Bountaries, 
FRANCE. 
“STATISTICS. 
a CHAP. I. 
Boundaries and Extent of France—Progressive Geo- 
graphy—Division into Provinces and Departments 
—Military Divisions. 
By the treaty of Paris in 1814, the kingdom of 
France was reduced within the same limits that bound- 
ed it previously to the Revolution ; but its extent of 
aeedgmen deat for Avignon and the coun- 
ty of the Venaissin, which had formerly to 
the Pope, but which had been i ted with France 
before January 1792, were to be integral and 
permanent parts of that kingdom by the treaty. alluded 
to. 
France, as itis bounded at: present, is marked out, 
-as one of. the separate ki of Europe, by natural 
limits on three of its si These are, the Channel 
between it and England on the north ; the Bay of Bis- 
on the west, and the Pyrenean mountains and the 
eRnlatasDtek voset catalan chek: anxithie lent, north- 
east, and south-east, its limits are not accurately fixed 
by nature. On the east, it borders on Germany and 
Switzerland ; on the north-east, on those provinces 
which formerly composed the Austrian Netherlands, 
but which are now united to Holland; and on the 
south-east, on Savoy and Piedmont. It extends from 
the 424 to nearly the 51st degree of north latitude, and 
ds above 11 degrees of longitude ; the most 
of Alsace | 7 degrees eastward of the 
ssondeedaf Grecruteh, the most westerly part of 
Brittany rather more than 4 westward of the 
same meridian. _ Were it not for this province, which 
stretches about 100 miles farther into the’Atlantic Ocean 
than any other part of the ki the form of France 
would be almost a square, the breadth and length 
pretty nearly equal, 7. e. about 560 miles. 
rete vrenecws sitieinpeh beadenaostenenes 
ing inthe na : 
we ee ae eee RE 
orekes it 28,054 ; Defer, 31,278; Sanson, 31,657: the 
medium of these is 28,642. — reckoning 15 
miles to a degree, fixes the extent of France at 10,000 
square miles; the Marshal de Vauban makes it 30,000 
leagues, or 140,940,000 arpents ; Voltaire 130,000,000 
arpents. Tem gives it an extent of 138,837 
ical miles ; but as he reckons only 60 
piitastalaednaeonecthie. doutibens spnethlin-anaiiiendute 
119,224,874 acres. Panclon, by cov: ing his map with 
shot to every indenture of outline, fi the kin, 
to pa py arpents, each of 100 y at 
22 perch, or 13444 toises ‘e to the arpent ; 
instead of which, the arpent of Paris contains but 
900 toises. A ing to this measurement, France 
arpents ; observing that, by the 
amount is 125,000,000. Abonne 
calculates it at 105,000,000.; and the author of 
logie sur l’ Edit de Nantes, at 185,600,000. M. Neckar 
seems to have been the first who ascertained the area 
of France with considerable accuracy. According 
to him (not including Corsica) it ds 26,951 
leagues square, of 2282 toises, or 156,024,213. arpents of 
VOL. IX, PART IL. 
into four parts; G 
673 
Paris, which is equivalent to 131,722,295 English acres, 
‘This calculation is nearly adopted by M. Jorse, author of 
the Credit Nationale, wid reckons that France contains 
27,000 oe 2282 toises, 5785 arpents of Paris to a 
league, and also by Mr A. Young: This gives to France 
156,225,720 arpents. The committee of the first Na- 
tional Assembly stated it soon afterwards at 26,463 
square leagues; and this is probably pretty accurately 
the area of France as it is now bounded. 
The progressive geography of this kingdom presents 
Statistics, 
Progressive 
very differént limits and divisions at different times. geography. 
The ancient Gaul, as has already been remarked in the 
History of France, comprehended a larger portion of 
territory than France now contains. Under the name 
Gallia, was originally comprehended Gallia Cisalpina, 
and Gallia Transalpina: the former was entirely on the 
south side of the Alps, and the latter contained all the 
present France, and that part of Germany and Belgium 
westward of the Rhine.- According to the Abbe du 
Fresnoy, ancient Gaul, by which hemeans Gallia Trans- 
alpina, was bounded on the south by the Pyrenees, the 
Mediterranean Sea, and the Var; on the east by the 
Alps and the Rhine ; on the north by the same river ; 
and on the west by the ocean. The Romans first il- 
lustrated the geography of Gaul, which they considered 
as divided into three chief regions, the Celtic, Belgic, 
and Aquitaine. The bounds of Gallia Celtica were the 
ocean, the Seine, the Marne, the Saone, the Rhine, 
and the Garonne. Gallia Belgica was bounded by the 
Seine, the Marne, the mountains of Vosges, the Rhine, 
and the ocean; and Gallia Aquitania by the ocean, 
Garonne, and the enees. Augustus divided Gaul 
ia Narbonensis, which compre- 
hended , Foix, Vivarres, Provence, Dauphiny, 
and Savoy ; Aquitania, which was of larger extent than 
it had been in the time of Julius Cesar, and compre- 
hended all the country between the Pyrenees, the ocean, 
and the Loire ; Lugdunensis, the Jargestof all, which 
was bounded by the ocean, the Loire,.the Seine, the 
Marne, and the mountains of Vosges; and Belgica, 
which was-bounded by the ocean, the country of Caux, 
the Seine, the Marne, the mountains of Vosges, and 
the Rhine. 
The Notitia Imperii, which was made in the fourth 
century, ts us with another division of Gaul; 
for there it is 
divided into five great provinces ; Lug- 
dunensis, Belgica, Germania, Vienensis, and Aquitania, 
each of which are subdivided into several others. The 
EmperorConstantine the Great divided Gaul into seven- 
teen provinces or governments, six of which were con- 
sular, and eleven under certaii presidents sent by the 
Emperor, who resided in the capital cities. The names 
of the provinces and the: capital cities were, 1. Nar 
bonnensis prima, capital city Narbonne; 2. Narbon- 
nensis secunda,. capital city Aix.in Provence ; 3, Vien- 
nensis, ital city; Vienne in Dauphiny; 4. A 
Graize and Pemine;. capital city Moustenon in Ta- 
rentaise, a province of Savoy ; 5. Alpes Maritime, ca« 
pital city Embranin eas pm ; 6. Lugdunensis prima, 
capital .city. Lyons ;_ 7. unensis secunda, capital 
city Rouen ; 8. Lugdunensis tertia, capital city Tours ; 
9. unensis quarta, capital city Sens in Champagne ; 
10. Sequania, capital city Besangon; 11. Aquitania 
prima, capital city Bourges; 12. Aquitania secunda, 
capital city Bourdeaux ; 13.. Novempopularia, capital 
city Auch in Gascony ; 14. Germania prima, capital 
city Mentz; 15, Germania. secunda, capital city Co- 
4 ©. 
In the time 
of the Ro- 
mans, 
In the 4th 
century. 
