Explore French History

World War One was characterised by death and misery along the Western Front , a stretch of land that covered around 400 miles of France and Belgium . Soldiers fought one another in mud-filled trenches, greatly suffering from the poor conditions. Nowadays, this part of Europe has been transformed into a number of thriving towns and villages that live at peace with one another, no doubt thanks to the efforts of our valiant fighters. However, what took place here during the First World War has not and will not be forgotten. The former Western...

Interested in European history? Normandy is rich with fascinating memorials and museums commemorating some of Europe's darkest days The beaches in Normandy are of great historical importance . It was here that, on the fateful day of the 6th June 1944, also known as D-Day , the Allies invaded Normandy and began the liberation of Nazi-controlled north-western Europe. On the first day, around 160,000 troops landed on the beach and by the end of June, one million soldiers had crossed the English Channel and marched on to the...

Out of the 1073 sites on the list from all over the world, France contains 43 of these sites making it the country with the fourth most concentrated variation of historical sites in the world , only after Italy (53), China (52), and Spain (46). France has always been known for its history and culture, which can often be noticed within the country's architecture and historic monuments . This has been highlighted even further through the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization’s (UNESCO) list of World Heritage Sites...

On September 8th 1940, the world was at war and 18-year-old Marcel Ravidat was out walking his dog in a clearing in the region of Lascaux, Dordogne . Suddenly, his dog disappeared. Marcel starting calling out to him, and he eventually found him emerging from a hole in the ground that had been revealed by a tree that had fallen down the year before. Marcel tossed some stones down the hole and listened as they bounced and descended deeper and deeper into an apparent underground abyss. Curiouser and curiouser . Marcel had a feeling he had just stumbled upon something extraordinary...

Mont Saint Michel Abbey lies at the peak of a rocky islet less than half a mile off the coast of Normandy . One of France's most recognizable landmarks, it receives more than 3 million visitors each year. Both Mont Saint Michel and its bay are on the UNESCO list of World Heritage Sites. Interestingly, this islet was not always called Mont Saint Michel. Prior to the construction of the first church there in the 8th century, the island was called Mont Tombe. There are various legends relating to St. Michael and Mont Saint Michel which may explain the name-change. Here, we share some of these,...

Being in love to get married is a quite "new" consideration...in the past, in France, love was not really a matter when it came to get married... On December 6th 1491, the château of Langeais (our home-town…we actually live in the street called Anne de Bretagne) was the scene of the dawn wedding between Charles VIII and Duchess Anne of Brittany . The 14-year-old Duchess Anne, not happy with the arranged marriage, arrived for her wedding with her entourage carrying two beds! This union put an end to the war between France and Anne’s Brittany independent duchy and started to incorporate...

While looking for new Bed & Breakfasts and activities in the Loire Valley around Chambord castle, we came upon the beautiful castle that you can see above on the picture. Since last year everybody heard about Tintin, the comics hero created by Hergé that Steven Spielberg made a movie about. The movie ends up in Captain Haddock’s castle, which Hergé is supposed to have created from Cheverny castle. Cheverny is another Loire Valley beautiful castle - close to Chambord castle - that you can visit, and even attend to the impressive feeding of the hounds pack. After discovering this castle -...