The word ‘terrorist’ actually sprung up around 1795 during the French Revolution, and referred to the Reign of Terror initiated by the Revolutionary government.
Helping you to make the most of your NYE celebrations, Canet en Roussillon is providing a free shuttle bus from 9.30pm to 2.30am
This French Christmas character, the ‘whipping father’, said to accompany Santa on his rounds on 6th December, is fortunately no longer heard of much in French tradition.
In an experimental test period to try out new software, France will be split into 3 test zones to try out its 2,000 sirens without overloading the system.
Le Poilu, informal term for a French World War I infantryman, and literally meaning ‘hairy one’ was also used to describe soldiers in the time of Napoleon Bonaparte. (The term ‘grognard’ (grumbler) was also common.)
Many are the stories of ‘encantades’ or ‘bruixas’, (witches) in the history of the P-O, and believers in witchcraft protected themselves with a variety of different methods, including painting their windows blue, keeping bread in the drawer, washing undergarments in water from seven different sources, never leaving nail clippings or cut hair on the floor, putting their shirts on backwards…..
On 7th November 1659, the kingdoms of France and Spain signed the Treaty of the Pyrenees, which ended the 30 years war between supporters of Louis XIV of France and those of Philip IV of Spain.
An anonymous 12th century sculptor, the Master of Cabestany was not recognised until the 1930s when a Romanesque-style tympanum was unearthed during renovation work at the parish church of Cabestany.
The Via Domitia was the first of the vast network of roads in Gaul (France) built by the Romans, crossing southern France to link Italy and Spain.
The 15th August is the festival of l’Assomption – a jour férié (public holiday) celebrated by Catholics throughout France and commemorating the departure of Mary from this life and the assumption of her body into heaven.