About France

     France (French: IPA: [fʁɑ̃s]), officially the French Republic (French: République française, IPA: [ʁepyˈblik fʁɑ̃ˈsɛz]), is a country whose metropolitan territory is located in Western Europe and that also comprises various overseas islands and territories located in other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean. French people often refer to Metropolitan France as L'Hexagone (The "Hexagon") because of the geometric shape of its territory.

     France is bordered by Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, Switzerland, Italy, Monaco, Andorra, and Spain. Due to its overseas departments, France also shares land borders with Brazil and Suriname (bordering French Guiana), and the Netherlands Antilles (bordering Saint-Martin). France is also linked to the United Kingdom by the Channel Tunnel, which passes underneath the English Channel.

     The French Republic is a democracy that is organised as a unitary semi-presidential republic. Its main ideals are expressed in the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen. In the 18th and 19th centuries, France built one of the largest colonial empires of the time, stretching across West Africa and Southeast Asia, prominently influencing the cultures and politics of the regions. France is a developed country with the sixth-largest economy in the world. France is the most visited country in the world, receiving over 79 million foreign tourists annually (including business visitors, but excluding people staying less than 24 hours in France). France is one of the founding members of the European Union, and has the largest land area of all members. France is also a founding member of the United Nations, and a member of the Francophonie, the G8, and the Latin Union. It is one of the five permanent members of the United Nations Security Council; it is also an acknowledged nuclear power.

     The name France originates from the Franks (Francs), a Germanic tribe that occupied northern Europe after the fall of the Western Roman Empire. More precisely, the region around Paris, called Île-de-France, was the original French royal demesne. The first King of the Franks, Clovis, is regarded as the forefather of the French kings.

About Saintes

     Saintes is a town and commune in France, in the Charente-Maritime département, of which it is a sous-préfecture.

     Saintes is located on the banks of the Charente River, between La Rochelle and Bordeaux (on the autoroute A10). The town is divided in several administrative areas (La Fenêtre, Recouvrance, Les Tourneurs, Les Boiffiers, Sain-Vivien, Saint-Pierre, Gare-Abbaye, Bellevue, La Récluse et S. De Bouard).

     In Roman times, the town was called Mediolanum Santonum. It was founded in about 20 BC. Some estimations show that Saintes had about 15,000 inhabitants in those days, and that its borders were almost the same as today.

     Saintes was the capital of the former province of Saintonge. It was the scene of the second phase of the Saintonge War, in 1242, when the army of Hugh X was besieged by that of Louis IX and Alphonse of Poitiers.

     The French Wars of Religion hit Saintes during most of the 16th century since many Protestants inhabited the region. Bernard Palissy, one of them, saw that difficult period.

     In 1730 a new era began with the construction of the hôtel du Marquis de Monconseil which was the commencement of numerous changes in the city landscape.

     During the early years of the French Revolution, the town was the political base of André Antoine Bernard, a Jacobin revolutionary who represented Saintes in the Legislative Assembly of 1791-1792 and the National Convention of 1792-1795 and was among those responsible for the Reign of Terror.

     Guéau de Reverseaux and others created the principal thoroughfares of Saintes like the Cours National, which opened in 1815, or the Cours Reverseaux. In 1810, La Rochelle became the chef-lieu du département, but the displeasure of the population declined since Saintes kept the Cour d'Assise, which led to the construction of a new Palais de Justice in 1863.

     In 1843 Prosper Mérimée saved the Arc de Germanicus, but the old bridge was destroyed. The Haras National de Saintes was created in 1846 and the town stretched out to the east. The right bank, which was formerly confined to a small faubourg surrounding the Abbaye aux Dames, evolved when the railway arrived in Saintes. The station was built in 1867 and the avenue Gambetta linked it to the Charente. The 20th century saw the destruction of parts of the station neighbourhood during World War II, but also the creation of new housing units and commerces in the areas of Bellevue and Recouvrance.