The Angevin Empire

[poliphilo]

Keith, my bro-in-law, was showing us pictures from their holiday in the Dordogne. They were staying with English friends in their house in a dirt-poor medieval town where, judging from the pictures, there are no French people whatsoever.

The French flee their countryside for the city, leaving the field wide open for middle-class English people to come in and gobble-up property at ridiculous prices. If this trend continues, rural France will be populated entirely by the English and we'll be well on track towards re-establishing the glorious Angevin Empire.

In the reign of Henry II (remember him from the Lion in Winter?) the Kings of England (who were Frenchmen really) controlled a coastal strip that ran all the way from the Scottish borders to the Pyrenees. It was a geographical unit that made as much sense as most modern nations. I want it back. I want it back NOW!

Comments

[ibid.livejournal.com]

I cannot imagine anything more ghastly than to go abroad and find nobody except English people.

And these are usually the types who complain Britain is being overrun by foriegners....

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

But just suppose all the foreigner-hating Brits went to live abroad, leaving Britain to be populated by delightful foreigners. Now that would be rather super.

Seriously though, in the debate about immigration, no-one seems to have anything to say about all the emigrating Brits.
But surely if they're leaving, that means there's space for immigrants to fill.

Another question: Why is it so dreadful for foreigners to want to settle over here but perfectly all right for the British middle-classes to colonise Tuscany and the Dordogne? We even have TV programmes that encourage them to do so. It fair puts my head in a spin.

[ibid.livejournal.com]

Finally! Someone who agrees with me!!!!

Besides this way I get to see the world without having to fly, what could be better!

this is rather belated, but

[four-thorns.livejournal.com]

it's pretty ironic that british people don't want foreigners taking up residence in their country... maybe they should have thought about that before colonizing half the world.

Re: this is rather belated, but

[poliphilo.livejournal.com]

My feelings exactly.