This article describes the process by which the territorial extent of

metropolitan France Metropolitan France (french: France métropolitaine or ''la Métropole''), also known as European France (french: Territoire européen de la France) is the area of France which is geographically in Europe. This collective name for the European ...

came to be as it is since 1947. The territory of the French State is spread throughout the world. Metropolitan France is that part which is in Europe.

West Francia In medieval history, West Francia (Medieval Latin: ) or the Kingdom of the West Franks () refers to the western part of the Frankish Empire established by Charlemagne. It represents the earliest stage of the Kingdom of France, lasting from ab ...

, which arose from the

Treaty of Verdun The Treaty of Verdun (), agreed in , divided the Frankish Empire into three kingdoms among the surviving sons of the emperor Louis I, the son and successor of Charlemagne. The treaty was concluded following almost three years of civil war and ...

of 843, remained stable for many years. The first kings, the

Capetian The Capetian dynasty (; french: Capétiens), also known as the House of France, is a dynasty of Frankish origin, and a branch of the Robertians. It is among the largest and oldest royal houses in Europe and the world, and consists of Hugh Ca ...

s, were too much occupied with imposing their authority in their own realm to be expansionist. They deftly exploited dissent among their turbulent vassals, applying pressure on them and on the Church and towns. The great conflicts with the kings of England were important occasions for asserting royal power. The 13th century re-annexations of

Normandy Normandy (; french: link=no, Normandie ; nrf, Normaundie, Nouormandie ; from Old French , plural of ''Normant'', originally from the word for "northman" in several Scandinavian languages) is a geographical and cultural region in Northwestern ...

and of

Languedoc The Province of Languedoc (; , ; oc, Lengadòc ) is a former province of France. Most of its territory is now contained in the modern-day region of Occitanie in Southern France. Its capital city was Toulouse. It had an area of approximately ...

to the French kingdom were two important stages in the unification of the kingdom. France soon lost the

County of Barcelona The County of Barcelona ( la, Comitatus Barcinonensis, ca, Comtat de Barcelona) was originally a frontier region under the rule of the Carolingian dynasty. In the 10th century, the Counts of Barcelona became progressively independent, heredi ...

, from the end of the 9th century. The crossing beyond Rhone, which for a long time remained the frontier, did not begin until the 14th century, with the purchase of the

Dauphiné The Dauphiné (, ) is a former province in Southeastern France, whose area roughly corresponded to that of the present departments of Isère, Drôme and Hautes-Alpes. The Dauphiné was originally the Dauphiné of Viennois. In the 12th centu ...

Louis XI Louis XI (3 July 1423 – 30 August 1483), called "Louis the Prudent" (french: le Prudent), was King of France from 1461 to 1483. He succeeded his father, Charles VII. Louis entered into open rebellion against his father in a short-lived revol ...

regained his inheritance of the two most powerful prerogatives granted to cadet branches of the dynasty:

Burgundy Burgundy (; french: link=no, Bourgogne ) is a historical territory and former administrative region and province of east-central France. The province was once home to the Dukes of Burgundy from the early 11th until the late 15th century. The ...

and

Anjou Anjou may refer to: Geography and titles France *County of Anjou, a historical county in France and predecessor of the Duchy of Anjou **Count of Anjou, title of nobility *Duchy of Anjou, a historical duchy and later a province of France **Duke ...

including

Provence Provence (, , , , ; oc, Provença or ''Prouvènço'' , ) is a geographical region and historical province of southeastern France, which extends from the left bank of the lower Rhône to the west to the Italian border to the east; it is bo ...

in the

Holy Roman Empire The Holy Roman Empire was a political entity in Western, Central, and Southern Europe that developed during the Early Middle Ages and continued until its dissolution in 1806 during the Napoleonic Wars. From the accession of Otto I in 962 unt ...

(1481–1482). The marriage of

Anne of Brittany Anne of Brittany (; 25/26 January 1477 – 9 January 1514) was reigning Duchess of Brittany from 1488 until her death, and Queen of France from 1491 to 1498 and from 1499 to her death. She is the only woman to have been queen consort of France ...

first with Charles VIII then with

Louis XII Louis XII (27 June 14621 January 1515), was King of France from 1498 to 1515 and King of Naples from 1501 to 1504. The son of Charles, Duke of Orléans, and Maria of Cleves, he succeeded his 2nd cousin once removed and brother in law at the tim ...

led finally to the effective annexation in 1532, of her duchy which was already within the ambit of the French Kingdom but which had hitherto firmly maintained its distinct existence. From 1635 to 1748, Richelieu and

Louis XIV Louis XIV (Louis Dieudonné; 5 September 16381 September 1715), also known as Louis the Great () or the Sun King (), was List of French monarchs, King of France from 14 May 1643 until his death in 1715. His reign of 72 years and 110 days is the Li ...

undertook an expansion of the frontiers of the kingdom towards the north and towards the Rhine. Their aim was to check the aspiration of the Austrian royal house towards its own predominance in Europe. The loss of

French Flanders French Flanders (french: La Flandre française) is a part of the historical County of Flanders in present-day France where a dialect of Dutch was or still is traditionally spoken. The region lies in the modern-day region of Hauts-de-France an ...

(1526) had brought the frontier dangerously close to the French capital.

Alsace Alsace (, ; ; Low Alemannic German/ gsw-FR, Elsàss ; german: Elsass ; la, Alsatia) is a cultural region and a territorial collectivity in eastern France, on the west bank of the upper Rhine next to Germany and Switzerland. In 2020, it had ...

Artois Artois ( ; ; nl, Artesië; English adjective: ''Artesian'') is a region of northern France. Its territory covers an area of about 4,000 km2 and it has a population of about one million. Its principal cities are Arras (Dutch: ''Atrecht'') ...

and

Franche-Comté Franche-Comté (, ; ; Frainc-Comtou: ''Fraintche-Comtè''; frp, Franche-Comtât; also german: Freigrafschaft; es, Franco Condado; all ) is a cultural and historical region of eastern France. It is composed of the modern departments of Doubs, ...

were annexed between 1648 and 1697. The

Duchy of Lorraine The Duchy of Lorraine (french: Lorraine ; german: Lothringen ), originally Upper Lorraine, was a duchy now included in the larger present-day region of Lorraine in northeastern France. Its capital was Nancy. It was founded in 959 following th ...

remained some time an enclave in the French kingdom before it too was incorporated in 1766. This and the purchase of Corsica in 1768 brought the territory of the kingdom into a consolidated block. During the period of the French Revolution and

First Empire First Empire may refer to: *First British Empire, sometimes used to describe the British Empire between 1583 and 1783 *First Bulgarian Empire (680–1018) *First French Empire (1804–1814/1815) * First German Empire or "First Reich", sometimes use ...

, France expanded temporarily on the left bank of the Rhine. The frontier in the north east lost its definition. On the whole, it remained stable from 1697 to 1789 when it became vague, following no particular line. It was re-established, more or less on its old line in 1815, by the

Congress of Vienna The Congress of Vienna (, ) of 1814–1815 was a series of international diplomatic meetings to discuss and agree upon a possible new layout of the European political and constitutional order after the downfall of the French Emperor Napoleon ...

. France did lose some places such as

Landau Landau ( pfl, Landach), officially Landau in der Pfalz, is an autonomous (''kreisfrei'') town surrounded by the Südliche Weinstraße ("Southern Wine Route") district of southern Rhineland-Palatinate, Germany. It is a university town (since 1990 ...

and

Saarlouis Saarlouis (; french: link=no, Sarrelouis, ; formerly Sarre-Libre and Saarlautern) is a town in Saarland, Germany, capital of the district of Saarlouis. In 2020, the town had a population of 34,409. Saarlouis, as the name implies, is located on t ...

. These strategic losses and the construction of a powerful German state may be seen as giving rise to later diplomatic and military events. But even after the Armistice of 1918, France was unable to make new territorial gains towards the north-east, into the

Saarland The Saarland (, ; french: Sarre ) is a state of Germany in the south west of the country. With an area of and population of 990,509 in 2018, it is the smallest German state in area apart from the city-states of Berlin, Bremen, and Hamburg, a ...

. Subsequently, in the 19th century, there were only a few developments. The

Duchy of Savoy The Duchy of Savoy ( it, Ducato di Savoia; french: Duché de Savoie) was a country in Western Europe that existed from 1416. It was created when Sigismund, Holy Roman Emperor, raised the County of Savoy into a duchy for Amadeus VIII. The du ...

and the

County of Nice The County of Nice (french: Comté de Nice / Pays Niçois, it, Contea di Nizza/Paese Nizzardo, Niçard oc, Contèa de Niça/País Niçard) is a historical region of France located around the southeastern city of Nice and roughly equivalent t ...

were definitively re-attached to France, by

plebiscite A referendum (plural: referendums or less commonly referenda) is a direct vote by the electorate on a proposal, law, or political issue. This is in contrast to an issue being voted on by a representative. This may result in the adoption of ...

in 1860. Alsace-Lorraine was annexed by Germany in 1871 but became French again in 1918. Other alterations were made temporarily, by the

occupying power Military occupation, also known as belligerent occupation or simply occupation, is the effective military control by a ruling power over a territory that is outside of that power's sovereign territory.Eyāl Benveniśtî. The international law ...

, during the period of World War II.

Geographical context

Modern

Metropolitan France Metropolitan France (french: France métropolitaine or ''la Métropole''), also known as European France (french: Territoire européen de la France) is the area of France which is geographically in Europe. This collective name for the European ...

lies to a large extent, within clear limits of

physical geography Physical geography (also known as physiography) is one of the three main branches of geography. Physical geography is the branch of natural science which deals with the processes and patterns in the natural environment such as the atmosphere ...

. Roughly half of its margin lies on sea coasts. In the south-west, its border lies among the peaks of the

Pyrenees The Pyrenees (; es, Pirineos ; french: Pyrénées ; ca, Pirineu ; eu, Pirinioak ; oc, Pirenèus ; an, Pirineus) is a mountain range straddling the border of France and Spain. It extends nearly from its union with the Cantabrian Mountains to ...

mountain range. Similarly, in the south-east it lies in part of the

Alps The Alps () ; german: Alpen ; it, Alpi ; rm, Alps ; sl, Alpe . are the highest and most extensive mountain range system that lies entirely in Europe, stretching approximately across seven Alpine countries (from west to east): France, Sw ...

. In the East it follows one or another of the Jura ranges until it reaches the River

Rhine ), Surselva, Graubünden, Switzerland , source1_coordinates= , source1_elevation = , source2 = Rein Posteriur/Hinterrhein , source2_location = Paradies Glacier, Graubünden, Switzerland , source2_coordinates= , source ...

, which it follows downstream. The remaining section, in the north-east, between the Rhine and the

North Sea The North Sea lies between Great Britain, Norway, Denmark, Germany, the Netherlands and Belgium. An epeiric sea on the European continental shelf, it connects to the Atlantic Ocean through the English Channel in the south and the Norwegian ...

, is provided with the least clear natural definition.

Middle Ages (843–1492): the unification of the kingdom

Boundaries between the kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire

Birth of France and Germany

The

of 843 marked the appearance of France and Germany. The arrangement was seen as a temporary sharing out of the inheritance between the heirs of

Charlemagne Charlemagne ( , ) or Charles the Great ( la, Carolus Magnus; german: Karl der Große; 2 April 747 – 28 January 814), a member of the Carolingian dynasty, was King of the Franks from 768, King of the Lombards from 774, and the first E ...

. It set a seal to the creation of the borders of two states each of which would have its own development. Their common frontier at that time, was placed approximately along the

Saône The Saône ( , ; frp, Sona; lat, Arar) is a river in eastern France. It is a right tributary of the Rhône, rising at Vioménil in the Vosges department and joining the Rhône in Lyon, at the southern end of the Presqu'île. The name d ...

and the

Rhône The Rhône ( , ; wae, Rotten ; frp, Rôno ; oc, Ròse ) is a major river in France and Switzerland, rising in the Alps and flowing west and south through Lake Geneva and southeastern France before discharging into the Mediterranean Sea. At Ar ...

. On the one side, the first Germanic monarchy would weaken itself in trying to re-establish the Carolingian Empire without having sufficient means. On the other hand, the French monarchy would from a modest base, slowly establish itself, ultimately to take the leading role in Western Europe.

Expansion of France towards the Alps

The Holy Roman Empire, which is represented in the modern world by Germany, sank into political chaos during the 13th century. This opened the way to all sorts of encroachment. Philip IV joined the town of Lyon to his realm again (1312). It was a former capital of the Gauls and an important crossroads in European commerce. The unhappy Phillip VI bought the

on 30 March 1349, by the treaty of Romans. His grandson, the brother of Charles V, Louis was invested as Duke of Anjou. He was further adopted as heir by the Countess of Provence and Queen of Sicily, Joan. He accomplished his conquest of Provence in 1383–1384. His grandson, King René could not however, maintain his position in Italy and transferred his possessions to the King of France, Louis XI: Anjou in France and Provence in the Holy Roman Empire (1481). Louis XI had the good sense not to adopt René's claims in Italy. That was not so in the case of his son Charles VIII who not only undertook an expedition to Naples which gave no result but beforehand, abandoned several of his father's conquests; Artois, Franche-Comté and Roussillon, to his eventual competitors.

Consolidation of royal power when faced with the Kings of England

In 987, the

Carolingians The Carolingian dynasty (; known variously as the Carlovingians, Carolingus, Carolings, Karolinger or Karlings) was a Frankish noble family named after Charlemagne, grandson of mayor Charles Martel and a descendant of the Arnulfing and Pippi ...

were ousted in France by the election of

Hugues Capet Hugh Capet (; french: Hugues Capet ; c. 939 – 14 October 996) was the King of the Franks from 987 to 996. He is the founder and first king from the House of Capet. The son of the powerful duke Hugh the Great and his wife Hedwige of Saxony, ...

who imposed his dynasty. The royal domain of the first Capetians was initially limited to a part of the

Île-de-France The Île-de-France (, ; literally "Isle of France") is the most populous of the eighteen regions of France. Centred on the capital Paris, it is located in the north-central part of the country and often called the ''Région parisienne'' (; en, Pa ...

, between Paris and

Orléans Orléans (;"Orleans"
(US) and lay peers of France : the dukes of

Aquitaine Aquitaine ( , , ; oc, Aquitània ; eu, Akitania; Poitevin-Saintongeais: ''Aguiéne''), archaic Guyenne or Guienne ( oc, Guiana), is a historical region of southwestern France and a former administrative region of the country. Since 1 Janu ...

, of

and of

, besides the counts of

Champagne Champagne (, ) is a sparkling wine originated and produced in the Champagne wine region of France under the rules of the appellation, that demand specific vineyard practices, sourcing of grapes exclusively from designated places within it, ...

, of

Flanders Flanders (, ; Dutch: ''Vlaanderen'' ) is the Flemish-speaking northern portion of Belgium and one of the communities, regions and language areas of Belgium. However, there are several overlapping definitions, including ones related to cultu ...

and of

Toulouse Toulouse ( , ; oc, Tolosa ) is the prefecture of the French department of Haute-Garonne and of the larger region of Occitania. The city is on the banks of the River Garonne, from the Mediterranean Sea, from the Atlantic Ocean and fr ...

. The first objective of the Capetian kings was the consolidation of their regional authority, which they tried to do in the course of the 11th and 12th centuries. The principal enlargement of the royal domain in the course of that period was the purchase of the Viscounty of

Bourges Bourges () is a commune in central France on the river Yèvre. It is the capital of the department of Cher, and also was the capital city of the former province of Berry. History The name of the commune derives either from the Bituriges, ...

in 1101 which was to become the Duchy of

Berry A berry is a small, pulpy, and often edible fruit. Typically, berries are juicy, rounded, brightly colored, sweet, sour or tart, and do not have a stone or pit, although many pips or seeds may be present. Common examples are strawberries, rasp ...

Conquest of Plantagenet territories

The struggle against the Norman and Angevin

kings of England This list of kings and reigning queens of the Kingdom of England begins with Alfred the Great, who initially ruled Wessex, one of the seven Anglo-Saxon kingdoms which later made up modern England. Alfred styled himself King of the Anglo-Sax ...

was the opportunity for the kings of France to extend their authority. They had, it is true, to face up to the formidable challenge with which they were presented. The

Duke of Normandy In the Middle Ages, the duke of Normandy was the ruler of the Duchy of Normandy in north-western France. The duchy arose out of a grant of land to the Viking leader Rollo by the French king Charles III in 911. In 924 and again in 933, Normand ...

William the Conqueror William I; ang, WillelmI (Bates ''William the Conqueror'' p. 33– 9 September 1087), usually known as William the Conqueror and sometimes William the Bastard, was the first Norman king of England, reigning from 1066 until his death in 10 ...

became King of England in 1066 through his victory at Hastings over the

Saxons The Saxons ( la, Saxones, german: Sachsen, ang, Seaxan, osx, Sahson, nds, Sassen, nl, Saksen) were a group of Germanic * * * * peoples whose name was given in the early Middle Ages to a large country (Old Saxony, la, Saxonia) near the Nor ...

. On the extinction of his male line of descent, his heir was the Duke of Anjou,

Henry Plantagenet Henry II (5 March 1133 – 6 July 1189), also known as Henry Curtmantle (french: link=no, Court-manteau), Henry FitzEmpress, or Henry Plantagenet, was King of England from 1154 until his death in 1189, and as such, was the first Angevin king ...

, grandson by his mother of

Henry I of England Henry I (c. 1068 – 1 December 1135), also known as Henry Beauclerc, was King of England from 1100 to his death in 1135. He was the fourth son of William the Conqueror and was educated in Latin and the liberal arts. On William's death in ...

. Two months before he ascended to the English throne, as Henry II, he married

Eleanor Eleanor () is a feminine given name, originally from an Old French adaptation of the Old Provençal name ''Aliénor''. It is the name of a number of women of royalty and nobility in western Europe during the High Middle Ages. The name was intro ...

, Duchess of Aquitaine, the richest heiress in the French kingdom and ex-wife of the

King of France France was ruled by monarchs from the establishment of the Kingdom of West Francia in 843 until the end of the Second French Empire in 1870, with several interruptions. Classical French historiography usually regards Clovis I () as the fir ...

. The kings of France nevertheless, held some trump cards: the prestige and prerogatives of their position, the dissent at the heart of the Plantagenet family and the difficulty the latter had in exacting obedience in the South-West.

John Lackland John (24 December 1166 – 19 October 1216) was King of England from 1199 until his death in 1216. He lost the Duchy of Normandy and most of his other French lands to King Philip II of France, resulting in the collapse of the Angevin Empi ...

, son of Henry II, caused confusion among his

vassal A vassal or liege subject is a person regarded as having a mutual obligation to a lord or monarch, in the context of the feudal system in medieval Europe. While the subordinate party is called a vassal, the dominant party is called a suzerai ...

s by his irregular and violent behaviour. The king of France, Phillip Augustus was able to take advantage of this by taking Normandy from him by his capture of the fortress of the

Château Gaillard Château Gaillard () is a medieval castle ruin overlooking the River Seine above the commune of Les Andelys, in the French department of Eure, in Normandy. It is located some north-west of Paris and from Rouen. Construction began in 1196 unde ...

, downstream from Paris (1204). The conquest of that province was vital as it increased the revenues of the French Crown substantially.

Conquest of south feudal territories: Auvergne and Languedoc

Philip Augustus was in fact the first king of whom the authority extended beyond the Île de France. The extent of his field of action and its effectiveness of his authority were enhanced. The king subdued notably, the

County of Vermandois Vermandois was a French county that appeared in the Merovingian period. Its name derives from that of an ancient tribe, the Viromandui. In the 10th century, it was organised around two castellan domains: St Quentin (Aisne) and Péronne (Somme ...

Touraine Touraine (; ) is one of the traditional provinces of France. Its capital was Tours. During the political reorganization of French territory in 1790, Touraine was divided between the departments of Indre-et-Loire, :Loir-et-Cher, Indre and Vien ...

and the key parts of the

County of Auvergne The history of the Auvergne dates back to the early Middle Ages, when it was a historic province in south central France. It was originally the feudal domain of the Counts of Auvergne. History Auvergne was a province of France deriving its name ...

. The last was entrusted to several lords of the royal entourage before being formally reattached to the royal domain in 1531. The success of Philip Augustus was confirmed by his victory over the

Holy Roman Emperor The Holy Roman Emperor, originally and officially the Emperor of the Romans ( la, Imperator Romanorum, german: Kaiser der Römer) during the Middle Ages, and also known as the Roman-German Emperor since the early modern period ( la, Imperat ...

Bouvines Bouvines (; nl, Bovingen) is a commune and village in the Nord department in northern France. It is on the French- Belgian border between Lille and Tournai. History On 27 July 1214, the Battle of Bouvines was fought here between the forces of ...

in 1214. Shortly afterwards, The King of France

Louis VIII the Lion Louis VIII (5 September 1187 – 8 November 1226), nicknamed The Lion (french: Le Lion), was King of France from 1223 to 1226. As prince, he invaded England on 21 May 1216 and was excommunicated by a papal legate on 29 May 1216. On 2 June 1216 ...

exploited the

Albigensian Crusade The Albigensian Crusade or the Cathar Crusade (; 1209–1229) was a military and ideological campaign initiated by Pope Innocent III to eliminate Catharism in Languedoc, southern France. The Crusade was prosecuted primarily by the French crow ...

against the

Cathars Catharism (; from the grc, καθαροί, katharoi, "the pure ones") was a Christian dualist or Gnostic movement between the 12th and 14th centuries which thrived in Southern Europe, particularly in northern Italy and southern France. F ...

of the

Midi MIDI (; Musical Instrument Digital Interface) is a technical standard that describes a communications protocol, digital interface, and electrical connectors that connect a wide variety of electronic musical instruments, computers, and ...

to impose his authority on the County of Toulouse (1229). This new conquest was to become the province of

and until The Revolution, comprised essentially eight of the modern French départments in the Midi. Thanks to the troubles of the end of the mediaeval period, Languedoc was to obtain the establishment of its own institutions: a parliament (which was a sovereign court of justice) and États, that is States: assembly which voted on taxes and which decided on communal investments. The cumulative effect of these conquests was to prompt the kings to appoint their younger sons to territories: the ''apanages'' or privileges. This policy would allow the kings to progressively impose royal authority on the provinces, since in practice, the ''apanages'' would return without difficulty, to the crown whether by inheritance or by confiscation. This happened for example, in Poitou, in 1271 and Anjou, in 1481. These were two provinces taken by conquest from the kings of England by Phillip Augustus and Louis VIII.

Difficulties of the late medieval period

Occasionally, the ''apanage'' policy weakened the royal power. When the French king, Charles VI, was in conflict with his brother, Louis of Orléans, their cousin, Jean Sans Peur, duke of Burgundy, tried to impose himself on the government through a series of violent strikes. He progressively attracted the hostility of the rest of the group of the royal princes and was ousted. Shepherd-c-076

With a surprise attack in 1418, he seized Paris, forcing the heir to the throne, the future Charles VII, to flee to

. Similarly, counts of the very rich county of Flanders (at this stage, they were the dukes of Burgundy) used their position as top rank peers of France to establish a powerful state. Their policy was facilitated by the fragmentation of power in France and in Germany, at the end of the Middle Ages. The duchy of Burgundy's holdings in the Netherlands were the precursor of the modern Belgium. Map France 1477-en accurate border

However, the kings of England remained dukes of Aquitaine. When Philip IV died, his nephew, Philip I count of Valois mounted the throne of France in the end, as Philip VI. Philip IV had married Jean of Champagne, who brought Champagne with her into the royal domain (1284). They had two sons but a new series of conflicts, known as the Hundred Years' War, was provoked by the claim of

Edward III of England Edward III (13 November 1312 – 21 June 1377), also known as Edward of Windsor before his accession, was King of England and Lord of Ireland from January 1327 until his death in 1377. He is noted for his military success and for restoring ...

, grandson of Philip IV through Edward's mother. Edward's aim was to supplant Philip VI. French armies suffered heavy defeats at Crécy (1346) and

Poitiers Poitiers (, , , ; Poitevin: ''Poetàe'') is a city on the River Clain in west-central France. It is a commune and the capital of the Vienne department and the historical centre of Poitou. In 2017 it had a population of 88,291. Its agglome ...

(1356). Later, a third serious defeat was suffered at Agincourt (1415). Having temporarily lost territory as a result of the

Treaty of Brétigny The Treaty of Brétigny was a treaty, drafted on 8 May 1360 and ratified on 24 October 1360, between Kings Edward III of England and John II of France. In retrospect, it is seen as having marked the end of the first phase of the Hundred Years ...

, the kingdom was again divided by the Treaty of Tours (1420). But a new spirit was born in

Joan of Arc Joan of Arc (french: link=yes, Jeanne d'Arc, translit= �an daʁk} ; 1412 – 30 May 1431) is a patron saint of France, honored as a defender of the French nation for her role in the siege of Orléans and her insistence on the coronat ...

who obliged the English king to raise the

Siege of Orléans The siege of Orléans (12 October 1428 – 8 May 1429) was the watershed of the Hundred Years' War between France and England. The siege took place at the pinnacle of English power during the later stages of the war. The city held strategic an ...

(1429). Having been crowned at Reims, Charles VII returned to Paris and finally established his authority in the South West, that is to say Aquitaine, taking

Bordeaux Bordeaux ( , ; Gascon oc, Bordèu ; eu, Bordele; it, Bordò; es, Burdeos) is a port city on the river Garonne in the Gironde department, Southwestern France. It is the capital of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region, as well as the prefectu ...

and

Bayonne Bayonne (; eu, Baiona ; oc, label= Gascon, Baiona ; es, Bayona) is a city in Southwestern France near the Spanish border. It is a commune and one of two subprefectures in the Pyrénées-Atlantiques department, in the Nouvelle-Aquitaine r ...

(1453) from the English king.

Early Modern period (1492–1789): conflicts with the Habsburgs of Spain and Austria

Integration of the last great feudal domains

On the one hand, the succession of the Duchy of Burgundy and on the other, the desire to gain a foothold in Italy were the cause of a first series of conflicts with the

House of Austria The House of Habsburg (), alternatively spelled Hapsburg in Englishgerman: Haus Habsburg, ; es, Casa de Habsburgo; hu, Habsburg család, it, Casa di Asburgo, nl, Huis van Habsburg, pl, dom Habsburgów, pt, Casa de Habsburgo, la, Domus Hab ...

, the Habsburgs. On the death of the last Duke of Burgundy,

Charles the Bold Charles I (Charles Martin; german: Karl Martin; nl, Karel Maarten; 10 November 1433 – 5 January 1477), nicknamed the Bold (German: ''der Kühne''; Dutch: ''de Stoute''; french: le Téméraire), was Duke of Burgundy from 1467 to 1477. ...

, his possessions were divided. His daughter,

Mary of Burgundy Mary (french: Marie; nl, Maria; 13 February 1457 – 27 March 1482), nicknamed the Rich, was a member of the House of Valois-Burgundy who ruled a collection of states that included the duchies of Limburg, Brabant, Luxembourg, the counties of ...

inherited the

Burgundian Netherlands In the history of the Low Countries, the Burgundian Netherlands (french: Pays-Bas bourguignons, nl, Bourgondische Nederlanden, lb, Burgundeschen Nidderlanden, wa, Bas Payis borguignons) or the Burgundian Age is the period between 1384 and ...

and the Burgundian part of the Franche-Comté.

took back the Duchy of Burgundy proper and

Picardy Picardy (; Picard and french: Picardie, , ) is a historical territory and a former administrative region of France. Since 1 January 2016, it has been part of the new region of Hauts-de-France. It is located in the northern part of France. Hist ...

(1482). The grandson of Mary, the Holy Roman Emperor, Charles V of Habsburg entered into conflict with

Francis I of France Francis I (french: François Ier; frm, Francoys; 12 September 1494 – 31 March 1547) was King of France from 1515 until his death in 1547. He was the son of Charles, Count of Angoulême, and Louise of Savoy. He succeeded his first cousin on ...

. They both wanted the Duchy of Burgundy as well as the

Duchy of Milan The Duchy of Milan ( it, Ducato di Milano; lmo, Ducaa de Milan) was a state in northern Italy, created in 1395 by Gian Galeazzo Visconti, then the lord of Milan, and a member of the important Visconti family, which had been ruling the city sin ...

. This first phase was interrupted by the

French Wars of Religion The French Wars of Religion is the term which is used in reference to a period of civil war between French Catholics and Protestants, commonly called Huguenots, which lasted from 1562 to 1598. According to estimates, between two and four mil ...

and it was not decisive for the French monarchy. After his defeat at

Pavia Pavia (, , , ; la, Ticinum; Medieval Latin: ) is a town and comune of south-western Lombardy in northern Italy, south of Milan on the lower Ticino river near its confluence with the Po. It has a population of c. 73,086. The city was the ...

in 1526, Francis I kept Burgundy but renounced in perpetuity his

suzerainty Suzerainty () is the rights and obligations of a person, state or other polity who controls the foreign policy and relations of a tributary state, while allowing the tributary state to have internal autonomy. While the subordinate party is ca ...

over the County of Flanders. The Burgundian Netherlands which

Emperor Charles V Charles V, french: Charles Quint, it, Carlo V, nl, Karel V, ca, Carles V, la, Carolus V (24 February 1500 – 21 September 1558) was Holy Roman Emperor and Archduke of Austria from 1519 to 1556, King of Spain ( Castile and Aragon) fr ...

had inherited, had hitherto been composed partially of French and partially of German territories. By the

Pragmatic Sanction of 1549 The Pragmatic Sanction of 1549 was an edict, promulgated by Charles V, Holy Roman Emperor, reorganising the Seventeen Provinces of the present-day Netherlands, Belgium, and Luxembourg into one indivisible territory, while retaining existing custo ...

, they became a separate political entity. Meanwhile,

Henry II of France Henry II (french: Henri II; 31 March 1519 – 10 July 1559) was King of France from 31 March 1547 until his death in 1559. The second son of Francis I and Duchess Claude of Brittany, he became Dauphin of France upon the death of his elder bro ...

consolidated the frontiers of the French kingdom by the occupation in 1552, of the towns of

Metz Metz ( , , lat, Divodurum Mediomatricorum, then ) is a city in northeast France located at the confluence of the Moselle and the Seille rivers. Metz is the prefecture of the Moselle department and the seat of the parliament of the Grand ...

Toul Toul () is a commune in the Meurthe-et-Moselle department in north-eastern France. It is a sub-prefecture of the department. Geography Toul is between Commercy and Nancy, and the river Moselle and Canal de la Marne au Rhin. Climate Toul ...

and

Verdun Verdun (, , , ; official name before 1970 ''Verdun-sur-Meuse'') is a large city in the Meuse department in Grand Est, northeastern France. It is an arrondissement of the department. Verdun is the biggest city in Meuse, although the capital ...

which became the province of the

Three Bishoprics The Three Bishoprics (french: les Trois-Évêchés ) constituted a government of the Kingdom of France consisting of the dioceses of Metz, Verdun, and Toul within the Lorraine region. The three dioceses had been Prince-bishoprics of the ...

and the re-taking of Calais from the

Queen of England The monarchy of the United Kingdom, commonly referred to as the British monarchy, is the constitutional form of government by which a hereditary sovereign reigns as the head of state of the United Kingdom, the Crown Dependencies (the Bailiwi ...

(1558). Elsewhere, the marriage of Louis XII with Ann of Brittany, followed by that of their daughter Claude to Francis I in 1514 permitted the attachment of the Duchy of Brittany to France again (1532). At the time of his accession in 1589, Henry IV of France brought the possessions of the last remaining great feudal house, the Albrets, to the royal domain. He was the heir by his mother, Joan of Albret. These possessions were Béarn, Armagnac and Limousin. Having each developed a strong identity, like Languedoc, these later additions, Béarn, Burgundy and Brittany retained their own institutions such as states and parliament, until the Revolution. Europe map 1648

Expansion toward the east: the frontier on the Rhine

Toward new conflicts with the house of Austria

The house of Austria showed a wish for supremacy in Europe, giving an impression of a militant bastion of

Catholicism The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

faced with the emergent Protestantism, Protestant states. The French monarchy was more worried that this claim would find echoes in Catholic circles in France. Besides, Habsburg possessions encircled its territory: Spain, the Spanish Netherlands, Netherlands, Franche-Comté and more distantly, Milan. Until the Spanish Armada was defeated in 1588, it was not clear that England would not become part of this encirclement. Henry IV of France had inherited a dispute with Spain. By his mother, he was heir to the kings of Navarre who had been dispossessed by the kings of Spain. They had been left with only Lower Navarre. From this time on, the kings of France carried also the title of 'king of Navarre'. Before taking up the struggle again, Henry IV paid off the French adventure in Italy. In 1601, he intervened against Dukes of Savoy, Duke of Savoy who had supported plots against him. By the Treaty of Lyon (1601), Treaty of Lyon, France acquired Bresse, Bugey, Valromey and the Pays de Gex, which together constitute the modern Ain departement. This was in exchange for the marquisate of Saluzzo, the last place he held in Italy. France had taken possession of Saluzzo in 1548, on the death of its last marquis. It had been claimed since the purchase of the Dauphiné. However, the prospect of a conflict with the house of Austria offended a great part of the Catholics of France, notably the court. Marie de Médicis and the duke Jean Louis de Nogaret de La Valette, D' Épernon were notable members of this party. It was in this context that Henry was assassinated by a fanatic, Ravaillac, which put a stop to his project.

Wars of the 17th century

The king of France Louis XIII of France, Louis XIII and his prime minister Armand Jean du Plessis de Richelieu, Richelieu retook the offensive in 1635 within the framework of the Thirty Years' War. A first, decisive war against Spain was marked by the victory at Battle of Rocroi, Rocroi in 1643. The eastward expansion was aimed at cutting the lines of communication of France's enemies and to facilitate contacts with her allies in Germany, a country then comprising many small, more or less independent states. Wars against the house of Austria followed each other and the several treaties resulting from them accumulated into a French grasp on several provinces of the Holy Roman Empire * The Peace of Westphalia (1648) had the effect of an annexation by France of the margraviate of Haute-Alsace, hitherto a Habsburg property, and of the Décapole, a federation of ten Alsatian towns. They also ratified the annexation of the Three Bishoprics, of Three Bishoprics, Metz, Toul and Verdun, occupied since 1552. * The Treaty of the Pyrenees (1659) allowed the recovery of the County of Artois (with the exception of Aire-sur-la-Lys, Aire of Saint-Omer (Pas-de-Calais), Saint-Omer), and of County of Roussillon, Roussillon: at this stage, the frontier with Spain became permanently defined. * The first Treaty of Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1668), Aix-la-Chapelle (Aachen) in 1668 ended the War of Devolution. Louis XIV took the towns of Lille, Douai and Armentières from the Spanish, thereby allowing France a foothold back in Flanders. * The Treaty of Nijmegen, signed 10 August 1678, ended the Franco-Dutch War. The great loser in the war was Spain, ceding to France a list of places—Franche-Comté, the forts on the Aire and Saint-Omer, Cambrai, Valenciennes and Maubeuge in Comté de Hainaut, Hainaut. From the time of the French Revolution, Revolution, these French lands in Flanders and Hainaut would become the Nord (French department), Nord departement. From 1680 to 1697, Louis XIV emboldened by his early successes, adopted a policy of unilateral annexations and groupings. The French even took part during the temporary conquest of Habsburg-ruled History of Luxembourg#Habsburg rule (1477–1815), Luxembourg from 1684 to 1697. By the Treaty of Rijswijk in 1697, which concluded the Nine Years' War, he had finally to renounce most of these newly-taken lands but retained

and Lower Alsace, with the town of Strasbourg. The bulk of Alsace was thenceforward, entirely French. The exceptions were Mulhouse and some territories held by German princes.

Consolidation of territory

At the end of Louis XIV's reign, a balance seemed to have been achieved. The other European powers were no longer disposed to accept a new French expansion and were prepared to form alliances to oppose such a thing. The borders had been pushed out far from the French capital. On top of this, they were thenceforward defended by a network of modern fortresses constructed by Sébastien Le Prestre de Vauban, Vauban. Fortified towns to the north of Lorraine (Montmédy, Thionville, Longwy,

) isolated the Duchy of Lorraine, Duchy from other states of the German (Holy Roman) Empire so as to weaken the independence of the duke. Since 1632, France had regularly occupied Lorraine in periods of war, without annexing it. The duke, Charles IV, Duke of Lorraine, Charles IV, who was allied with the houses of Austria and Bavaria, adopted a policy hostile towards France. He and afterwards, his nephew, Charles V of Lorraine had been officers in the Austro-Hungarian Army, Imperial Austrian Army. It was only later that France was presented with both motive and a favourable occasion to annex the duchy. This was the marriage, in 1736, of Francis de Lorraine to the heiress of the Austrian imperial house, Archduchess Maria Theresa, at a moment when Austria was weakened. The Treaty of Vienna (1738) awarded Lorraine to Louis XV of France, who gave it for life, to his father-in-law, Stanisław Leszczyński. The duchy of Lorraine would be formally annexed to France in 1766, when Stanisław died. In recompense, Francis I, Holy Roman Emperor, Duke Francis III was given the Grand Duchy of Tuscany, which was vacant. Through animosity towards the Habsburgs, France allowed itself to be drawn into the War of Austrian Succession again. However, after the victory at the Battle of Fontenoy, Louis XV renounced all his new conquests. In 1748, the Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (1748), Treaty of Aix-la-Chapelle (Aachen) put an end to the rivalry of the French and Austrian monarchies. In 1760, the Charolais, France, County of Charolais, until then technically outside the Crown of France, was absorbed into the Estates of Burgundy following the death of its last count Charles de Bourbon, Count of Charolais, Charles. In 1768, the Republic of Genoa ceded Corsica to Louis XV in exchange for annulment of a debt. Thus, on the eve of the Revolution, the modern, hexagonal shape of France was accomplished. However, the complexity of the feudal framework which governed the political organization under the Ancien Régime explains the survival of a number of foreign enclaves, particularly in the recent zone of expansion—

, Franche-Comté and Lorraine (province), Lorraine.

Since the French Revolution (1789–present)

Transformation arising from the French Revolution (1789–1815)

Implementation of a new concept of national territory

The Revolution did away with the concept of ownership of political entities by individuals. France became one state rather than the aggregate of a mosaic of semi-states.

=Suppression of the provinces and creation of the departements

= As a means of loosening old ties of allegiance, and of rationalizing administration, the old divisions based on feudal ownership were replaced by departements of roughly uniform size and named after geographical features such as rivers. Even Paris was in the Seine departement. Nevertheless, in some cases such as Nord (French department), Nord the modern departement comprises broadly, the territory of one period of acquisition.

=Reduction of enclaves

= Several territories were foreign enclaves surrounded by the lands of the kingdom of France. The Convention nationale willed their merging into France, by treaty or regardless of the rights of the (mainly German) princely owners: * The Comtat Venaissin, property of the Holy See since 1274, unilaterally annexed in 1791, annexation recognised by the Pope in the treaty of Tolentino (1797). * The County of Montbéliard added to Haute-Saône (1793). * Riquewihr and the county of Horbourg-Wihr, Horbourg belonging to the ruling family of Württemberg-Monbéliard, added to Haut-Rhin and the counties of Hanau-Lichtenberg, of La Petite-Pierre and of County of Saarwerden, Saarwerden, added to Bas-Rhin (1793) * The principality of Salm-Salm joined to Vosges (department), Vosges (1793). * The counties of Créhange and of Dabo, Moselle, Dabo joined to Moselle (departement), Moselle (1793), as was the lordship of Lixing-lès-Rouhling, Lixing (1795). * The Republic of Mulhouse, affiliated to the Switzerland, Helvetic Confederation since 1515 and having become an enclave in Haut-Rhin, voted in favor of its reunion to France in 1798.

French domination in Europe

=Tempting prizes beyond the natural boundaries of The Alps, Jura, Pyrenees and Rhine (1789–1799)

= The institution of a revolutionary regime in France led most of the European monarchies to form coalitions against it. The military successes of the armies of the French First Republic, First Republic resulted in a considerable expansion of the national territory. * The Comtat Venaissin: 1791; * The

: 1792; * The

, the County of Montbéliard and the Principality of Salm-Salm: 1793; * The Austrian Netherlands and the Prince-Bishopric of Liège: 1795; * The German states on the left bank of the Rhine: 1797. * The Canton of Geneva, Republic of Geneva and the Republic of Mulhouse: 1798; Most of these annexations were to be lost subsequently, at the Congress of Vienna (1815).

=Conquests during the period of the Consulate and of the Empire (1799–1815)

Under Napoleon Bonaparte the conquests continued. They were principally motivated by the aim of controlling the coasts of Europe, based on the idea of the natural borders of France. This was in the context of the struggle against the United Kingdom and the commercial blockade which that country imposed. In that way, the following were annexed: * Piedmont 1802, the king of Sardinia having taken refuge in his island. * Ligurian Republic 1805. * The Kingdom of Etruria and the Duchy of Parma 1808. * The Papal States 1809. * The Kingdom of Holland and the Canton of Valais, Valais 1810. * The German North Sea coast (Electorate of Hanover, Hanover, Oldenburg (city), Oldenburg) with the ports of Bremen, Hamburg, even Lübeck on the Baltic coast, in 1811. * Catalonia was segregated from Kingdom of Spain (Napoleonic), Napoleonic Spain and attached to France in 1812.

=An appraisal after the Congress of Vienna (1815): the Treaty of Paris (1815)

= Nearly all the conquests since the Revolution were restored to their former owners. France was virtually returned to its borders of 1791, except that she retained the former enclaves. the Comtat Venaissin with Avignon, Mulhouse and Montbéliard. The other European powers were watchful lest France should ever regain control of the left bank of the Rhine (below the Lauter (Rhine), River Lauter): * The bulk of the German territories in the left (West) bank was awarded to Prussia despite the distance from the Prussian centre and the difference in cultures. * A new state was created: the Grand-Duchy of Luxembourg, of which the citadel served as an outpost of the Prussian army. * France lost several strongholds covering her frontiers: Bouillon, Belgium, Bouillon (Ardennes NE of Sedan),

(

NW of Saarbrücken),

(Rhineland NW of Karlsruhe) and so on.

Unification of Italy (1860) and the reunification of Germany (1866–1871): the effects

Intervention of France in Italy

=Reunification of Savoy and of the County of Nice (1860) with France

= Following discussion at Plombières, of 21 July 1858, the minister of the Estates of Savoy Camillo Benso, conte di Cavour, Camillo Cavour promised Napoleon III the Duchy of Savoy and the county of Nice, in exchange for French support in the policy of the unification of Italy (the Italian unification, Risorgimento), led by king Victor Emmanuel II of Italy, Victor-Emmanuel II of Savoy. That proposition was made official by a treaty at Turin, dated December 1858. It was actually signed in January 1859. Following the victories over Austria in 1859 (Battle of Magenta, Magenta and Battle of Solferino, Solferino), and the Second Italian War of Independence#The peace, armistice of Villafranca, Austria ceded Lombardy to France, who ceded it immediately to Piedmont/Sardinia, Napoleon III took back Savoy and Nice. With the Treaty of Turin (1860), Treaty of Turin, 24 March 1860, Victor-Emmanuel consented to ceding the duchy of Savoy and the county of Nice, after consulting the populations, which took place in April 1860. The king released his Savoyard subjects following the plebiscite of the same month.

=Modifications of the Monaco frontier (1861)

= Since 1848, Menton and Roquebrune-Cap-Martin, Roquebrune, then integral parts of the Monaco, principality of Monaco, declared themselves to be free towns and were occupied by a Sardinian garrison. Following the cession by the Kingdom of Sardinia, Kingdom of Piedmont-Sardinia of the Duchy of Savoy and of the

to France in 1860, the inhabitants of Roquebrune and Menton, towns considered in the circumstances as forming part of the County of Nice, chose by referendum to be reunited with France. On 2 February 1861, Prince Charles III of Monaco and Napoleon III signed a treaty at Paris by which, in exchange for 4,000,000 French franc, francs, the prince and his successors would renounce in perpetuity, in favour of the Emperor of the French, all rights direct and indirect on these two communes.

France's position on Prussia's reunification of Germany

=Luxembourg Crisis

=Alsace-Lorraine: contention between France and Germany (1871–1918 1940–1945)

= Following the Franco-Prussian War, of 1870 and by virtue of the Treaty of Frankfurt (1871), Treaty of Frankfurt (10 May 1871), all of Alsace excepting the French-speaking Territoire de Belfort, Territory of Belfort area, was annexed by Germany, as were the districts of Sarreguemines,

, Sarrebourg (less 9 Communes of France, communes), Château-Salins (less 10 communes) and 11 communes of the arrondissement of Briey in Lorraine (region), Lorraine and the Cantons of France, cantons of Saales and Schirmeck in the Vosges mountains, Vosges; a total of 1,447,000 hectares; 1,694 communes and 1,597,000 inhabitants. The new borderline between Germany and France was orientated on the actual ethnic/linguistic border. The only exemption from this principle was the annexation of the Metz area in to Germany which was predominately French-speaking. These territories would be recovered at the end of the World War I, First World War without a plebiscite.Treaty of Versailles (1919) Article 27. See French Wikipedia, :fr:Traité de Versailles (1919) (Traité de Versailles (1919): Remaniements territoriaux) Alsace-Lorraine was annexed ''de facto'' to the Nazi Germany, Third Reich on 27 November 1940. Though the main towns of Alsace-Lorraine were reconquered during the autumn of 1944, by the French troops of Generals Marie Pierre Kœnig, Koenig and Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque, Leclerc, fighting raged on in the Colmar Pocket until 2 February 1945.

National territory since 1945

Treaty of Paris with Italy (1947), last general revision of a French frontier

In 1947, in the Paris Peace Treaties, 1947, Treaty of Paris, France gained about 700 km², in five extensions of the national territory in the departements of Alpes-Maritimes, Hautes-Alpes and Savoie (department), Savoie: * annexation of the Tende Valley, which had remained Italian when the County of Nice became French in 1860. The border here now follows the main crest of the Alps. The Alpes-Maritimes departement saw its area extended by 560 km². ** the upper valley of the Roya (river), Roya, that is the communes of Tende and La Brigue, ** the hamlets of Libre, Piène-Basse and Piène-Haute (commune of Breil-sur-Roya), ** the hamlet of Mollières (commune of Valdeblore), ** the upper valleys of the Vésubie and the Tinée; * displacement by several kilometres of the Italian border in the Mont-Cenis massif, thereby increasing French territory by 81.8 km², on the commune of Lanslebourg-Mont-Cenis, Lanslebourg, Bramans and a small area in favour of the commune of Sollières-Sardières, Savoie. From this time on, the frontier has no longer followed the line of the crest but is on the slope of the Italian side. The Mont-Cenis Dam and reservoir, subsequently constructed on its slopes, is thus in France though on the Italian side of the ridge. * annexation of the summit of Mont Thabor and its eastern slopes, notably the upper basin of the ''Vallée étroite'' (narrow valley), in the commune of Névache, Hautes-Alpes (47 km²). * annexation of Mont Chaberton (17.1 km²), in the commune of Montgenèvre (Hautes-Alpes), notably of an Italian fort, destroyed by French forces at the opening of the World War II, Second World War. * annexation of the western part of the Little St. Bernard Pass following the watershed. (3.22 km²), to the benefit of the commune of Séez, Savoie, Séez, Savoie. Though the Paris Treaty settled disputes on these five points in the line of the border, in the area of the summits of Mont Blanc and Mont Blanc de Courmayeur, questions remain open.

Appendix: minor modifications to the frontiers since 1815

Frontiers of France: minor modifications since 1815, This appendix contains details of minor revisions of the French borders with Andorra (2001), Luxembourg (2006), Switzerland (1862) and (1945 to 2002).

Maps showing the development of the territory

File:843-870 Europe.jpg, France in Europe from 843 to 870 File:Map France 1030-fr.svg, France in the early 11th century File:Map France 1180-fr.svg, France at the end of the 12th century File:Shepherd-c-076.jpg, France in 1328 File:Map France 1477-en accurate border.svg, France at the end of the 15th century File:France frontiers 1601 1766.jpg, Frontiers of France: 1601 to 1766 File:France 1552 to 1798-fr.png, Territorial conquests from 1552 to 1798 File:Europe map Napoleon Blocus.png, France in 1810 under Napoléon. All shades of blue = states operating a blockade against the UK

Footnotes

{{DEFAULTSORT:Territorial Formation Of France Territorial evolution of France, Geographic history of France, * Maps of the history of France, * Geographical, historical and cultural regions of France, * Borders of France, *

Geographical context

Middle Ages (843–1492): the unification of the kingdom

Boundaries between the kingdom of France and the Holy Roman Empire

Birth of France and Germany

Expansion of France towards the Alps

Consolidation of royal power when faced with the Kings of England

Conquest of Plantagenet territories

Conquest of south feudal territories: Auvergne and Languedoc

Difficulties of the late medieval period

Early Modern period (1492–1789): conflicts with the Habsburgs of Spain and Austria

Integration of the last great feudal domains

Expansion toward the east: the frontier on the Rhine

Toward new conflicts with the house of Austria

Wars of the 17th century

Consolidation of territory

Since the French Revolution (1789–present)

Transformation arising from the French Revolution (1789–1815)

Implementation of a new concept of national territory

=Suppression of the provinces and creation of the departements

=Reduction of enclaves

French domination in Europe

=Tempting prizes beyond the natural boundaries of The Alps, Jura, Pyrenees and Rhine (1789–1799)

=Conquests during the period of the Consulate and of the Empire (1799–1815)

=An appraisal after the Congress of Vienna (1815): the Treaty of Paris (1815)

Unification of Italy (1860) and the reunification of Germany (1866–1871): the effects

Intervention of France in Italy

=Reunification of Savoy and of the County of Nice (1860) with France

=Modifications of the Monaco frontier (1861)

France's position on Prussia's reunification of Germany

=Luxembourg Crisis

=Alsace-Lorraine: contention between France and Germany (1871–1918 1940–1945)

National territory since 1945

Treaty of Paris with Italy (1947), last general revision of a French frontier

Appendix: minor modifications to the frontiers since 1815

Maps showing the development of the territory

See also

Footnotes