French geography quiz

In which year did this happen? Hitler's armies invaded France, the army was defeated, and the General Petain took over as leader collaborating with the Nazis from the spa town of Vichy from where his government governed the southern part of the country.

1940

In which year did this happen?The Nazi Occupation extended to the whole of France

1942

In which year did this happen? The Liberation of France began with the D-Day Landings in Normandy; Paris was liberated on August 25

1944

When did a Celtic tribe found the city of Lutetia, which would eventually become Paris?

Around 300 BCE

This area is known for its big beaches, large sand dunes, and the wine and cognac producing areas around Bordeaux.

Atlantic Coast

The wars of religion (1562-1598) were fought between:

Catholics and Protestants in France (essentially a civil war)

This island has been French for just over 200 years and retains an independent outlook.

Corsica

Sometimes called the Périgord, this region is known for its dark forests, chateaux, and its gastronomic specialties: Bergerac wine, foie gras, and truffles.

Dordogne

Who is the current president of France (he was elected in 2012).

François Hollande

Having an academy that watches over the language can have its drawbacks, since (put down as many answers as you think are correct)

Having a strong reinforcement of the official way of saying things can make those who speak a regional French feel they do not speak properly - this can give people an sense of inferiority. It can lead to generational clashes as young people create their own ways of sying things that often meet the disapproval of older generations.

French is spoken ..... (choose as many answers as you think are correct)

In 26 African countries ! By 80 million Europeans (it is an official language in Belgium and Switzerland) ! In parts of Lebanon, Louisiana, Haiti, and Vietnam ! Quebec ! At the Olympic Games ! In Belgium

Symbols of France: which is which? The national holiday (July 14) commemorating the storming of the Bastille prison on July 14, 1789

La Fête Nationale

Symbols of France: which is which? The National Anthem, which was very popular among soldiers from Marseilles - hence its name.

La Marseillaise

This region incorporates beaches and mountains. It has historical cities like Narbonne, Nìmes, and Carcassonne. The region neighbors Toulouse home to France's aerospace industry.

Languedoc-Roussillon

This region main city of Limoges gives its name to the world famous porcelain.

Limousin

This area is known especially for its multitude of beautiful castles or chateaux. It is also famous for its wines and agricultural products. Recently it has also been called Cosmetic Valley because of the many cosmetic and perfume companies in the area.

Loire Valley

Which king is known as the Sun King?

Louis XIV

The Romans developed a sophisticated system of cities in Roman Gaul (France). Which city was their capital?

Lyon

A beautiful region developed by the Romans, borders Italy, and is famous for its seaside resorts of the Côte d'Azur like Nice, Cannes and Monte Carlo. Away from the beaches and up in the hills you can find quiet villages that are completely different from the buzz of the coast.

Provence

This farmyard animal is a symbol of France and found in numerous seals.

Rooster

Although French has many regional variations due to its many regional identities, the French language has an official way of being spoken and written. This is because......

The Academie Francaise has striven to preserve, cultivate, and nurture the French language for the past four hundred years.

This region is partly in Spain and partly in France. The people retain their identity through their own language and customs like bullfighting and pelota.

The Basque Country

The Belle Epoque is the name that was given to the roughly thirty-year period of French history before World War I broke out. This period of peace and economic growth when Art and Scientific advances blossomed in France. Which of the following are symbols of the splendor of that era.

The Metro (underground rail system in Paris). The Eiffel Tower. The beginnings of the French automobile industry (Peugeot, Renault, Citroen). Impressionist movement

This mountain range with its high, wild and snow-capped peaks forms the frontier between France and Spain.

The Pyrenees

Symbols of France: which is which? The blue, white, and red flag that replaced the fleur-de-lys as the national emblem.

The Tricolor

François Mitterrand was elected in 1981 as France's first President to be from the Socialist Party. He added one more week of paid vacation to the French workers' entitlement, bringing the total to five weeks off. He is also known for helping bring about which of the following (there is more than one answer - choose as many as you think he is known for).

The construction of the Louvre's glass pyramid entrance. The Grande Arch of La Défense. the Legalization of homosexuality. The Abolition of the Death Penalty

There are still about 200 Gallic words in French and traces of a Celtic past. Pick out those words and place names in France that attest to the Celtic presence.

The word for oak tree. The Celtic Parisii tribe were the origin of the name for France's capital: Paris. The French word of plough.

Which of the following are associated with the French Revolution? (There is more than one correct answer)

The writing and signing of the Declaration of the Rights of Man (la Déclaration des droits de l'Homme et du Citoyen). The rising up of the people against the all powerful Church and Monarchy

Joan of Arc is famous for what? Choose only one answer.

all of the above

region famous for ski-in and is home to europe's highest mountain, le mont blanc

alps

region has been both part of germany and france - it has a strong germanic heritage. it is home to the european parliament which is located in its capital strasbourg

alsace

The most widely spoken dialect in France is:

alsatian

region known for its volcations, michelin tyres - headquarted in its capital of clermont-ferrand-and a number of spa towns

auvergne

region has rugged coastline and relies on he sea for a lot of its industry. in this region, some of the inhabitants still speak the celtic languge of breton

brittany

well-known for its wine and the mustard made in its capital of dijon

burgundy

host summers with sometimes snowy winters

central and eastern france

famous for it world-famous sparkling wine; in the cathedral of reims, the capital of the region, a great number of france's kings were crowned

champagne

France gradually grew as a nation as Brittany and Burgundy were incorporated into the new nation. As France flourished, universities were opened in Paris, Toulouse, Montpellier and Orleans. The alliance of Church and State led to the flourishing of a monastic movement - building abbeys and monasteries - and the construction of great Gothic cathedrals.

false

The Franks came to France in the fifth century. Their most famous leader was Clovis. He crafted the territory known as Francia and chose Paris as his capital. He also brought Christianity to France. True or false?

false

The Hundred Year War was fought against the English, because one of the French princes felt that he should inherit the English throne?

false

shape of france

hexagon

moutainous region borders switzerland. its biggest town was birthplace of victor hugo - who wrote les miserables and the hungback of notre dame

jura

long time center of heavy industry, this region borders germany and was the site of one of the most terrble battles of wwi

lorraine

bordered by the english channel and belgium. region used to be industrial center. suffered in both world wars. region's geography is forest, windswept cliffs, sand dunes and beaches

nord-pas-de-calais and picardy

capital of rouen. famous for cathedral painted by monet. home to mont st michel. geography mix of green countryside and farmland, and beauitful coastal resorts and fishing villages

normandy

often rainy

north, and western coastal regions

which of the following facts and ideas about paris are correct. more than one answer.

paris is europe's most densely populated capital city. the river seine flows through paris. paris is in the ile de france region. paris is the world's most popular tourist destination with 30 million visitors per year. parisians have great pride in their city and can make them seem arrogant or snobbish.

region borders the massif central on one side and the alps on the other. famous for its wine, and its gastronomic capital of lyon

rhone valley

hot summers and mild winters often made colder by the cold minstral wind

the south (midi)

Charlemagne, which means the great Charles or Karl, is famous for having expanded the French territory in a vast empire that included land that is today in Germany, Switzerland, and Italy.

true

Napoleon Bonaparte (Emperor Napoleon I) engaged in battles out of France in order to expand France into a powerful empire.

true

Today's Normandy was founded by Vikings also known as Norsemen?

true

World War I was highly destructive to France killing 1.3 million of her young men - this works out to mean that one in six French men who served in World War One was killed

true

The Gallic leader who fought against Julius Caesar before Caesar annexed the territory of Gaul in 51 BCE

vercingetorix

The end of the Empire. Between the 1600s and the end of the 1800s, France had colonized countries from all over the world. By the 1950s, however, there was very serious opposition to French Colonial rule. In the early 1960s, France renounced its control of the vast majority of its colonies. Wars in two countries were particularly important in ending colonial rule. The author mentions both of these wars in his description of how the wars of independence brought about the end of the Fourth Republic and the beginning of the Fifth Republic.

vietnam and algeria

long harsh winters and some hot sun in the summer

vosges, jura, alps, pyrenees