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103-473: Utrecht - Rotterdam Gouda - The Hague Amsterdam - Emmerik Harmelen - Breukelen Zevenaar - Cleves The Dutch Rhenish Railway or Dutch–Rhenish Railway ( Dutch : 'Nederlandsche Rhijnspoorweg' or Nederlandsche Rhijn-Spoorweg ) was a Dutch railway company active from 1845 until 1890. The Dutch Rhenish Railway Company Limited was founded in Amsterdam on 3 July 1845 to take over

206-556: A Late Latin borrowing of the reconstructed Frankish endonym * Frank . It has been suggested that the meaning "free" was adopted because, after the conquest of Gaul , only Franks were free of taxation, or more generally because they had the status of freemen in contrast to servants or slaves. The etymology of *Frank is uncertain. It is traditionally derived from the Proto-Germanic word * frankōn , which translates as "javelin" or "lance" (the throwing axe of

309-745: A high nominal per capita income globally , and its advanced economy ranks among the largest in the world . It is a great power , being one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council and an official nuclear-weapon state . France is a founding and leading member of the European Union and the eurozone , as well as a member of the Group of Seven , North Atlantic Treaty Organization (NATO), Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and Francophonie . Originally applied to

412-426: A BME line . The line is currently used from Düsseldorf to Mettmann by line S28 S-Bahn trains and by freight trains from Dornap-Hahnenfurth. Most of the section east of Dornap-Hahnenfurth is closed, although the section from Gevelsberg West to Hagen-Heubing is used by line S8 trains and Regionalbahn RB 52 line uses the line from Hagen to Dortmund Signal-Iduna-Park . The Rhenish Railway Company still lacked

515-853: A Christian in the event of victory against the Visigothic Kingdom , which was said to have guaranteed the battle. Clovis regained the southwest from the Visigoths and was baptised in 508. Clovis I was the first Germanic conqueror after the Fall of the Western Roman Empire to convert to Catholic Christianity; thus France was given the title "Eldest daughter of the Church" by the papacy, and French kings called "the Most Christian Kings of France". The Franks embraced

618-425: A European counterweight between American and Soviet spheres of influence. However, he opposed any development of a supranational Europe , favouring sovereign nations . The revolt of May 1968 had an enormous social impact; it was a watershed moment when a conservative moral ideal (religion, patriotism, respect for authority) shifted to a more liberal moral ideal (secularism, individualism, sexual revolution). Although

721-737: A clerk, but was soon promoted to freight transport manager. Locomotive number 107, Sharp Stewart 3563/1889, is preserved in the Utrecht Railway Museum . Lines built and operated by the Dutch Rhenish Railway include: Rhenish Railway Company The industrialists of the Rhineland and the Bergisches Land , then part of Prussia , sought to avoid paying the high tolls for using the Rhine imposed by

824-759: A combination of social, political and economic factors, which the Ancien Régime proved unable to manage. A financial crisis and social distress led in May 1789 to the convocation of the Estates General , which was converted into a National Assembly in June. The Storming of the Bastille on 14 July led to a series of radical measures by the Assembly, among them the abolition of feudalism , state control over

927-523: A combined area of 643,801 km (248,573 sq mi) and have a total population of 68.4 million as of January 2024 . France is a semi-presidential republic with its capital in Paris , the country's largest city and main cultural and commercial centre. Metropolitan France was settled during the Iron Age by Celtic tribes known as Gauls before Rome annexed the area in 51 BC, leading to

1030-628: A connection to the German North Sea ports. The Cologne-Minden Railway Company had completed its line on 18 June 1874 from Wanne through Haltern , Münster , Osnabrück and Bremen to Hamburg. The RhE gained a concession for its own route north from the Prussian government on 9 June 1873, which it completed within six years. On 1 July 1879 it opened the 175 km long Duisburg–Quakenbrück line via Oberhausen West, Bottrop Nord, Dorsten and Rheine to Quakenbrück . It connected with

1133-569: A coup and civil war. During the May 1958 crisis , the weak Fourth Republic gave way to the Fifth Republic , which included a strengthened presidency. The war concluded with the Évian Accords in 1962 which led to Algerian independence , at a high price: between half a million and one million deaths and over 2 million internally-displaced Algerians. Around one million Pied-Noirs and Harkis fled from Algeria to France. A vestige of empire

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1236-513: A cutting. The last section to the Belgian border at Herbesthal was opened to traffic on 15 October 1843. There was a grade of 1:38 between Aachen and Ronheide (the Ronheide ramp ). Until 1855, cable-haulage powered by a stationary steam engine assisted trains up the slope. The line was the first line linking Germany with a non-German country. The opening of the line created further connections as

1339-779: A distinct Gallo-Roman culture . In the Early Middle Ages , the Franks formed the Kingdom of Francia , which became the heartland of the Carolingian Empire . The Treaty of Verdun of 843 partitioned the empire, with West Francia evolving into the Kingdom of France . In the High Middle Ages , France was a powerful but decentralized feudal kingdom, but from the mid-14th to the mid-15th centuries, France

1442-792: A new station was opened in Goch as a common station with the intersecting line of the North Brabant-German Railway Company ( Dutch : Noord-Brabantsch-Duitsche Spoorweg-Maatschappij ) from Boxtel to Wesel . The RhE’s Kempen–Venlo line , opened in 1868, provided another link to the Netherlands, which ran parallel with the Viersen–Venlo railway of the Bergisch-Märkische Railway Company from Kaldenkirchen . In 1864 work began on

1545-802: A period of relative decline, in which France endured the Bourbon Restoration until the founding of the French Second Republic which was succeeded by the Second French Empire upon Napoleon III 's takeover. His empire collapsed during the Franco-Prussian War in 1870. This led to the establishment of the Third French Republic , and subsequent decades saw a period of economic prosperity and cultural and scientific flourishing known as

1648-740: A railway line in 1865 over the Griethausen railway bridge to the Spyck–Welle train ferry over the Rhine, connecting to Elten and Zevenaar in the Netherlands. This line gave the RhE not only a connection to the Dutch North Sea ports but also part of a lucrative transit route from the Netherlands to Southern Germany and Switzerland . On 9 September 1865 the RhE opened a line from Cleves to Nijmegen , providing another route to Netherlands. In 1878

1751-681: Is now closed and has been converted into a cycling and hiking trail. The Rhenish Railway Company opened the East Rhine line (or Right Rhine line , Rechte Rheinstrecke ) on 27 October 1869 from Ehrenbreitstein near Koblenz to Neuwied . On 11 July 1870 the section of line was opened from Neuwied to Oberkassel, where the Bonn–Oberkassel train ferry provided a connection between the West Rhine and East Rhine lines. The section from Oberkassel to Troisdorf opened in 1871. The continuation of

1854-572: Is the French overseas departments and territories . During the Cold War , de Gaulle pursued a policy of "national independence" towards the Western and Eastern blocs . He withdrew from NATO's military-integrated command (while remaining within the alliance), launched a nuclear development programme and made France the fourth nuclear power . He restored cordial Franco-German relations to create

1957-512: The 1973 oil crisis , which now accounts for 75 per cent of its electricity production and results in less pollution. According to the 2020 Environmental Performance Index conducted by Yale and Columbia , France was the fifth most environmentally conscious country in the world. Like all European Union state members, France agreed to cut carbon emissions by at least 20% of 1990 levels by 2020. As of 2009 , French carbon dioxide emissions per capita were lower than that of China. The country

2060-632: The 1995 public transport bombings , France has been targeted by Islamist organisations, notably the Charlie Hebdo attack in 2015 which provoked the largest public rallies in French history, gathering 4.4 million people, the November 2015 Paris attacks which resulted in 130 deaths, the deadliest attack on French soil since World War II and the deadliest in the European Union since

2163-660: The Battle of Hastings in 1066, William the Conqueror added "King of England" to his titles, becoming vassal and the equal of the king of France, creating recurring tensions. The Carolingian dynasty ruled France until 987, when Hugh Capet was crowned king of the Franks . His descendants unified the country through wars and inheritance. From 1190, the Capetian rulers began to be referred as "kings of France" rather than "kings of

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2266-587: The Belle Époque . France was one of the major participants of World War I , from which it emerged victorious at great human and economic cost. It was among the Allies of World War II , but it surrendered and was occupied in 1940. Following its liberation in 1944 , the short-lived Fourth Republic was established and later dissolved in the course of the defeat in the Algerian War . The current Fifth Republic

2369-591: The British Isles and Switzerland . The wars were ended by Henry IV 's Edict of Nantes , which granted some freedom of religion to the Huguenots. Spanish troops, assisted the Catholics from 1589 to 1594 and invaded France in 1597. Spain and France returned to all-out war between 1635 and 1659. The war cost France 300,000 casualties. Under Louis XIII , Cardinal Richelieu promoted centralisation of

2472-793: The Catholic Church in France , and a declaration of rights . The next three years were dominated by struggle for political control, exacerbated by economic depression . Military defeats following the outbreak of the French Revolutionary Wars in April 1792 resulted in the insurrection of 10 August 1792 . The monarchy was abolished and replaced by the French First Republic in September, while Louis XVI

2575-609: The Consulate seized power in a coup led by Napoleon . Napoleon became First Consul in 1799 and later Emperor of the French Empire (1804–1814; 1815). Changing sets of European coalitions declared wars on Napoleon's empire . His armies conquered most of continental Europe with swift victories such as the battles of Jena-Auerstadt and Austerlitz . Members of the Bonaparte family were appointed monarchs in some of

2678-880: The French Republic , is a country located primarily in Western Europe . Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America , Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the North Atlantic, the French West Indies , and many islands in Oceania and the Indian Ocean , giving it one of the largest discontiguous exclusive economic zones in the world . Metropolitan France shares borders with Belgium and Luxembourg to

2781-1103: The Hercynian uplift in the Paleozoic Era , the Armorican Massif , the Massif Central , the Morvan , the Vosges and Ardennes ranges and the island of Corsica were formed. These massifs delineate several sedimentary basins such as the Aquitaine Basin in the southwest and the Paris Basin in the north. Various routes of natural passage, such as the Rhône Valley , allow easy communication. The Alpine, Pyrenean and Jura mountains are much younger and have less eroded forms. At 4,810.45 metres (15,782 ft) above sea level, Mont Blanc , located in

2884-622: The House of Plantagenet , rulers of the County of Anjou , established its dominion over the surrounding provinces of Maine and Touraine , then built an "empire" from England to the Pyrenees , covering half of modern France. Tensions between France and the Plantagenet empire would last a hundred years, until Philip II of France conquered, between 1202 and 1214, most continental possessions of

2987-406: The Madrid train bombings in 2004 . Opération Chammal , France's military efforts to contain ISIS , killed over 1,000 ISIS troops between 2014 and 2015. The vast majority of France's territory and population is situated in Western Europe and is called Metropolitan France . It is bordered by the North Sea in the north, the English Channel in the northwest, the Atlantic Ocean in the west and

3090-402: The Mediterranean Sea in the southeast. Its land borders consist of Belgium and Luxembourg in the northeast, Germany and Switzerland in the east, Italy and Monaco in the southeast, and Andorra and Spain in the south and southwest. Except for the northeast, most of France's land borders are roughly delineated by natural boundaries and geographic features: to the south and southeast,

3193-430: The Netherlands and very early in its development, saw the possibility of the new means of transport, the railway. As early as the 1830s committees were established by the cities of the Rhineland to promote proposals for building railways. Some of the members of the Cologne committee under David Hansemann (1790–1864)—a merchant and banker from Aachen —and the Aachen Committee favoured a railway line through Belgium to

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3296-459: The Popular Front government (e.g., annual leave , eight-hour workdays , women in government ). In 1940, France was invaded and quickly defeated by Nazi Germany . France was divided into a German occupation zone in the north, an Italian occupation zone and an unoccupied territory, the rest of France, which consisted of the southern France and the French empire. The Vichy government , an authoritarian regime collaborating with Germany, ruled

3399-488: The Seven Years' War (1756–1763). Its European territory kept growing, however, with acquisitions such as Lorraine and Corsica . Louis XV's weak rule, including the decadence of his court, discredited the monarchy, which in part paved the way for the French Revolution . Louis XVI (r. 1774–1793) supported America with money, fleets and armies , helping them win independence from Great Britain . France gained revenge, but verged on bankruptcy—a factor that contributed to

3502-470: The official language of France and Europe's aristocracy. France became rivals of the House of Habsburg during the Italian Wars , which would dictate much of their later foreign policy until the mid-18th century. French explorers claimed lands in the Americas, paving expansion of the French colonial empire . The rise of Protestantism led France to a civil war known as the French Wars of Religion . This forced Huguenots to flee to Protestant regions such as

3605-403: The trap-bath split such as Received Pronunciation , though it can be also heard in some other dialects such as Cardiff English . The oldest traces of archaic humans in what is now France date from approximately 1.8 million years ago. Neanderthals occupied the region into the Upper Paleolithic era but were slowly replaced by Homo sapiens around 35,000 BC. This period witnessed

3708-459: The 1970s France faced an economic crisis and allowed new immigrants (mostly from the Maghreb , in northwest Africa) to permanently settle in France with their families and acquire citizenship. It resulted in hundreds of thousands of Muslims living in subsidised public housing and suffering from high unemployment rates. The government had a policy of assimilation of immigrants, where they were expected to adhere to French values and norms. Since

3811-402: The 200 years of the Crusades, in such a fashion that the Arabs referred to crusaders as Franj . French Crusaders imported French into the Levant , making Old French the base of the lingua franca ("Frankish language") of the Crusader states . The Albigensian Crusade was launched in 1209 to eliminate the heretical Cathars in the southwest of modern-day France. From the 11th century,

3914-420: The 4th century, a period of revival and prosperity. In 312, Emperor Constantine I converted to Christianity . Christians, who had been persecuted, increased. But from the 5th century, the Barbarian Invasions resumed. Teutonic tribes invaded the region, the Visigoths settling in the southwest, the Burgundians along the Rhine River Valley, and the Franks in the north. In Late antiquity , ancient Gaul

4017-438: The Alps on the France–Italy border , is the highest point in Western Europe. Although 60% of municipalities are classified as having seismic risks (though moderate). The coastlines offer contrasting landscapes: mountain ranges along the French Riviera , coastal cliffs such as the Côte d'Albâtre , and wide sandy plains in the Languedoc . Corsica lies off the Mediterranean coast. France has an extensive river system consisting of

4120-457: The Atlantic Ocean. Other water courses drain towards the Meuse and Rhine along the northeastern borders. France has 11,000,000 km (4,200,000 sq mi) of marine waters within three oceans under its jurisdiction, of which 97% are overseas. France was one of the first countries to create an environment ministry, in 1971. France is ranked 19th by carbon dioxide emissions due to the country's heavy investment in nuclear power following

4223-504: The Christian Gallo-Roman culture , and ancient Gaul was renamed Francia ("Land of the Franks"). The Germanic Franks adopted Romanic languages . Clovis made Paris his capital and established the Merovingian dynasty , but his kingdom would not survive his death. The Franks treated land as a private possession and divided it among their heirs, so four kingdoms emerged from that of Clovis: Paris, Orléans , Soissons , and Rheims . The last Merovingian kings lost power to their mayors of

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4326-439: The Company received a concession from the Prussian government to build the railway line from Cologne via Düren and Aachen to the Belgian border, a distance of 86 kilometres. The first seven kilometres of track from Cologne to Müngersdorf was opened in 1839. Two further sections to Lövenich and from Düren to Aachen were completed in 1840 and 1841. This included the 1,632 m long Königsdorfer Tunnel, which has now been opened to create

4429-513: The Eifel line. On 1 October 1875 a more direct route was opened from Kalscheuren on the West Rhine line to Euskirchen. The company, which had previously operated only on the western side of the Rhine, opened a route across the Rhine on 1 September 1866 to connect with its Ruhr line from Osterath via Uerdingen , Rheinhausen , the Rheinhausen–Hochfeld train ferry across the Rhine, Duisburg -Hochfeld, Mülheim -Speldorf, Mülheim (RhE) , Mülheim-Heißen to Essen Nord (RhE). It built sidings to

4532-421: The Franks was known as the francisca ), although these weapons may have been named because of their use by the Franks, not the other way around. In English, 'France' is pronounced / f r æ n s / FRANSS in American English and / f r ɑː n s / FRAHNSS or / f r æ n s / FRANSS in British English. The pronunciation with / ɑː / is mostly confined to accents with

4635-420: The Franks". Later kings expanded their directly possessed domaine royal to cover over half of modern France by the 15th century. Royal authority became more assertive, centred on a hierarchically conceived society distinguishing nobility , clergy, and commoners . The nobility played a prominent role in Crusades to restore Christian access to the Holy Land . French knights made up most reinforcements in

4738-402: The French government's longtime historical association with the Catholic Church , Charlemagne tried to revive the Western Roman Empire and its cultural grandeur. Charlemagne's son, Louis I kept the empire united, however in 843, it was divided between Louis' three sons, into East Francia , Middle Francia and West Francia . West Francia approximated the area occupied by modern France and

4841-431: The Neolithic, including the Carnac stones site (approximately 3,300 BC). In 600 BC, Ionian Greeks from Phocaea founded the colony of Massalia (present-day Marseille ). Celtic tribes penetrated parts of eastern and northern France, spreading through the rest of the country between the 5th and 3rd century BC. Around 390 BC, the Gallic chieftain Brennus and his troops made their way to Roman Italy , defeated

4944-542: The Pyrenees and the Alps and the Jura, respectively, and to the east, the Rhine river. Metropolitan France includes various coastal islands, of which the largest is Corsica . Metropolitan France is situated mostly between latitudes 41° and 51° N , and longitudes 6° W and 10° E , on the western edge of Europe, and thus lies within the northern temperate zone. Its continental part covers about 1000 km from north to south and from east to west. Metropolitan France covers 551,500 square kilometres (212,935 sq mi),

5047-408: The Revolution. Some of the Enlightenment occurred in French intellectual circles, and scientific breakthroughs, such as the naming of oxygen (1778) and the first hot air balloon carrying passengers (1783), were achieved by French scientists. French explorers took part in the voyages of scientific exploration through maritime expeditions. Enlightenment philosophy, in which reason is advocated as

5150-419: The Rhenish Railway Company had 507 locomotives, 862 carriages and 13,572 freight wagons. It operated a rail network of 1,356 km length. The purchase price was financed by government bonds worth 591,129,900 marks . The company was formally dissolved on 1 January 1886. France – in Europe  (green & dark grey) – in the European Union  (green) France , officially

5253-422: The Rhenish Railway Company on 25 July 1835 in Cologne. Its first president was Ludolf Camphausen , who a few years later in 1848 was briefly Prime Minister of Prussia . From 1844 until the company’s nationalisation in 1880, Gustav Mevissen was president of the RhE. A connection with the German North Sea ports was not achieved until years later. The Cologne-Minden Railway Company was founded in 1843 and in 1847

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5356-477: The Rhine. By 1859, it had extended the West Rhine line (or Left Rhine line , Linke Rheinstrecke ) 107 kilometres via Koblenz to Bingerbrück , where it connected with the Hessian Ludwig Railway to Mainz and Ludwigshafen as well as the Nahe Valley Railway to Saarbrücken and its coal mines. In addition, in 1864 the Pfaffendorf bridge was built over Rhine at Koblenz and connected with the Nassau State Railways in Oberlahnstein . The Prussian state helped finance

5459-404: The Rhineland and the Rhine Valley are still vital for rail transport. The founder of the Rhenish Railway Company was the leading banker and merchant Ludolf Camphausen . Also involved at an early stage were other bankers such as William Deichmann (of A. Schaaffhausen & Co. ) and J. H. Stein & Co., and later Abraham Oppenheim ( Sal Oppenheim jr ) and J. D. Herstatt. The RhE was at that time

5562-461: The Romans in the Battle of the Allia , and besieged and ransomed Rome. This left Rome weakened, and the Gauls continued to harass the region until 345 BC when they entered into a peace treaty. But the Romans and the Gauls remained adversaries for centuries. Around 125 BC, the south of Gaul was conquered by the Romans, who called this region Provincia Nostra ("Our Province"), which evolved into Provence in French. Julius Caesar conquered

5665-508: The already well-developed Belgian network had two connections with northern France , but the routes to Paris was only finished in 1846, on 16 June from Valenciennes , and on 20 June 1846 from Lille . On 1 January 1857, the Company acquired the Bonn-Cologne Railway Company ( Bonn-Cölner Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft , BCE) for 1.05 million Prussian thalers along with its 45 km long route from Cologne (St. Pantaleon station) to Bonn and Rolandseck , beginning its development of railways along

5768-438: The bankers developed new forms of cooperation such as national consortia ( underwriters ) and later joint-stock banks. Initially some of the Cologne banks which had acquired shares had found it difficult to sell them due to poor economic conditions and attempted to return their shares to the railway company. Finally in 1840 the Belgian government bought the unsaleable shares. In the course of Bismarck 's nationalisation policy

5871-438: The coal business. As a result of coal prices in Germany and neighboring countries fell by 10% to 15%. In 1873 the company continued its policy of aggressive competition in its decision to build a 75 km long railway line through the Bergisches Land from Düsseldorf to Dortmund Süd via Elberfeld , Schwelm Nord, Gevelsberg , Hagen , Herdecke and Hörde , which was completed on 19 September 1879. This line also competed with

5974-416: The company sought to supplement its Eifel line and the planned East Rhine Railway by taking over and the Nassau State Railways lines between Wiesbaden , Oberlahnstein and Wetzlar , now controlled by the Prussian government. However, since it was required to take over the loss-making Nahe Valley Railway in return it lost interest. A takeover of Nahe Valley Railway would have limited the profitability of

6077-513: The constitutional July Monarchy ; French troops began the conquest of Algeria . Unrest led to the French Revolution of 1848 and the end of the July Monarchy. The abolition of slavery and introduction of male universal suffrage was re-enacted in 1848. In 1852, president of the French Republic, Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte , Napoleon I's nephew, was proclaimed emperor of the Second Empire , as Napoleon III. He multiplied French interventions abroad, especially in Crimea , Mexico and Italy . Napoleon III

6180-433: The construction of the 170 km long Eifel line from Düren via Euskirchen and Gerolstein to Trier , which cost more than 16 million Prussian thalers . The line was completed on 15 July 1871. This gave the RhE a line to the Saar coalfields and convenient connections to the iron ore mines of Lorraine now controlled by Germany as a result of the Franco-Prussian War of 1870-71. After the Austro-Prussian War of 1866,

6283-404: The construction of the Pfaffendorf bridge and its connection with the Nassau State Railways. After the takeover of the BCE, Hermann Otto Pflaume completed plans for a new RhE Central Station in Cologne. The station and the Cathedral Bridge ( Dombrücke ) were opened in 1859. The Central Station was a combined terminal and through station: it included four terminal tracks for the RhE running to

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6386-556: The emergence of cave painting in the Dordogne and Pyrenees , including at Lascaux , dated to c.  18,000 BC. At the end of the Last Glacial Period (10,000 BC), the climate became milder; from approximately 7,000 BC, this part of Western Europe entered the Neolithic era, and its inhabitants became sedentary . After demographic and agricultural development between the 4th and 3rd millennia BC, metallurgy appeared , initially working gold, copper and bronze , then later iron . France has numerous megalithic sites from

6489-414: The empire, leaving England and Aquitaine to the Plantagenets. Charles IV the Fair died without an heir in 1328. The crown passed to Philip of Valois , rather than Edward of Plantagenet, who became Edward III of England . During the reign of Philip, the monarchy reached the height of its medieval power. However Philip's seat on the throne was contested by Edward in 1337, and England and France entered

6592-430: The ensuing uprising of European monarchies against his rule, Napoleon was defeated. About a million Frenchmen died during the Napoleonic Wars . After his brief return from exile, Napoleon was finally defeated in 1815 at the Battle of Waterloo , and the Bourbon monarchy was restored with new constitutional limitations. The discredited Bourbon dynasty was overthrown by the July Revolution of 1830, which established

6695-475: The forefront of the development of a supranational European Union , notably by signing the Maastricht Treaty in 1992, establishing the eurozone in 1999 and signing the Treaty of Lisbon in 2007. France has fully reintegrated into NATO and since participated in most NATO-sponsored wars. Since the 19th century, France has received many immigrants , often male foreign workers from European Catholic countries who generally returned home when not employed. During

6798-464: The four major rivers Seine , the Loire , the Garonne , the Rhône and their tributaries, whose combined catchment includes over 62% of the metropolitan territory. The Rhône divides the Massif Central from the Alps and flows into the Mediterranean Sea at the Camargue . The Garonne meets the Dordogne just after Bordeaux, forming the Gironde estuary , the largest estuary in Western Europe which after approximately 100 kilometres (62 mi) empties into

6901-429: The largest among European Union members. France's total land area, with its overseas departments and territories (excluding Adélie Land ), is 643,801 km (248,573 sq mi), 0.45% of the total land area on Earth. France possesses a wide variety of landscapes, from coastal plains in the north and west to mountain ranges of the Alps in the southeast, the Massif Central in the south-central and Pyrenees in

7004-410: The largest private company in Prussia with an initial share capital of three million Prussian thalers . Originally the banker Abraham Oppenheim, held almost a quarter of the share capital, and another six Cologne bankers held another third. Six months later, Oppenheim together with the Belgian banker Bischoffsheim held a majority of shares. To meet the high capital requirements of the railway company,

7107-437: The line from Troisdorf to Mülheim -Speldorf was completed on 18 November 1874, opening a cheap route for the shipping coal from the Ruhr to the south. The Ruhr route ran largely parallel to the Bergisch-Märkische Railway Company ’s existing Duisburg–Dortmund line and was quickly connected with many mines. The coal shipments grew enormously from the start, as the new railway launched its "one pfennig " tariff to compete for

7210-431: The line to Minden was finished. Connection with the Royal Hanoverian State Railways provided links to other German seaports. A direct rail connection between the Rhineland-Westphalian industrial belt and the German North Sea ports was established in 1856 with the opening of the Hanoverian Western Railway to Emden and in 1873/74 with the opening of the Hamburg-Venlo railway to Bremen and Hamburg . On 21 August 1837

7313-405: The many coal mines in this region, generally free of charge. In 1874 the line was continued to Bochum Nord, Langendreer Nord to Dortmund Süd. In the same year, the train ferry was replaced by a solid bridge across the Rhine ( Duisburg-Hochfeld rail bridge ), with the ferry wharf on the right bank replaced by facilities for loading coal on barges. On 15 February 1870 a three-kilometre branch line

7416-647: The most-used language in diplomacy, science, and literature until the 20th century. France took control of territories in the Americas, Africa and Asia. In 1685, Louis XIV revoked the Edict of Nantes , forcing thousands of Huguenots into exile and published the Code Noir providing the legal framework for slavery and expelling Jews from French colonies. Under the wars of Louis XV (r. 1715–1774), France lost New France and most Indian possessions after its defeat in

7519-532: The nationalisation of the RhE was announced on 14 February 1880. At that time, the Prussian state held 42% of its share capital. The Prussian state railways created the Royal Directorate of the Rhenish railways at Cologne (German: Königliche Eisenbahn-Direktion zu Köln linksrheinisch ) for the management and operation of the network taken over, with effect from 1 January 1880. On 23 February 1881 this

7622-781: The network of the Royal Westphalian Railway Company to Emden in Rheine and of to the Grand Duchy of Oldenburg State Railways to Wilhelmshaven in Quakenbrück. The Rhenish Railway Company’s lines in the Ruhr were not well connected to economic centres due to the relatively late construction, especially since they had been planned primarily for the transport of coal. This explains why most of these lines are no longer in operation. By contrast, its lines in

7725-458: The newly established kingdoms. These victories led to the worldwide expansion of French revolutionary ideals and reforms, such as the metric system , Napoleonic Code and Declaration of the Rights of Man. In 1812 Napoleon attacked Russia , reaching Moscow. Thereafter his army disintegrated through supply problems, disease, Russian attacks, and finally winter. After this catastrophic campaign and

7828-735: The north, Germany to the northeast, Switzerland to the east, Italy and Monaco to the southeast, Andorra and Spain to the south, and a maritime border with the United Kingdom to the northwest. Its metropolitan area extends from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean and from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea . Its eighteen integral regions (five of which are overseas) span

7931-507: The off-and-on Hundred Years' War . Boundaries changed, but landholdings inside France by English Kings remained extensive for decades. With charismatic leaders, such as Joan of Arc , French counterattacks won back most English continental territories. France was struck by the Black Death , from which half of the 17 million population died. The French Renaissance saw cultural development and standardisation of French, which became

8034-631: The palace (head of household). One mayor of the palace, Charles Martel , defeated an Umayyad invasion of Gaul at the Battle of Tours (732). His son, Pepin the Short , seized the crown of Francia from the weakened Merovingians and founded the Carolingian dynasty . Pepin's son, Charlemagne , reunited the Frankish kingdoms and built an empire across Western and Central Europe . Proclaimed Holy Roman Emperor by Pope Leo III and thus establishing

8137-631: The primary source of legitimacy , undermined the power of and support for the monarchy and was a factor in the Revolution. The French Revolution was a period of political and societal change that began with the Estates General of 1789 , and ended with the coup of 18 Brumaire in 1799 and the formation of the French Consulate . Many of its ideas are fundamental principles of liberal democracy , while its values and institutions remain central to modern political discourse. Its causes were

8240-547: The reign of Louis XIV . The French Revolution of 1789 overthrew the Ancien Régime and produced the Declaration of the Rights of Man , which expresses the nation's ideals to this day. France reached its political and military zenith in the early 19th century under Napoleon Bonaparte , subjugating part of continental Europe and establishing the First French Empire . The collapse of the empire initiated

8343-586: The remainder of Gaul and overcame a revolt by Gallic chieftain Vercingetorix in 52 BC. Gaul was divided by Augustus into provinces and many cities were founded during the Gallo-Roman period , including Lugdunum (present-day Lyon ), the capital of the Gauls. In 250–290 AD, Roman Gaul suffered a crisis with its fortified borders attacked by barbarians . The situation improved in the first half of

8446-454: The revolt was a political failure (the Gaullist party emerged stronger than before) it announced a split between the French and de Gaulle, who resigned. In the post-Gaullist era, France remained one of the most developed economies in the world but faced crises that resulted in high unemployment rates and increasing public debt. In the late 20th and early 21st centuries, France has been at

8549-472: The seaport of Antwerp via Liege. Belgium , which had been established as recently as 1830, was interested in trade relations with Prussia, which then included most of the Rhineland. Not having access to the Rhine, Belgium was at a commercial disadvantage to the Netherlands and therefore moved faster than any other country on the continent to build a rail network. The supporters of the line to Antwerp founded

8652-549: The second-largest behind the British Empire . Including metropolitan France, the total area reached almost 13 million square kilometres in the 1920s and 1930s, 9% of the world's land. Known as the Belle Époque , the turn of the century was characterised by optimism, regional peace, economic prosperity and technological, scientific and cultural innovations. In 1905, state secularism was officially established . France

8755-472: The southwest. Due to its numerous overseas departments and territories scattered across the planet, France possesses the second-largest exclusive economic zone (EEZ) in the world, covering 11,035,000 km (4,261,000 sq mi). Its EEZ covers approximately 8% of the total surface of all the EEZs of the world. Metropolitan France has a wide variety of topographical sets and natural landscapes. During

8858-664: The state and reinforced royal power. He destroyed castles of defiant lords and denounced the use of private armies. By the end of the 1620s, Richelieu established "the royal monopoly of force". France fought in the Thirty Years' War , supporting the Protestant side against the Habsburgs. From the 16th to the 19th century, France was responsible for about 10% of the transatlantic slave trade . During Louis XIV 's minority, trouble known as The Fronde occurred. This rebellion

8961-406: The state-run Rhenish Railway , which was losing money. The majority of the shareholders were British. In or shortly after 1857, James Staats Forbes was appointed general manager for five years. He remained a permanent adviser to the company until its concession expired and it was nationalised in 1890. The Dutch businessman and politician Hendrik Adriaan van Beuningen started his career at DRR as

9064-530: The unoccupied territory. Free France , the government-in-exile led by  Charles de Gaulle , was set up in London. From 1942 to 1944, about 160,000 French citizens, including around 75,000 Jews , were deported to death and concentration camps . On 6 June 1944, the Allies invaded Normandy , and in August they invaded Provence . The Allies and French Resistance emerged victorious, and French sovereignty

9167-713: The west, while the CME had two through tracks connecting to its line on the eastern side of the Rhine by the Cathedral Bridge. 1 June 1860, the Rhenish Railway Company took over the Cologne-Krefeld Railway Company (German, old spelling: Cöln-Crefelder Eisenbahn-Gesellschaft ), including its 53 km long line from Cologne to Krefeld . In 1863 this line was extended more than 65 km via Goch to Kleve. From there it built

9270-657: The whole Frankish Empire , the name France comes from the Latin Francia , or "realm of the Franks ". The name of the Franks is related to the English word frank ("free"): the latter stems from the Old French franc ("free, noble, sincere"), and ultimately from the Medieval Latin word francus ("free, exempt from service; freeman, Frank"), a generalisation of the tribal name that emerged as

9373-464: Was invaded by Germany and defended by Great Britain at the start of World War I in August 1914. A rich industrial area in the north was occupied. France and the Allies emerged victorious against the Central Powers at tremendous human cost. It left 1.4 million French soldiers dead, 4% of its population. Interwar was marked by intense international tensions and social reforms introduced by

9476-521: Was a founding member of NATO and attempted to regain control of French Indochina , but was defeated by the Viet Minh in 1954. France faced another anti-colonialist conflict in Algeria , then part of France and home to over one million European settlers ( Pied-Noir ). The French systematically used torture and repression, including extrajudicial killings to keep control. This conflict nearly led to

9579-681: Was divided into Germanic kingdoms and a remaining Gallo-Roman territory. Celtic Britons , fleeing the Anglo-Saxon settlement of Britain , settled in west Armorica ; the Armorican peninsula was renamed Brittany and Celtic culture was revived. The first leader to unite all Franks was Clovis I , who began his reign as king of the Salian Franks in 481, routing the last forces of the Roman governors in 486. Clovis said he would be baptised

9682-531: Was driven by feudal lords and sovereign courts as a reaction to the royal absolute power . The monarchy reached its peak during the 17th century and reign of Louis XIV. By turning lords into courtiers at the Palace of Versailles , his command of the military went unchallenged. The "Sun King" made France the leading European power. France became the most populous European country and had tremendous influence over European politics, economy, and culture. French became

9785-749: Was executed in January 1793. After another revolt in June 1793 , the constitution was suspended and power passed from the National Convention to the Committee of Public Safety . About 16,000 people were executed in a Reign of Terror , which ended in July 1794 . Weakened by external threats and internal opposition, the Republic was replaced in 1795 by the Directory . Four years later in 1799,

9888-497: Was formed in 1958 by Charles de Gaulle . Algeria and most French colonies became independent in the 1960s, with the majority retaining close economic and military ties with France . France retains its centuries-long status as a global centre of art , science , and philosophy . It hosts the fourth-largest number of UNESCO World Heritage Sites and is the world's leading tourist destination , receiving 100 million foreign visitors in 2023 . A developed country , France has

9991-414: Was its precursor. During the 9th and 10th centuries, threatened by Viking invasions , France became a decentralised state: the nobility's titles and lands became hereditary, and authority of the king became more religious than secular, and so was less effective and challenged by noblemen. Thus was established feudalism in France. Some king's vassals grew so powerful they posed a threat to the king. After

10094-481: Was opened from Hochfeld train ferry station to (old) Duisburg, which was the starting point of a line to Quakenbrück completed on 1 July 1879. Some sections of the Rhenish Ruhr line are now closed and where trains runs it is mostly used by freight trains, the only passenger trains on the route are the line S4 S-Bahn trains through southern Dortmund. The section of line between Duisburg-Neudorf and Essen Nord

10197-621: Was plunged into a dynastic conflict with England known as the Hundred Years' War . In the 16th century, the French Renaissance saw culture flourish and a French colonial empire rise. Internally, France was dominated by the conflict with the House of Habsburg and the French Wars of Religion between Catholics and Huguenots . France was successful in the Thirty Years' War and further increased its influence during

10300-564: Was renamed the Royal directorate of left Rhine railways at Cologne ( Königliche Eisenbahn-Direktion zu Köln linksrheinisch ). The east bank were combined with those of the Cologne-Minden Railway Company which had also nationalised with effect from 1 April 1881 in the newly established Royal directorate of right Rhine railways at Cologne ( Königliche Eisenbahn-Direktion zu Köln rechtsrheinisch ). At its nationalisation

10403-656: Was restored with the Provisional Government of the French Republic (GPRF). This interim government, established by de Gaulle, continued to wage war against Germany and to purge collaborators from office . It made important reforms e.g. suffrage extended to women and the creation of a social security system. A new constitution resulted in the Fourth Republic (1946–1958), which saw strong economic growth ( les Trente Glorieuses ). France

10506-723: Was set to impose a carbon tax in 2009; however, the plan was abandoned due to fears of burdening French businesses. Forests account for 31 per cent of France's land area—the fourth-highest proportion in Europe—representing an increase of 7 per cent since 1990. French forests are some of the most diverse in Europe, comprising more than 140 species of trees. France had a 2018 Forest Landscape Integrity Index mean score of 4.52/10, ranking it 123rd globally. There are nine national parks and 46 natural parks in France. A regional nature park (French: parc naturel régional or PNR)

10609-467: Was unseated following defeat in the Franco-Prussian War of 1870, and his regime replaced by the Third Republic . By 1875, the French conquest of Algeria was complete, with approximately 825,000 Algerians killed from famine, disease, and violence. France had colonial possessions since the beginning of the 17th century, but in the 19th and 20th centuries its empire extended greatly and became

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