Location: France is the largest Western European country and is located between Spain and Italy.
Land Area: 545,630 sq. km. (21,066 sq. miles) almost twice as big as the state of Colorado
Coastline: 3,427 km. (2,129 miles)
Highest Point: Mont Blanc 4,807 m (15,771 ft)
Lowest Point: Delta -2 meters (6.5 ft)

Gross Domestic Product (GDP): $1.816 trillion (2005 est.)
GDP Per Capita: $29,900 (2005 est.)
Number of Workers: 27.72 million (2005 est.)
Unemployment Rate: 10% (2005 est.)
Industries: Machinery, chemicals, automobiles, metallurgy, aircraft, electonics, textiles, food processing, tourism
Currency: euro (EUR)  formerly the French Franc

Type of Government: Republic
Head of State: President Jacques Chirac (since May 17, 1995)
Head of Government: Prime minister Dominique DE VILLEPIN (since 31 May 2005)
Capital City: Paris
Legal Age to Vote: 18
Flag Design: Three equal vertical bands of blue, white and red, known as the French Tricouleur.
Official Language: French 100%; rapidly declining regional dialects and languages (Provencal, Breton, Alsatian, Corsican, Catalan, Basque, Flemish).
Religions: Roman Catholic, 83% to 88%; Protestant, 2%; Jewish, 1%; Muslim, 5% to 10%; unaffiliated 4%.

The land, currently known as France, has been inhabited by humans for over 90,000 years being first settled by Celtic Gauls between 1,500 and 500 BC. During the 5th century AD, the Franks took control of the country. It is from the Franks that France got its name.

During the Middle Ages there were a lot of power struggles between many of the different Frankish dynasties. Steady northern, southern and western borders established in 1500 define France's borders today.

In 1643 Louis XIV (known as the Sun King) took the throne at the age of five and ruled France until 1715. Under his rule the first centralized French State was established. France became involved in the Seven Years' War (1756-1763) and the American War of Independence (1776-1783) both of which proved to be financially ruinous for the reigning monarchy. In 1789, when the king tried to suppress the power of economists who were out seeking changes in the government, great protest broke out. This marked the beginning of the French Revolution which put the country into a period of mass executions and religious persecutions.

In 1799, Napoleon Bonaparte assumed power, which set off a series of wars that lead to France taking control of most of Europe. After a disastrous attempt to take over Russia, Napoleon was banished. He escaped his banishment and was reinstalled as Emperor of France, but this lasted only 100 days when he was defeated by the English at Waterloo. Through Napoleon's efforts most of the changes brought forth from the Revolution were made into the Napoleonic Code which remains the basis of the French legal system.

France was heavily involved in World War I but at the cost of the loss of over 1 million soldiers and the devastation of the country. World War II brought similar results. During WWII, General Charles de Gaulle, who was the under-secretary of war at the time, went to England and set up a government-in-exile and underground resistance. When France was liberated by the Allied troops in 1944, De Gaulle returned to Paris and set up the new provisional government.

In 2002, France stopped using its currency, known as the Franc, and began using the Euro, which is a common currency established by the European countries to help equalize the economy of all Europe.