# data[].attributes.body
Do you know any music by this French duo?
Why do you think that they choose not to show their faces?
Do you know any other famous pop artists who don't show their faces?

# data[].attributes.body
What do you think this means?
Can you give an example of when it might be used?
Do you agree with this?

# data[].attributes.body
Find out about life in France

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Ooh la la! Ready for the lowdown on one of Europe's most amazing countries? Then check out our fascinating facts about France ...

Official Name: French Republic
Form of government: Republic
Capital: Paris
Population: 67, 092, 056
Official languages: French
Monetary unit: Euro
Area: 543,965 square kilometres
Major mountain ranges: Alps, Pyrenees, Massif Central
Major rivers: Seine, Rhine and Rhône

The largest country in Western Europe, France has long been a gateway between the continent's northern and southern regions. Its lengthy borders touch Germany and Belgium in the north, the Atlantic Ocean in the west, and the Pyrenees mountains and Spain in the south. It also borders the Mediterranean sea in the southeast, and the Alps, Switzerland and Italy in the east.

France has a very diverse landscape. There are beautiful beaches on the southeast coast, home to the French Riviera, and towering mountains in the south and east, where the snow-capped French Alps rise to the sky. Europe's tallest peak, Monte Blanc, is found in the French Alps, standing at a massive 4,810m tall!

Wide, fertile plains dominate most of the north and west, making France the agricultural epicentre of Europe. The sprawling, forested plateau of the Massif Central - a range of ancient mountains and extinct volcanoes - occupies France"s southern interior.

France has lots of land area to provide habitat for a wide variety of plants and animals. More than 25 percent of its territory is covered with forest, and another 50 percent is countryside or farmland.

Lowland forests are home to deer and wild boar, while the woodlands of the Alps and Pyrenees provide refuge for rare chamois antelope, ibex, brown bears and alpine hares, among many other species. The Mediterranean coastline is a stopover for millions of migrating African birds, too, including flamingos, vultures, egrets and bee-eaters.

The French government has made a broad commitment to preserving open spaces and the wildlife they contain. In fact, about ten percent of the country has been set aside as national or regional parklands and nature reserves.

There is evidence that early relatives of humans first settled in France nearly two million years ago. By 300,000 B.C., Neanderthals arose there, and by 40,000 B.C., Cro-Magnons had arrived.

Over time, Celtic tribes from central Europe moved into the region, and when the Romans occupied the territory in the second century B.C., they named it Gaul. Julius Caesar established full Roman control over Gaul in 51 B.C., but by 400 A.D. Rome was in decline. Gaul was attacked by neighbouring tribes, including Visigoths, Vandals and the Germanic Franks, from which France would eventually get its name. In 843 a treaty created the territory of West Francia, which would later become France.

Over the next thousand years, West Francia was ruled by a series of powerful kings. Several wars were fought over who would rule France, including the Hundred Years War, from 1337 to 1453. In 1789, a violent period of change called the French Revolution began, eventually ending in the overthrow of the monarchy.

Napoleon Bonaparte, a general during the French Revolution, declared himself leader of France in 1799. He began a campaign of wars with neighbouring countries, and built a large French empire that ruled over much of continental Europe. But France's domination in Europe came to an end in 1815, when Napoleon was defeated at the Battle of Waterloo.

France later suffered great losses in both and World War II. It has since emerged, though, as an important and prosperous world power.

France is one of the oldest nations on Earth and the most ethnically diverse country in Europe. These deep and broad influences have made France a world leader throughout history in different aspects of culture, including cuisine, philosophy, music, art, film, fashion, literature and sport.

Over the years, France has been through many political crises. Its current government is a combination of presidential and parliamentary systems. The president is elected by the people and is head of state. A prime minister, chosen by the president, works with the elected parliament to pass laws.

France is among the world's largest economies. The country produces many items that other countries buy, including its most famous products - wine and cheese. Other exports include automobiles, electronics and clothing. Tourism is also a huge industry in France. More than 80 million people visit the country every year, more than any other country on Earth!

What did you make of our facts about France? Let us know by leaving a comment, below!

Credits
Map of France: National Geographic Maps. Eiffel Tower on a sunny day, Paris: Silvian Tomescu, Dreamstime. Beach at the French Rivieria: Lucian Milasan, Dreamstime. Arc de Triomphe viewed from the Champs-Élysées, Paris: Giancarlo Liguori, Dreamstime. Colourful flowers in the Tuileries Garden, Paris: Victorua, Dreamstime. Glass pyramid entrance to the Louvre, Paris: Lsantilli, Dreamstime. French Alps and Palace of Versailles: Getty Images UK

Likes

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Ooh la la! Ready for the lowdown on one of Europe's most amazing countries? Then check out our fascinating facts about France ...

# data[].attributes.body
Watch out for the  surprise ending!

# data[].attributes.body
Why do Muslim women wear burkinis?
Can you think about why the French might want to ban them and why Muslims would want to keep them?

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.readable_text
Fines have been imposed on women wearing burkinis in the southern French town of Cannes.

A ban on the swimwear - popular with some Muslim women because they entirely cover the body - was controversially introduced earlier in August.

The three women, aged from 29 to 57, were with their children at the beach when police officers intervened over the offending garments.

French PM backs burkini bans as three more towns consider similar move

Four of the women were fined €38 (£33) while all were given warnings and told to leave the area, Le Parisien reported.

"They are young mothers or grandmothers, and they do not believe they are criminals," a local council source told the website. "All were very upset at the way they were treated."

Mayor David Lisnard, caused uproar among Muslim groups by making Cannes the first resort town to impose a ban on the full-body swimsuits. He said: "I took this decision among several other rulings to make sure my city is safe in the context of the state of emergency."

Mr Lisnard's ruling was challenged, but later upheld in court. A judge said the rule was legal under French law which prohibits people "invoking their religious beliefs to skirt common rules regulating relations between public authorities and private individuals".

The judge put the ban "in the context of the state of emergency and recent Islamist attacks, notably in Nice a month ago".

Cannes is less than 20 miles from Nice, where Mohamed Lahouaiej-Bouhlel ploughed a lorry into a crowd which had gathered to watch Bastille Day fireworks, killing 85 people.

Another resort town close to Nice, Villeneuve-Loubet, also banned burkinis on beaches. A newly introduced by-law ruled only clothing that "is respectful to morality and secular principles, and in compliance with hygiene and safety rules" is allowed.

Mayor Lionnel Luca said the prohibition of the garments was for sanitary reasons. "I was told that there was a couple on one of our beaches where the wife was swimming fully dressed, and I considered that unacceptable for hygienic reasons and unwelcome given the general situation," he told AFP news agency.

"In France, one does not come to the beach dressed to display one's religious convictions, especially as they are false convictions that the religion does not demand."

France has imposed a controversial ban on full-face veils since 2004.

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.title
The first French Muslim women have been fined for wearing burkinis

# data[].attributes.attachment_link.description
Fines have been imposed on women wearing burkinis in the southern French town of Cannes. A ban on the swimwear - popular with some Muslim women because they entirely cover the body - was controversially introduced earlier in August.

# data[].attributes.body
noun

1. empathie f