istoryworld
Events relating to france
Rhinoceroses, lions and mammoth feature on the walls of the Chauvet cave, in southern France
In the Cosquer cave near Marseilles, with its entrance now far below sea level, a hand print is made
A Brassempouy, in France, a Venus figurine is carved which is the oldest known example to have facial features
The walls of the complex of caves at Lascaux in France are covered, over the years, with a vast number of paintings of animals
A passage grave with a superb corbelled dome is constructed on the Île Longue off the southern coast of Brittany
The Celts, moving west from central Europe, settle in France and northern Spain
The Romans establish a province in the south of France, still acknowledged in the name Provence
The Roman general Gaius Marius defeats the Teutones, a German tribe which has made deep inroads into southern Gaul
Julius Caesar begins the long slow process of pushing Roman occupation steadily northwards in France (or Gaul)
The Celtic leader Vercingetorix inflicts an unaccustomed defeat on Julius Caesar, at Gergovia, but is captured later in the year
In his winter quarters Julius Caesar writes The Gallic War, an account of his own achievements in suppressing the Gauls
The Romans construct the massive Pont du Gard to bring water to the city of Nîmes
On the order of Marcus Aurelius, Christians in Lyons are tortured to death - an instance of persecution unusual at this time
Warming to his new Christian role, Constantine summons more than 300 bishops to Arles to discuss the controversial issue of Donatus
St Martin founds the first monastery in western Europe, at Ligugé near Poitiers
The Vandals cross the Rhine into Gaul and move into Spain, from which the Visigoths soon push them on into Africa
The Roman city of Nîmes is sacked by the Vandals, in an early indication of the gradual loss of Gaul to the Germanic tribes
The Burgundians cross the Rhine and settle round Worms, before moving south to the Savoy region
The Visigoths, after twenty years of destructive wandering, settle in southwest France as Roman federates
Attila and the Huns invade Gaul but are defeated, somewhere near Troyes, by a Roman army supported by Visigoths and Burgundians
The 15-year-old Clovis inherits the Merovingian crown and becomes leader of the Franks - with his first capital at Tournai
Clovis and some 3000 of his soldiers are baptized in a massive ceremony at Reims
Gregory, bishop of Tours, brings his 'History of the Franks' up to this year
In the Frankish kingdoms the 'mayors of the palace' steadily become more powerful than their nominal masters, the Merovingian kings
