France
France
Area: 547,030 square kilometers (211,208 square miles)
Highest point on mainland : Mont Blanc (4,807 meters/15,772 feet)
Lowest point on land: Rhône River Delta (2 meters/7 feet below sea level)
Hemispheres : Northern and Eastern
P.M.
= noon GMT
Longest distances: 950 kilometers (590 miles) from east to west; 962 kilometers (598 miles)       from north to south
Land boundaries : 2,889 kilometers (1,795 miles) total boundary length; Andorra 56.6       kilometers (35 miles); Belgium 620 kilometers (385 miles); Germany 451       kilometers (280 miles); Italy 488 kilometers (303 miles); Luxembourg 73       kilometers (45 miles); Monaco 4.4 kilometers (2.8 miles); Spain 623       kilometers (387 miles); Switzerland 573 kilometers (356 miles)
Coastline: 3,427 kilometers (2,130 miles)
Territorial sea limits: 22 kilometers (12 nautical miles)
1 LOCATION AND SIZE
France is the largest country in Western Europe and the third largest in         Europe. With an area of 547,030 square kilometers (211,208 square         miles), it is surpassed only by Russia and Ukraine. Roughly hexagonal in         shape, it is bordered by three different bodies of water (the Atlantic         Ocean, the English Channel, and the Mediterranean) and three mountain         chains (the Pyrenees to the south and the Jura and Alps to the east and         southeast, respectively). The tiny principality of Monaco, a         self-contained enclave, lies entirely within French borders, at the far         southeastern tip of the country.
2 TERRITORIES AND DEPENDENCIES
France has a number of overseas departments and territories throughout         the world. They are all islands except for French Guiana, on the         northeast coast of South America. The northernmost of France's         island dependencies, in the Atlantic Ocean off the coast of         Newfoundland, is the archipelago of St. Pierre and Miquelon, consisting         of two islands and a number of rocky islets. Farther south, in the         Lesser Antilles, lie the tropical islands of Guadeloupe and Martinique.
Several French islands are located in the Indian Ocean. Mayotte, part of         the Comoros archipelago that lies east of Mozambique, belongs to France         (the other Comoros islands declared their independence in 1975). The         volcanic island of Réunion, east of Madagascar, administers two         other French dependencies in the Mozambique Channel: the island of         Europa and the atoll of Bassas da India. France also has an overseas         territory farther south in the Indian Ocean, collectively called the         Southern and Antarctic Lands. The Southern Lands comprise two individual         volcanic islands and two archipelagos. "Antarctic Lands" refers to a section of Antarctica called "Adelie Land." France has three dependencies in the                    Pacific: New Caledonia, Wallis and Futuna, and French Polynesia, which         is a group of five archipelagos halfway between South America and         Australia.
3 CLIMATE
France's various regions have three major types of climate:         oceanic, continental, and Mediterranean. Temperatures generally increase         from north to south. The western part of the country, which borders the         Atlantic Ocean, has a temperate, humid oceanic climate, characterized by         relatively modest annual temperature variations, heavy precipitation,         and overcast skies, with cool summers and winters. Average temperatures         in Brest, at the tip of Brittany, are 6°C (43°F) in January         and 16°C (61°F) in July. Much of eastern and central France         has                    a continental climate, with a wider range of temperatures and greater         variations between seasons. Winters are cold and snowy, and storms are         frequent in June and July. Paris has an average annual temperature of         11°C (53°F). The eastern part of the country has the most         severe winters.
The Mediterranean climate predominates in the south and southeast,         stretching inland from the coast to the lower Rhône Valley. Winters         are mild and humid, with only short periods of frost, and summers are         hot and dry. Temperatures above 32°C (90°F) are common. Annual         temperatures in Nice, on the Côte d'Azur, average 15°C         (59°F). Southern France occasionally experiences a cold northern         wind called the mistral.
Average annual rainfall in France ranges from as little as 43         centimeters (17 inches) on the Languedoc coast to 130 centimeters (50         inches) at high elevations in the mountains, on the Massif Central, and         in the northwest. Annual rainfall averages 68 centimeters (27 inches) in         Paris and 100 centimeters (39 inches) in Bordeaux.
4 TOPOGRAPHIC REGIONS
Although France's topography is varied, it can be broken down         into three major types of terrain. At the center of the country are the         four Hercynian Massifs, with the Massif Central at their center. The         higher mountain peaks of the Pyrenees, the Jura, and the Alps rise in         the south and east, forming natural borders with the neighboring         countries of Spain, Switzerland, and Italy. Between these geographical                    features are the low-lying plains of the Paris Basin and the regions to         the west.
The following ten regions have been identified based on geographical and         cultural factors: the Nord; the Paris Basin; the East; Burgundy and the         Upper Rhine; the Alps; Mediterranean France; Aquitaine and the Pyrenees;         the Massif Central; the Loire Valley and Atlantic France; and Armorica.         An additional area of France is the large island of Corsica in the         Mediterranean Sea.
5 OCEANS AND SEAS
The North Atlantic Ocean lies to the west of France, and the         Mediterranean Sea to the south. In addition, a small portion of its         northern coast borders the North Sea.
Sea Inlets and Straits
France has coastlines on the English Channel to the northwest and the         Bay of Biscay to the west. In the north, the Seine River empties into         the English Channel in the Baie de la Seine, and the Saint-Malo Gulf         lies between the Côtentin Peninsula and Brittany. The western part         of France's Mediterranean coast borders the Golfe de Lion.
Islands and Archipelagos
France's largest island, and the fourth largest in the         Mediterranean, is Corsica. Separated by over 160 kilometers (100 miles)         of sea from the mainland, the island rises to over 1,676 meters (5,500         feet) and has a coastal plain only on its eastern side. France also has         a number of islands off the Atlantic coast. The largest of these are         Ouessant Island, off the tip of Brittany; Belle-Île-En-Mer, to         Brittany's south; and Île de Ré and Oléron Island,         both of which are near La Rochelle.
Coastal Features
Dramatic chalk cliffs mark the northern coastline, dropping abruptly to         sandy beaches that border the English Channel. There is a deep coastal         indentation north of Bordeaux where the Garonne River and its tributary,         the Dordogne, empty into the Bay of Biscay. Fine sand lines the beaches         along this coast, and there are dunes in the southern area known as the         Landes.
The shoreline on the western edge of the Golfe de Lion consists of         sandbars and lagoons. Farther east are headlands and bays, and the         marshland known as the Camargue. The eastern part of the Mediterranean         coast is the Côte d'Azur, the famous resort area that lies         between the hills of Provence and the sea.
6 INLAND LAKES
France's inland waterways include a number of natural and         artificial lakes. The largest natural lake, Lake Bourget, lies at the         western edge of the Alps, as does Lake Annecy. There are also lakes in         the Vosges Massif and in the valleys of the Jura Mountains. Ponds and         lagoons lie along the Atlantic coast in the Landes region and the         Mediterranean coast in Languedoc.
7 RIVERS AND WATERFALLS
The drainage system of France is based on five major rivers. In the         north, the Seine—the most gentle, regular, and navigable of         French rivers—flows across the Paris Basin for 780 kilometers         (485 miles). Before draining into the English Channel at Le Havre, it is         joined by three tributaries: the Yonne, the Marne, and the Oise. It has         a number of islands, of which the most famous is the Île de la         Cité in Paris.
The Loire, whose river basin occupies the central part of France, is the         longest river located entirely in France (1,020 kilometers/634 miles)         and covers the largest area (115,000 square kilometers/44,400 square         miles). From the Massif Central it flows northwestward to Orléans,         then westward to the Atlantic.
The Garonne is the shortest of France's major rivers. It rises in         the Pyrenees, across the border with Spain, and empties into the Bay of         Biscay at Bordeaux. Its tributaries include the Tarn, the Aveyron, and         the Dordogne.
The Rhône is the largest and most complex of French rivers. Rising         in Switzerland, it gathers its major tributary, the Saône, at Lyon         and flows southward through France for 521 kilometers (324 miles) of its         total length of 813 kilometers (505 miles), emptying into the         Mediterranean. Lastly, there is the Rhine, which is considered more a         European river than specifically a French one. It flows along the         eastern border for about 190 kilometers (118 miles), fed by Alpine         streams. The Moselle and the Meuse, which drain the Paris Basin, are         both tributaries of the Rhine that join it in neighboring countries.         There also are some smaller rivers in the northeast; the best known of         these is the Somme, which flows into the English Channel.
DID YOU KNOW?
Scientists named the Jurassic Period (which occurred 145 to 208           million years ago) for France's Jura Mountains, because fossils           discovered there date back to this era.
8 DESERTS