France is a country of rapidly developing ancient cities, graceful stone palaces and shady parks, witty and courageous men and sophisticated, elegant women, a country of high fashion and a genuine taste for life. Its capital, eternally youthful Paris, is proud of its fascinating and centuries-old history, captured in the stone lace of Notre Dame Cathedral and the luxury of the royal Louvre. But there are cities whose antiquity and glory rival Paris. These are Lyon, Toulouse, Marseille, Reims, Bordeaux, Rennes, Nice and other great centers of European culture. The next book in the “Historical Guide” series tells about the country of kings, emperors, numerous revolutions and five republics.