These are magical regions as call in France, sort of but not the same as states or provinces afar, if you like architecture and/or history,then ride away in my road warrior mode to visit them all ! The thrill of the history, and the various architectural styles are just unsurpassed. I had individual posts on them too long and decided to condense and show it in one post for memories’s sake, Do see my many other posts on their territories in my blog ! This post will be in my black and white series, no pictures! And of course, these are not all , just my favorites ok. Therefore, let me tell you about the regions of my belle France !!!, just awesome ! Hope you enjoy it as I.
And why not start with Bretagne, my current region, and home for the last almost 13 years. It has been a wonderful rollercoaster ride, smooth out into a dolmen tranquility and splashes of seawater. Bretagne or Brittany but even better Breizh is heavens. Before moving here , I have to admit, only had visited Rennes for a company trip of one day !!! And gladly I am still here, a lovely area of France that needs to be visit more. Degemer mat !!! The region is a peninsula on the extreme west of France located between the Manche to the north, the Celtic sea and sea of Iroise to the west and the Gulf of Gascony to the south. The region was difficult to pinpoint a capital city as the Estates general of Brittany reunited in different cities in their history with Dinan, Nantes (17 times), Ploërmel, Redon, Rennes, Vitré, Vannes (19 times), and Guérande. What happened at Vannes where the Estates general of Brittany were held under the duke François Ier given quickly ruling an edit signed at Plessis-Macé guaranteeing the province of certain rights such as legislation and specific taxes. These privileges existed until the French revolution, cancelled in August of 1789 , They came to be in February 1790 as five departments such as Côtes-du-Nord ( which became Côtes-d’Armor in 1990), Finistère, Ille-et-Vilaine, Loire-Inférieure ( attached in 1956 to Pays de la Loire, and becoming Loire-Atlantique in 1957), The question of the unification to the current region of Brittany is the object of heated debates, and my beautiful dept 56 Morbihan.
The Brittany region tourist office : https://www.brittanytourism.com/
The Île-de-France region is a very densely populated region, which alone represents 18.8% of the population of metropolitan France on only 2.2% of its surface area, making it the most populated and most densely populated , The region borders five other French regions: the Hauts-de-France, to the north, the Grand Est, to the east, the Bourgogne-Franche-Comté, to the southeast, the Centre-Val de Loire, to the southwest, and Normandy, to the west. The region takes the name of the historic region: it was born from the royal domain established since the 10C by the Capetian kings. Being located in open land, the name île or island of France may seem strange, but it seems that this name designates the strip of land bounded by the Oise, the Marne, the Seine and the Ourcq rivers. A more historical explanation sees “Île-de-France” as an alteration of Liddle Franke, that is to say “Little France” in the old Frankish language. Like other French administrative entities , its official recognition was suppressed in 1789 during the establishment of departments under the French revolution. Following the revolution, it was divided into five departments: Seine, Seine-et-Oise, Seine-et-Marne, Oise and Aisne. The region was reconstituted after 1945 from the first three and administrative decentralization from 1964, then political in 1982, consolidated the old provinces. Today, it brings together eight departments: Essonne, Hauts-de-Seine, Paris, Seine-Saint-Denis, Seine-et-Marne, Val-de-Marne, Val-d’Oise and my former home, the Yvelines.
The Île-de-France is the cradle of Gothic architecture whose jewels are the Notre-Dame Cathedral, the Saint-Denis Basilica, the Royaumont abbey, the Vincennes castle, the Saint-Eustache Church , the Conciergerie and the Sainte-Chapelle. Evidence of Renaissance architecture, such as the monumental Château d’Écouen built in the 16C. The Arc de Triomphe de l’Etoile and the Hôtel National des Invalides in Paris, and the châteaux of Versailles, Vincennes, Vaux-le-Vicomte, Fontainebleau and Rambouillet are also monuments of classical and neoclassical architecture. in Île-de-France. The Basilica of the Sacré-Cœur de Montmartre is in the Roman-Byzantine style. The Grand Mosque of Paris is in the Hispano-Moorish style. The Grande Synagogue de la Victoire is in the ornate Romanesque style. The Île de France region currently has eight cities of art and history: Paris, Boulogne-Billancourt, Étampes, Rambouillet, Saint-Quentin-en-Yvelines, Pontoise, Meaux and Noisiel. It has four historical and tourist routes: the historic route of the writer’s houses, the Normandy-Vexin route, the François 1er route and the Impressionists route. It has 4 of the most beautiful gardens in France: Château de Breteuil, Château de Saint-Jean-de-Beauregard, Château de Vaux-le-Vicomte, Domaine de Courson. And ,four Île-de-France sites are classified as UNESCO: the banks of the Seine in Paris, the Palace and Park of Fontainebleau, the Palace and Park of Versailles ,and the medieval fair town of Provins.
The Île de France region tourist office : https://www.visitparisregion.com/en
The Occitanie region is the creation from the new administrative realignment of French regions in 2016, the two Languedoc-Roussillon and Midi-Pyrénées were merged into one. In turn the new region of Occitanie counts 13 departments such as Ariége, Aude, Aveyron, Gard, Haute-Garonne, Gers, Hérault, Lot, Lozére, Hautes-Pyrénées, Pyrénées-Orientales, Tarn, and Tarn-et-Garonne. Lavaur is the native town of my dear late wife Martine, never met him, he died in a car accident in the snow from Lavaur to Toulouse when she was 10 years old. It was a great impact on her life,and made her stronger, It is located strategically and nicely in the triangle of Albi, Toulouse, and Carcassonne; more precisely it is east north east of Toulouse and south of Gaillac as well as west of Castres; you get the picture real country deep France. In addition to be cross by the left bank of the Agout river and, also by the Laragou river and surrounded by the hills of the Pays de Cocagne. This is a region that is gorgeous and often overlook for further south, but if you want authentic French traditions and little infusion or none of all of tourists then come here. Of course, a sentimental favorite region,
The Occitanie region tourist office : https://www.visit-occitanie.com/en/
The Pays de la Loire region includes the departments of Loire-Atlantique, Maine-et-Loire, Mayenne, Sarthe, and Vendée with Nantes as its Capital and biggest city. It is one I come often, too much in fact ….as my gateway to the world is now the Nantes Atlantique airport. And of course, the Loire river passes by here too ,but not to be confused with the other region Centre-Val-de-Loire, the Pays de la Loire does not correspond in their creation (1955) to any other entity that was there before or historically there before. The five department that are included here were done strictly on arbitrary decisions on a political vein. The Pays de la Loire regroups pieces of the old provinces of Anjou, Bretagne, Maine, Perche, and Poitou. The appearance here of the dept 44 Loire-Atlantique in this region while for centuries was part of Brittany is still a subject of heated arguments with many locals from the Nantes and south region considering themselves still Bretons (and they are !) Some of the languages spoken here other than French are Angevin to the east of the dept 44 Loire-Atlantique and in the department of Maine-et-Loire, Mayenne, and Sarthe. Gallo in the Loire Atlantique, Poitevin in the Vendée, and of course Breton on the coasts of the Loire Atlantique.
The Pays de la Loire region tourist office : https://tourisme-loireatlantique.com/
The Centre-Val de Loire region since 2015 as before it was called simply the Centre. It includes three historic provinces such as Berry, Orléanais, and Touraine with at the extreme south the Bourbonnais. It is partially covered by the natural region of the valley of the Loire. Not to be confused with Pays de la Loire region, The old provinces had their old department that continues such as Orléanais with Loiret, Eure et Loir and Loir et Cher, then Berry with Cher and Indre, and finally Touraine with Indre et Loire. It is here that the famous Castles of the Loire came to be known by all such as from Gien to Chinon, passing by Chambord, Blois, Chenonceau, Azay-le-Rideau , La Ferté-Saint Aubin etc , Even if Tours is the bigger city ,the regional capital is Orléans.
The Centre Val de Loire region tourist office : https://www.loirevalley-france.co.uk/
The Normandie region is old and really into the history of France especially at the world stage. The Normandy we know was founded in Neustrie by Rollon, dukedom of Normandy occupies from 911 the valley of the Seine later Bessin, pays d’Auge, and Hiémois in 924, the Contentin, Avranchin, islands of the Manche in 933. By 1066, duke William the Conqueror even took on England and conquered it to become king. A century and a half later in 1204, king of France Philippe Auguste invades the dukedom and conquered it into the Royal domain of France with the exception of the islands of Jersey and Guernesey still British. The rest becomes provinces of France until 1790. By 1956, Normandy is divided in two sharing the new of high or Haute Normandie and low or Basse Normandie. With the new adminstrative arrangement of France in 2016 , they are back to the origins as one whole Normandie. The local language is Norman still spoken in the pays de Caux and the Cotentinn peninsula . The region is now divided into the departments of Calvados, Eure, Manche, Orne, and Seine-Maritime. The region capital and main city is Rouen.
The Normandie region tourist office : https://en.normandie-tourisme.fr/
The Bourgogne-Franche-Comté region is comprise of the two previous regions of Bourgogne and Franche-Comté and counts with 8 departments such as Côte d’Or , Doubs, Haute-Sâone, Jura, Niévre, Saône-et-Loire ,Yonne, and territory of Belfort. The biggest town and capital is Dijon but to even things up the regional council is at the second city Besançon. For the history buffs like me, the current territory was in the 5C part of the kingdom of the Burgondes (Burgundians) following the kingdom of the Merovian Burgundians. Under the Caroligians the treaty of Verdun of 843 arrived at differentiating the Franc Burgundy from the Lower Burgundy; the origin of the duchy of Burgundy and another under the County of Burgundy that is Franche-Comté. Finally reunited in the 14C under the first House of Burgundy by the Valois Dukes in the Burgundians estates. Again the two provinces were separated in the 15C when the Duchy was annexed by Royal France while the County was annexed by the Habsburgs; the county finally was integrated in the Royal France in 1678 after the conquest by king Louis XIV with the surrender of Dole old capital of Franche-Comté whilte Besançon became the new capital. Therefore, the two Duchy of Burgundy and Franche-Comté were two very distinct provinces with their own capital ,Dijon, and Besançon. Now finally into one region but with the two strong cities exercising their prominent roles of old.
The Bourgogne-Franche Comté region tourist office : https://www.bourgognefranchecomte.com/
The Nouvelle Aquitaine region comprises the old regions of Aquitaine, Limousin and Poitou-Charentes, which was initially called until Sept 2016, the region of Aquitaine-Limousin-Poitou-Charentes. Finally, the regional council adopted the new name of Nouvelle Aquitaine thereafter. The region is the biggest in France in territory, with the biggest metro area that of Bordeaux. It comprises 12 departments such as Charente, Charente-Maritime, Corrèze, Creuse, Dordogne, Gironde, Landes, Lot-et-Garonne, Pyrénées-Atlantiques, Deux-Sèvres, Vienne, and Haute-Vienne. The cultural, heritage,natural places in this region are inmense and probably won’t be seen at least in my lifetime. They are divided into four great cuisines such as the gasconne/guyennaise, basque, limousine/périgourdine, and charentaise/poitevine. These together with the Provençal Mediterranean cuisine is what we call here the French Paradox on the benefit of eating and drinking simply the best. Bon appétit !
The Nouvelle Aquitaine regional tourist office : https://www.nouvelle-aquitaine-tourisme.com/en-us
The Hauts de France region is the fusion of the old régions of Nord-Pas-de-Calais and Picardie. The region is comprise of five deparments such as the Aisne, Nord, Oise, Pas-de-Calais, and the Somme. It is neighbor with the île de France on the south, the Normandie on the west, the Grand Est on the east. They have a long frontier with Belgium on the northeast and the Mer du Nord on the northwest. The biggest city here is Lille and other than the official French, the region speaks local dialects/languages such as the ch’ti, picard, and flemish. The designation of cities of Art and History in France is taken serious by these cities; and the Hauts de France has plenty such as Arras (Pas-de-Calais) Beauvais (Oise) Boulogne-sur-Mer (Pas-de-Calais) Cambrai (Nord) Chantilly (Oise) Laon (Aisne) Lille (Nord) Noyon (Oise) Roubaix (Nord) Saint-Quentin (Aisne) Valenciennes (Nord) , and Soissons (Aisne).
The Hauts de France tourist office : https://www.tourisme-en-hautsdefrance.com/
The Grand Est region took some time to get it as the folks were not too happy to change the name especially the Alsace. Finally, the gov’t won and the name was voted by the council of States . Grand Est is the old regions of Alsace, Lorraine, and Champagne-Ardennes . In turn this new region comprises the departments of Haut-Rhin, Bas-Rhin, Meurthe-et-Moselle, Moselle, Vosges, Ardennes, Marne, Haute-Marne, Aube ,and the Meuse. The biggest city is Strasbourg, the the city host the European Parliament as well as the mediator European who controls the UE. Also, it’s the seat of the Council of Europe of which is attach the European Court of Human Rights as well as the pharma European organism. Here , also ,you have the IT system network of Schengen. The region frontiers are with four countries Belgium, Luxembourg, Germany, and Switzerland. In the region ,other than the official French language, you can also hear German, Alsacien, Francine Lorrain, Lorrain Romanesque(Welche), and Champenois
The Grand Est region tourist office : https://www.explore-grandest.com/en/
The Auvergne-Rhône Alpes region takes the name from the old Auvergne and Rhône-Alpes regions under the new territorial administration of France were grouped into one, after much debate from what to do with Lyon and the auvergnants! The region is divided into 12 departments and a special metropolitan area calls a territorial collectivity of sort which is Lyon; of course. Lyon is the principal city . The departments are Ain, Allier, Ardèche, Cantal, Drôme, Isère, Loire, Haute-Loire, Puy-de-Dôme, Rhône,Métropole de Lyon,Savoie, and Haute-Savoie. The area speaks many dialects and languages such as the Bourbonnais, Auvergnat, Franco Provençal or arpitan; all are broken down as estimated of the population that still speaks it as Bourbonnais (5 %), Auvergnat (15 %), and the rest into the langue d’oc (12 %) or occitan variations.
The Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region tourist office : https://www.inauvergnerhonealpes.com/en/
The Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur region or,also called PACA, for short.. The main and capital city of the region is Marseille. It includes six departments such as Alpes-de-Haute-Provence, Hautes-Alpes, Alpes-Maritimes,Bouches-du-Rhône, Var, and the Vaucluse. It has agglomerations of vast territory into two main groupings ,these are the Nice Côte d’Azur, and Aix-Marseille-Provence. The area covers old provinces of Provence and Dauphiné. Part of the Vaucluse from the old county of Venaissin and the left bank of the Var in the Alpes Maritimes once the county of Nice, the cities of Menton and Roquebrune-Cap Martin were once part of the Principality of Monaco until annexed to France in 1861.Languages other then French shows a unique region where only the Occitane is spoken, with usually called the Provençal . Also, other languages heard around due to immigration and or old history of the region are the Corsican, Kabyle, Maghrebin Arabic, Comorian, and Italian. The region is an important maritime destination such as the Port of Marseille the first port in France. There is also a naval base at Toulon, the largest in France.
The Provence-Alpes-Côte d’Azur (PACA) tourist office : https://provence-alpes-cotedazur.com/en/
There you go folks, it is architecture and history of all phases of my belle France. Very well set up , and many things to see ; I am working on it ! For me is going back to my old dreams visiting historical and architectural stunning places, and France has a load ! Again, hope you enjoy the post on the regions of my belle France as I
And remember , happy travels, good health ,and many cheers to all !!!
Paris1972-Versailles2003 