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It’s practically a fact of life here in England, like rain half the summer, painfully congested Tube traffic, and conversations about the weather: The English hate the French.
They’ve written songs about this centuries-long enmity – like Rowan Atkinson’s 1980 Live in Belfast comedy show, which included a performance of the plainly titled “I Hate the French,” they’ve dedicated articles and blogs to the topic, and they’ve even published books on the subject.
Even, of course, if most English people don’t actually hate the French. Some of them love the French, renounce their Englishness, and go spend a year (or years) in Provence, then write books about it.
In any case, a few years ago, the Telegraph put together a list of 30 reasons why the English hate the French, which was handy, but a bit cheeky – after all, there’s got to be more to Anglo-Franco antagonism than the fact that the French bathe less than the English (and many other nations), don’t change their underwear everyday, and wear silly flat hats. So, with the Telegraph as a jumping off place, we’ve come up with a few more answers to the question why the English hate the French.
Because they’re always fighting
It all started back in 1066, when William the Conqueror – the one that was so fat he couldn’t ride his horse, so then he went on an all-liquid (read: liquor) diet – trounced the Anglo-Saxons at the Battle of Hastings. Armed with some relatively spurious claims to the English throne and a force of more than 15,000 infantry, cavalry, and archers, William, Duke of Normandy, won the throne and engendered a long line of nobility and rulers, and, of course, a bitter rivalry between the proto-English isle and the Continental French.
In the early years, the Norman kingdom was somewhat confused: Anglo-Saxons led by French-Norman nobility, even Richard the Lionheart, prototypical “English” medieval king, spoke mostly French and spent most of his time in France. Subsequent to the Norman Conquest, the Normans and the Anglo-Saxons essentially merged to become a rather new culture – even the French and the Anglo-Saxon languages combined, then became something different all together – the precursor to modern English (this could be why the English call zucchinis “courgettes” and eggplants “aubergines”).
But despite their Frenchy origins, the new(ish) Norman kingdom was created as distinct from the kingdom of France, and relations between the two were troubled. Just about 300 years after the initial conquest, the now nearly English House of Plantagenet battled the very French House of Valois over the French throne during the Hundred Years War. This was the war when teenage Joan of Arc led her people to victory and gave voice to how the French felt about the English right around then: “Of the love or hatred God has for the English, I know nothing, but I do know that they will all be thrown out of France, except those who die there.” The struggle ultimately didn’t go well for England, which lost Normandy and became, finally, the island nation we now know.
French-English relations never really recovered, but they never really got a chance to, with all the time spent fighting. In all, England has fought 35 wars with France since 1066; England won 23, lost 11, and determined a mutual defeat after the American Revolution.
Because the French are rude
The English aren’t quite the world’s most polite people, but they’re close and they do take a certain pride in their manners and reserve (but don’t mistake that reserve for unfriendliness, advised one American GI guide from WWII). So the famed French rudeness – mostly famous in England – is somewhat of an affront to their existence.
The English are quick to produce evidence of French rudeness: In London restaurants, it takes an average of 3.4 minutes to get a glass of water after the waiter has been alert, compared to 17.9 minutes in Paris; many French people don’t clean up after their dogs, leaving around 6,438 US tons of canine crap on their streets each year; and with some, there’s an odor problem – 40 percent of French men and 25 percent of women don’t change their underwear every day and only 47 percent bathe every day.
The idea that French people are rude has become so indoctrinated in English culture that a recent remake of the Mr. Men cartoons (Mr. Grumpy, Mr. Tickles, etc.), featured a character named Mr. Rude, who farts, blows raspberries, and speaks with a French accent. Oh, snaps.
And then there’s the fact that there is an actual recognized medical syndrome describing the psychological breakdown that occurs when a foreign traveler to Paris discovers that the city of romance and light isn’t all its cracked up to be. It’s called “Paris Syndrome” and it appears to particularly affect Japanese tourists not accustomed to a society where it’s acceptable for a waiter to yell at a customer if they don’t speak fluent French.
Because they’re food snobs
France has long been convinced not only of their cuisine’s superiority over that of every other country, but in particular, over its near neighbor, England. And that stings.
Frustration with and dismissal of French food snobbery has become part of English life, but in recent years, as English chefs have been working hard to revamp the sorry state and image of English cuisine, it’s become more pointed. And it’s a conversation that happens each year, when the Michelin guide, a restaurant guidebook featuring the actual Michelin man on its cover that’s been a European standard for more than 100 years, is published. While it’s odd enough that a tire company could be such a long-respected arbiter of luxury, taste and refinement, British restaurant circles are more attenuated to the fact that it’s a French institution. And in 2009, though there were 26 three-star rated restaurants in France, there were only three in the UK. Coincidence? The English think not.
Because they’re wine snobs
In the wine world, the English had a wonderful time gloating over the famous defeat of French wines during a blind taste test at the Judgment of Paris in 1976 (see the film Bottle Shock). While it was a Californian wine that did the honors, toppling the French wine crown, just watching someone, anyone, beat the French was incredibly satisfying. And of course, the English are very happy to remind you that it was an English wine merchant who brought the Californian wine to the expo.
Because they’re fashion snobs
A French woman (or man, for that matter), as countless catwalks and fashion magazines have reinforced, could walk out of their pied a terre attired entirely in brown burlap and make it seem enviably fashionable. Fashion in England, on the other hand, tends to be, well, strikingly unfashionable. (Witness English designer Stella McCartney’s recent lace jumpsuit mess at the Met’s Costume Institute Gala.)
In her ethnographic study Watching the English, anthropologist Kate Fox discusses England’s inability to reliably dress well and relates a tale that probably sums up French snobbishness toward English taste: “On one occasion, when I protested that singling us out in this way was a bit unfair, a rather grand French lady replied, ‘It is perfectly fair. One does not expect much from the colonies, but you English are supposed to be civilized Europeans. You really should know better. Paris is what, an hour away?’” This particularly scathing conversation took place, Fox said, at Royal Ascot, a horse race that primarily serves to showcase well-dressed and heeled Englishwomen in their “smartest frocks” and hats.
Because French women “don’t get fat”
According to French woman and author Mirielle Guiliano, French women don’t get fat. Yes, despite all those rich, full fat dishes like fois gras and charming desserts stuffed with chocolate and cream and sugar, French people are still arrestingly thin, beautiful, and well, French. It’s just like The Brady Bunch: England is Jan and it’s always “France, France, France.”
However, recent studies have thrown a bit more light on the phenomenon: With an average body mass index of 23.2, French women are in fact the thinnest women in Western Europe (French men are also the slimmest in Western Europe). But that might be because they worry much, much more about it than their other Western European sisters. According to the same study, though France harbored the highest proportion of underweight women, only half of those women believed they were underweight.
On the other hand, British women maintain the highest average body mass index, at 26.2 – yet most believe they’re just the right size.
Because the French hate the English, too
But perhaps the best explanation for why the English antagonize, dislike, make fun of, and are humorously intolerant of the French is because the French do it to them. Just as the English brand things that they are moderately intolerant of as “French” (a “French letter” among the WWII generation, for example, was a condom), so too do the French term unacceptable things “Anglais” (the French word for condom, accordingly, was “capote Anglais”).
French Rugby player Sylvain Marconnet summed it up pretty well, just before the fiercely competitive Six Nations Rugby tournament this year: “I’m French and I cultivate a kind of hate for the English,” he said. “This hate has been passed on to me and I’ll pass it on.”
Comments (25)
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Asking why the English hate the French is like asking why water is wet.
posted by Hurricane on 5-13-2009 at 3:06 pm
I always assumed the English hated the French for the same reason Americans do… they are French.
posted by Witty Nickname on 5-13-2009 at 3:07 pm
Look, its not just the English that hate the French. Every country I’ve been to in Europe (Austria, Switzerland, I live in Italy, Croatia, Luxembourg, Ireland, Germany, Poland…) ALL make fun of the French. All of them. And all of them think French are the biggest snobs in the world.
posted by Kate on 5-13-2009 at 3:38 pm
France would be great if it wasn’t for the French.
posted by Scrounge on 5-13-2009 at 4:50 pm
Hahaha we ARE food snobs, and rude, but come on, we shower EVERY DAY!!!
And that’s not really true, most French love the English. At least I do. :)
(and you made a mistake, it’s “capote anglaise”, not “anglais”)
posted by L on 5-13-2009 at 6:42 pm
See, I’m English and I’ve never understood this. I love France and the French.
However, I am a little bit French myself so I am slightly biased. I do get bullied for this, though!
posted by Nikki on 5-13-2009 at 7:50 pm
Yeah, here in the U.S. its about the same thing, but we don’t really have logical reasons like the one’s you listed above, we just say they’re snobs (if you are french and not a snob, then
posted by Therese on 5-13-2009 at 10:20 pm
England is much, much cooler than France, but that’s one person’s opinion. France really does have a point about English food though–ick.
The lady at Royal Ascot…was she referring to “the colonies” I think she was referring to? If so, there could be another reason to hate the French–they’re not so good at history!
posted by kate on 5-13-2009 at 11:01 pm
@Therese
What do you mean no logical reasons?! We’ve bailed out the Frenchies not once, but twice in major world wars and tried to do it again in a little place called Vietnam. We went there to protect French interests in rubber production (Michelin?).
France has balked at supporting our military operations several times (to strike Quadafi in the 80’s and more recently in the War on Terror).
France hasn’t really done anything but get us in trouble since supporting us during the American Revolution. We lost touch with them from the time of Napolean.
In addition to those reasons – they’re French and that’s reason enough. Although, my grandfather (who fought in France during WWII) once said that the American Soldiers in both World Wars were fans of the French girls and their “talents”.
posted by Eric on 5-14-2009 at 12:44 am
I think what all my fellow Americans have forgotten is that if it wasn’t for the French intervention in the American Revolutionary War, we’d all be speaking English right now. Oh wait, that didn’t come out right… (lol)
posted by Ed K on 5-14-2009 at 2:06 am
Strangely, the Telegraph article you linked to mentions that England and France both lost the American Revolutionary War. What have they been telling those English? The French were definitely on the winning side of that one.
posted by missjoules on 5-14-2009 at 6:35 am
What all my fellow Americans have forgotten is that if it wasn’t for the French intervention in the American Revolutionary War, we’d all be driving on the wrong side of the road right now.
posted by Tdave on 5-14-2009 at 7:34 am
@missjoules:
The American Revolution was only a small part of the war France and England were involved in. Really, the American conflict was just another excuse for the two to fight – and for the French to make up for their dismal defeat during the seven years war…
“At the same time, British and French (and to a lesser extent, Dutch and Spanish) forces fought for colonial wealth and empire around the world. From 1778 through 1783 — two years after the defeat of Cornwallis at Yorktown — French forces fought the British in the West Indies, Africa and India.”
posted by Hastings on 5-14-2009 at 9:44 am
I don’t hate the French, I just hate the folks in Paris. When I went there in ‘03, my father told me that if I run into any French pricks while I am there, ask them this question. “Do you speak German?” and when they say “No” tell them, “You’re Welcome”.
Plus, the French teach their kids that they themselves liberated Paris in WWII. Idiots.
posted by Franko on 5-14-2009 at 12:02 pm
@missjoules
Not to pile on, but the French supported the American cause in our Revolutionary War with money, arms, and most importantly their navy, that it was a primary factor in bankrupting the French economy, which was a primary factor in the French Revolution, so you can look at them losing that way too (generally referred to as “winning the war, but losing the peace”).
Fighting largely ended in 1781 after Yorktown, but the peace treaty wasn’t signed until 1783 while fighting continued, mainly in India, if I recall. The Brits continued to occupy NYC until after the treaty was signed. But the victory at Yorktown would not have been possible w/out the French, who made up a significant portion of Washington’s Army at Yorktown. But more importantly, the French Navy had defeated the British Navy, which was supposed to pick up Cornwallis’ army and get them to safety.
Not to mention that Washington himself hadn’t even wanted to take on the Yorktown campaign, but instead wanted to attack the ensconced British in NYC and had to be talked out of it by his French and American subordinates.
posted by Jonny on 5-14-2009 at 12:02 pm
I got distracted by Rev War talk.
The part about French fashion was fun to see in the John Adams miniseries. John Adams goes to France to advocate for French aid as a humble New Englander and learns he needs to dress more fashionably, so he gets some fine French suits.
Then, after the war, he is named minister to England and is told in no uncertain terms that he should dress a little less French. Gone are the colors (in favor of basic black) and the ruffles and lace
posted by Jonny on 5-14-2009 at 12:08 pm
I LOVED “Watching the English”. Kate Fox is hilarious and her work is supremely interesting. Everyone read that book not(just anglophiles like myself).
posted by Heather on 5-14-2009 at 12:26 pm
The reason the British (or Americans for that matter) hate the French is obvious…they’re jealous. Good food, good wine, good fashion, attractive women…? How awful! And yes, Parisians (but not all Frenchmen) are rude. Just like people in any big city are rude. If a tourist judged all of the US by how they get treated by New Yorkers, they’d probably think we were all jerks, too. (And have you ever observed an American tourist in a foreign country? Come on, they are the definition of rude…and ignorant.) Sure, there are some older generations of stinky French people, but that goes for all of Europe.
posted by Shasta on 5-14-2009 at 2:42 pm
I think the English and French peoples have such a disdain because they see o much of themselves in the opposing cultures.
Both the English and French have been been rude to foreigners, shown snobbery concerning food and drink, and sought Empires.
What do I know, though? I’m simply an American and we can all agree that the Americans are among the most hated in the world.
posted by Frosty on 5-16-2009 at 11:31 am
Shasta,
While the article itself was about stereotype, your indulgence in them is nothing short of astounding. It’s a like you had a checklist: The French are superior and the rest of the world is jealous; New Yorkers are rude; and American tourists are ignorant.
I’d say the French are pretty much just like everyone else — I’ve had crappy food in France, just like I’ve had crappy food in every other country I’ve lived in or visited; French wines have been surpassed by Californian, Italian, South African, New Zealand wines, meaning that they now share the title of “good wine”; and according to recent studies, the reason they’re all so attractive is that their women and men are disturbingly anorexic. Now wonder they riot all the time — they’re suffering from low blood sugar.
Even President Sarkozy agreed, in his 2006 autobiography, that the British enjoyed a higher standard of life than the French.
As a former New Yorker, I take exception to the idea that New Yorkers are rude. They’re not and indeed, travelers from other countries that I’ve met have said that New Yorkers are some of the friendliest and most helpful people they’ve met.
And as an American tourist at various points in my life, I can tell you that I’m not rude, nor am I ignorant, and that in fact, most American tourists are so afraid of pissing someone off or doing the wrong thing that they are among the politest of people. Since everyone hates us, we have to work extra hard, non?
Anyway, just thought I’d add my two-cents. Or pence. Or whatever.
posted by LMRM on 5-19-2009 at 5:33 am
The british dont hate the french and the french dont hate the british, they just like to poke fun at each over from time to time. Kind of like the US and canada. Look at the 100 years and you will find that they have always been on the same side. And anyway you will find that every country in europe tends to say they hate every other country in europe but if this is true would there be an EU?
posted by asdfggg on 5-25-2009 at 7:51 am
I’m a Southerner, and haven’t found people in NYC to be rude in the least (or Chicago either for that matter).
posted by jj on 5-29-2009 at 2:37 pm
I don’t think it’s hating the French; I can certainly see them looking down their noses at the French! The Brits created the mother of Parliaments; the greatest constitutional monarchy and one of the most stable societies of all times. Let’s contrast that to the FIFTH French republic! As for fashion and food that does not compare in history as having the same weight, to say the least!
posted by blondelara on 6-5-2009 at 10:49 am
I have found The English around the London Region to be most Obnoxious and very Rude,the so called Home Counties. The Further away from London you get the Nicer the People are. The English like to Point the Finger at everybody Else,it is in their Nature. Perhaps it is because of the Empire they had they like to look down their Noses at other Nations.
Those Stereotypes you Speak about the French are Basically those Trotted out by the English and picked up by other Countries Citizens. I have Visited France Twice and no where did I find People in the least Rude. I have been in Paris twice and in Bordeaux and the People have been most Courteous even the Paris Taxi Drivers. They are not all Thin and Anorexic,I have found a fair Proportion of them to be Pleasantly Plump and some even Fat. I have found them to be Clean and Wholesome and they Appear to Wash every Day and change their Underwear.
The French like you to take an interest in their Culture and Language and even if you do not Speak it they Appreciate you Speaking the Odd Words A La Francais. The Irish and the French have always gotten on well together , The Auld Alliance. We have always agreed The Common Enemy I suppose The Anglais.
posted by John on 7-14-2009 at 9:43 am
The french are great people these reasons are so stupid.
they are masters of artistic craft learn and enjoy .all hate isunfounded ingnorance love not hate.
plus the english have offened many beautiful cultures and should apoligise for this expessaly to arabs,french,africians and aboriginies.
posted by samuel welsh on 9-11-2009 at 12:48 pm