The Fall of Dien Bien Phu
Richard Cavendish describes the French defeat in Indochina, on May 7th, 1954.
France
Pierre Laval: The Man in the White Tie
Richard Wilkinson exposes prejudice and myth in assessing the career of a key figure in modern French history.
The Crimean War
The events leading up to Britain and France's declarations of war on Russia on successive days on 27 and 28 March 1854.
The Treaty of Lyons
France ceded Naples to Spain on January 31st, 1504.
Mary Stewart in France and Scotland
Retha Warnicke examines the tumultuous career of Mary, Queen of Scots, before her long incarceration by her cousin Elizabeth I of England.
Felice Orsini: Striking a Blow for Freedom?
The consequences of Felice Orsini’s assassination attempt on Napoleon III were momentous and paradoxical.
What if Napoleon Had Landed?
John Cookson asks what might have happened had Napoleon actually landed on British soil in 1803-5.
The Globalisation of Sport
Mike Cronin and Richard Holt discover the roots of international sport in France.
Finish of the First Tour de France
Maurice Garin won the first Tour de France, on July 19th, 1903, by a margin of almost three hours.
General Gazan de la Peyrière: Fighting for Napoleon
Natalia Griffon de Pleineville remembers a career soldier in Napoleon's army who won distinctions for his energy and commitment over twenty years, but who made a decisive mistake in 1813.