Chapter 16 Central Europe

Ch. 16 - sect. 1 France Northern France Paris Basin - large region drained by the Seine Center -Paris Lille, France - industrial center north of Paris Southwestern France Warmer , dryer soil - perfect for grapes Bordeaux - best wine producing city

Section 1 continued Southcentral and Southeastern France Massif Central (middle) and Alps (west) Rhone river lies between them Massif central - poor soil 1965 - tunnel through Mont Blanc into Italy

France cont. French Riviera - between the Alps and the Mediterranean sea, low - lying coastal area, popular tourist area Port of Marseille - busiest in France Petroleum, wine, electronic goods, and chemicals

France - history and culture France was known as Gaul, Romans took over and ruled for 500 years Franks came from Germany and conquered the region Charlemagne - King of France and surrounding area The Holy Roman Empire (768 A.D.) After Charlemagne’s death and the fall of the Empire nobles took power Hugh Capet - Paris ruler that expanded the borders of France to what we know today (1589) 1789 - end of monarch rule in France

French culture French - main language, but many dialects (variations for a language that are unique to the region) Artists - Claude Monet, Pierre Renoir Impressionism - style of painting France Today Nationalized - brought under state control France has done this for some businesses to spark the economy

Pictures The Louve Arc de Triomph Renoir Water Lilies by Monet

Germany 16-2 Germany struggles for unity 1500 - 1600 Protestant Reformation - divided Germany East Germany - known as Prussia led a movement to merge states into a Confederation - loose political union 1871 Germany defeats France in the Franco - Prussian war - New German Empire formed

Germany WWI Germany was a part of the Triple Alliance - defeated in 1918 Treaty of Versailles - ended WWI, made Germany pay reparations, and Germany took the blame for the war Inflation and eventual depression caused Adolf Hitler to come to power WWII 1939 - 1945

One people, two countries After WWII Germany was divided into 4 parts - eventually became 2 (East and West) Federal Republic of Germany (West) established in 1949 Oct. 3, 1990 - officially reunified East and West North, Central and Southern Germany - see your region assignment

Section 3 Benelux countries Low countries - Netherlands, Belgium and Luxembourg Low, flat and just a little larger than W. Virginia Population - 26 million (Canada’s pop.) Netherlands Belgium Luxembourg

Netherlands 1/5 of their land is reclaimed from the sea 1/3 of their land is below sea level Started with dikes - embankments of earth and rock, hold back water Polder - reclaiming the land by pumping out the water into canals Powered by windmills

Netherlands - cont. Randstad - The Hague, Rotterdam, Amsterdam, and Utretcht - 4 cities that make up an arc shaped metropolis - trying to keep their population in cities Many key ports

Belgium Diversity in their population - 30% French (Walloons) 55% Dutch (Flemish) - official language Gained independence from Netherlands in 1830 LUXEMBOURG 998 sq. miles Lang - diverse French, German and Luxembourg Part of EC Economic activity - high tech. and service industries

Sect. 4 Switzerland - Confederation Helvetica or Swiss Confederation 3 official languages - German (65%), French (18%) and Italian (7%) 26 cantons - states Executive branch - 7 member council with 1 elected “President” for 1 year 1291 - 3 Swiss Cantons fought the Austrian empire and won - Switzerland was formed 1798 - Swiss defeated Napoleon and it was the last time they took sides in a war - NEUTRAL

Switzerland cont. Economy - strong even though they have few resources One Swiss Franc - .98 American dollar Dairy farming - most important ag. spring - in Mt. Fall - valley Famous for chocolate and cheese Technology - watches and microscopes tourism

Switzerland - physical Climate - marine west coast - temperate variations according to elevation Mountains - Alps (south) Jura (N.W.) Population 7 million Religion - catholic with large atheist population Not in EU Joined UN in 2002

Austria Modern borders were formed after their defeat in WWI (Austria - Hungarian empire) Alps - iron ore Machine tools - manufacturing Ag. - cattle breeding and dairy Vienna - smaller since 1918 Heavy influence from Germany (98% ) One Euro = 1.5 American $