France–United Kingdom relations  

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France – United Kingdom relations are the relations between the governments of France and the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland (UK). In recent years the two countries have experienced a very close relationship.

The designation "Anglo-" specifically refers to England, not the UK. However, modern intergovernmental relations between these two nations are habitually called Anglo-French relations, and understood to refer to the UK and not only England. The term Franco-British relations is also used.

Early Franco-British interactions occurred before Caesar's invasion of Gaul, when the two regions were inhabited by loosely trading Celts fighting the Romans as a common enemy. They continued under the Roman EmpireTemplate:Ndash as both modern day states were ruled from Rome. Both were provinces in the larger Roman Empire.

Recently relations have been cordial and cooperative, with an edge of wariness on both sides due to historical differences and more recent disagreements between two of the leaders of the two countries: former French President, Jacques Chirac, and former British Prime Minister, Tony Blair. French author Jose-Alain Fralon characterized the relationship between the countries by describing the British as "our most dear enemies". Tony Blair is regarded as being a francophile by the French media and the current French President Nicolas Sarkozy is known for his will to transform the "Entente Cordiale" into an "Entente amicale" (that is, a friendlier and closer relation).

Much of the two countries' histories has been defined by the relationship between the two countries. Today, both France and the United Kingdom are member states of the European Union (EU), and it is estimated that about 400,000 French people live in the UK, and vice versa.

See also

• Angevin Empire
• Attack on Mers-el-Kébir
• Auld Alliance
• Channel Tunnel
• Concorde
• English claims to the French throne
• Entente cordiale
• Common Security and Defence Policy
• Franco-British Union
• Franco-British Council
• French migration to the United Kingdom
• Huguenot
• Hundred Years' War
• List of British French
• List of wars involving England and France
• Norman conquest of England
• Pax Britannica
• Perfidious Albion
• Second Hundred Years' War
• SEPECAT Jaguar
• Siege of Yorktown
• Triple Entente
• University of London Institute in Paris
• 1983 France – United Kingdom Maritime Boundary Convention

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• Urban, Mark. Generals:The British Commanders who Shaped the World. Faber and Faber (2006)