas would be out of the question. Not only that, but its loss could set a dangerous precedent for other areas that menaced the republic with revolt. The survival of the Republic was at stake. On 1 October, Baron d'Imbert proclaimed the young Louis XVII to be king of France, and hoisted the French royalist flag of the fleur de lys, delivering the town of Toulon to the British navy.

wn.com/Siege_of_Toulon
Somme
Somme (French pronunciation: [sɔm]) is a department of France, located in the north of the country and named after the Somme river. It is part of the Picardy region of France.
The north central area of the Somme département was the site of a series of battles through the Great War. Particularly significant was the 1916 Battle of the Somme. As a result of this and other battles fought in the area the department is home to many military cemeteries and several major monuments commemorating the many soldiers from various countries who died on its battlefields.
At the beginning of the First World War, during the September 1914 Race to the Sea, the Somme became the site of the Battle of Albert. The battle was a five day engagement between the 25th and 29 September, with the French Tenth Army attacking at Albert and pushing toward Bapaume, and the German Sixth Army counter-attacking back towards Albert. The line settled around the town of Thiepval and remained there until July 1916, when the Battle of the Somme would be fought on and around the same ground.

wn.com/Somme
Strasbourg
Strasbourg (French pronunciation: [stʁazbuʁ]; Lower Alsatian: Strossburi, [ˈʃd̥rɔːsb̥uri]; German: Straßburg, [ˈʃtʁaːsbʊɐ̯k]) is the capital and principal city of the Alsace region in eastern France and is the official seat of the European Parliament. Located close to the border with Germany, it is the capital of the Bas-Rhin département. The city and the region of Alsace are historically German-speaking, explaining the city's Germanic name. In 2006, the city proper had 272,975 inhabitants and its urban community 467,375 inhabitants. With 638,670 inhabitants in 2006, Strasbourg's metropolitan area (aire urbaine) (only the part of the metropolitan area on French territory) is the ninth largest in France. The transnational Eurodistrict Strasbourg-Ortenau had a population of 884,988 inhabitants in 2008.
Strasbourg is the seat of several European institutions, such as the Council of Europe (with its European Court of Human Rights, its European Directorate for the Quality of Medicines and its European Audiovisual Observatory) and the Eurocorps, as well as the European Parliament and the European Ombudsman of the European Union. The city is the seat of the Central Commission for Navigation on the Rhine.

wn.com/Strasbourg
Tanneron
Coordinates: 43°35′29″N 6°52′34″E / 43.5914°N 6.8761°E / 43.5914; 6.8761
Tanneron is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Tanneron
Taradeau
Coordinates: 43°27′14″N 6°25′38″E / 43.4539°N 6.4272°E / 43.4539; 6.4272
Taradeau is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Taradeau
Tarbes
Coordinates: 43°13′51″N 0°04′21″E / 43.230700°N 0.072600°E / 43.230700; 0.072600
Tarbes (French pronunciation: [taʁb]) is a commune in the Hautes-Pyrénées department in south-western France.
It is part of the historical region of Gascony. It is the second largest metropolitan area of Midi-Pyrénées, with 110,000 inhabitants.
It is the seat of the diocese of Tarbes-et-Lourdes. The 1st Parachute Hussar Regiment and 35th Parachute Artillery Regiment are stationed in Tarbes.
To the south of Tarbes is the pilgrimage town of Lourdes and the border with Spain. The Pyrenees mountains, lying along the border between France and Spain, can be seen from the town.
The Gare de Tarbes railway station offers direct connections with Paris, Bordeaux, Toulouse, Bayonne and several regional destinations. The A64 motorway connects Tarbes with Bayonne and Toulouse. It is also served by the small Tarbes-Lourdes-Pyrénées Airport.
Tarbes is the birthplace of:
Tarbes is twinned with:

wn.com/Tarbes
Tavernes
Coordinates: 43°35′41″N 6°01′03″E / 43.5947°N 6.0175°E / 43.5947; 6.0175
Tavernes is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Tavernes
Toulon
Coordinates: 43°08′N 5°55′E / 43.13°N 5.92°E / 43.13; 5.92
Toulon (French pronunciation: [tu.lɔ̃]; Provençal Occitan: Tolon in classical norm or Touloun in Mistralian norm), italian language: Tolone, is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence.
Toulon is an important centre for naval construction, fishing, wine making, and the manufacture of aeronautical equipment, armaments, maps, paper, tobacco, printing, shoes, and electronic equipment.
The military port of Toulon is the major naval centre on France's Mediterranean coast, home of the French Navy aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle and her battle group. The French Mediterranean Fleet is based in Toulon.
Archaeological excavations, such as those at the Cosquer Cave near Marseilles, show that the coast of Provence was inhabited since at least the Paleolithic era. Greek colonists came from Asia Minor in about the 7th century BC and established trading depots along the coast, including one, called Olbia, at Saint-Pierre de l'Almanarre south of Hyères, to the east of Toulon. The Ligurians settled in the area beginning in the 4th century BC.

wn.com/Toulon
Toulon Cathedral
Toulon Cathedral (Cathédrale Notre-Dame-de-la-Seds de Toulon or Notre-Dame-de-la-Sède de Toulon; also known as Sainte-Marie-Majeure) is a Roman Catholic cathedral and a national monument of France located in Toulon, in the Var department of France, begun in the 11th century and finished in the 18th century. From the 5th century onwards it was the seat of the Bishops of Toulon, and since 1957 has been the seat of the Bishops of Fréjus-Toulon.
The first cathedral at Toulon existed in the 5th century, but no trace of it remains. The present building was begun in 1096 by Gilbert, Count of Provence, according to tradition in gratitude for his safe return from the Crusades. The first three travées, or bays of the nave, remain from the Romanesque 11th century church, and the present Chapel of Saint Joseph was originally the choir apse. The Chapel of Relics was constructed in the 15th century.
In the winter of 1543–1544 the cathedral, the largest building in the city, was temporarily transformed into a mosque for the 30,000 crew members of the ships of the Ottoman-Barbary admiral Hayreddin Barbarossa, at that time an ally of Francis I of France. The residents of Toulon were temporarily expelled from the city to make room for the Turkish sailors. At the end of the winter, King Francis paid a large bribe to the Turkish admiral to persuade him and his fleet to leave..

wn.com/Toulon_Cathedral
Toulouse
Coordinates: 43°36′16″N 1°26′38″E / 43.6045°N 1.444°E / 43.6045; 1.444
Toulouse (French pronunciation: [tuluz] ( listen), locally: [tuˈluzə] ( listen); Occitan: Tolosa [tuˈluzɔ], medieval Tholoza) is a city in the Haute-Garonne department in southwestern France. It lies on the banks of the River Garonne, half-way between the Atlantic Ocean and the Mediterranean Sea, and 590 km (366 mi) away from Paris. With 1,202,889 inhabitants as of 1 January 2008, the Toulouse metropolitan area is the fourth-largest in France, after Paris (12.1 million), Lyon (2.1 million), and Marseille (1.7 million).
Toulouse is the centre of the European aerospace industry, with the headquarters of Airbus, Galileo positioning system, the SPOT satellite system, and CNES's Toulouse Space Centre (CST), the largest space centre in Europe.Thales Alenia Space, and Astrium Satellites, EADS's satellite system subsidiary, also have a significant presence in Toulouse. Its world renowned university is one of the oldest in Europe (founded in 1229) and, with more than 97,000 students, is with Lille the third-largest university campus of France after Paris and Lyon.

wn.com/Toulouse
Tours
Coordinates: 47°23′37″N 0°41′21″E / 47.3936°N 0.6892°E / 47.3936; 0.6892
Tours (pronounced: [tuʁ]) is a city in central France, the capital of the Indre-et-Loire department.
It stands on the lower reaches of the river Loire, between Orléans and the Atlantic coast. Touraine, the region around Tours, is known for its wines, the alleged perfection (as perceived by some speakers) of its local spoken French, and the Battle of Tours in 732. It is also the site of the Paris–Tours road bicycle race. Tours is the largest city in the Centre region of France, although it is not the regional capital, which is the region's second-largest city, Orléans. In 2006, the city itself had 142,000 inhabitants and the metropolitan area had 306,974.
In Gallic times the city was important as a crossing point of the Loire. Becoming part of the Roman Empire during the first century AD, the city was named "Caesarodunum" ("hill of Caesar"). The name evolved in the 4th century when the original Gallic name, Turones, became first "Civitas Turonum" then "Tours". It was at this time that the amphitheatre of Tours, one of the five largest in the Empire, was built. Tours became the metropolis of the Roman province of Lugdunum towards 380–388, dominating the Loire Valley, Maine and Brittany. One of the outstanding figures of the history of the city was Saint Martin, second bishop who shared his coat with a naked beggar in Amiens. This incident and the importance of Martin in the medieval Christian West made Tours, and its position on the route of pilgrimage to Santiago de Compostela,made Tours a major centre during the Middle Ages.

wn.com/Tours
Tourtour
Coordinates: 43°35′25″N 6°18′11″E / 43.5903°N 6.3031°E / 43.5903; 6.3031
Tourtour is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France. It is a member of Les Plus Beaux Villages de France ("The most beautiful villages of France") association.
Called "the village in the sky of Provence" (le village dans le ciel de Provence), Tourtour overlooks a large part of Provence from the town of Fréjus along the Mediterranean coast in the east to the Montagne Sainte-Victoire, a favorite subject of the painter Paul Cézanne, in the west.
The Bastide de Tourtour, a local hotel, was prominently featured in the film Day of the Jackal and the 2010 ITV series "Monte Carlo or bust".

wn.com/Tourtour
Tourves
Coordinates: 43°24′32″N 5°55′29″E / 43.4089°N 5.9247°E / 43.4089; 5.9247
Tourves (Torves in Occitan) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Tourves
Trigance
Coordinates: 43°45′43″N 6°26′41″E / 43.7619°N 6.4447°E / 43.7619; 6.4447
Trigance is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Trigance
Troyes
Coordinates: 48°17′59″N 4°04′45″E / 48.2997°N 4.0792°E / 48.2997; 4.0792
Troyes (French pronunciation: [tʁwa]) is a commune and the capital of the Aube department in north-central France. It is located on the Seine river about 150 km (93 mi) southeast of Paris. Many half-timbered houses (mainly of the 16th century) 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.
Troyes has been in existence since the Roman era, as Augustobona Tricassium, which stood at the hub of numerous highways, primarily the Via Agrippa which led north to Reims and south to Langres and eventually to Milan; other Roman routes from Troyes led to Poitiers, Autun and Orléans. It was the civitas of the Tricasses, who had been separated by Augustus from the Senones. Of the Gallo-Roman city of the early Empire, some scattered remains have been found, but no public monuments, other than traces of an aqueduct. By the Late Empire the settlement was reduced in extent, and referred to as Tricassium or Tricassae, the origin of French Troyes ("three").

wn.com/Troyes
Tulle
Coordinates: 45°16′02″N 1°45′56″E / 45.2673°N 1.7655°E / 45.2673; 1.7655
Tulle (Occitan: Tula) is a commune and capital of the Corrèze département in the Limousin region in central France. It is also the episcopal see of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Tulle. It is the third-largest town in the Limousin region, after Limoges and Brive-la-Gaillarde.
Known sometimes as "the town on the seven hills", Tulle rose to prominence through the development of its manufacturing sector.
Initially, the Gauls settled an oppidum at the site of what is now the Puy St Clair because it was a site surrounded by cliffs and so easy to get off. After the conquest, the city moved downwards, to the Trech district and the Romans established a temple to honor Tutela, goddess of protection of property and persons. The name of the city comes from this goddess. She was honoured here because it was a ford over the Corrèze where passed a very old road between Brittany and the Mediterranean sea. In the seventh century was built a monastery dedicated to St. Michael. The local population settled around the buildings. The first monastery, destroyed by the Viking invasions in 846, was rebuilt but disappeared in the eleventh century.

wn.com/Tulle
United States
The United States of America (commonly abbreviated to the United States, the U.S., the USA, America, and the States) is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district. The country is situated mostly in central North America, where its forty-eight contiguous states and Washington, D.C., the capital district, lie between the Pacific and Atlantic Oceans, bordered by Canada to the north and Mexico to the south. The state of Alaska is in the northwest of the continent, with Canada to the east and Russia to the west, across the Bering Strait. The state of Hawaii is an archipelago in the mid-Pacific. The country also possesses several territories in the Pacific and Caribbean.
At 3.79 million square miles (9.83 million km²) and with over 312 million people, the United States is the third or fourth largest country by total area, and the third largest by both land area and population. It is one of the world's most ethnically diverse and multicultural nations, the product of large-scale immigration from many countries. The U.S. economy is the world's largest national economy, with an estimated 2011 GDP of $15.1 trillion (22% of nominal global GDP and over 19% of global GDP at purchasing-power parity). Per capita income is the world's sixth-highest.

wn.com/United_States
Vannes
Coordinates: 47°39′21″N 2°45′37″W / 47.6559°N 2.7603°W / 47.6559; -2.7603
Vannes (French pronunciation: [van]; Breton: Gwened) is a commune in the Morbihan department in Brittany in north-western France. It was founded over 2000 years ago.
Vannes is located on the Gulf of Morbihan at the mouth of two rivers, the Marle and the Vincin. It is around 100 km northwest of Nantes and 450 km south west of Paris. Vannes is a market town and often linked to the sea.
The name Vannes comes from the Veneti, a seafaring Celtic people who lived in the south-western part of Armorica in Gaul before the Roman invasions. The Veneti were defeated by Julius Caesar's fleet in 56 BC in front of Locmariaquer; all the Veneti were then either slaughtered or sold into slavery. The Romans settled a town called Darioritum (the romanized Gaulish name of Vannes) in a location previously belonging to the Veneti.
The diocese of Vannes was erected in the 5th century. The Council of Vannes was held there in 461.
The first historical ruler of Vannes was Waroch.

wn.com/Vannes
Varages
Coordinates: 43°35′54″N 5°57′39″E / 43.5983°N 5.9608°E / 43.5983; 5.9608
Varages is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It is known for its vineyards and ceramic dinnerware.

wn.com/Varages
Vaucluse
The Vaucluse (French pronunciation: [vokˈlyz]; Occitan: Vauclusa in classical norm or Vau-Cluso in Mistralian norm) is a department in the southeast of France, named after the famous spring, the Fontaine-de-Vaucluse.
Vaucluse was created on 12 August 1793 out of parts of the departments of Bouches-du-Rhône, Drôme, and Basses-Alpes (later renamed Alpes-de-Haute-Provence). The then rural department was, like the nearby city of Lyon, a hotbed of the French Resistance in World War II.
Vaucluse is bordered by the Rhône to the west and the River Durance to the south. Mountains occupy a significant proportion of the eastern half of the department, with Mont Ventoux (1,912 m), also known as "the Giant of Provence", dominating the landscape. Other important mountain ranges include the Dentelles de Montmirail, the Monts de Vaucluse, and the Luberon. Fruit and vegetables are cultivated in great quantities in the lower-lying parts of the department, on one of the most fertile plains in southern France. The Vaucluse département has a rather large exclave within the Drôme department, the canton of Valréas (Enclave des Papes).

wn.com/Vaucluse
Vendée
The Vendée (French pronunciation: [vɑ̃.de]) is a department in the Pays-de-la-Loire region in west central France, on the Atlantic Ocean. The name Vendée is taken from the Vendée river which runs through the south-eastern part of the department.
The area today called the Vendée was originally known as the Bas-Poitou and is part of the former province of Poitou. In the south-east corner, the village of Nieul-sur-l'Autise is believed to be the birthplace of Eleanor of Aquitaine (1122–1204) and was part of her kingdom. Eleanor's son, Richard I of England (the Lionheart) often had his base in Talmont. The Hundred Years' War (1337–1453) turned much of the Vendée into a battleground.
Since the Vendée held a considerable number of influential Protestants, including control by Jeanne d'Albret, the region was greatly affected by the French Wars of Religion which broke out in 1562 and continued until 1598. Eventually King Henri IV issued the Edict of Nantes and the Wars came to an end. The revocation of the Edict of Nantes in 1685 caused many Huguenots to flee from the Vendée.

wn.com/Vendée
Vesoul
Coordinates: 47°37′23″N 6°09′21″E / 47.6231°N 06.1558°E / 47.6231; 06.1558
Vesoul is a commune in the Haute-Saône department in the region of Franche-Comté in eastern France.
The town is the capital of the department, its inhabitants are known in French as Vésuliens.
Vesoul was the birthplace of Jean-Léon Gérôme (1824–1904), painter and sculptor who produced many works in a historical, Orientalist style.
Vesoul is also the name of a song by Jacques Brel from 1968, a fast paced waltz during the recording of which Brel famously yelled «Chauffe, Marcel, chauffe!» ("heat up, Marcel, heat up!") at his accordionist, Marcel Azzola.
The town is also mentioned facetiously in the satirical rap Fous ta cagoule by Michael Youn.
Media related to Vesoul at Wikimedia Commons

wn.com/Vesoul
Vidauban
Coordinates: 43°25′34″N 6°25′57″E / 43.4262°N 6.4325°E / 43.4262; 6.4325
Vidauban is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
It lies on the bank of the river Argens. Since the beginning of the 1980s Vidauban has experienced strong population growth. Within 20 years the population has more than doubled.

wn.com/Vidauban
Vienne
Vienne (French pronunciation: [vjɛn]) is the northernmost département of the Poitou-Charentes region of France, named after the river Vienne.
Vienne is one of the original 83 departments, established on March 4, 1790 during the French Revolution. It was created from parts of the former provinces of Poitou, Touraine, and Berry. The original Acadians who settled in Nova Scotia and what is today other maritime provinces of Canada, left Vienne for North America after 1604.
Goat cheese making is an important industry of Vienne.
The most famous tourist sites include the Futuroscope theme park, Poitiers (city of Art and History), the Abbey Church of Saint-Savin-sur-Gartempe, a UNESCO world heritage site, the animal parks of Monkey's Valley in Romagne & the Crocodile Planet in Civaux.

wn.com/Vienne
Villecroze
Coordinates: 43°34′59″N 6°16′38″E / 43.5831°N 6.2772°E / 43.5831; 6.2772
Villecroze is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Villecroze
Vosges
Vosges (French pronunciation: [voʒ]) is a French department, named after the local mountain range. It contains the hometown of Joan of Arc, Domrémy.
The Vosges department is one of the original 83 departments of France, created on February 9, 1790 during the French Revolution. It was made of territories that had been part of the province of Lorraine. In German it is referred to as Vogesen.
In 1793 the independent principality of Salm-Salm (town of Senones and its surroundings), enclosed inside the Vosges department, was annexed to France and incorporated into Vosges. In 1795 the area of Schirmeck was detached from the Bas-Rhin department and incorporated into the Vosges department. The Vosges department had now an area of 6,127 km² (2,366 sq. miles) which it kept until 1871.
In 1794 the Vosges was the site of a major battle between the forces of Revolutionary France and the Allied Coalition. See Battle of the Vosges.
The Place des Vosges in Paris was so renamed in 1799 when the department became the first to pay the new Revolutionary taxes.

wn.com/Vosges
Vérignon
Coordinates: 43°39′13″N 6°16′25″E / 43.6535°N 6.2737°E / 43.6535; 6.2737
Vérignon (Verinhon in Classical Provençal and Verignoun in Provençal of the mistralian norm) is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.
The town is situated at the foot of the Great Canjuers Plain, at the heart of a magnificent forest of oaks which is one of the most beautiful forests in Provence. 15 square kilometres of the commune were requisitioned for the Canjuers military camp in 1970.
Canjuers is supposed to be derived from the Latin Campus Julii (the field of Julius), preserving a folk-memory of Julius Caesar's army passing across it during the Gallic Wars. On a mountain range between Aups and Vérignon is an oppidum of the Verrucini. In the Roman era, the main road that linked up Fréjus to Riez passed through Vérignon, and four milestones have been discovered.
The plain is also an important findspot for prehistoric fossils, with most of those found being conserved fossils in the château at Vérignon, not open to the public. According to Raoul Bérenguier, the Blacas seigneurs of Aups installed themselves in Vérignon around the year 1000 and constructed their castle on a rocky outcrop in the town. It had an encircling wall, rectangular living quarters in the north corner, a private chapel of the Assumption for the Blacas (with their family vault under its altar), and a barbican round its south gate. However, this castle proved too constricted, uncomfortable and small, and was abandoned at the start of the 18th century, with the Blacas building a new, unfortified château, which remained in their hands until 1947. It is rectangular in plan, with two levels of overhanging elevations, an attic-storey, and corner towers. Two short wings project out from and frame the main building. The castle stands up in the middle of a magnificent park.

wn.com/Vérignon
Yonne
Yonne (French pronunciation: [jɔn]) is a French department named after the Yonne River. It is one of the four constituent departments of Burgundy in eastern France and its prefecture (capital) is Auxerre. Its official number is 89.
It elects three members of parliament to the National Assembly - in the 2002-7 parliamentary term, all three are drawn from the right-wing Union for a Popular Movement (UMP). Its two senators also represent the UMP.

wn.com/Yonne
Yvelines
Yvelines (French pronunciation: [ivlin]) is a French department in the region of Île-de-France.
Yvelines was created from the western part of the defunct department of Seine-et-Oise on 1 January 1968 in accordance with a law passed on 10 January 1964 and a décret d'application (a decree specifying how a law should be enforced) from 26 February 1965.
It gained the communes of Châteaufort and Toussus-le-Noble from the adjacent department of Essonne in 1969.
The departmental capital, Versailles, which grew up around Louis XIV's château, was also the French capital for more than a century under the Ancien Régime and again between 1871 and 1879 during the early years of the Third Republic. Since then the château has continued to welcome the parlement when called upon to sit in a congressional sitting, jointly with the upper house in order to enact constitutional changes or, as happened most recently in June 2009, to listen to a formal declaration by the president.
Yvelines is bordered by the departments of Val-d'Oise on the north, Hauts-de-Seine on the east, Essonne on the southeast, Eure-et-Loir on the southwest, and Eure on the west.

wn.com/Yvelines
Épinal
Coordinates: 48°10′28″N 6°27′04″E / 48.1744°N 6.4512°E / 48.1744; 6.4512
Épinal is a commune in northeastern France and the capital (prefecture) of the Vosges department. Inhabitants are known as Spinaliens.
The commune has a land area of 59.24 km² (22.873 sq mi). It is situated on the Moselle River, 60 km (37 mi) south of Nancy.
The old town centre features the Place des Vosges, the Chapitre district, Saint-Maurice's Basilica, medieval castle remains and the Roman House (11th and 13th centuries). It is also known for its parks and gardens, as well as a large communal forest with arboretum (the Arboretum de la Forêt d'Épinal).
There are major fortifications, extended and maintained until the early 20th century. There is a legend, among the populace of Épinal, that Napoleon's ghost strolls the wall ramparts on 9 September of each year at 5:00 am It was on this day and at this time that, in 1811, Napoleon gave his first and last oration to the city of Épinal, wherein he addressed the challenges posed by northern expansion.

wn.com/Épinal
Évenos
Coordinates: 43°10′15″N 5°49′51″E / 43.1708°N 5.8308°E / 43.1708; 5.8308
Évenos is a commune in the Var department in the Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur region in southeastern France.

wn.com/Évenos
Évreux
Coordinates: 49°01′27″N 1°09′12″E / 49.0242°N 1.1533°E / 49.0242; 1.1533
Évreux (French pronunciation: [e.vʁø]) is a commune in the Eure department, of which it is the capital, in Haute Normandie in northern France.
The city is on the Iton river.
In late Antiquity, the town, attested in the fourth century CE, was named Mediolanum Aulercorum, "the central town of the Aulerci", the Gallic tribe then inhabiting the area. Mediolanum was a small regional centre of the Roman province of Gallia Lugdunensis.
The present-day name of Évreux originates from the Gallic tribe of Eburovices, literally Those who overcome by the yew?, from the Gaulish root eburo.
The first known members of the family of the counts of Évreux were descended from an illegitimate son of Richard I, duke of Normandy; these counts became extinct in the male line with the death of Count William in 1118. The county passed in right of Agnes, William's sister, wife of Simon de Montfort-l'Amaury (d. 1087) to the house of the lords of Montfort-l'Amaury. Amaury III of Montfort ceded the title in 1200 to King Philip Augustus, whose successor Philip the Fair presented it in 1307 to his brother Louis d'Évreux, for whose benefit Philip the Long raised the countship of Évreux into a peerage of France in 1317.

wn.com/Évreux

André Kertész
André Kertész (2 July 1894 – 28 September 1985), born Kertész Andor, was a Hungarian-born photographer known for his groundbreaking contributions to photographic composition and the photo essay. In the early years of his career, his then-unorthodox camera angles and style prevented his work from gaining wider recognition. Kertész never felt that he had gained the worldwide recognition he deserved. Today he is considered one of the seminal figures of photojournalism.
Expected by his family to work as a stock broker, Kertész pursued photography independently as an autodidact, and his early work was published primarily in magazines, a major market in those years. This continued until much later in his life, when Kertész stopped accepting commissions. He served briefly in World War I and moved to Paris in 1925, then the artistic capital of the world, against the wishes of his family. In Paris he worked for France's first illustrated magazine called VU. Involved with many young immigrant artists and the Dada movement, he achieved critical and commercial success.

wn.com/André_Kertész
Anne Golon
Anne Golon (born 19 December 1921, Toulon, Var) is a French author, better known to English-speaking readers as Sergeanne Golon. She has written a series of novels about a heroine Angelique.
Born Simone Changeux in Toulon, a port in south-eastern France, was the daughter of Pierre Changeux, a scientist and a captain in the French Navy. She was interested in painting and writing from early childhood and published her first novel, The Country from behind my Eyes, when she was 18 under the pen name Joëlle Danterne. During World War II she travelled via bicycle through France to Spain. She wrote using different pen-names, helped to create France Magazine, and was awarded a literary prize for The Patrol of the Saint Innocents.
She was sent to Africa as a journalist, where she met Vsevolod Sergeïvich Goloubinoff, her future husband, Serge Golon. They collaborated on Angélique, Marquise of the Angels (1956), the first book in the series. The book was an overnight success. When originally published in France, the books were credited to Serge and Anne Golon, Anne being the author and husband Serge having done much of the historical research. The two names were merged into Sergeanne Golon by the British publishers when the books were translated.

wn.com/Anne_Golon
Anthony Powell
Anthony Dymoke Powell (pronounced in one syllable, as a homophone of "pole")CH, CBE (21 December 1905 – 28 March 2000) was an English novelist best known for his twelve-volume work A Dance to the Music of Time, published between 1951 and 1975.
Powell's major work has remained in print continuously and has been the subject of TV and radio dramatisations. In 2008, The Times newspaper named Powell among their list of "The 50 greatest British writers since 1945".
Powell was born in Westminster, England, to Philip Lionel William Powell and Maud Mary Wells-Dymoke. His father was an officer in the Welch Regiment. His mother came from a land-owning family in Lincolnshire. Because of his father's career and World War I, the family moved several times, and mother and son sometimes lived apart from Powell's father.
Powell attended Gibbs's pre-prep day-school at the Square end of Sloane Street for a brief time. He was then sent to New Beacon School near Sevenoaks, which was popular with military families. Early in 1919, Powell passed the Common Entrance Examination for Eton where he started that autumn. There he made a friend of a fellow pupil, Henry Yorke, later to become known as the novelist Henry Green.

wn.com/Anthony_Powell
Bastien Salabanzi
Bastien Salabanzi (born November 18, 1985 in Toulon, France) is a professional skateboarder. His stance is regular.
He started skateboarding when he was nine, and soon after gained his first sponsorship by the Skateshop of Toulon. He won his first contest at the age of 11 in Marseille, France. After that, Vans flew him to the finals in California, his first trip to the United States.
Bastien finished third in the street skateboarding event at the 2004 X Games.
He won the WSR05 skateboarding contest in Rotterdam, Netherlands in 2005 and Mystic Skate Cup in Prague - the famous contest from the World Cup series held traditionally in Prague. He also won the World cup in Dortmund (Globe Shoes World Skateboarding Championships) when he was only 16 years old. Bastien Salabanzi went deep into his bag of tricks to pull off a run that included a kickflip nose manual b/s 180 out into a switch 360 flip into a nollie 180 flip before switching back to his normal stance and sticking a kickflip f/s boardslide to fakie. It was a tough call for the judges but they awarded Salabanzi the win over Senn.

wn.com/Bastien_Salabanzi
Brigitte Roüan
Brigitte Roüan (born 28 September 1946 in Toulon) is a French film director and actress.
Rouan was born into a French naval family in Toulon in 1946. She was orphaned at age six and spent her childhood in Algeria and Senegal. At age 12, she left for convent school in Paris.
Her acting career began at age 21, on the stage. Her performance lead the way to small film roles for directors including Alain Resnais, Jacques Rivette, and Bertrand Tavernier.
Rouan became a director in her own right when she helmed a short film titled Grosse. It won a César Award in 1986. She would become a feature film director with Overseas (1990), which won the Critics' Week award at the 1990 Cannes Film Festival. She co-starred in the film with Marianne Basler and Nicole Garcia to portray sisters in colonial North Africa during the 1950s.
The now actor-director would continue in roles, including one in Olivier, Olivier (1991) for Polish director Agnieszka Holland.
Rouan's 1997 film Post Coitum, Animal Triste garnered attention for its depiction of an affair between a middle-aged woman (played by Rouan herself) and a younger man. The film was a success in its native country and received strong notices in America, where it screened at the New York Film Festival before playing to arthouse crowds. It was also screened in the Un Certain Regard section at the 1997 Cannes Film Festival.

wn.com/Brigitte_Roüan
Caesarius of Arles
Saint Caesarius of Arles (468/470 – 27 August 542), sometimes called "of Chalon" (Cabillonensis or Cabellinensis) from his birthplace Chalon-sur-Saône but more usually known as Caesarius of Arles (Arelatensis) from the see that he occupied as bishop for forty years, was the foremost ecclesiastic of his generation in Gaul. In all the Christian West, only Gregory the Great and Gregory of Tours overshadow him.
Caesarius was born at Chalon-sur-Saône to Roman Burgundian parents. His sister Caesaria afterwards presided over the convent which he founded, and to her he addressed his Regula ad Virgines. At the time of his birth, Germanic kings governed Burgundy. Unlike his parents, Caesarius was born with a very strong and intense feeling for religion which alienated him from his family for the majority of his adolescence. Caesarius left home at seventeen and studied under Bishop Sylvester for a few years. Afterwards, he found his way to Lerins (Lerinum), an island monastery, which was known to be a major dynamo for creative forces of work in the Church of Roman Gaul. After training as a monk at Lérins he devoted himself to reading and applying the scripture in hopes of improving the quality and organization of Christian life and serving the poor. He rapidly became master of all the learning and discipline the monastery communicated and was appointed cellarer. However, he proved unpopular at Lerins when, as cellarer of the monastery, he withheld food from monks because he felt they were insufficiently austere. As a result, the abbot Porcarius removed Caesarius from his post whereupon he began starving himself; the abbot intervened and sent Caesarius to Arles ostensibly for medical care. After living at Lerins for over a decade and his health steadily decreasing from monastic over-exertion, Caesarius sought out a different clerical Christian community in Arles.

wn.com/Caesarius_of_Arles
Capucine
Capucine (6 January 1928 – 17 March 1990) was a French actress and fashion model best known for her comedic roles in The Pink Panther (1963) and What's New Pussycat? (1965). She appeared in 36 films and 17 television productions between 1948 and 1990. Her death was a result of suicide.
Capucine was born Germaine Hélène Irène Lefebvre in Saint-Raphaël, Var, France on 6 January 1928. (She often confused the issue by saying she was born in 1931 or 1933, and most sources report these years, but there is documentary evidence for a 1928 year of birth.) She attended school in France and received a B.A. in foreign languages. At 17, while riding in a carriage in Paris, she was noticed by a commercial photographer. She became a fashion model, working for fashion houses Givenchy and Christian Dior. She adopted the name, "Capucine" (French for nasturtium). Capucine met Audrey Hepburn modeling in Paris. The two would remain friends for the rest of Capucine's life.
In 1949, Capucine made her film debut in the French film Rendez-vous de Juillet. On the set of Rendez-vous, she met Pierre Trabaud; they married the next year. The marriage lasted only six months, and Capucine never married again.

wn.com/Capucine
Cardinal Richelieu
Armand Jean du Plessis, Cardinal-Duc de Richelieu et de Fronsac (French pronunciation: [ʁiʃəljø]; 9 September 1585 – 4 December 1642) was a French clergyman, noble and statesman.
Consecrated as a bishop in 1608, he later entered politics, becoming a Secretary of State in 1616. Richelieu soon rose in both the Catholic Church and the French government, becoming a Cardinal in 1622, and King Louis XIII's chief minister in 1624. He remained in office until his death in 1642; he was succeeded by Cardinal Mazarin, whose career he had fostered.
The Cardinal de Richelieu was often known by the title of the King's "Chief Minister" or "First Minister". As a result, he is considered to be the world's first Prime Minister, in the modern sense of the term.^[who?] He sought to consolidate royal power and crush domestic factions. By restraining the power of the nobility, he transformed France into a strong, centralized state. His chief foreign policy objective was to check the power of the Austro-Spanish Habsburg dynasty, and to ensure French dominance in the Thirty Years' War that engulfed Europe. Although he was a cardinal, he did not hesitate to make alliances with Protestant rulers in attempting to achieve his goals.

wn.com/Cardinal_Richelieu
Charles De Gaulle
Charles André Joseph Marie de Gaulle (/ˈtʃɑrlz/ or /ˈʃɑrl dəˈɡɔːl/; French: [ʃaʁl də ɡol] ( listen); 22 November 1890 – 9 November 1970) was a French general and statesman who led the Free French Forces during World War II. He later founded the French Fifth Republic in 1958 and served as its first President from 1959 to 1969.
A veteran of World War I, in the 1920s and 1930s de Gaulle came to the fore as a proponent of mobile armoured divisions, which he considered would become central in modern warfare. During World War II, he earned the rank of brigadier general (retained throughout his life), leading one of the few successful armoured counter-attacks during the 1940 Battle of France in May in Montcornet, and then briefly served in the French government as France was falling. De Gaulle was the most senior French military officer to reject the June 1940 armistice to Nazi Germany right from the outset.
He escaped to Britain and gave a famous radio address, broadcast by the BBC on 18 June 1940, exhorting the French people to resist Nazi Germany and organised the Free French Forces with exiled French officers in Britain. As the war progressed de Gaulle gradually gained control of all French colonies except Indochina most of which had at first been controlled by the pro-German Vichy regime. Despite earning a reputation for being a difficult man to do business with, by the time of the Allied invasion of France in 1944 he was heading what amounted to a French government in exile, but although he insisted that France be treated as a great independent power by the other Allies, the Americans in particular remained deeply suspicious of his motives. De Gaulle became prime minister in the French Provisional Government, resigning in 1946 because of political conflicts.

wn.com/Charles_De_Gaulle
Christian Dalger
Christian Dalger (born 19 December 1949 in Nîmes, Gard) is a former French footballer who played striker, who earned six international caps for the French national team during the 1970s, scoring two goals.
During his career he played for clubs like SC Toulon (1962–1971) and AS Monaco (1971–1980), with whom he won the French title in 1978. He was a member of the French team in the 1978 FIFA World Cup. After his professional career he became a football manager.

wn.com/Christian_Dalger
Christo
Christo (born Christo Vladimirov Javacheff, Bulgarian: Христо Явашев, June 13, 1935) and Jeanne-Claude (born Jeanne-Claude Denat de Guillebon, June 13, 1935 – November 18, 2009) were a married couple who created environmental works of art. Their works include the wrapping of the Reichstag in Berlin and the Pont-Neuf bridge in Paris, the 24-mile (39 km)-long artwork called Running Fence in Sonoma and Marin counties in California, and The Gates in New York City's Central Park.
Christo and Jeanne-Claude were born on the same date. They first met in Paris in October 1958. Their works were credited to just "Christo" until 1994 when the outdoor works and large indoor installations were retroactively credited to "Christo and Jeanne-Claude". They flew in separate planes: in case one crashed, the other could continue their work.
Jeanne-Claude died, aged 74, on November 18, 2009, from complications of a brain aneurysm.
Although their work is visually impressive and often controversial as a result of its scale, the artists have repeatedly denied that their projects contain any deeper meaning than their immediate aesthetic impact. The purpose of their art, they contend, is simply to create works of art or joy and beauty and to create new ways of seeing familiar landscapes. Art critic David Bourdon has described Christo's wrappings as a "revelation through concealment." To his critics Christo replies, "I am an artist, and I have to have courage ... Do you know that I don't have any artworks that exist? They all go away when they're finished. Only the preparatory drawings, and collages are left, giving my works an almost legendary character. I think it takes much greater courage to create things to be gone than to create things that will remain."

wn.com/Christo
Claude Viallat
Claude Viallat (born 1936) is a French contemporary painter.
Born in Nîmes, he grew up in Aubais, a French village with a strong bull tradition. In 1955, he joined the École des Beaux-Arts (Fine Arts School) in Montpellier, where he met André-Pierre Arnal, Vincent Bioulès, Daniel Dezeuze, Toni Grand, François Rouan, and Henriette Pous, whom he married in 1962.
After doing his military service in Algeria from 1958 to 1961, he joined the École Nationale Supérieure des Beaux-Arts (the National Fine Arts School) of Paris, where he met fellow students Joël Kermarrec, Pierre Buraglio, and Michel Parmentier. He discovered American art in Paris, notably the works of Kenneth Noland, Morris Louis, Sam Francis, and Mark Rothko. As soon as 1963, he was attracted to abstraction. He was appointed as a teacher in the École des Arts Décoratifs (Decorative Arts School) of Nice in 1964 and decided to create a new formal language questioning the conventions of classical painting. He then started working systematically with one shape affixed on canvas without stretchers. His first personal exhibition took place at Nice’s Galerie A in 1966. He also participated in several collective exhibitions that year.

wn.com/Claude_Viallat
Cyprian of Toulon
Saint Cyprian of Toulon (Cyprianus Tolonensis) (476 – October 3, 546) was bishop of Toulon during the 6th century. Born at Marseilles, he was the favorite pupil of St. Caesarius of Arles by whom he was trained. Caesarius ordained him in 506 to the diaconate, and, in 516, consecrated him as bishop of Toulon.
St. Cyprian appears to have been present in 524 at the synod of Arles and in the following years to have attended a number of councils. At all these assemblies he showed himself a vigorous opponent of Semipelagianism.
He said to have converted to Catholicism two Visigoth chiefs, Mandrier and Flavian, who became anchorites and martyrs on the peninsula of Mandrier.
Soon after the death of Caesarius (d. 543) Cyprian wrote a life of his great teacher in two books, being moved to the undertaking by the entreaty of the Abbess Caesaria the Younger, who had been the head of the convent at Arles since 529. The life is one of the most valuable biographical remains of the sixth century. Cyprian was aided in his task by the two bishops, Firminus and Viventius, friends of Caesarius, as well as by the priest Messianus and the deacon Stephen. The main part of the work up to the fortieth chapter of the first book was most probably written by Cyprian himself. Within the last few years another writing of his has become known, a letter to Bishop Maximus of Geneva, which discusses some of the disputed theological questions of that age.

wn.com/Cyprian_of_Toulon
Cyril Saulnier
Cyril Saulnier (born August 16, 1975 in Toulon, France) is a retired French tennis player.
His career-high singles ranking is 48th and was reached on March 21, 2005. Earlier that year he reached the final of the SAP Open in San Jose to be ranked in the top 50 for the first time in his career.

wn.com/Cyril_Saulnier
David Ginola
David Desire Marc Ginola (English pronunciation: /ˈdʒɪnəlɑː/) (born 25 January 1967) is a French former international football player who has also worked as an actor and model.
Ginola was born in Gassin, Var. He played football for ten seasons in his native France before moving to England in 1995, when he signed for Newcastle United. He stayed in the country until retiring seven years later, having also turned out for Tottenham Hotspur, Aston Villa and Everton. Since his retirement from the game in 2002 he has become involved in several new pursuits, including acting.
Ginola played at club level for Toulon (1985–88), Racing Levallois 92 (1988–90), Brest (1990–92), Paris Saint-Germain (1992–95), Newcastle United (1995–97), Tottenham Hotspur (1997–2000), Aston Villa (2000–2002) and Everton (2002).
Ginola made his first senior appearance for Sporting Toulon as an eighteen year-old in a 1985 2–0 victory away at Metz. He played fourteen times in his first season, and by 1986 he was a regular in the Toulon line-up.

wn.com/David_Ginola
Delio Onnis
Delio Onnis (born 24 March 1948 in Giuliano di Roma) is a retired Argentine football forward. He was nicknamed "el Tano" (the Italian) in Argentina.
He is still today the French championship highest scorer, scoring 299 goals from 1972 to 1986 for Stade de Reims, AS Monaco FC, Tours FC and Sporting Toulon Var.
Born in Italy, he however, has Argentine citizenship and began his career in Argentina. He was the star striker in the successful team of Gimnasia y Esgrima La Plata that finished third in 1970, known as "La Borredora" ("The Sweeper"). He joined Stade de Reims in 1971, which was a far less successful team than the one of fifteen years earlier and they struggled in Division 1. He then played for AS Monaco FC for seven years, scoring 157 goals. In 1980, despite playing in one of the best teams in Division 1, he signed for newly promoted and inexperienced team FC Tours, where he was twice again Division 1 leading goalscorer. In 1983, as Tours got relegated, he joined SC Toulon, where he finished his career in 1986.

wn.com/Delio_Onnis
Dewey Lambdin
Dewey Lambdin (born 1945) is an American nautical historical novelist. He is best known for his Alan Lewrie naval adventure series, spanning the American Revolution and the Napoleonic Wars. Besides the Alan Lewrie series, he is also the author of What Lies Buried: a novel of Old Cape Fear.
The son of a U.S. Navy officer, Lambdin attended the University of Tennessee where he had his first published story appear in the Thorn Vault, Lambdin graduated with a degree in Film & TV Production from Montana State University in 1969. After graduating he moved to Memphis, Tennessee were he worked as a producer/director production manager and senior director/writer/ producer for local television stations, and later in Nashville in advertising. .
After being laid off when the advertising company he worked for failed, he returned to his early interest in writing fiction with his creation of Lewrie in The King's Coat in 1988, published in 1989.

wn.com/Dewey_Lambdin
Didier Tarquin
Didier Tarquin is a French cartoonist and scenarist. Born on the 20th of January 1967 in Toulon, he spent the first ten years of his life in Touggourt (Algeria) in the Sahara desert. He chose to become a cartoonist during a cartoon summer camp. His professional career started in 1990 with Soleil comics but really attains fame in 1994 with the series Lanfeust of Troy in collaboration with Christophe Arleston.

wn.com/Didier_Tarquin
Donald Judd
Donald Clarence Judd (June 3, 1928 – February 12, 1994) was an American artist associated with minimalism (a term he nonetheless stridently disavowed). In his work, Judd sought autonomy and clarity for the constructed object and the space created by it, ultimately achieving a rigorously democratic presentation without compositional hierarchy. It created an outpouring of seemingly effervescent works that defied the term "minimalism". Nevertheless, he is generally considered the leading international exponent of "minimalism," and its most important theoretician through such seminal writings such as "Specific Objects" (1964).
Judd was born in Excelsior Springs, Missouri. He served in the Army from 1946-1947 as an engineer and in 1948 began his studies in philosophy at the College of William and Mary, later transferring to Columbia University School of General Studies. At Columbia, he earned a degree in philosophy and worked towards a master's in art history under Rudolf Wittkower and Meyer Shapiro. Also at Columbia he attended night classes at the Art Students League of New York. He supported himself by writing art criticism for major American art magazines between 1959 and 1965. In 1968 Judd bought a five-story cast-iron building, designed by Nicholas Whyte in 1870, at 101 Spring Street for under $70,000, serving as hist New York residence and studio. Over the next 25 years, Judd renovated the building floor by floor, sometimes installing works he purchased or commissioned from other artists.

wn.com/Donald_Judd
Francis I of France
Francis I (French: François I^er) (12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death. During his reign, huge cultural changes took place in France and he has been called France's original Renaissance monarch. His permanent rivalry with the Emperor Charles V for hegemony in Europe was the origin of a long and ruinous military conflict that gave rise to the Protestant revolution.
Francis was an ally of Suleiman the Magnificent, with whom he formed the Franco-Ottoman alliance. His great rivals were King Henry VIII of England and Holy Roman Emperor Charles V.
Francis was born at the Château de Cognac in the town of Cognac 400 km southwest of Paris, which at that time lay in the province of Saintonge, a part of the Duchy of Aquitaine. The town lies today in the French department of Charente.
Francis was the only son of Charles, Count of Angoulême and Louise of Savoy and a great-great-grandson of King Charles V. His family was not expected to inherit the throne, as his third cousin King Charles VIII was still young, as was his father's cousin the Duke of Orléans. However, Charles VIII died childless in 1498 and left the throne to the Duke of Orléans, who became Louis XII. The Salic Law prevailed in France, and women were ineligible to inherit the throne. Therefore, four-year-old Francis (who was already Count of Angoulême after the death of his own father two years prior) became the heir presumptive to the throne of France and was vested with the title of Duke of Valois.

wn.com/Francis_I_of_France
Félix Mayol
Félix Mayol (18 November 1872 – 1 November 1941) was a French singer and entertainer.
Mayol was born in Toulon, France. His parents were both amateur singers and actors, who arranged for Felix to make his debut stage at six years of age.
In 1895 he went to Paris and the Montparnasse Quarter where he began a career in entertainment that spanned more than forty years. He adopted a camp and effeminate manner on stage as part of his theatrical persona.
He sang the famous song "Viens poupoule, viens poupoule, viens...", and performed many songs by Théodore Botrel.
In the early years of the 20th century some of Mayol's performances were captured by an early form of talking picture. He would record his voice, then the motion picture camera would film him as he lip-synced to the record. Several of his Phonoscènes exist.
The teenage Maurice Chevalier took a risk by impersonating Mayol in small-time cafe entertainments, Mayol recognised the young man's talent and gave him his blessing. It led Chevalier to the Casino de Paris and the Folies Bergère.^{[citation needed]}

wn.com/Félix_Mayol
Gabriel Péri
Gabriel Péri (Peri) (1902—1941) was a prominent French Communist journalist and politician, and member of the French Resistance. He was executed by Nazi-occupied France during World War II.
Péri was born in Toulon to a Corsican family. Forced to give up his studies at an early age, he immersed himself in political activities, and wrote for newspapers in Aix-en-Provence and Marseille.
At the age of twenty-two, Péri became departmental manager of Foreign Politics at l'Humanité. He was elected Deputy for Argenteuil in 1932 and was re-elected in 1936.
In the French National Assembly, Péri distinguished himself as an expert in the field of diplomatic and international relations and was a strident anti-fascist. He denounced both Benito Mussolini's invasion of Ethiopia and France’s non-intervention in the Spanish Civil War. Péri was also a prominent opponent of the Nazi regime in Germany.
After the Fall of France in 1940, the country was placed under Nazi occupation. Arrested on May 18, 1941, Péri was shot later in the same year on December 15 at Fort Mont-Valérien. Albert Camus witnessed his execution, an event which he later said crystallized his own revolt against the Germans.

wn.com/Gabriel_Péri
Gilbert Bécaud
Gilbert Bécaud (French pronunciation: [ʒil.bɛːʁ be.ko], 24 October 1927 – 18 December 2001) was a French singer, composer and actor, known as "Monsieur 100,000 Volts" for his energetic performances. His best-known hits are "Nathalie" and "Et Maintenant", a 1961 release that became an English language hit as "What Now My Love". He remained a popular artist for nearly fifty years, identifiable in his dark blue suits, with a white shirt and "lucky tie"; blue with white polka dots. When asked to explain his gift he said, "A flower doesn't understand botanics." His favourite venue was the Paris Olympia under the management of Bruno Coquatrix. He debuted there in 1954 and headlined in 1955, attracting 6,000 on his first night, three times the capacity. On 13 November 1997 Bécaud was present for the re-opening of the venue after its reconstruction.
Born François Silly in Toulon, Bécaud learned to play the piano at a young age, and then went to the Conservatoire de Nice. In 1942, he left school to join the French Resistance during World War II. He began songwriting in 1948, after meeting Maurice Vidalin, who inspired him to write his early compositions. He began writing for Marie Bizet; Bizet, Bécaud and Vidalin became a successful trio, and their partnership lasted until 1950.

wn.com/Gilbert_Bécaud
Greeks
The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes (Greek: Ἕλληνες, [ˈelines]), are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and other regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world.
Greek colonies and communities have been historically established in most corners of the Mediterranean, but Greeks have always been centered around the Aegean Sea, where the Greek language has been spoken since antiquity. Until the early 20th century, Greeks were uniformly distributed between the Greek peninsula, the western coast of Asia Minor, Pontus, Egypt, Cyprus and Constantinople; many of these regions coincided to a large extent with the borders of the Byzantine Empire of the late 11th century and the Eastern Mediterranean areas of the ancient Greek colonization.
In the aftermath of the Greco-Turkish War (1919–1922), a large-scale population exchange between Greece and Turkey transferred and confined Christians from Turkey, except Constantinople (effectively ethnic Greeks) into the borders of the modern Greek state and Cyprus. Other ethnic Greek populations can be found from southern Italy to the Caucasus and in diaspora communities in a number of other countries. Today, most Greeks are officially registered as members of the Greek Orthodox Church.

wn.com/Greeks
Guy du Merle
Guy du Merle, born the 1st of January 1908 in Toulon and died the 6th of June 1993 (85 years old), is a French aeronautical engineer, test pilot and writer. He is the first director-general of the École nationale de l'aviation civile (French civil aviation university).
Graduate from the École Polytechnique (X 27) and the École nationale supérieure de l'aéronautique et de l'espace (SUPAERO 32), he begins his career as a air military engineer in the military air center from 1933 to 1935 and test pilot on more than hundred types of aircraft, seaplanes and gliders, including, with Captain Rozanoff, the Messerschmitt 109 and the Heinkel 111 captured by the Republicans in Spain in 1938. In 1945 he becomes director of the aerospace department, until 1948. Meanwhile, from 1940 to 1950, he teaches the aerospace manufacturer at SUPAERO. In 1948, he becomes the first director of the École nationale de l'aviation civile (French civil aviation university), a position held until 1951 and the appointment of his successor, Gilbert Manuel.

wn.com/Guy_du_Merle
Hayreddin Barbarossa
Hayreddin Barbarossa, or Barbarossa Hayreddin Pasha (Turkish: Barbaros Hayreddin (Hayrettin) Paşa or Hızır Hayreddin (Hayrettin) Paşa; also Khizr Reis before being promoted to the rank of Pasha and becoming the Kapudan-i Derya, born Khizr or Khidr, Turkish: Hızır; c. 1478 – 4 July 1546), was an Ottoman Turkish admiral who dominated the Mediterranean for decades. He was born on the island of Lesbos/Mytilini and died in Istanbul (Constantinople), the Ottoman capital. Hayreddin (Arabic: Khair ad-Din خير الدين, which literally means "goodness" or "best of the religion" of Islam) was an honorary name given to him by Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent. He became known as "Barbarossa" ("Redbeard" in Italian) in Europe, a name he inherited from his elder brother Baba Oruç (Father Aruj) after Aruj was killed in a battle with the Spanish in Algeria. This name sounded like "Barbarossa" ("Redbeard") to the Europeans, and Aruj did have a red beard. The nickname then stuck also to Hayreddin's Turkish name, in the form Barbaros.^{[citation needed]}

wn.com/Hayreddin_Barbarossa
Honoratus
Saint Honoratus (French: Saint Honorat or Saint Honoré; c. 350 – January 6, 429) was Archbishop of Arles.
There is some disagreement concerning his place of birth, and the date of his death is still disputed, being according to certain authors, January 14 or January 15. It is believed that he was born in the north of Gaul and that he belonged to an illustrious pagan family. Converted to Christianity with his brother Venantius, he embarked with him from Marseilles about 368, under the guidance of a holy person named Caprasius, to visit the holy places of Palestine and the lauræ of Syria and Egypt. But the death of Venantius, occurring suddenly at Methone, Achaia, prevented the pious travellers from going further. They returned to Gaul through Italy, and, after having stopped at Rome, Honoratus went on into Provence and, encouraged by Leontius, bishop of Fréjus, took up his abode in the wild Lérins Island today called the Île Saint-Honorat, with the intention of living there in solitude.
Numerous disciples soon gathered around him, including Lupus of Troyes, Eucherius of Lyon, and Hilary of Arles. Thus was founded the Monastery of Lérins, which has enjoyed so great a celebrity and which was during the fifth and sixth centuries a nursery for illustrious bishops and remarkable ecclesiastical writers. Honoratus's reputation for sanctity throughout the southeastern portion of Gaul was such that in 426 after the assassination of Patroclus of Arles, Archbishop of Arles, he was summoned from his solitude to succeed to the government of the diocese, which the Arian and Manichaean beliefs had greatly disturbed. He appears to have succeeded in re-establishing order and orthodoxy, while still continuing to direct from afar the monks of Lérins. However, the acts of his brief pontificate are not known. He died in the arms of Hilary, one of his disciples and probably a relative, who was to succeed him in the See of Arles.

wn.com/Honoratus
Hubert Falco
Hubert Falco (born May 15, 1947 in Pignans, Var) is a French politician who has been appointed Secretary of State for development of the territory in the government of François Fillon on March 18, 2008. He is the mayor of Toulon.
Biography at nouveleconomiste.fr

wn.com/Hubert_Falco
Jacques Le Goff
Jacques Le Goff (born 1 January 1924 in Toulon) is a prolific French historian specializing in the Middle Ages, particularly the 12th and 13th centuries.
Le Goff champions the Annales School movement, which emphasizes long-term trends over the topics of politics, diplomacy, and war that dominated 19th century historical research. From 1972 to 1977, he was the head of the École des hautes études en sciences sociales (EHESS). He was a leading figure of New History, related to cultural history. Le Goff argues that the Middle Ages formed a civilization of its own, distinct from both the Greco-Roman antiquity and the modern world.
A prolific medievalist of international renown, Le Goff is sometimes considered the principal heir and continuator of the movement known as Annales School (École des Annales), founded by his intellectual mentor Marc Bloch. Le Goff succeeded Fernand Braudel in 1972 at the head of the École des hautes études en sciences sociales (EHESS) and was succeeded by François Furet in 1977. Along with Pierre Nora, he was one of the leading figure of New History (Nouvelle histoire) in the 1970s.

wn.com/Jacques_Le_Goff
Jannis Kounellis
Jannis Kounellis was born on March 23, 1936 in Piraeus, Greece. He studied in art college in Athens until 1956 and at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Rome.
In 1963, the artist introduced found objects in his paintings, among them live animals but also fire, earth, burlap sacks, gold. He replaced the canvas with bed frames, doorways, windows or simply the gallery itself. In 1967, Kounellis joined the Arte Povera movement of Germano Celant. In 1969, he exhibited real horses in the galleria l’Attico. Gradually, Kounellis introduced new materials in his installations (propane torches, smoke, coal, meat, ground coffee, lead, found wooden objects, etc.). The gallery environment was replaced with historical (mostly industrial) sites.
October 2009 finds many Kounellis' works presented in various sections of Tate Modern Gallery in London, UK. On the 5th floor, there is a room dedicated to his work. Jonathan Jones of the Guardian newspaper notes : "dry-stone walling, sacks of grain and rice, and a painting that includes part of the score of St John Passion by JS Bach bring a sense of real life, organic and ancient, into the museum. Like the Kiefer installation, this is another of the Artist Rooms acquired from the collection of Anthony d'Offay." On the 3rd floor, one of his works is matched with that of an Italian artist of the same artistic movement.

wn.com/Jannis_Kounellis
Jean Blondel
Jean Blondel (born Toulon, 26 October 1929) is a French political scientist specialising in comparative politics. He is currently Emeritus Professor at the European University Institute in Florence, and visiting professor at the University of Siena.
He graduated from the Institut d'Études Politiques of Paris in 1953. He studied at St Antony's College (Oxford) from 1953 to 1955, graduating with a B.Litt. He returned to France for military service, returning to Britain to study the relations between central and local government at Manchester University. He was a lecturer at the University College of North Staffordshire (now Keele University) from 1958 to 1963,a fellow at Yale University in 1963-4 and then moved to the University of Essex in 1964, where he founded the Department of Government. He started the European Consortium for Political Research in 1969 and directed it for ten years following its foundation meeting in 1970. Having left Essex in 1984, he was appointed scholar of the Russell Sage Foundation in New York in 1984 before becoming professor of political science at the European University Institute in Florence form 1985 to 1994. He holds honorary doctorates form the Universities of Salford and Essex in the United Kingdom, Louvain-la-Neuve in Belgium, Turku in Finland, and Siena in Italy.

wn.com/Jean_Blondel
Jean Tigana
Jean Amadou Tigana (born 23 June 1955 in Bamako, Mali, previously named French Sudan) is a former French international footballer, having played in midfield and managed professional football extensively throughout France, including 52 appearances and 1 goal for the France national football team during the 1980s. He most recently coached Chinese Super League outfit Shanghai Shenhua.
Tigana started his professional career as a player at Toulon, having been spotted fairly late playing part-time while employed in a spaghetti factory and then as a postman. He moved to Lyon in 1978 and then to Bordeaux in a $4million transfer. He was part of the French national football team that won the European Championship in 1984, defeating Spain in the final. In Bordeaux's midfield for eight years, Tigana helped them to three league titles and three French cups, as well as taking them close to European glory on two occasions, losing in the semi-final of the European Cup and Cup Winners' Cup in 1985 and 1987 respectively.

wn.com/Jean_Tigana
Joseph Conrad
Joseph Conrad (born Józef Teodor Konrad Korzeniowski; 3 December 1857 Berdichev, Ukraine – 3 August 1924) was a Polish novelist who wrote in English, after settling in England.
Conrad is regarded as one of the great novelists in English, though he did not speak the language fluently until he was in his twenties (and then always with a marked Polish accent). He wrote stories and novels, predominantly with a nautical setting, that depict trials of the human spirit by the demands of duty and honour. Conrad was a master prose stylist who brought a distinctly non-English tragic sensibility into English literature. While some of his works have a strain of romanticism, he is viewed as a precursor of modernist literature. His narrative style and anti-heroic characters have influenced many authors.
Films have been adapted from or inspired by Conrad's Victory, Lord Jim, The Secret Agent, An Outcast of the Islands, The Rover, The Shadow Line, The Duel, Heart of Darkness, Nostromo, and Almayer's Folly.

wn.com/Joseph_Conrad
Joëlle Wintrebert
Joëlle Wintrebert (born 1949 in Toulon) is a French writer. She primarily writes science fiction, but also writes children's literature and journalism. She has won the Prix Rosny-Aîné three times, first in 1980. She also edited the anthology series Univers.

wn.com/Joëlle_Wintrebert
Jules Verne
Jules Gabriel Verne (French pronunciation: [ʒyl vɛʁn]; February 8, 1828 – March 24, 1905) was a French author who pioneered the science fiction genre. He is best known for his novels Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (1870), A Journey to the Center of the Earth (1864), and Around the World in Eighty Days (1873). Verne wrote about space, air, and underwater travel before air travel and practical submarines were invented, and before practical means of space travel had been devised. He is the second most translated author in the world (after Agatha Christie). Some of his books have also been made into live-action and animated films and television shows. Verne is often referred to as the "Father of Science Fiction", a title sometimes shared with Hugo Gernsback and H. G. Wells.
Jules Verne was born in Nantes, in France, to Pierre Verne, an attorney, and his wife, Sophie Allote de la Fuÿe. Jules spent his early years at home with his parents in the bustling harbor city of Nantes. The family spent summers in a country house just outside the city, in Brains on the banks of the Loire River. Here Jules and his brother Paul would often rent a boat for one franc a day. The sight of the many ships navigating the river sparked Jules's imagination, as he describes in the autobiographical short story "Souvenirs d'Enfance et de Jeunesse". At the age of nine, Jules and Paul, of whom he was very fond, were sent to boarding school at the Saint Donatien College (Petit séminaire de Saint-Donatien). As a child, he developed a great interest in travel and exploration, a passion he showed as a writer of adventure stories and science fiction. His interest in writing often cost him progress in other subjects.

wn.com/Jules_Verne
Kaba Diawara
Kaba Diawara (born December 16, 1975 in Toulon) is a retired French-born Guinean footballer.
His club career has been quite unstable, having played briefly for three English clubs (Arsenal, Blackburn Rovers and West Ham United) as well as in Spain and Qatar. Diawara only scored once in English football, despite having three spells there. His sole goal coming for Blackburn in a 6-1 League Cup win over Rochdale. In France, he has played for teams like Bordeaux and Paris St Germain with some success. In the 2006-2007 season, he transferred to Gaziantepspor but after played none in 2007-08 season, he signed a contract until end of season for Ankaragücü. Despite being a striker, he never scored a league goal for any of his English clubs. On August 2008, he moved to Alki Larnaca in Cyprus. The Guinean forward was signed from AC Arles-Avignon on a free transfer, he was released by Cypriot club Alki Larnaca in December 2008.
The striker played for the French national U-21 team, but chose to represent Guinea at senior level. He scored two goals in the 2006 African Cup of Nations.

wn.com/Kaba_Diawara
Laurent Emmanuelli
Laurent Emmanuelli, (born 19 September 1976 in Toulon) is a French rugby union player who plays as a prop for Top 14 side RC Toulon. He has previously played for Stade Montois, Clermont Auvergne and Stade Français.
He won the 2006–07 European Challenge Cup and played in the final against Bath, his performance got him onto the stand-by list for the French squad in the 2007 Rugby World Cup.

wn.com/Laurent_Emmanuelli
Ligures
The Ligures (singular Ligus or Ligur; English: Ligurians, Greek: Λίγυες) were an ancient people who gave their name to Liguria, a region of north-western Italy.
According to Plutarch they called themselves Ambrones, but this does not necessarily indicate a relationship with the Ambrones of northern Europe. They were ignorant of their own origin.
Classical references and toponomastics suggest that the Ligurian sphere once extended further than the present boundary of Liguria [1]. Ligurian toponyms have been found in Sicily, the Rhône valley, Corsica and Sardinia.
Aeschylus represents Hercules as contending with the Ligures on the stony plains near the mouths of the Rhone, and Herodotus speaks of Ligures inhabiting the country above Massilia (modern Marseilles, founded by the Greeks). Thucydides also speaks of the Ligures having expelled the Sicanians, an Iberian tribe, from the banks of the river Sicanus, in Iberia. The Periplus of Pseudo-Scylax describes the Ligyes (Ligures) living along the Mediterranean coast from Antion (Antibes) as far as the mouth of the Rhone; then intermingled with the Iberians from the Rhone to Emporion in Spain. People with Ligurian names were living south of Placentia, in Italy, as late as 102 AD.

wn.com/Ligures
LiLi Roquelin
LiLi Roquelin (born in Toulon, France) is a French-born American trip-hop and alternative rock singer-songwriter from Astoria, Queens. Roquelin is most notable for her songs, "I Saw You", which won Best Music Video at several film festivals in 2008 and 2009, "Blues Alone", "Should you get mad".
Roquelin grew up in the south of France, learning music from her multi-instrumentalist father when she was four years old. She played several gigs as a teenager, both solo and in various bands. She then left France to pursue a career in the United States when she felt the music education in France was too conservative for her and how the country’s music industry seemed to favor French DJs over live singer-songwriters. She first moved to Cleveland, Ohio and fronted Phizzy Lager and then the hard-rock Kent, Ohio band Hate Dies Hard, and released an album with them entitled Neverending Sundown in 2006 (The band had put out three releases from 1996 to 2003. However, Roquelin was not part of the band then).

wn.com/LiLi_Roquelin
Louis Duchesne
Louis Marie Olivier Duchesne (13 September 1843 – 21 April 1922) was a French priest, philologist, teacher and a critical historian of Christianity and Roman Catholic liturgy and institutions.
Descended from a family of Breton sailors, he was born in 1843 in Saint-Servan, Roulais place, now part of Saint-Malo on the Breton coast, and was orphaned at a young age, in 1849, after the death of his father Jacques Duchesne. Marc Tanguy, a relative, was one of the survivors of 74-gun ship Redoutable at the Battle of Trafalgar in 1805. Louis' brother Jean-Baptiste Duchesne settled in Oregon, and arrived at Oregon City in 1849.
He was ordained to the priesthood in 1867. Louis Duchesne taught for many years in Saint-Brieuc, then went to study in Paris, where he influenced the reformist Alfred Firmin Loisy, a founder of the failed movement to bring Catholicism into sympathy with science, the modern social sciences and philosophy, called "Catholic modernism" which eventually precipitated the crisis in the Church under Pope Pius X in the years around 1907. In 1876 he became a member of the École française in Rome; he eventually became its director. He was an amateur archaeologist and organized expeditions from Rome to Mount Athos, to Syria, and Asia Minor, from which he gained an interest in the early history of the Roman Catholic Church.

wn.com/Louis_Duchesne
Lucio Costa
Lucio Costa (27 February 1902 - 13 June 1998) was a Brazilian architect and urban planner.
Costa was born in Toulon, France. Educated at the Royal Grammar School, Newcastle upon Tyne, England and at the Collège National in Montreux, Switzerland, until 1916, he graduated as an architect in 1924 from the National School of Fine Arts (Escola Nacional de Belas Artes) in Rio de Janeiro. After some early works in the eclectic manner, he adopted Modernism in 1929. In 1930 Costa established a partnership with Russian-born Brazilian architect Gregori Warchavchik, and also became the Director of the National School of Fine Arts where he had studied. Even though he found students eager to be taught in the "new style," his ruthless administration won him the opposition of the faculty and student body, and Costa eventually had to resign after a year in office. He joined the newly-created SPHAN (Servico do Patrimônio Histórico e Artístico Nacional - National Service of Historic and Artistic Heritage) in 1937 under Rodrigo Melo Franco de Andrade. He remained at the National Heritage Service until retirement, acceding to the top post of director, where he was followed by his granddaughter Maria Elisa Costa. During his tenure as regional and then national director, he became involved in numerous controversial decisions (see Controversies).

wn.com/Lucio_Costa
Matar Fall
Matar Fall, also known as Martin Fall (born March 18, 1982 in Toulon, France) is a French-born Senegalese professional football player. Currently, he plays in the Ligue 2 for Angers SCO.
His real name is Matar, but it was distorted by journalists and fans as Martin for so long that he is known as "man with two first names".

wn.com/Matar_Fall
Maurice Arreckx
Maurice Arreckx (1918–2001) was a French politician of the right-wing liberal UDF. He was mayor of the major city of Toulon from 1959 to 1985. He was president of the general council of Var department from 1985 to 1994.
Arreckx was a senator. He received a prison sentence in 1996 for a major corruption scandal.

wn.com/Maurice_Arreckx
Mireille Darc
Mireille Darc (French pronunciation: [miʁɛj daʁk]; born May 15, 1938) is a French model and actress. She was Alain Delon's longtime co-star and companion. She appeared as a lead character in Jean-Luc Godard's 1967 film Week End. Darc is a Chevalier of the Légion d'honneur and Commandeur of the Ordre national du Mérite
Born Mireille Aigroz in Toulon, France, she attended the Conservatory of Dramatic Arts (Conservatoire d'art dramatique de Toulon) in Toulon, and went to Paris in 1959. Her debut came in 1960 in Claude Barma's La Grande Brétèche. Her first leading role came in 1961 with Jean Prat's "Hauteclaire." She starred as Christine in Le Grand Blond avec une chaussure noire and Le Retour du Grand Blond and alongside Alain Delon in several films: L'Homme pressé, Pouic-Pouic, Les Bons Vivants, Mort d'un pourri, Madly, Jeff, Les Seins de glace, Il était une fois un flic, Borsalino and 2003's television series Frank Riva.
In the 1980s her career was interrupted by open-heart surgery following a car accident, in which she was seriously injured, and her separation from Alain Delon after fifteen years together. She quit her film career, but returned to television in the 1990s.

wn.com/Mireille_Darc
Napoleon III
Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte (20 April 1808 – 9 January 1873) was the President of the French Second Republic and as Napoleon III, the emperor of the Second French Empire. He was the nephew and heir of Napoleon I, christened as Charles Louis Napoléon Bonaparte. Elected President by popular vote in 1848, he initiated a coup d'état in 1851, before ascending the throne as Napoleon III on 2 December 1852, the forty-eighth anniversary of Napoleon I's coronation. He ruled as Emperor of the French until 4 September 1870. He holds the unusual distinction of being both the first titular president and the last monarch of France.
Napoleon III is primarily remembered for an energetic foreign policy which aimed to jettison the limitations imposed on France since 1815 by the Concert of Europe and reassert French influence in Europe and abroad. A brief war against Austria in 1859 largely brought an end to the process of Italian unification. In the Near East, Napoleon III spearheaded allied action against Russia in the Crimean War and restored French presence in the Levant, claiming for France the role of protector of the Maronite Christians. A French garrison in Rome likewise secured the Papal States against annexation by Italy, defeating the Italians at Mentana and winning the support of French Catholics for Napoleon's regime.

wn.com/Napoleon_III
Per Kirkeby
Per Kirkeby (born Copenhagen, September 1, 1938) is a Danish painter, poet, filmmaker and sculptor.
Per Kirkeby is one of the most internationally acclaimed Danish artists today. By the time he completed a masters education in arctic geology at the University of Copenhagen in 1964, he was already part of the important experimental art school “eks-skolen” and working primarily as a painter, sculptor, writer and a lithographic artist which he has pursued ever since. Kirkeby’s interest in geology and nature in general, still plays a crucial role in his artistic expressions these themes are therefore very characteristic in the works of the artist. Per Kirkeby’s works have been shown at many art exhibitions worldwide and are represented in many public collections such as Tate Gallery, London; Metropolitan Museum of Art, New York; Museum of Modern Art, New York, Centre Pompidou, Paris. Per Kirkeby has been teaching as a professor at the Art Academy in Karlsruhe (1978-89) and Frankfurter Städelschule (1989-2000).

wn.com/Per_Kirkeby
Pope Leo I
Pope Leo I, also known as Leo the Great (c. 391 or 400 – 10 November 461) was the Bishop of Rome—the Pope—of the Catholic Church from 29 September 440 to his death on 10 November 461.
He was an Italian aristocrat, and was the first pope of the Catholic Church to have been called "the Great". He is perhaps best known for having met Attila the Hun in 452 and persuading him to turn back from his invasion of Italy. He is also a Doctor of the Church, most remembered theologically for issuing the Tome of Leo, a document which was foundational to the debates of the Ecumenical Council of Chalcedon. The Council of Chalcedon, the fourth ecumenical council, dealt primarily with Christology, and elucidated the orthodox definition of Christ's being as the hypostatic union of two natures—divine and human—united in one person, "with neither confusion nor division". The Council of Chalcedon gave rise to the first major schism in Christian history, the Monophysite schism.
According to the Liber Pontificalis, he was a native of Tuscany. By 431, as a deacon, he occupied a sufficiently important position for Cyril of Alexandria to apply to him in order that Rome's influence should be thrown against the claims of Juvenal of Jerusalem to patriarchal jurisdiction over Palestine—unless this letter is addressed rather to Pope Celestine I. About the same time John Cassian dedicated to him the treatise against Nestorius written at his request. But nothing shows more plainly the confidence felt in him than his being chosen by the emperor to settle the dispute between Aëtius and Caecina Decius Aginatius Albinus, the two highest officials in Gaul.

wn.com/Pope_Leo_I
Raimu
Raimu was the stage name for the French actor Jules Auguste Muraire (18 December 1883 – 20 September 1946).
Born in Toulon in the Var département, he made his stage debut there in 1899. After coming to the attention of the then great music hall star Félix Mayol who was also from Toulon, in 1908 he was given a chance to work as a secondary act in the Paris theater scene. Primarily a comedian, in 1916 writer/director Sacha Guitry gave him significant parts in productions at the Folies Bergère and other major venues. In addition to his appearances on stage, Raimu also developed a successful career in films sometimes under the name Jules Raimu.
He starred in the premiere of Messager's operetta Coups de roulis in 1928. In 1929, already a leading actor, he gained wide acclaim for his starring role in the stage production of the Marcel Pagnol play Marius. Although reluctant because of his disappointment over his first film role many years before, he agreed to act in Guitry's film Le Blanc et le Noir and then reprised his Marius role on film a year later. By his late forties, Raimu had become one of his country's most respected actors and considered the ultimate actor by luminaries such as Alec Guinness, Marlene Dietrich, and Orson Welles.

wn.com/Raimu
Robert Busnel
Robert Busnel (September 19, 1914 in Toulon, France – March 15, 1991 in France) was a French basketball player, coach and administrator.
Busnel played for the French national team in 1934-1949, winning silver medal in the 1949 European Championship.
He coached French national men's team and French national women's team in 1948-1960, winning silver in 1948 Olympics, silver in 1949 European Championships (he was also a player in that tournament), bronze medal in 1951 European Championship and 1953 European Championship and bronze in 1953 Women's World Championship.
He was the technical director (in 1960-1964) and president (in 1967-1980) of the French Basketball Federation. In 1965-1966 he coached Real Madrid. He was the president of the Standing Conference of Europe (now FIBA Europe) from 1976 to 1982. He served as a president of FIBA in 1984-1990.
He was made Officier de la Légion d'Honneur in 1989 and awarded IOC Order of Merit in 1990. He died in an auto crash together with his wife Joëlle. In 2007, he was enshrined as a contributor to the FIBA Hall of Fame.

wn.com/Robert_Busnel
Sabine Paturel
Sabine Paturel (born 19 September 1965) is a French singer and actress.
Paturel was born in Toulon, and has three sisters.
In 1986, her first single "Les Bêtises" (French, "stupid things") stayed for 30 weeks in the French singles chart (Top 50) from March to October 1986, peaking at #2 for several weeks and achieving Gold status. In 1987, she released her second single, "P'tit Bouchon", which reached #13.
At the same time, she took lessons in comedy with Jean-Laurent Cochet, which allowed her to start an acting career in theater. She triumphed in La Menteuse at the Théâtre Marigny and was nominated at the Molière Award. She played in various musicals, notably La Mégère apprivoisée and La Reine Margot.
As an actress, she appeared in television series such as Cordier, juge et flic and L'Instit and in films such as Prends ton passe-montagne, on va à la plage (1983) and En cas de guerre mondiale, je file à l'étranger (also in 1983).
Paturel has now created her own drama courses and supplies coaching and vocational training.

wn.com/Sabine_Paturel
Sean Scully
Sean Scully (born 30 June 1945) is an Irish-born American painter and printmaker who has twice been named a Turner Prize nominee. His work is collected in major museums worldwide.
Scully was born in Dublin and raised in South London. He studied at Croydon College of Art and Newcastle University. He was a recipient of a graduate fellowship at Harvard in the early 1970s and subsequently settled in New York.
Scully was nominated for the Turner Prize in 1989 and 1993. He has exhibited widely in Europe and the United States, and is represented in the permanent collections of a number of museums and public galleries, including the Metropolitan Museum of Art, the Museum of Modern Art, and the Guggenheim Museum in New York City, the National Gallery of Art and the Smithsonian American Art Museum in Washington, D.C., The Art Institute of Chicago, the Fine Arts Museum of San Francisco, the National Gallery of Australia, the Tate Gallery, London, the Irish Museum of Modern Art in Dublin, and many other private and public collections worldwide. In 2006 Scully donated eight of his paintings to the Hugh Lane Gallery in Dublin, which opened an extension that year with a room dedicated to Scully's works.

wn.com/Sean_Scully
Sol LeWitt
Solomon "Sol" LeWitt (September 9, 1928 – April 8, 2007) was an American artist linked to various movements, including Conceptual art and Minimalism.
LeWitt came to fame in the late 1960s with his wall drawings and "structures" (a term he preferred instead of "sculptures") but was prolific in a wide range of media including drawing, printmaking, photography, and painting. He has been the subject of hundreds of solo exhibitions in museums and galleries around the world since 1965.
LeWitt was born in Hartford, Connecticut to a family of Jewish immigrants from Russia. His mother took him to art classes at the Wadsworth Atheneum in Hartford. After receiving a BFA from Syracuse University in 1949, LeWitt traveled to Europe where he was exposed to Old Master painting. Shortly thereafter, he served in the Korean War, first in California, then Japan, and finally Korea. LeWitt moved to New York City in 1953 and set up a studio on the Lower East Side, in the old Ashkenazi Jewish settlement on Hester Street. During this time he studied at the School of Visual Arts while also pursuing his interest in design at Seventeen magazine, where he did paste-ups, mechanicals, and photostats. In 1955, he was a graphic designer in the office of architect I.M. Pei for a year. Around that time, LeWitt also discovered the work of the late 19th-century photographer Eadweard Muybridge, whose studies in sequence and locomotion were an early influence. These experiences, combined with an entry-level job as a night receptionist and clerk he took in 1960 at the Museum of Modern Art (MoMA) in New York, would influence LeWitt's later work.

wn.com/Sol_LeWitt
Sébastien Squillaci
Sébastien Squillaci (French pronunciation: [sebastjɛ̃ skilaˈsi]; Italian pronunciation: [skwilˈlatʃi]; born 11 August 1980) is a French international footballer who plays for Arsenal. He plays as a central defender and has been described as a player who "reads the game well" and is "strong in the air and on the ground". Squillaci is nicknamed in France as simply Toto in reference to his surname, which is similar to former Italian international Salvatore Schillaci, who was the first to acquire the nickname.
Squillaci began his football career playing for hometown club club FC Seynois in the commune of La Seyne-sur-Mer. In 1996, he joined Sporting Toulon and made his professional debut in the 1997–98 season, while the club was playing in Ligue 2. After a year with Toulon, Squillaci joined Monaco. He spent two seasons on the club's reserve team before joining AC Ajaccio on loan for two years. Squillaci returned to Monaco in 2002 and contributed to the team that won the Coupe de la Ligue in 2003. He also featured in European competition for the first time in his career and, in the 2003–04 season, played on the Monaco team that reached the 2004 UEFA Champions League Final. In that same season domestically, Squillaci was named to the National Union of Professional Footballers (UNFP) Ligue 1 Team of the Year. In 2006, Squillaci signed a long-term contract with league rivals Olympique Lyonnais and won two consecutive league titles, as well as the Coupe de France in 2008 before departing for Spain in 2008 to join Sevilla. With Sevilla, he appeared in over 65 matches and won the Copa del Rey in his final season with the club. In 2010, Squillaci signed a three-year contract with English club Arsenal.

wn.com/Sébastien_Squillaci
Victor Hugo
Victor-Marie Hugo (French pronunciation: [viktɔʁ maʁi yɡo]) (26 February 1802 – 22 May 1885) was a French poet, playwright, novelist, essayist, visual artist, statesman, human rights activist^{[citation needed]} and exponent of the Romantic movement in France.
In France, Hugo's literary fame comes first from his poetry but also rests upon his novels and his dramatic achievements. Among many volumes of poetry, Les Contemplations and La Légende des siècles stand particularly high in critical esteem, and Hugo is sometimes identified as the greatest French poet. Outside France, his best-known works are the novels Les Misérables and Notre-Dame de Paris (also known in English as The Hunchback of Notre-Dame).
Though a committed royalist when he was young, Hugo's views changed as the decades passed; he became a passionate supporter of republicanism^{[citation needed]}, and his work touches upon most of the political and social issues and artistic trends of his time. He is buried in the Panthéon.
Hugo was the third, illegitimate, son of Joseph Léopold Sigisbert Hugo (1774–1828) and Sophie Trébuchet (1772–1821); his brothers were Abel Joseph Hugo (1798–1855) and Eugène Hugo (1800–1837). He was born in 1802 in Besançon (in the region of Franche-Comté) and lived in France for the majority of his life. However, he decided to live in exile as a result of Napoleon III's Coup d'état at the end of 1851.

wn.com/Victor_Hugo
Vik Muniz
Vicente José de Oliveira Muniz, known as Vik Muniz (Portuguese pronunciation: [ˈvik muˈnis]; born 1961, São Paulo, Brazil), is a visual artist living in New York City. Muniz began his career as a sculptor in the late 1980s. Muniz became best known for his 1997 series Pictures of Chocolate and 2006's Pictures of Junk.
In 2010, the documentary film Waste Land, directed by Lucy Walker, featured Muniz's work on one of the world's largest garbage dumps, Jardim Gramacho, on the outskirts of Rio de Janeiro. The film was nominated to the Academy Award for Best Documentary Feature at the 83rd Academy Awards.
Vik Muniz often appropriates the images that serve as the basis for his artworks from works by other well-known artists. For example, Muniz used jelly and peanut butter in the creation of the work Double Mona Lisa, After Warhol, 1999, based on a 1963 screen print by pop artist Andy Warhol and which, in turn, was an appropriation of Leonardo da Vinci's Mona Lisa.

wn.com/Vik_Muniz
Visigoths
The Visigoths (Latin: Visigothi, Wisigothi, Vesi, Visi, Wesi, or Wisi) were one of two main branches of the later Goths, the Ostrogoths being the other. These tribes were among the Germanic peoples who spread through the late Roman Empire during Late Antiquity or the Migration Period. The Visigoths emerged out of the Gothic groups who entered the Roman Empire in and after 376 and defeated the Romans at the Battle of Adrianople in 378. The Visigoths invaded Italy under Alaric I and famously sacked Rome in 410 AD, eventually settling in Spain and Portugal, where they founded a powerful Kingdom.
After numerous years of migration, which led the Visigoths to compare themselves to the Biblical Hebrew people wandering for 40 years in the Sinai Desert, the Visigoths settled in southern Gaul as foederati of the Romans in 418. For unknown reasons, they soon fell out with their hosts and established their own kingdom with its capital at Toulouse. Extending their authority into Hispania at the expense of the Vandals, their rule in Gaul was ended by the Franks under Clovis I at the Battle of Vouillé in 507. Thereafter the only territory north of the Pyrenees that the Visigoths held was Septimania, such that their kingdom became limited to Hispania. The province came to be dominated by the Visigothic small governing elite at the expense of the Byzantine province of Spania and the Suebic Kingdom of Galicia.

wn.com/Visigoths
Willy Ronis
Willy Ronis (August 14, 1910 – September 12, 2009) was a French photographer, the best-known of whose work shows life in post-war Paris and Provence.
Ronis was born in Paris; his father was a Jewish refugee from Odessa, and his mother was a refugee from Lithuania, both escaped from the pogroms. His father opened a photography studio in Montmartre, and his mother gave piano lessons.^{[citation needed]} The boy's early interest was music and he hoped to become a composer. Returning from compulsory military service in 1932, his violin studies were put on hold because his father's cancer required Ronis to take over the family portrait business; Ronis' passion for music has been observed in his photographs. His father died in 1936, whereupon the business collapsed and Ronis went freelance, his first photographs being published in Regards. In 1937 he met David Szymin and Robert Capa, and did his first work for Plaisir de France; in 1938–39 he reported on a strike at Citroën and traveled in the Balkans. With Cartier-Bresson, Ronis belonged to Association des Écrivains et Artistes Révolutionnaires, and remained a man of the left.

wn.com/Willy_Ronis

Heineken Cup 2012-2013: Toulon - Cardiff

lelostream.blog.com http twitter.com...

published: 12 Jan 2013

author: Lelostream

Heineken Cup 2012-2013: Toulon - Montpellier

lelostream.blogspot.com http twitter.com...

published: 15 Oct 2012

author: Lelostream

[H-Cup 2012-2013] 4ème journée: Toulon VS Sale

Résumé du match RC Toulon vs Sale Sharks comptant pour la 4ème journée de la Heineken Cup ...

published: 17 Dec 2012

author: Ballboll81

Tries in Europe 2011 2012 quarter final Toulon - Harlequins

...

published: 07 Apr 2012

author: Aeeriel

Top 14 Round 5 Montpellier v Toulon

LIKE MY PAGES FACEBOOK.COM FACEBOOK.COM Montpellier: 15 Benjamin Thiery, 14 Timoci Nagusa,...

published: 16 Sep 2012

author: Ragbis Fanebi

Résumé Toulon - Bordeaux Bègles (42-12) Top 14 Rugby

Un petit j'aime si vous avez aimé cette vidéo, ça prend 2 secondes et ça fait toujours pla...

published: 09 Sep 2012

author: Wagneto XV

Heineken Cup 2012-2013: Cardiff Blues - Toulon

lelostream.blogspot.com http twitter.com...

published: 23 Oct 2012

author: Lelostream

[Top 14 2012-2013] 16ème journée : Toulon VS Mont de Marsan

Résumé du match RC Toulon vs Stade Montois comptant pour la 16ème journée du championnat d...

published: 26 Jan 2013

author: Ballboll81

Top14 Toulon vs Mont de Marsan Pilou Pilou Garcia Youn

...

published: 25 Jan 2013

author: Latribunedemayol

[Top 14 2012-2013] 12ème journée : Toulon VS Grenoble

Résumé du match RC Toulon vs FC Greboble comptant pour la 12ème journée du championnat de ...

published: 02 Dec 2012

author: Ballboll81

Rugby in Europe 2012 2013 round 04 Toulon Sale

...

published: 17 Dec 2012

author: awr2013

Résumé Biarritz - Toulon (9-36) Top 14 Rugby

Un petit j'aime si vous avez aimé cette vidéo, ça prend 2 secondes et ça fait toujours pla...

published: 07 Oct 2012

author: Wagneto XV

Toulon vs Sale Sharks Heineken Cup 2012-2013

Toulon vs Sale Sharks Heineken Cup 2012-2013...

published: 10 Dec 2012

author: Jammy Twang

sasakure.UK x DECO*27 - Snow Song Show feat. Hatsune Miku

Hatsune Miku's Original Christmas Song for 2012 "Snow Song Show" ●SOUND Team Music by sasa...

published: 12 Dec 2012

author: umaainc

<li class="playlistitemli thumbnail border_color bgr_color_content font_color">
        <div class="video_facebook">
            <a href="http://web.archive.org./web/20130131081911/http://www.facebook.com/sharer.php?u=http://wn.com/toulon&t=<%= title %>" title="Share this video" data-title="Share this video" target="_blank" style="target-name: new; target-new: tab;"></a>
        </div>

photo: AP / Aleppo Revolution Against Assad Regime

This citizen journalism image provided by Aleppo Revolution Against Assad's Regime which has been authenticated based on its contents and other AP reporting, shows dead bodies on a street in Aleppo, Syria Tuesday, Jan. 29, 2013.

Syria Massacre: Group Says At Least 65 Found Shot In Head, With Hands Bound In Aleppo

Huffington Post

29 Jan 2013

By Alexander Dziadosz and Oliver Holmes. BEIRUT, Jan 29 (Reuters) - At least 65 people were found shot dead with their hands bound in the northern Syrian city of Aleppo on Tuesday in a "new massacre" in the near two-year revolt against President Bashar al-Assad, activists said. Opposition campaigners blamed the government but it was impossible to confirm who was responsible ... The U.N ... State media did not mention the incident ... STALEMATE ... ....(size: 9.0Kb)

photo: AP / Korea Aerospace Research Institute

In this photo released by Korea Aerospace Research Institute, South Korea's rocket lifts off from its launch pad at the Naro Space Center in Goheung, South Korea, Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013.

South Korea launches rocket carrying satellite in battle for space supremacy

The Guardian

30 Jan 2013

Launch of 140-tonne rocket likely to anger North Korea, which incurred tougher UN sanctions after December launch. The rocket takes off from its launchpad at Naro, south of Seoul. South Korea has twice before failed to put a satellite into space. Photograph. Kari/AFP/Getty Images ... Relief greeted the Naro rocket's flawless liftoff from a space centre on the south coast at 4pm local time ... ....(size: 3.1Kb)

photo: AP / David Guttenfelder

N. Korea revealed - on Google

Star Tribune

30 Jan 2013

SEOUL - Until Tuesday, North Korea appeared on Google Maps as a near-total white space -- no roads, no train lines, no parks and no restaurants. The only thing labeled was the capital city, Pyongyang. This all changed when Google, on Tuesday, rolled out a detailed map of one of the world's most secretive states ... Similar processes were used in other once-unmapped countries like Afghanistan and Myanmar ... ....(size: 2.4Kb)

photo: AP / Khalil Hamra

Morsy declares emergency in Egypt’s restive cities

The Hindu

28 Jan 2013

Egyptian President Mohamed Morsy on Sunday declared a state of emergency and a nightime curfew for one month in three restive cities after days of deadly violence. Mr. Morsy, facing his worst crisis since taking office in June, said the measures would take effect on Sunday night in the cities of Port Said, Suez and Ismailia ... Keywords....(size: 1.7Kb)

photo: AP / Patrick Semansky

Obama calls for swift overhaul on immigration

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette

30 Jan 2013

LAS VEGAS -- Seizing an opening to rewrite the nation's immigration laws, President Barack Obama challenged Congress on Tuesday to act swiftly to put 11 million illegal immigrants living in the United States on a clear path to citizenship ... The response suggests that reaching consensus on immigration law changes remained difficult despite a new bipartisan push since the November elections ... Mr ... Sen ... He continued ... Although Mr ... Mr ... Mr ... ....(size: 5.5Kb)

timeline:
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001

Saracens' switch to Twickenham a lift for Ulster fans

Irish Times

31 Jan 2013

Having avoided an away trip to Toulon or Clermont, and although they would never say as much, moving to Twickenham assuredly enhances their chances of reaching a home country semi-final at the Aviva Stadium against either Toulon or Leicester ... Harlequins will host Munster at their Twickenham Stoop home the following day, with the quarter-final line-up completed by Leicester visiting Toulon and Clermont hosting Montpellier ... ....(size: 2.2Kb)

Harbottle aims to make a name for himself in MLS (Colorado Rapids)

noodls

31 Jan 2013

(Source. Colorado Rapids). The following story was originally published in Spanish on FutbolMLS.com on Jan. 25, 2013 ... In addition, Harbottle was on the U-20 national team, "La Rojita," which finished fourth at the Toulon Tournament in 2010 and debuted with the senior national team under the guidance of Marcelo Bielsa in a friendly against Trinidad & Tobago prior to the 2010 World Cup in South Africa ... ". distributed by....(size: 5.3Kb)

Six Nations 2013: Lock Coombs set for Wales debut against Ireland

BBC News

31 Jan 2013

Scott Andrews (Blues), Craig Mitchell (Exeter Chiefs), Adam Jones (Ospreys) Paul James (Bath), Gethin Jenkins (Toulon), Ryan Bevington (Ospreys), Richard Hibbard (Ospreys), Ken Owens (Scarlets), Matthew Rees (Scarlets), Ryan Jones (Ospreys), Lou Reed (Blues), Ian Evans (Ospreys), James King (Ospreys), Andrew Coombs (Dragons), Olly Kohn ......(size: 7.2Kb)

England a 'world force' after win over ABs

Stuff

31 Jan 2013

One seismic win over New Zealand has flipped England from a work in progress to a major force in world rugby, ramping up expectation levels and making Stuart Lancaster's side the team to beat in the Six Nations ... Will the mercurial Frederic Michalak, a scrumhalf for Toulon these days, hold himself together in the pivotal flyhalf position for France and fire its exciting back line? ... Ad Feedback ... "We are still on that path ... 23 ... - AP. ....(size: 6.2Kb)

Win over New Zealand heightens expectations around England heading into Six Nations

The Daily Telegraph Australia

31 Jan 2013

ONE seismic win over New Zealand has flipped England from a work in progress to a major force in world rugby, ramping up expectation levels and making Stuart Lancaster's side the team to beat in the Six Nations ... Will the mercurial Frederic Michalak, a scrumhalf for Toulon these days, hold himself together in the pivotal fly-half position for France and fire its exciting back line? ... "We are still on that path ... 23 ... ....(size: 5.8Kb)

Nyanga axed from France squad

News24

30 Jan 2013

... Fulgence Ouedraogo (Montpellier), Louis Picamoles (Toulouse), Maxime Machenaud (Racing-Metro), Morgan Parra (Clermont), Frederic Michalak (Toulon), Franois Trinh-Duc (Montpellier), Mathieu Bastareaud (Toulon), Benjamin Fall (Racing-Metro), Wesley Fofana (Clermont), Florian Fritz (Toulouse), Yoann Huget (Toulouse), Maxime Mermoz (Toulon)....(size: 1.8Kb)

Saracens to play Heineken Cup quarter-final at Twickenham

The Independent

30 Jan 2013

Harlequins will host Munster at their Twickenham Stoop home the following day, with the quarter-final line-up completed by Leicester visiting Toulon and Clermont Auvergne hosting Montpellier. PA ....(size: 1.2Kb)

Saracens move Heineken Cup quarter-final against Ulster to Twickenham

Sky Sports

30 Jan 2013

Saracens have decided to play their Heineken Cup quarter-final against Ulster at Twickenham ... He said ... Harlequins will host Munster at their Twickenham Stoop home the following day, with the quarter-final line-up completed by Leicester visiting Toulon and Clermont Auvergne hosting Montpellier. Share . ....(size: 1.7Kb)

Twickenham to host quarter-final

Sporting Life

30 Jan 2013

Ulster must travel to Twickenham

Irish Times

30 Jan 2013

Six Nations: Wales admit selection dilemma over Hook and Biggar

BBC News

30 Jan 2013

Norwegian Announces 2014/15 Europe Winter Deployment

Yahoo Daily News

30 Jan 2013

Norwegian Cruise Line today announced its Europe deployment for the winter 2014/2015 season. Miami, FL (PRWEB) January 30, 2013 Norwegian Cruise Line today announced its Europe deployment for the winter 2014/2015 season ... Ports of call include Florence/Pisa (Livorno), Italy; Monte Carlo, Monaco; Provence (Toulon), France; Barcelona, Spain; Valencia, Spain; Cagliari, Sardinia; Carthage, Tunisia; Palermo, Sicily; and Naples, Italy ... ### ... ....(size: 5.7Kb)

Who's hot...and who's not!

Orange News

29 Jan 2013

It is time for our weekly wrap up of who has their name in lights at the moment...and who is making the headlines for the wrong reasons. They're smokin' ...!. Saracens pitch ... Jonny Sexton ... Lions ... Not bad for a side who were relegated from Super Rugby. Cian Healy ... The Toulon centre is poised to win his first international cap in three years after making the cut for les Bleus' squad for their opening Six Nations hit-out against Italy ... Kings ... ....(size: 2.5Kb)

timeline:
2012
2011
2010
2009
2008
2007
2006
2005
2004
2003
2002
2001

For other uses, see Toulon (disambiguation).

Administration
Toulon

Toulon
Location within Provence-A.-C.d'A. region Toulon
Country	France
Region	Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur
Department	Var
Arrondissement	Toulon
Intercommunality	Toulon Provence Méditerranée
Mayor	Hubert Falco (2008–2014)
Statistics
Elevation	0–589 m (0–1,932 ft) (avg. 1 m or 3.3 ft)
Land area¹	42.84 km² (16.54 sq mi)
Population²	170,041 (2006)
- Density	3,969 /km² (10,280 /sq mi)
INSEE/Postal code	83137/ 83000
¹ French Land Register data, which excludes lakes, ponds, glaciers > 1 km² (0.386 sq mi or 247 acres) and river estuaries.
² Population without double counting: residents of multiple communes (e.g., students and military personnel) only counted once.

Coordinates: 43°08′N 5°55′E / 43.13°N 5.92°E / 43.13; 5.92

Toulon (French pronunciation: [tu.lɔ̃]; Provençal Occitan: Tolon in classical norm or Touloun in Mistralian norm), italian language: Tolone, is a town in southern France and a large military harbor on the Mediterranean coast, with a major French naval base. Located in the Provence-Alpes-Côte-d'Azur region, Toulon is the capital of the Var department in the former province of Provence.

Toulon is an important centre for naval construction, fishing, wine making, and the manufacture of aeronautical equipment, armaments, maps, paper, tobacco, printing, shoes, and electronic equipment.

The military port of Toulon is the major naval centre on France's Mediterranean coast, home of the French Navy aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle and her battle group. The French Mediterranean Fleet is based in Toulon.

History [link]

Prehistory to the Roman Era [link]

Toulon Cathedral (11th to 18th centuries)

Archaeological excavations, such as those at the Cosquer Cave near Marseilles, show that the coast of Provence was inhabited since at least the Paleolithic era. Greek colonists came from Asia Minor in about the 7th century BC and established trading depots along the coast, including one, called Olbia, at Saint-Pierre de l'Almanarre south of Hyères, to the east of Toulon. The Ligurians settled in the area beginning in the 4th century BC.^[1]

In the 2nd century BC, the residents of Massalia (present-day Marseilles) called upon the Romans to help them pacify the region. The Romans defeated the Ligurians and began to start their own colonies along the coast. A Roman settlement was founded at the present location of Toulon, with the name Telo Martius – Telo, either for the goddess of springs or from the Latin tol, the base of the hill – and Martius, for the god of war. Telo Martius became one of the two principal Roman dye manufacturing centres, producing the purple colour used in imperial robes, made from the local sea snail called murex, and from the acorns of the oak trees. Toulon harbour became a shelter for trading ships, and the name of the town gradually changed from Telo to Tholon, Tolon, and Toulon.

Arrival of Christianity and the Counts of Provence [link]

Toulon was Christianized in the 5th century, and the first cathedral built. Honoratus and Gratianus of Toulon (Gratien), according to the Gallia Christiana, were the first bishops of Toulon, but Louis Duchesne gives Augustalis as the first historical bishop. He assisted at councils in 441 and 442 and signed in 449 and 450 the letters addressed to Pope Leo I from the province of Arles.

A Saint Cyprian, disciple and biographer of St. Cæsarius of Arles, is also mentioned as a Bishop of Toulon. His episcopate, begun in 524, had not come to an end in 541; he converted to Catholicism two Visigothic chiefs, Mandrier and Flavian, who became anchorites and martyrs on the peninsula of Mandrier.^[2] In 1095, a new cathedral was built in the city by Gilbert, Count of Provence. As barbarians invaded the region and Roman power crumbled, the town was frequently attacked by pirates and the Saracens.

Royal Port (15th–18th centuries)[link]

Main article: Ottoman wintering in Toulon

The Tour Royale (16th century)

Barbarossa's Ottoman fleet, of the Regency of Algiers, wintering in the harbour of Toulon in 1543, with the Tour Royale (bottom right).

The Toulon Opera House (1862)

In 1486 Provence became part of France. Soon afterwards, in 1494, Charles VIII of France, with the intention of making France a sea power on the Mediterranean, and to support his military campaign in Italy, began constructing a military port on the rade of Toulon. His Italian campaign failed, and 1497, the rulers of Genoa, who controlled commerce on that part of the Mediterranean, blockaded the new port.

In 1524, as part of his longtime battle against Emperor Charles V and the Holy Roman Empire, King Francis I of France completed a powerful new fort, the Tour Royale, Toulon, at the entrance of the harbour. However, a few months later the commander of the new fort sold it to the commander of an Army of the Holy Roman Empire, and Toulon surrendered.

In 1543, Francis I found a surprising new ally in his battle against the Holy Roman Empire. He invited the fleet of Ottoman Admiral Barbarossa to Toulon as part of the Franco-Ottoman alliance. The residents were forced to leave, and the Ottoman sailors occupied the town for the winter. See Ottoman occupation of Toulon.

King Louis XIV was determined to make France a major sea power. In 1660, his Minister Jean-Baptiste Colbert ordered Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban to build a new arsenal and to fortify the town. In 1707, during the War of the Spanish Succession, Toulon successfully resisted a siege by the Imperial Army led by the Duke of Savoy and Prince Eugene. However in 1720, the city was ravaged by the black plague, coming from Marseilles. Thirteen thousand people, or half the population, died.

In 1790, following the French Revolution, Toulon became the administrative centre of the département of the Var. The leaders of the city, however, were largely royalists, and they welcomed the arrival of a British fleet. At the siege of Toulon, the British were expelled by a French force whose artillery was led by a young captain, Napoleon Bonaparte. To punish Toulon for its rebellion, the town lost its status as department capital and was briefly renamed Port-la-Montagne.

19th century [link]

During the Napoleonic Wars, from 1803 until 1805 a British fleet led by Admiral Horatio Nelson blockaded Toulon.

In 1820, the statue which became known as the Venus de Milo was discovered on the Greek island of Milo and seen by a French naval officer, Emile Voutier. He persuaded the French Ambassador to Turkey to buy it, and brought it to Toulon on his ship, the Estafette. From Toulon it was taken to the Louvre.^[3]

In 1820 Toulon became the base for the conquest of France's colonies in North Africa. In 1820 a French fleet with an army departed from Toulon for the conquest of Algeria.

1849, during the brief Second French Republic, Baron Haussmann was named Prefect of the Var. During his year as prefect, he began a major reconstruction of the city, similar to what he would later do in Paris. He tore down large parts of the old fortifications and built new boulevards and squares. The new Toulon Opera House, the second-largest in France, opened in 1862.

In 1867, on the orders of Napoleon III General François Achille Bazaine arrived in Toulon without an official welcome after abandoning the Mexican military campaign and Emperor Maximilian I of Mexico.

20th century [link]

During World War II, after the Allied landings in North Africa (Operation Torch) the German Army occupied southern France (Case Anton), leading to the scuttling of the French Fleet at Toulon (27 November 1942). The city was bombed by the Allies in November of the following year, with much of the port destroyed and five hundred residents killed. Toulon was captured by the Free French Forces of General Jean de Lattre de Tassigny on 28 August 1944.

In 1974 Toulon became again the préfecture, or administrative centre, of the Var. Five years later the University of Toulon (University of the South, Toulon-Var) opened. Toulon was one of four French cities where the extreme-right Front National won the local elections in 1995. The Front National was voted out of power in 2001.

Main sights [link]

The Old Town [link]

The old town of Toulon, the historic centre located between the port, the Boulevard de Strasbourg and the Cours Lafayette, is a pedestrian area with narrow streets, small squares and many fountains. Toulon Cathedral is located here. The area is also home of the celebrated Provençal market which takes place every morning on the Cours Lafayette, which features local products. The old town had decayed in the 1980s and 1990s, but recently many of the fountains and squares have been restored, and many new shops have opened.^[4]

The Fountains of Old Toulon [link]

Fontaine du Dauphin, Place Paul Comte. The fountain, on the wall of the Bishop's residence, appears in the drawings of Toulon made for Louis XIV in 1668.
Fontaine des Trois Dauphins, Place Puget (1782)
Fontaine de l'Intendance, Place Amiral Sénès, (1821)
The Fontaine-Lavoir de Saint-Vincent, Place Saint-Vincent (1832), replaced the original fountain built in 1615. It had a fountain for drinking water and two basins, for washing clothes, one for washing and one for rinsing.

The Old Town of Toulon is known for its fountains, found in many of the small squares, each with a different character. The original system of fountains was built in the late 17th century; most were rebuilt in the eighteenth or early 19th century, and have recently been restored.^[5]

The Upper Town of Baron Haussmann [link]

Place de la liberté.

The upper town, between the Boulevard de Strasbourg and the railway station, was built in the mid 19th century under Louis Napoleon. The project was begun by Baron Haussmann, who was prefect of the Var in 1849. Improvements to the neighbourhood included the Toulon Opera, the place de la Liberté, the Grand Hôtel, the Gardens of Alexander I, the Chalucet Hospital, the palais de Justice, the train station, and the building now occupied by Galeries Lafayette, among others. Haussmann went on to use the same style on a much grander scale in the rebuilding of central Paris.^[6]

The Harbour and Arsenal [link]

View of Toulon, the Arsenal and Mount Faron from the Harbour.

Main article: Military port of Toulon

Toulon harbour is one of the best natural anchorages on the Mediterranean, and one of the largest harbours in Europe. A naval arsenal and shipyard was built in 1599, and small sheltered harbour, the Veille Darse, was built in 1604–1610 to protect ships from the wind and sea. The shipyard was greatly enlarged by Cardinal Richelieu, who wished to make France into a Mediterranean naval power. Further additions were made by Jean-Baptiste Colbert and Vauban.

Le Mourillon [link]

Main article: Le Mourillon

Le Mourillon is a small seaside neighbourhood to the east of Toulon, near the entrance of the harbour. It was once a fishing village, and then became the home of many of the officers of the French fleet. Mourillon has a small fishing port, next to a 16th-century fort, Fort Saint Louis, which was reconstructed by Vauban.^[7] In the 1970s the city of Toulon built a series of sheltered sandy beaches in Mourillon, which today are very popular with the Toulonais and with naval families. The Museum of Asian Art is located in a house on the waterfront near Fort St. Louis.

Mount Faron [link]

Main article: Mont Faron

Mount Faron (584 metres) dominates the city of Toulon. The top can be reached either by a cable car from Toulon, or by a narrow and terrifying road which ascends from the west side and descends on the east side. The road is one of the most challenging stages of the annual Paris–Nice and Tour Méditerranéen bicycle races.

At the top of Mount Faron is a memorial dedicated to the 1944 Allied landings in Provence (Operation Dragoon), and to the liberation of Toulon.

Vauban's fortifications [link]

The Porte d'Italie, built by Vauban. Napoleon departed from this gate in 1796 on his Italian campaign.

Beginning in 1678, Vauban constructed an elaborate system of fortifications around Toulon. Some parts, such as the section that once ran along the present-day Boulevard de Strasbourg, were removed in the mid-19th century, so the city could be enlarged, but other parts remain.^[8] One part that can be visited is the Port d'Italie, one of the old city gates. Napoleon Bonaparte departed on his triumphant Italian campaign from this gate in 1796.

Climate [link]

The Harbour at Sunset

Toulon has a Mediterranean climate, characterized by abundant and strong sunshine, dry summers, and rain which is rare but sometimes torrential; and by hot summers and mild winters. Because of its proximity to the sea, the temperature is relatively moderate.

The average temperature in January, the coldest month, is 9.3 °C (49 °F)., the warmest of any other city in metropolitan France. In January the maximum average temperature is 12.7 °C (55 °F). and the average minimum temperature is 5.8 °C (42 °F).

The average temperature in July, the warmest month, is 23.9 °C (75 °F)., with an average maximum of 29.1 °C (84 °F). and an average minimal temperature of 18.8 °C (66 °F).

Toulon is the city with the most annual sunshine in France; an average of 2,899 hours per year.^[9]

Average rainfall is 665 millimetres per year. The driest month is July with 6.6 mm., and the wettest is October, with 93.9 mm. It rains on less than 60 days per year (an average of 59.7 days) and the amount of precipitation is very unequal in the different seasons. In February, the month with the most rain, it rains 7.1 days, but with only 88.3 millimetres of rain, while in October there are 5.9 days of rain. July, with 1.3 days of rain, is usually the driest month, but the driest month can fall anywhere between May and September. Autumn is characterized by torrential but brief rains; in winter there is more precipitation, spread out over longer periods.

Because of the proximity to the sea, freezing temperatures are rare; an average of 2.9 days a year, and lasting frosts (when the maximum temperature remains less or equal to zero) are non-existent. Snow is also very rare (barely 1.5 days per year on average) and it is even more rare for the snow to last during the day (0.3 days a year on average).

One distinctive feature of the Toulon climate is the wind, with 115 days a year of strong winds; usually either the cold and dry Mistral or the Tramontane from the north, the wet Marin; or the Sirocco sometimes bearing reddish sand from Africa; or the wet and stormy Levant from the east. (See Winds of Provence.) The windiest month is January, with an average of 12.5 days of strong winds. The least windy month is September, with 7 days of strong winds. In winter, the Mistral can make the air feel extremely cold, even though the temperature is mild.

The climate is dry and the humidity in Toulon is usually low. The average humidity is 56 percent, with little variation throughout the year; the driest months are July and August with 50 percent, and the most humid months are November and December with 60 percent.

Source: Wikipedia article in French

Climate data for Toulon (1971–2000)
Month	Jan	Feb	Mar	Apr	May	Jun	Jul	Aug	Sep	Oct	Nov	Dec	Year
Average high °C (°F)	13 (55)	13.7 (56.7)	15.6 (60.1)	17.6 (63.7)	21.6 (70.9)	25.6 (78.1)	29.2 (84.6)	29.4 (84.9)	25.7 (78.3)	21.1 (70.0)	16.3 (61.3)	13.8 (56.8)	20.5 (68.9)
Daily mean °C (°F)	9.3 (48.7)	9.8 (49.6)	11.5 (52.7)	13.4 (56.1)	17.2 (63.0)	20.8 (69.4)	23.9 (75.0)	24.2 (75.6)	21.1 (70.0)	17 (63)	12.6 (54.7)	10.4 (50.7)	16 (61)
Average low °C (°F)	5.7 (42.3)	5.9 (42.6)	7.3 (45.1)	9.2 (48.6)	12.7 (54.9)	15.9 (60.6)	18.7 (65.7)	19 (66)	16.4 (61.5)	12.9 (55.2)	8.9 (48.0)	6.9 (44.4)	11.7 (53.1)
Precipitation mm (inches)	91.3 (3.594)	72.7 (2.862)	51 (2.01)	61.5 (2.421)	42.6 (1.677)	28.8 (1.134)	7 (0.28)	30.2 (1.189)	47.1 (1.854)	103.2 (4.063)	71.9 (2.831)	70.8 (2.787)	676.8 (26.646)
Source: Meteo Climat^[10]

Museums [link]

Toulon has a number of museums.

The Museum of the French Navy (Musée national de la marine) is located on Place Monsenergue, next on the west side of the old port, a short distance from the Hotel de Ville. The Museum was founded in 1814, during the reign of the Emperor Napoleon. It is located today behind what was formerly the monumental gate to the Arsenal of Toulon, built in 1738. The building of the museum, along with the clock tower next to it, is one of the few buildings of the port and arsenal which survived Allied bombardments during World War II. It contains displays tracing the history of Toulon as a port of the French Navy. Highlights include large 18th century ship models used to teach seamanship, models of the aircraft carrier Charles De Gaulle.

The Museum of Old Toulon and its Region (Musée du vieux Toulon et de sa région). The Museum was founded in 1912, and contains a collection of maps, paintings, drawings, models and other artifacts showing the history of the city.

The Museum of Asian Arts (Musée des arts asiatiques), in Mourillon. Located in a house with garden which once belonged to the son and later the grandson of author Jules Verne, the museum contains a small but interesting collection of art objects, many donated by naval officers from the time of the French colonization of Southeast Asia. It includes objects and paintings from India, China, Southeast Asia, Tibet and Japan.

The Museum of Art (Musée d'art) was created in 1888, the museum contains collections of modern and contemporary art, as well as paintings of provence from the 17th century to the beginning of the 20th century. It owns works by landscape artists of Provence from the late 19th century (Guigou, Aiguier, Courdouan, Ziem), and the Fauves of Provence (Camoin, Chabaud, Verdilhan). The contemporary collections contain works from 1960 to today representing the New Realism Movement (Arman, César, Christo, Klein, Raysse); Minimalist Art (Sol LeWitt, Donald Judd); Support Surface (Cane, Viallat côtoient Arnal, Buren, Chacallis) and an important collection of photographs by Henri Cartier-Bresson, Dieuzaide, Edouard Boubat, Willy Ronis and André Kertész).^[11]

The Memorial Museum to the Landings in Provence (Mémorial du débarquement de Provence) is located on the summit of Mount Faron, this small museum, opened in 1964 by President Charles De Gaulle, commemorates the Allied landing in Provence in August 1944 with photos, weapons and models.

The Museum of Natural History of Toulon and the Var (Musée d'histoire naturelle de Toulon et du Var) was founded in 1888, has a large collection of displays about dinosaurs, birds, mammals, and minerals, mostly from the region.

The Hôtel des arts was opened in 1998, presents five exhibits a year of works by well-known contemporary artists. Featured artists have included Sean Scully, Jannis Kounellis, Claude Viallat, Per Kirkeby, and Vik Muniz.^[12]

Literary [link]

Toulon figures prominently in Victor Hugo's Les Misérables. It is the location of the infamous prison, the bagne of Toulon, in which the protagonist Jean Valjean spends nineteen years in hard labour. Toulon is also the birthplace of the novel's antagonist, Javert.

One portion of the wall of the old bagne, or prison, where Jean Valjean was supposedly held still stands to the right of the entrance of the Old Harbour.^{[citation needed]}

In Anthony Powell's novel What's Become of Waring the central characters spend a long summer holiday in Toulon's old town. Powell himself stayed at the Hotel du Port et des Negociants on two occasions in the early 1930s and writes in the second volume of his memoirs The naval port, with its small inner harbour, row of cafes along the rade, was quite separate from the business quarter of the town. A paddle steamer plied several times a day between this roadstead and the agreeably unsophisticated plage of Les Sablettes.

Joseph Conrad's last novel, 'The Rover', is also set around Toulon.

The last half of Dewey Lambdin's historical fiction novel, H.M.S. Cockerel, (the sixth novel in his Alan Lewrie naval adventure series) details the Siege of Toulon from Lewrie's perspective, as he commands a commandeered French barge carrying sea mortars against Lieutenant-Colonel Bonaparte's forces.

Transport [link]

Toulon is served by the Gare de Toulon railway station, offering services to Marseille, Nice, Paris and regional destinations. The port of Toulon is the main port of departure for ferries to Corsica. The nearest airport is the regional Toulon-Hyères Airport. The A50 autoroute connects Toulon to Marseille, the A57 autoroute runs from Toulon to Le Luc, where it connects to the A8 autoroute

Points of interest [link]

Jardin d'acclimatation du Mourillon

Gastronomy [link]

Local food highlights include:

cuisine from the Mediterranean and from Provence
the cade toulonnaise, a local speciality composed of chickpea flour and which is equivalent to the Socca of Nice
the Chichi Frégi, a type of donut from Provence.
Smash Sandwiches, a common sandwich available from street vendors throughout Toulon.

Sport [link]

The best of the city's clubs are the rugby union team RC Toulon (gained promotion to the Top 14 in 2008), the basketball team Hyères-Toulon Var Basket and the women's handball team Toulon St-Cyr Var Handball, all playing in the top division of their respective sports.

The city hosts the final four of the annual Toulon Tournament – an international under 21 football tournament.

The top soccer club is the Sporting Toulon Var, currently playing at the fourth level of French Football (Championnat de France Amateurs). Famous players such as Delio Onnis, Jean Tigana, Christian Dalger, David Ginola or Sébastien Squillaci have played for Sporting.

Club	Sport	League	Stadium
RC Toulon	Rugby union	Top 14	Stade Mayol
Toulon St-Cyr Var Handball	Handball	Championnat de France de handball féminin	Gymnase Vert Coteau
Hyères-Toulon Var Basket	Basketball	Pro A	Palais des Sports and Espace 3000
Sporting Toulon Var	Football	Championnat de France Amateurs	fr:Stade de Bon Rencontre

Notable residents [link]

Toulon was the birthplace of:

Jean Joseph Marie Amiot, Jesuit
Laurent Emmanuelli, rugby union prop, returning to play for RC Toulon in 2009–10
Capucine, actress
Bastien Salabanzi, professional skateboarder
Félix Mayol, singer and entertainer, and namesake of RC Toulon's stadium
Raimu, actor
Gilbert Bécaud, singer
Mireille Darc, actress
Kaba Diawara, footballer
Sébastien Squillaci, French International footballer
Jean Blondel, political scientist
LiLi Roquelin, singer-songwriter
Emmanuel Bertin, inventor of kite surfing
Lucio Costa, architect and urban planner
Robert Busnel, basketball player
Matar Fall, footballer
Anne Golon, author, has written a series of novels about a heroine Angelique
Josua Guilavogui, footballer
Guy du Merle, aeronautical engineer, test pilot and writer
Loïc Jean-Albert, expert parachuter
Maryse Joissains-Masini, mayor of Aix-en-Provence
Jacques Le Goff, historian
Sabine Paturel, singer and actress
Gabriel Péri, journalist and politician
Brigitte Roüan, film director and actress
Cyril Saulnier, tennis player
Didier Tarquin, cartoonist and scenarist
Joëlle Wintrebert, writer

International relations [link]

Twin towns – sister cities [link]

Toulon is twinned with:

Herzliya, Israel
La Spezia, Italy, since 1958
Mannheim, Germany, since 1958
Norfolk, US, since 1988
Kronstadt, Russia, since 1996
Khemisset, Morocco, since 2005
Marikina, Philippines, since 2008

References [link]

INSEE

Bibliography [link]

Michel Vergé-Franceschi, Toulon – Port Royal (1481–1789). Tallandier: Paris, 2002.
Aldo Bastié, Histoire de la Provence, Editions Ouest-France, 2001.
Cyrille Roumagnac, L'Arsenal de Toulon et la Royale, Editions Alan Sutton, 2001
Jean-Pierre Thiollet, Le Chevallier à découvert, Paris, Laurens, 1998
Maurice Arreckx, Vivre sa ville, Paris, La Table ronde, 1982 ; Toulon, ma passion, 1985

Notes [link]

^ Aldo Bastié, Historie de la Provence, Éditions Ouest-France, 2001.
^ A legend which states that a certain Cleon accompanied St. Lazarus to Gaul and was the founder of the Church of Toulon, is based on a 14th century forgery that was ascribed to a 6th-century bishop named Didier.
^ Cyrille Roumagnac, L'Arsenal de Toulon et la Royale. pg. 43
^ for the history of the Old Town, see Michel Vergé-Franceschi, Toulon – Port Royal (1481–1789). Tallandier: Paris, 2002.
^ André-Jean Tardy, Fontaines Toulonnaises, Les Editions de la Nerthe, Toulon, 2001.
^ Haussmann was only prefet of the Var for one year, but his prototypes for boulevards, apartment buildings and parks that he built in Paris were copied not only in Toulon, but in other large cities around France.
^ Michel Vergé-Franceschi, Toulon – Port Royal (1481–1789. Tallandier: Paris, 2002.
^ Michel Vergé-Franceschi, Toulon – Port Royal (1481–1789). Tallandier: Paris, 2002.
^ source: infoclimat.fr precipitations a Toulon.
^ "Meteo Climat: Historical Weather for Toulon (1971–2000)". http://meteostats-bzh.ath.cx:93/meteostats/listenormale-1971-2000-35.php.
^ See the page about the Museum on the official site of the Museums of the Var (in French)
^ See the site of the Museums of Toulon on the Toulon City Web Site (in French)

External links [link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to:

Toulon (category)

Prefectures of Departments of France

Bourg-en-Bresse (Ain)
Laon (Aisne)
Moulins (Allier)
Digne-les-Bains (Alpes-de-Haute-Provence)
Gap (Hautes-Alpes)
Nice (Alpes-Maritimes)
Privas (Ardèche)
Charleville-Mézières (Ardennes)
Foix (Ariège)
Troyes (Aube)
Carcassonne (Aude)
Rodez (Aveyron)
Marseille (Bouches-du-Rhône)
Caen (Calvados)
Aurillac (Cantal)
Angoulême (Charente)
La Rochelle (Charente-Maritime)
Bourges (Cher)
Tulle (Corrèze)
Ajaccio (Corse-du-Sud)
Bastia (Haute-Corse)
Dijon (Côte-d'Or)
Saint-Brieuc (Côtes-d'Armor)
Guéret (Creuse)
Périgueux (Dordogne)
Besançon (Doubs)
Valence (Drôme)
Évreux (Eure)
Chartres (Eure-et-Loir)
Quimper (Finistère)
Nîmes (Gard)
Toulouse (Haute-Garonne)
Auch (Gers)
Bordeaux (Gironde)
Montpellier (Hérault)
Rennes (Ille-et-Vilaine)
Châteauroux (Indre)
Tours (Indre-et-Loire)
Grenoble (Isère)
Lons-le-Saunier (Jura)
Mont-de-Marsan (Landes)
Blois (Loir-et-Cher)
Saint-Étienne (Loire)
Le Puy-en-Velay (Haute-Loire)
Nantes (Loire-Atlantique)
Orléans (Loiret)
Cahors (Lot)
Agen (Lot-et-Garonne)
Mende (Lozère)
Angers (Maine-et-Loire)
Saint-Lô (Manche)
Châlons-en-Champagne (Marne)
Chaumont (Haute-Marne)
Laval (Mayenne)
Nancy (Meurthe-et-Moselle)
Bar-le-Duc (Meuse)
Vannes (Morbihan)
Metz (Moselle)
Nevers (Nièvre)
Lille (Nord)
Beauvais (Oise)
Alençon (Orne)
Arras (Pas-de-Calais)
Clermont-Ferrand (Puy-de-Dôme)
Pau (Pyrénées-Atlantiques)
Tarbes (Hautes-Pyrénées)
Perpignan (Pyrénées-Orientales)
Strasbourg (Bas-Rhin)
Colmar (Haut-Rhin)
Lyon (Rhône)
Vesoul (Haute-Saône)
Mâcon (Saône-et-Loire)
Le Mans (Sarthe)
Chambéry (Savoie)
Annecy (Haute-Savoie)
Paris (Paris)
Rouen (Seine-Maritime)
Melun (Seine-et-Marne)
Versailles (Yvelines)
Niort (Deux-Sèvres)
Amiens (Somme)
Albi (Tarn)
Montauban (Tarn-et-Garonne)
Toulon (Var)
Avignon (Vaucluse)
La Roche-sur-Yon (Vendée)
Poitiers (Vienne)
Limoges (Haute-Vienne)
Épinal (Vosges)
Auxerre (Yonne)
Belfort (Territoire de Belfort)
Évry (Essonne)
Nanterre (Hauts-de-Seine)
Bobigny (Seine-Saint-Denis)
Créteil (Val-de-Marne)
Cergy, Pontoise (Val-d'Oise)

Overseas departments

Basse-Terre (Guadeloupe) Fort-de-France (Martinique) Cayenne (French Guiana) Saint-Denis (Réunion) Mamoudzou (Mayotte)

Communes of the Var department

This page contains text from Wikipedia, the Free Encyclopedia - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Toulon

This article is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 Unported License, which means that you can copy and modify it as long as the entire work (including additions) remains under this license.

Playlist

Film Summary

Make changes yourself !

Contents

Related pages: