Location       : Western Europe, bordering the Bay of Biscay and English Channel, between Belgium and Spain, southeast of the UK; bordering the Mediterranean Sea,  between Italy and Spain.

 Area       : total   : 547,030 sq km
land   : 545,630 sq km
water     : 1,400 sq km

 

Boundaries          :  total : 24082,2 km (Metropolitan boundary :  2889 km)

border countries: Andorra 56.6 km, Belgium 620 km, Germany 451 km, Italy 488 km, Luxembourg 73 km, Monaco 4.4 km, Spain 623 km, Switzerland 573 km

 

Coastline : 3,427 km

 

Climate :  generally cool winters and mild summers, but mild winters and hot summers along the Mediterranean; occasional strong, cold, dry, north-to-northwesterly wind known as mistral.

 

 

Terrain    :  mostly flat plains or gently rolling hills in north and west; remainder is mountainous, especially Pyrenees in south, Alps in east.

 

Elevation :  lowest point: Rhone River delta -2 m
highest point: Mont Blanc
4,807 m

 

Natural resources : coal, iron ore, bauxite, zinc, uranium, antimony, arsenic, potash, feldspar, fluorospar, gypsum, timber, fish.

 

Major rivers : Mainland France is drained by five major river systems. The River Loire, which is the longest river in France, runs for a total of 1020 km from the Massif Central in the heart of France to the Atlantic Ocean. The River Seine, which runs from Burgundy to the English Channel and passes through Paris, is 775 km long. The River Rhone links the Alps and Lake Geneva with the Mediterranean running through south west France. The Rhine forms a natural border for 200 km along the north west of France and empties into the North Sea. The River Rhine and its smaller tributaries are responsible for draining much of north eastern France.

 

 

Land use  :  arable land: 33.53%
permanent crops: 2.07%

 

Natural hazards : flooding; avalanches; midwinter windstorms; drought; forest fires in south near the Mediterranean

 

 

Population   : 60, 656, 178 (July 2005)

 

 

Median age           : total: 38.85 years
male: 37.3 years
female: 40.39 years (2005)

 

Birth rate: 12.15 births/1,000 population (2005)

 

 

Death rate: 9.08 deaths/1,000 population (2005)

 

 

Metropolitan France is divided into 22 regions, which are subdivided into 96 departments,

which are further divided into 329 arrondissements, which are further divided into 36 783 communes.

 

The French Republic is further made up of the  following overseas divisions :

The DOM, DOM-ROM or DROM (départements et régions d’outre-mer) :
Guadeloupe, Martinique, Guyana, Réunion, Mayotte. 

 

The COM (collectivités d’outre-mer) :
Polynésie française, Saint-Pierre-et-Miquelon, Wallis-et-Futuna, Mayotte, Saint-Martin, Saint-Barthélemy, Nouvelle-Calédonie.

 

The TAAF (Terres australes et antarctiques françaises) :
Bassas da India, Europa, îles Glorieuses, Juan de Nova, Tromelin, Îles Kerguele , Île Amsterdam et Île Saint-Paul

 

 

Links

 

http://maps.google.com/

http://www.frenchwayoflife.net

http://www.geoportail.fr/

http://www.viamichelin.com