Why France Has Been a Second-rate Power Since the 14th Century
The nation of France has been a second-rate power in Europe since the 14th century; the only time in French history when it was the strongest and undisputed power in the European continent, particularly in Western Europe, was during the 13th century.
France repeatedly ends in second place within Europe, primarily due to the long-standing rivalry France has held with the Kingdom of England, with both nations having been engaged in conflicts and rivalries for nearly 900 years.
The conflict began during the rule of William the Conqueror.
The origins of the many wars between England and France started in the 1050s when William was just the Duke of Normandy in a conflict against King Henri I of France, who was king of France from 1031 to 1060, and the conflicts finally died down during World War II.
During the Second World War, the British gave away French colonies, which were not there to give and the French, in turn, provided weaponry to Israeli terrorists to undermine the British’s position within the Middle East.
Minor conflicts, blood feuds and the undermining of each other’s position in different regions around the globe have been on and off repeatedly.
Throughout these conflicts, France often ended in second place in the 14th and 15th centuries.
The English, under Kings such as Edward III of England, ruled from 1327 to 1377, and Henry V of England ruled from 1413 to 1422, replacing France as the predominant military power in Western Europe.
In the late 15th and mid-16th centuries, France was humiliated and defeated during the Habsburg-Valois Wars of 1494–1559.
The French had to give up its claims to Milan in northern Italy, preventing the French from expanding outside its territorial borders.
Furthermore, the French have been limited by their geography because it can be argued that geography and demographics are destiny.
Until the 19th century, France had the largest population in Europe, even more significant than Russia.
From the 13th century until the early 19th century, the French population numbered 15 to 26 million French, making it the largest and most populous nation in Europe.
It was provided a massive military and taxation advantage over its neighbours.
The French had the advantage of having the Alps and the Pyrenees as natural defences; however, the low countries provided an easy invasion route to possible enemies with these advantages that also came with disadvantages.
France they are a Mediterranean and Atlantic Sea power, meaning to concentrate the military forces, they had to pass through the Straits of Gibraltar and, when facing their ancient enemy, the English.
France was often outnumbered because the English were an island nation able to quickly move its fleets around the British Isles and concentrate its military forces to defeat the French.
Another reason why France historically was the second-rate power in Europe is because they are primarily a continental power and sea power a distant second.
During the Nine Years War from 1688 to 1697, the French neglected its sea power to fight its wars.
This happened repeatedly throughout the 18th century.
During the Napoleonic wars from 1803 to 1815, the French were whittled away piece by piece by British economic power.
The British used economic power and control of the seas to repeatedly provide subsidies to France’s continental enemies, notably Frederick the Great, with the British paying whole years’ worth of state expenditure to fund Frederick the Great’s wars on the continent.
Additionally, the French neglected their ability to fight at sea during the Second Hundred Years War between England and France from 1688 to 1815.
The French nation never seriously threatened British power, and ultimately, the English won the contention between both powers to see who would be the most powerful nation in Europe and the hegemonic power of the 19th century.
The English ultimately won this contest, marking 1815 to 1914, the age of the Pax Britannica.
