In New Caledonia, the last French colony, two societies continue to coexist: the descendants of the white colonists known as "Caldoches," and the native Kanaks, whose numbers were decimated by the colonists beginning in 1853.

In 1988, New Caledonia was on the verge of a civil war as the native population, the Kanaks, rebelled against economic injustice and demanded their independence. A violent incident on the island of Ouvéa prompted the French government to intervene and even bring in a SWAT team. More violence ensued as negotiations failed.

New Caledonia is still part of France and has not gained its independence despite lenghthy negotiations between loyalists and separatists. Now that the Kanak population is a minority, independence seems unlikely. For more info on New Caledonia, check out these links: https://bit.ly/3cnZgzs, https://bit.ly/2EWfOBG, https://bit.ly/2SyqOrw.

Gérard explains the development of Antibes culminating in the creation of Sophia Antipolis, a kind of science park that changed the face of the city and created a traffic nightmare.

Nice's Jetée-Promenade is the site of a former casino by that name. Built on pilings over the sea, the original building was once a thriving casino attracting many tourists, especially British tourists who flocked to the Riviera.

In May 2000, Luc Vanrell discovered the P Thirty-Eight Lightning aircraft piloted by Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, which was last seen on July 31, 1944. His colleague Philippe Castellano explains how the plane was identified.

In part 2 of this video on the disappearance of Antoine de Saint-Exupéry, you will find out how the remains of his plane were located and retrieved from the bottom of the sea.

The Paris Commune was one of the first extensively photographed revolutionary movements. In its infancy, photography wasn't able to capture motion, but professionals from both sides understood the power of images and used them to convey their own visions of the events.

The first massively photographed insurrection, the Paris Commune, which began on March 18, 1871, revealed the extraordinary power of images, both close to reality and subtly manipulated.

At its peak, under Napoleon, the French territory was three times as large as it is today thanks to the emperor's very successful military campaigns. What was his secret?