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| — Description of forming French Empire |
The French Empire is a transcontinental formable of 
France. Being a colonial empire, it is the one of the largest formables in the game by land area. It has a massive population of 140,884,986, however is still in 4th place behind 
India in population. The Empire also stretches across almost all continents except for the Americas and Antarctica
, and has a major presence in all of them.
Due to requiring many countries and having threats across almost all continents it's one of the hardest formables in the game.
When forming the French Empire in public server, the player will be awarded with the Maréchal title and the France WWII skin.
Background
The following is taken from Wikipedia which is licensed under CC-BY-SA 3.0. You can view the article it was taken from here.
The French colonial empire was a collection of territories, colonies, and protectorates that were administered by France from the 16th century until the 1960s. At its height in the early 20th century, the French colonial empire was the second largest colonial empire in the world, second only to the 
British Empire.
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The French colonial empire began with early explorations and trading ventures in the 16th century. French navigators, such as Jacques Cartier, explored parts of North America, claiming territories for France. Samuel de Champlain established the first permanent French settlement in Quebec in 1608, and French colonists, known as habitants, settled in areas such as Acadia and Louisiana. During the 17th and 18th centuries, France expanded its colonial presence in North America, establishing a network of forts and trading posts. The French controlled vast territories, including the Mississippi River and the Great Lakes region. Conflict with the British, particularly during the French and Indian War (1754-1763), resulted in France losing most of its North American possessions to Britain. In addition to North America, France had a significant presence in the Caribbean, with colonies in Haiti (Saint-Domingue), Martinique, and Guadeloupe. These colonies were highly profitable due to sugar and slave-based plantations. France also expanded its colonial holdings in Africa, Asia, and the Pacific. In Africa, French territories included Algeria, Tunisia, Morocco, Senegal, Mali, Ivory Coast, and others. In Southeast Asia, French Indochina comprised Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia. French possessions in the Pacific included New Caledonia, French Polynesia, and other islands. The 19th century marked a period of increased French imperial expansion. Under Napoleon Bonaparte, France established the French Empire, which reached its zenith in the early 19th century. However, Napoleon's continental ambitions faced setbacks, including the loss of Haiti and the failed attempt to establish a French colony in Egypt. In the late 19th and early 20th centuries, France further expanded its colonial possessions in Africa, pursuing a policy known as "mission civilisatrice" or "civilizing mission." French West Africa, French Equatorial Africa, and other territories were established during this period. The decolonization movement after World War II led to the gradual dismantling of the French colonial empire. Various territories gained independence through negotiations, armed struggle, or referendums. The process of decolonization was often fraught with tensions and conflicts, such as the Algerian War of Independence (1954-1962). By the 1960s, most French colonies had achieved independence, marking the end of the French colonial empire. However, some overseas territories, such as French Guiana in South America and Reunion Island in the Indian Ocean, remain integral parts of France today. |
Base Statistics (WIP)
The French Empire holds a relatively large manpower capacity of 2,817,700, and a base income of $12,377,957.
| Base Manpower Capacity of French Empire per Conscription Law | |
|---|---|
| The following columns below present the manpower capacity from lowest (Disarmed) to highest (Required). RP stands for "Recruitable Population". | |
| Disarmed [1% RP] |
1,409,292 |
| Volunteer [2% RP] |
2,818,583 |
| Limited [5% RP] |
7,046,456 |
| Extensive [10% RP] |
14,092,912 |
| Required [25% RP] |
35,232,280 |
Geography
The terrain of mainland France is mainly flat. The 
Italian, 
Swiss, and the 
Spanish borders are Mountainous or Semi-Mountainous, while the French Riviera is Hilly.
Biome-wise, most of Northern Africa is Arid, while the terrain is mostly flat except for the northernmost parts of 
Algeria and 
Tunisia, which are Hilly. The rest of French Africa is flat, except for parts of 
Mali, 
Guinea, and 
Cameroon. 
Madagascar is Semi-Mountainous and Hilly.
French Indochina (
Cambodia, 
Laos, and 
Vietnam) is mostly Hilly and covered in Jungle.
The islands in the Pacific are completely flat and have no biome.
The most popolous regions of the Empire are French Indochina, French Algeria, and French West Africa. The population of the Empire is 140,884,986.
Strategy
First, justify "Conquest" on Algeria and Tunisia. Train your troops and move them to the Algerian borders. When the justification is done, declare war on them. You may need to use ships. At that time justify on Morocco and Syria. Make sure that you need to do faster than other Europeans countries. You can change your ideologies to Nationalist/Fascist to reduce the justification time. After annexed 3 first countries that is nearest with you, Justify on Mauritania and annex them. At this time the justification with Syria should be done. Declare war and annex them. When fighting with these two countries, justify on other West African countries (Except Sierra Leone, Liberia, Ghana, Nigeria) then justify on Chad, Central African Republic. After that annex them and justify on Gabon and Congo. That is the end of the conquest at West Africa. In East Africa, you will need to invade Djibouti, Madagascar and some island nations. If you don't want to lose troops as a result of attrition, you can use the Suez Canal of Egypt. At that time train more troops at homeland and then justify on French Guiana. If you want to be safe, annex it in the early game because Brazil may annex it due to its size. Then you can justify and declare war on Caribbean nations. Because these nations are islands nations and you have Fascist ideology so the justification will be done quickly. When the African colonies has been annexed. Justify on Laos and Cambodia, after just annex them. Remember if Vietnam is controlled by a pro player then you need to use all of your troops to annex them. But if they are smart, they can use ships to block the way into Indochina cause they want to form Nguyen Dynasty. If Vietnam is an AI, your conquest will be easier. After the conquest of Laos and Cambodia, declare war on Vietnam and attack them on 2 fronts. A front from West Indochina and a front from the East Sea. Remember to conquer Hanoi and Ho Chi Minh City quickly because these 2 cities are strongest in Vietnam. Afterwards the conquests will be easy. At that time the second troop has conquered the Caribbean. Go through the Panama Canal and then justify and annex French Polynesia. You can also use the other troop to help you invade faster. After you can form French Empire.
Threats
Due to the sheer size of this formable, virtually any country that becomes powerful enough will become a threat. This is a list of the more common threats you could see in a typical game.
Europe
Main threats will be the 
United Kingdom, 
Germany, Spain and Italy. These countries need part of the Empire for their formables, or tend to expand in one of the Empire's regions.
- The
United Kingdom needs you for the Angevin Empire or the Franco-British Union. - Germany needs you for the Frankish Empire and German Empire (which only requires Alsace).
- Italy wanting to form the Roman Empire.
- Any European country attempting to form the European Union.
Sometimes, non-European countries such as the 
United States or 
Brazil may invade France for a foothold in Europe.
Africa
Any other country taking your colonies for their own colonial Empires, but more specifically:
- The United Kingdom requires Cameroon, Gambia, Mauritius and Seychelles to form the British Empire.
- Germany requires Cameroon and Togo for the German Empire.
- Italy wanting to form the Roman Empire, which requires North Africa states.
- Spain requires Morocco to form the Spanish Empire.
Other African states may take your land.
- Nigeria requires Cameroon and Chad to form the Sokoto Caliphate.
- South Africa or another African nation invading Madagascar for resources.
- Any countries wanting to form the African Union, the Arab League and/or the Islamic Caliphate.
- Morocco may become a player and form the Marinid Dynasty and/or the Almohad Caliphate, which requires Algeria and Tunisia.
Asia
Middle East
Syria and 
Lebanon may be taken by multiple nations for their formables, such as:
- Turkey requires both for the Ottoman Empire.
- Egypt requires both for the Khedivate of Egypt or the Mamluk Sultanate.
- Iran requires both for the Persian Empire.
- Any country wanting to form the Arab League and/or the Islamic Caliphate.
- Syria is sometimes a player, and can dominate the Middle East if played well.
Southeast Asia
Although one may find the 
Dutch Empire hard to form due to 
Indonesia, attempting to form the French Empire would be harder due to French Indochina's geographical location being just under 
China.
- Either China and India expanding into the Indochina sub-region.
- Japan requires French Indochina from the Empire of Japan, they may also retake it from you as a part to take over Colonial Southeast Asia.
- Vietnam may become a player, and invade Cambodia and Laos to form the Nguyen dynasty, and is very likely to dominate the world stage, due to its popularity increasing the likeliness of an experienced player playing as it.
- Thailand requires Laos for Siam and Cambodia for the Rattanakosin Kingdom.
- Any country attempting to form the ASEAN or Alam Melayu, which requires Cambodia and Vietnam.
Trivia
- The French Empire flag has a darker blue and red than France. It was the flag of France from 1793 to 1976.[1]
- At it's time, the French Empire was the second biggest Empire in the world, just behind the British Empire.
- The Empire held colonial lands since the 16th century to the late 1960's, when the Empire fell apart due to the growing support in Europe for decolonization.
- Despite being integral parts of the empire, no current French Caribbean Overseas Territories (including French Guiana) are included in the requirements for formation, likely due to oversight.
- This formable is one of the two formables, alongside Upper Volta, to have an outlandish inaccuracy within it's description, as the French Empire was absolutely against a monarchy. Not only that, the flag of the French Empire is the Bleu, Blanc et Rouge, which are the colors of the revolution.
- ↑ Citation needed