History, geography, and culture

• 1789: beginning of the French Revolution
• 1848: definitive abolition of slavery in France
• 1881-1882: Jules Ferry makes school free, secular, and compulsory
• 1914-1918: First World War
• 1939-1945: Second World War
• 1958: foundation of the Fifth Republic
• 1981: abolition of the death penalty

The exam may ask who a well-known personality was.

• George Sand: a female writer
• Jean de La Fontaine: a writer known for his fables
• Napoleon I: an emperor linked to the Civil Code

• Paris is the capital and the Louvre is there.
• Corsica is an island in the Mediterranean.
• The south of France borders the Mediterranean Sea.
• The French west coast borders the Atlantic Ocean.
• The Pyrenees lie between France and Spain.
• The Alps lie between France and Italy.
• Réunion is a French overseas department.

The Shoah is the genocide of Europe's Jews by the Nazis during the Second World War.

France has had five Republics. These markers often return as direct MCQs.

• 1789: French Revolution and DDHC.
• 1848: final abolition of slavery and Second Republic.
• 1881-1882: Jules Ferry school laws.
• 1914-1918 and 1939-1945: the two world wars.
• 1958: Fifth Republic.
• 1981: abolition of the death penalty.

France includes metropolitan France and overseas territories. The exam may ask you to identify an island, a sea, a mountain range, or an overseas department.

The main markers to retain are Paris, Corsica, the Mediterranean, the Atlantic, the Pyrenees, the Alps, and Réunion.

French culture is often tested through well-known figures, monuments, works, or republican dates.

On the exam, the question is usually simple: identify a personality, a historical period, or a major cultural marker.

• George Sand and Jean de La Fontaine: writers.
• 1789: French Revolution.
• 11 November: armistice of 1918.
• 1914-1918 and 1939-1945: two major wars not to confuse.
• Paris, Corsica, Mediterranean, Pyrenees, Alps: very frequent markers.

• Can you connect 1789, 1848, 1958, and 1981 to the correct event?
• Do you recognize George Sand, Jean de La Fontaine, and Napoleon I ?
• Can you locate Paris, Corsica, the Pyrenees, the Alps, and Réunion ?
• Can you explain in one sentence what the Shoah was ?