History UsefulNotes / DepartementalIssues

->A coastal department, this Charente contains such popular holiday islands as Aix, Madame, Oléron, and Ré. A Protestant stronghold, the capital La Rochelle was famously besieged and largely destroyed by Cardinal Richelieu in 1628. The siege is depicted in ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'' and most of its sequel, ''Literature/TwentyYearsAfter'', takes place there. The iconic ''Series/FortBoyard'' is both set and located off the coast.

->An otherwise quiet department which produced two French presidents (Jacques Chirac and François Hollande, who began as deputies for the department in the Assemblée Nationale, the national lower house) and three Popes (Clement VI [Pierre Roger], Innocent VI [Etienne Aubert], and Gregory XI [Pierre Roger de Beaufort], the latter being the last French Pope to date).

->Best known for Disneyland Paris, as well as the Palace of Fontainebleau, which used to be UsefulNotes/NapoleonBonaparte's seat of power. It also roughly corresponds to the historic region of Brie Française, the western part of the Brie region historically under the direct authority of the Kings of France, and is the source of the two varieties of the famous Brie cheese that have AOC appellations (''Brie de Melun'', from the departmental seat, and ''Brie de Meaux'', from the department's largest settlement).

People tend to forget this, but UsefulNotes/{{France}} is big. Really big. By land area it is the largest country in Western Europe and of UsefulNotes/TheEuropeanUnion, and the third-largest in Europe overall (after Russia and Ukraine); it's also about the same size as UsefulNotes/{{Texas}}, which of course [[EverythingIsBigInTexas prides itself on its size]]. As a result, despite the centralization of power in Paris, the government needs to divide the country up somehow in order to govern effectively.

Each ''département'' is allocated a number[[note]]Numbers are supposed to be allocated alphabetically, but with ''départements'' changing names and new ones being created by dividing old ones, this rule has several exceptions.[[/note]], which appears on French postcodes and car registrations. Expect French people to sometimes proudly say they’re "from the [department number]" instead of using the name − it’s expecially common in rap (the Seine Saint-Denis department being commoly refered to as the "9-3" for example).

Each ''département'' is allocated a number[[note]]Numbers are supposed to be allocated alphabetically, but with ''départements'' changing names and new ones being created by dividing old ones, this rule has several exceptions.[[/note]], which appears on French postcodes and car registrations.

->The more populous of the two Alsatian departments, its capital Strasbourg is home to the [[UsefulNotes/TheEuropeanUnion European Parliament]] (largely as a symbolic gesture given Alsace's history as a flashpoint of Franco-German conflict), as well as the second-largest cathedral in France (after that in Rouen) and the birthplace of Creator/GustaveDore, Creator/MarcelMarceau, fashion designer Thierry Mugler, Creator/GermainMuller, Creator/TomiUngerer and [[UsefulNotes/BritishFootyTeams Arsène Wenger]], among others. Facing the German border is Ouvrage Schoenenbourg, the largest visitable fortification of the Maginot Line.

->The more populous of the two Alsatian departments, its capital Strasbourg is home to the [[UsefulNotes/TheEuropeanUnion European Parliament]] (largely as a symbolic gesture given Alsace's history as a flashpoint of Franco-German conflict), as well as the second-largest cathedral in France (after that in Rouen) and the birthplace of Creator/GustaveDore, Creator/MarcelMarceau, [[FashionDesigner Thierry Mugler]], Creator/GermainMuller, Creator/TomiUngerer and [[UsefulNotes/BritishFootyTeams Arsène Wenger]], among others. Facing the German border is Ouvrage Schoenenbourg, the largest visitable fortification of the Maginot Line.

Nicknamed ''Île de Beauté'' (Isle of Beauty), the island of Corsica is located in the Mediterranean, right to the north of the [[UsefulNotes/{{Italy}} Italian]] island of Sardinia.[[note]]The French will call Sardinia ''Sardaigne'' on occasion. While you can do so safely in front of most Italians, do ''not'' do so in front of a Corsican nationalist or a northern Sardinian--because, you see, northern Sardinians do not speak Sardinian, but rather Corsican. Yes, it's confusing.[[/note]] Occupied for a long time by various countries, it was briefly independent in 1735, until 1769 where it was definitely conquered by France.

Common jokes involve Corsicans being [[TheSlacker lazy]], [[KnightTemplarBigBrother insanely protective of their women]], and [[HairTriggerTemper highly irritable]] and [[HotBlooded violent]] (which combined with the long-running low-level separatist bombing campaign led to Corsica being jokingly called ''Île de Boum'': the island of "BOOM"!). There are sometimes jokes about [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Casu_marzu their kind of cheese]], which [[EveryoneHasStandards even the cheese-loving French are horrified at]]. Corsican girls also hold a reputation for being extremely beautiful, but since it brought us women such as Laetitia Casta or Alizée, this might not be just a stereotype.

->Jura is a predominantly wine-making region from the old Franche-Comté, and for lack of industrial activity, much of the department's business is concentrated in small towns such as Lons-le-Saunier and Dole. Its location on the Jura Mountains also made it a favorite winter sports destination. There have been significant paleontological discoveries there, including a number of UsefulNotes/{{dinosaur|s}} fossiles, and thus it came to name the [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLife Jurassic period]] (yeah, [[Franchise/JurassicPark that franchise]]'s name).

->Moselle is a centre of Lorraine culture, and Metz has both a very old city centre, a policy of eco-friendly urban planning, and home to the oldest active theatre in France.

The merger is contested to this day, especially by Alsatians[[note]]Polls regularly put the rejection at over 80% in the two former departments of Alsace[[/note]], citing no significant cultural homogeneity (except between Moselle and the two Alsatian departments) to justify screwing centuries of historical/cultural delimitations, as well as a ploy by the socialist government of then-president François Hollande to drown Alsace's consistently strong right-wing votes, and revived regionalism there as a result[[note]]Hollande gloating about "drawing the new French regions' lines on a table cloth corner" didn't help his case, either[[/note]].

The constant and significant backlash against the Grand Est in the two departements (Bas-Rhin and Haut-Rhin) that once formed the Region of Alsace prompted the government of Emmanuel Macron to patch up yet another administrative layer to try calming things down, the "European Collectivity of Alsace", which is the merging of the two departments in practice, with a limited set of competences and with aims that would include better economic cooperation with the neighboring German and Swiss areas, while still not taking Alsace out of the Grand Est. There is sustained local political activity to have the latter secession happen.

->A mostly rural department, though it contains Caen, one of the two capitals of pre-2016 Normandy (specifically, Basse Normandie, the other being Rouen for Haute Normandie). The [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII D-day landings]] took place here, while the town of Bayeux is home to [[Art/TheBayeuxTapestry a tapestry]] depicting the Norman conquest of England in the 11th century and one of the most iconic pieces of medieval art. And yes, this department gives its name to the famous Norman apple brandy so beloved of international connoiseurs.

->A mostly rural department, though it contains Caen, one of the two capitals of pre-2016 Normandy (specifically, Basse Normandie, the other being Rouen for Haute Normandie). The [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII D-day landings]] took place here, while the town of Bayeux is home to [[Art/TheBayeuxTapestry a tapestry]] depicting the Norman conquest of England in the 11th century and one of the most iconic pieces of medieval art.

In the tenth century, King Charles III of France granted territory to a group of Vikings (then known as "Normans") led by the ''jarl'' Rollo on the condition that they stopped raiding his lands. Thus, Normandy was born. At various points in history, the region has been divided into Haute ("Upper") and Basse ("Lower") Normandie, though since 2016, the two regions have been reunited. Normandy is famous for its food (cream! fruits! Camembert!), apple beverages (cider! Calvados!) and beautiful rural landscapes. Birthplace of a certain [[UsefulNotes/TheHouseOfNormandy Norman conqueror]].

->Le Puy-en-Velay is famous for its cathedral, which served as part of the route of the Camino de Santiago (the pilgrimage to the cathedral of Santiago de Compostela in Galicia, Spain) as well as a pilgrimage site in its own right.

Created from the merger of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardie, themselves made out of many different provinces, coming up with a name for this region was a... complicated issue, to say the least. The final result, Hauts-de-France ("Upper France"), had a mixed reception[[note]]"haut" or "high" is traditionally used to refer to places of high altitude, not places further north. This is probably the flattest part of France...[[/note]]. Nord is the historical western half of Flanders, while Pas-de-Calais, as its name implies, contains the port of Calais. This area played key roles in both World Wars. Picardie has a long history and strong cultural identity, but modern Picardie is much larger than the old province, and its southern parts have more in common with Ile de France and Champagne. In France, it used to hold a ''very'' bad reputation for being extremely poor, polluted and [[WorkingClassPeopleAreMorons backward]]. The extremely successful movie ''Bienvenue chez les Ch'tis'' did a lot to change that vision of things. Nord-Pas-de-Calais retains a strong [[WorkingClassHero working class]] identity, with people whose origins come from all over Europe. Think of northern industrial England, only French. The best French beers come from there; Nord in particular shares in the Flemish brewing tradition with Belgium.

->For such a small department, Belfort is distinct from the rest of the region by being a remnant of Alsace retained by the French after the rest was lost to the Germans after the UsefulNotes/FrancoPrussianWar (partly as a show of respect to the 17,000 Frenchmen who defended the eponymous capital against 40,000 Germans during a 103-day siege; in their honour a massive stone lion was sculpted by Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, finished shortly before he started work on the Statue of Liberty).

->The other Alsatian department. Disproportionately for its size and population, Haut-Rhin is one of the richest in France. Mulhouse hosts a Peugeot car factory (and was the birthplace of Creator/WilliamWyler), while Colmar takes pride as the "capital of Alsatian wine" as well of its native son Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, of the UsefulNotes/StatueOfLiberty fame.

->Jura is a predominantly wine-making region from the old Franche-Comté, and for lack of industrial activity, much of the department's business is concentrated in small towns such as Lons-le-Saunier and Dole. Its location on the Jura Mountains also made it a favorite winter sports destination. There have been significant paleontological discoveries there, including a number of UsefulNotes/{{dinosaur|s}} fossiles, and thus ut came to name the [[UsefulNotes/PrehistoricLife Jurassic period]] (yeah, [[Franchise/JurassicPark that franchise]]'s name).

->Jura is a predominantly wine-making region from the old Franche-Comté, and for lack of industrial activity, much of the department's business is concentrated in small towns such as Lons-le-Saunier and Dole. Its location on the Jura Mountains also made it a favorite winter sports destination.

->Yveline's capital, Versailles, is best known for its iconic ''[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Palace_of_Versailles château]]'', built as a royal residence under UsefulNotes/LouisXIV and occasionally used to this day by subsequent republican governments. The department is also home to music duos Music/{{Air}} and Music/DaftPunk.

->Forming the western half of the "Petite Couronne", its largest city, Boulogne-Billancourt, is the largest and richest of the Parisian suburbs. Hauts-de-Seine is also home to La Défense, Europe's largest purpose-built business district, Manhattan-esque skyscrapers that house France's major corporate headquarters, and the famous modernist [[http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Grande_Arche Grande Arche]] (designed to form a line with the Arc de Triomphe and the Louvre; it houses a museum and government offices as well as a train station).

![[UsefulNotes/{{Reunion}} La Réunion]] (974)

->The capital, Limoges, is best-known for its porcelain, enamels, and cork barrels used to store cognac wine. To the northwest lay the ghost town of Oradour-sur-Glane, infamous for a [[UsefulNotes/WorldWarII 1944]] massacre by the Nazis, said to have been their [[DisproportionateRetribution retribution for the alleged kidnapping of an SS commander]].

->Home to the Champagne vineyards and their famed sparkling wine, gathered in the town of Épernay. Near Châlons-en-Champagne is a military camp which served both as training grounds and exhibition centre, while Reims is a cathedral town where the most Kings of France were crowned, from Henry I in 1027 to Charles X in 1825 (British readers, think Westminster Abbey, only French and Catholic).

->The other Alsatian department. Disproportionately for its size and population, Haut-Rhin is one of the richest in France. Mulhouse hosts a Peugeot car factory (and was the birthplace of Creator/WilliamWyler), while Colmar and takes pride as the "capital of Alsatian wine" as well of its native son Frédéric Auguste Bartholdi, of the UsefulNotes/StatueOfLiberty fame.

[[caption-width-right:350:current French regions]]

->The northeastern part of the Petite Couronne, the department is home to several French hip-hop acts. The cathedral of its largest city, Saint-Denis, is also the final resting place of the Kings of France since the tenth century, built on the spot where, so legend goes, the eponymous first Bishop of Paris expired after preaching to the masses carrying his severed head after being beheaded in Paris. The city is also home to Stade de France, home of the French national football and rugby teams.

->A coastal department, this Charente contains such popular holiday islands as and Aix, Madame, Oleron, and Ré. A Protestant stronghold, the capital La Rochelle was famously besieged and largely destroyed by Cardinal Richelieu in 1628. The siege is depicted in ''Literature/TheThreeMusketeers'' and most of its sequel, ''Literature/TwentyYearsAfter'', takes place there. The iconic ''Series/FortBoyard'' is both set and located off the coast.

->Corresponding to the ancient county of Périgord, Dordogne is known for its truffles (the other "black gold") and preserved medieval towns and castles, which regularly attract filmmakers for their {{period piece}}s. At its Eastern frontier lay the caves of Lascaux, famed for its prehistoric paintings.

The largest region in France by area (surpassing Austria), Nouvelle Aquitaine includes a large variety of subregions, cultures, and landscapes, but also has a strong historic cohesion, Aquitaine having existed as a group, kingdom, duchy, or region for over 2,000 years. The region's current name, meaning "New Aquitaine", was chosen to distinguish it from a previous, smaller region that existed between 1982 and 2016. "Grande Aquitaine," or just "Aquitaine," were popular favourites for the name, but were met with political resistance, "Grande Aquitaine" being accused of implying a sense of superiority ([[CoughSnarkCough *cough* Grand-Est *cough*]]). Among the many historical sub-regions are Bearn (in the southeast), the Basque Country (in the southwest), Gascony (south of the Garonne), Guyenne (in the center, used in medieval times as an alternative name for the region), Limousin and La Marche (to the east), Poitou (in the north), and Saintonge (along the the river Charente). The region's landscape consists mainly of green, rolling plains, gradually raising from the Atlantic to the highlands of the Massif Central, but there are also the dramatic high peaks of the Pyrenees, in the far south. Despite being scarcely populated for it size, Nouvelle Aquitaine is one of the most dynamic regions economically, and one of the fastest growing demographically thanks to its growing transport network.

->The capital, Marseille, is the second-largest city in France as well as its oldest (having been founded by Greek merchants around 600 BC), as well as famed for one of France's largest container ports, a hotspot of diversity through immigrants from former French colonies, a storied football club with a fierce rivalry with Bordeaux, home to Creator/MarcelPagnol, and later many [[UsefulNotes/TheGoldenAgeOfHipHop French rappers]] (most famously the band IAM and anarchist female rapper Keny Arkana), and namesake of [[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Marseillaise the French national anthem]] (though it was penned in Strasbourg, it was first sung in Paris by volunteers from Marseille, which was one of the fiercest supporters of UsefulNotes/TheFrenchRevolution). To the north lay Aix-en-Provence, former capital of Provence, and to the west Arles, which has some of the best preserved Roman structures in France and surrounded by the wetlands of the Camargue, the largest of its kind in France and home to semi-feral horses and cattle.