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FLAG OF FRANCE

The flag of the French Republic.

France, officially the French Republic (French: République française), is a developed country in western Europe. Paris is the capital of France.

In the late eighteenth century, the monarchy and associated institutions were overthrown in the French Revolution, which forever changed France's history. The country was governed for a period as a Republic until the French Empire was declared by Napoleon Bonaparte. Following Napoleon's defeat in the Napoleonic Wars, France went through several further regime changes; being ruled as a monarchy, then briefly as a Second Republic, and then as a Second Empire, until a more lasting French Third Republic was established in 1870.

During the First World War, France was a member of the Triple Entente along with its allies Russia and the United Kingdom. Following Russia's declaration of war on both the German and Austro-Hungarian empires, France became engulfed by the global conflict that spanned four long years. The French managed to hold the Central Powers at bay along the Western Front with aid from both the British and the eager American fighters who joined the fight in the final years of the war. Ultimately, the allied cause proved victorious and resulted in the collapse of the German, Austro-Hungarian, and Ottoman empires.

France was one of the Allied Powers in World War II, but was conquered by Nazi Germany within two months. The Third Republic was dismantled, and most of the country was controlled directly by the Axis Powers while the south was controlled by the collaborationist Vichy government.

Since World War II, France has been a leading member in the UN, the European Union, and NATO, and remains a strong economic, cultural, military and political influence in the 21st century.

Armed Forces

Military Branches

Seal Branch
French Army Logo
The French Army is the land-based and largest component of the French Armed Forces. They appear as a playable faction in the Battlefield 1: They Shall Not Pass expansion.
FLAG OF FREE FRANCE
The Free French Forces (FFF) were a group of French fighters who fought alongside the Allies during World War II, after the capture of France by Germany. They appear in the Battlefield 1942: The Road to Rome expansion and Battlefield V.
GIGN LOGO
The Groupe d'Intervention de la Gendarmerie Nationale (English: National Gendarmerie Intervention Group) is a special operations unit of the French Armed Forces. They are trained to perform counter-terrorist and hostage rescue missions in France or anywhere else in the world. They appear in Battlefield 3.

Military Organizations

Seal Branch
EU

Modern

EU Flag1

22nd Century

The European Union (EU) is an economic and political union of 27 member states which are located primarily in Europe. They appear in Battlefield 2: Euro Force, Battlefield 2: Modern Combat, and Battlefield 2142.
NATO
The North Atlantic Treaty Organization, or NATO, is an intergovernmental military alliance based on the North Atlantic Treaty which was signed on April 4, 1949. The organization constitutes a system of collective defense whereby its member states agree to mutual defense in response to an attack by any external party. They appear in the singleplayer of Battlefield 2: Modern Combat.

Law Enforcement

Seal Branch
Police nationale patch
The Police Nationale is the principal civil law enforcement agency of France, and has jurisdiction over large towns and cities.

Appearances

Battlefield 1942

In Battlefield 1942, maps such as Omaha Beach, Bocage, and Liberation of Caen take place in France with the US Army and Canadian Army engaging the Wehrmacht.

The Road to Rome expansion features the Free French Forces as a faction allied to the United States and United Kingdom. They fight the Wehrmacht on the maps Monte Cassino and Monte Santa Croce.

Mimoyecques is a map featured in Secret Weapons of WWII.


Battlefield 2

Being a part of the EU, the European Union uses French equipment such as the Tiger HAP and the FAMAS in the Battlefield 2: Euro Force expansion pack.


Battlefield 2142

Being a part of the EU, the European Union fights the Pan-Asian Coalition for the last habitable parts of Earth in the mid-22nd century. The maps Verdun and Cerbere Landing take place in France.


Battlefield 3

The French Gendarmerie (Military Law Enforcement Agency) and the Police Nationale (National Police, Civil Law Enforcement Agency) appear as a non-playable factions during the mission Comrades, where they engage both PLR operatives as well as Dimitri Mayakovsky and the other GRU agents attempting to track down the carrier of the nuclear weapon.

In Co-op, the GIGN and Police Nationale appear during the missions involving Paris. However, they are allies rather than enemies, and mostly serve only as extras. In The Eleventh Hour, they appear, storming the Stock Exchange. Most of them are killed as soon as they enter the building or by an exploding van near the entrance.

The maps Operation Métro and Seine Crossing take place in Paris. However, neither the French GIGN nor the National Police make an appearance in either of these maps.


Battlefield 1

Main article: French Army
For the Codex Entry, see The French Republic (Codex Entry)


In the campaign of Battlefield 1, the location of France is the setting for several chapters of the game, including Storm of Steel, Through Mud and Blood and the majority of Friends In High Places.

As with the singleplayer, several maps in multiplayer, namely Amiens, Argonne Forest, Ballroom Blitz, Giant's Shadow and St. Quentin Scar, are set within the country of France. On these base game maps, the British and American armies fight to liberate these areas from the German Empire.

The They Shall Not Pass expansion introduces the French Army as a playable multiplayer faction. The French appear only on maps set within French territory.

The Apocalypse expansion introduced River Somme, another map set in France.


Battlefield V

In Battlefield V, the location of France is the setting of the Tirailleur singleplayer war story, which features Senegalese colonial troops under French command fighting to liberate the so-called homeland.

Two launch multiplayer maps, Arras and Twisted Steel are set in north-west France.

The fourth chapter of Tides of War, Defying The Odds introduced a new French map, Provence.


Equipment Made

Weapons

Vehicles

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