First French Empire

The French Third Republic (French: Troisième République, sometimes written as La IIIe République) was the system of government adopted in France from 4 September 1870, when the Second French Empire collapsed during the Franco-Prussian War, until 10 July 1940, after the Fall of France during World War II led to the formation of the Vichy government. The early days of the Third Republic were dominated by political disruptions caused by the Franco-Prussian War of 1870–1871, which the Republic continued to wage after the fall of Emperor Napoleon III in 1870. Harsh reparations exacted by the Prussians after the war resulted in the loss of the French regions of Alsace (keeping the Territoire de Belfort) and Lorraine (the northeastern part, i.e. present-day department of Moselle), social upheaval, and the establishment of the Paris Commune. The early governments of the Third Republic considered re-establishing the monarchy, but disagreement as to the nature of that monarchy and the rightful occupant of the throne could not be resolved. Consequently, the Third Republic, originally envisioned as a provisional government, instead became the permanent form of government of France. The French Constitutional Laws of 1875 defined the composition of the Third Republic. It consisted of a Chamber of Deputies and a Senate to form the legislative branch of government and a president to serve as head of state. Calls for the re-establishment of the monarchy dominated the tenures of the first two presidents, Adolphe Thiers and Patrice de MacMahon, but growing support for the republican form of government among the French populace and a series of republican presidents in the 1880s gradually quashed prospects of a monarchical restoration. The Third Republic established many French colonial possessions, including French Indochina, French Madagascar, French Polynesia, and large territories in West Africa during the Scramble for Africa, all of them acquired during the last two decades of the 19th century. The early years of the 20th century were dominated by the Democratic Republican Alliance, which was originally conceived as a centre-left political alliance, but over time became the main centre-right party. The period from the start of World War I to the late 1930s featured sharply polarized politics, between the Democratic Republican Alliance and the Radicals. The government fell less than a year after the outbreak of World War II, when Nazi forces occupied much of France, and was replaced by the rival governments of Charles de Gaulle's Free France (La France libre) and Philippe Pétain's French State (L'État français). During the 19th and 20th centuries, the French colonial empire was the second largest colonial empire in the world only behind the British Empire; it extended over 13,500,000 km2 (5,200,000 sq mi) of land at its height in the 1920s and 1930s. In terms of population however, on the eve of World War II, France and her colonial possessions totaled only 150 million inhabitants, compared with 330 million for British India alone. Adolphe Thiers called republicanism in the 1870s "the form of government that divides France least"; however, politics under the Third Republic were sharply polarized. On the left stood Reformist France, heir to the French Revolution. On the right stood conservative France, rooted in the peasantry, the Roman Catholic Church and the army. In spite of France's sharply divided electorate and persistent attempts to overthrow it, the Third Republic endured for seventy years, which as of 2022 makes it the longest lasting system of government in France since the collapse of the Ancien Régime in 1789; the current Fifth Republic would overtake that record on 11 August 2028.

The Second French Empire (French: Second Empire; officially the French Empire, French: Empire français), was the 18-year Imperial Bonapartist regime of Napoleon III from 14 January 1852 to 27 October 1870, between the Second and the Third Republic of France. Historians in the 1930s and 1940s often disparaged the Second Empire as a precursor of fascism. That interpretation is no longer promulgated, and by the late 20th century they were celebrating it as leading example of a modernising regime. Historians have generally given the Empire negative evaluations on its foreign policy, and somewhat more positive evaluations of domestic policies, especially after Napoleon III liberalised his rule after 1858. He promoted French business and exports. The greatest achievements included a grand railway network that facilitated commerce and tied the nation together with Paris as its hub. This stimulated economic growth and brought prosperity to most regions of the country. The Second Empire is given high credit for the rebuilding of Paris with broad boulevards, striking public buildings, and elegant residential districts for upscale Parisians. In international policy, Napoleon III tried to emulate his uncle Napoleon I, engaging in numerous imperial ventures around the world as well as several wars in Europe. He began his reign with French victories in Crimea and in Italy, gaining Savoy and Nice. Using very harsh methods, he built up the French Empire in North Africa and in Southeast Asia. Napoleon III also launched an intervention in Mexico seeking to erect a Second Mexican Empire and bring it into the French orbit, but this ended in a fiasco. He badly mishandled the threat from Prussia, and by the end of his reign, the French emperor found himself without allies in the face of overwhelming German force. His rule was ended during the Franco-Prussian War, when he was captured by the Prussian army at Sedan in 1870 and dethroned by French republicans. He later died in exile in 1873, living in the United Kingdom.

The Bourbon Restoration was the period of French history following the first fall of Napoleon on 3 May 1814 to the July Revolution of 26 July 1830, but interrupted by the Hundred Days War from 20 March 1815 to 8 July 1815, during which the House of Bourbon was returned to the French monarchy. The brothers of the executed King Louis XVI, namely Louis XVIII and Charles X, successively mounted the throne and instituted a conservative government aiming to restore the proprieties, if not all the institutions, of the Ancien Régime. Exiled supporters of the monarchy returned to France. They were nonetheless unable to reverse most of the changes made by the French Revolution. Exhausted by decades of war, the nation experienced a period of internal and external peace, stable economic prosperity and the preliminaries of industrialization.

The French Second Republic (French: Deuxième République Française or La IIe République), officially the French Republic (République française), was the republican government of France that existed between 1848 and 1852. It was established in February 1848, with the February Revolution that overthrew the July Monarchy, and ended in December 1852, after the 1851 coup d'état and when president Louis-Napoléon Bonaparte proclaimed himself Emperor Napoleon III and initiated the Second French Empire. It officially adopted the motto of the First Republic, Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité.

Saint-Maur Abbey (French: Abbaye de Saint-Maur), originally called the Abbaye des Fossés, is a former abbey now subsumed in the Saint-Maur-des-Fossés suburb of Paris, France. The remains and the domain of the abbey have been transformed into a pleasure park named Parc de l'abbaye. The former abbey building has been replaced by a square at the corner of Avenue de Condé and Rue de l'Abbaye. Some ruins remain, such as the Rabelais tower, the 19th century Bourières villa and the old fortifications. The remains of the abbey have been classified as historical monuments since June 13, 1988.

Tremblay Park (French: parc du Tremblay is a park of 73 hectares offering games and sporting activities. It is located in the commune of Champigny-sur-Marne, in the department of Val-de-Marne in Paris urban area. Sporting facilities include a track field, golf, soccer, archery, volleyball and rugby. This park is jointly administered by the general council of Val-de-Marne and the Council of Paris

Joinville-le-Pont is a commune in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located 9.4 km (5.8 mi) from the center of Paris.

The Church of St. Nicolas (French: église Saint-Nicolas de Saint-Maur-des-Fossés) is a Roman Catholic church located in Saint-Maur-des-Fossés in the department of Val-de-Marne, France.

Le Parc de Saint-Maur is a French railway station in Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, in Val-de-Marne département.

The Stade Adolphe-Chéron is the main stadium for football and athletics in the city of Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, France.

Saint-Maur–Créteil (French pronunciation: ​[sɛ̃moʁ kʁetɛi]) is a railway station in the commune of Saint-Maur-des-Fossés, Val-de-Marne.

The canton of Nogent-sur-Marne is a French canton, located in the arrondissement of Nogent-sur-Marne, in the Val-de-Marne département (Île-de-France région).