:Geology of France
{{Short description|none}}
{{Expand French|Géologie de la France|date=July 2016}}
File:France geological map-fr.svg.]]
File:Domaines geologiques france.png
The regional geology of France is commonly divided into the Paris Basin, the Armorican Massif, the Massif Central, the Aquitaine Basin, the Pyrenees, the Alps, the Côte languedocienne, the Sillon rhodanien, the Massif des Vosges, the Massif Ardennais, the Alsace graben (Rhine graben) and Flanders Basin.{{cite book|editor-first=Eldridge M. |editor-last=Moores|title=Encyclopedia of European and Asian regional geology|year=1997|publisher=Chapman & Hall|location=London [u.a.]|isbn=978-0412740404}}
Alpine orogen
{{Main|Geology of the Alps}}
The regions Alsace, Franche-Comté, Rhône-Alpes and Provence-Alpes-Côte d'Azur are part of the Western Alps.{{cite journal|last=Schmid|first=Stefan M.|author2=Fügenschuh, Bernhard |author3=Kissling, Eduard |author4= Schuster, Ralf |title=Tectonic map and overall architecture of the Alpine orogen|journal=Eclogae Geologicae Helvetiae|date=30 April 2004|volume=97|issue=1|pages=93–117|doi=10.1007/s00015-004-1113-x|doi-access=free}} Sediment from the Valais ocean crop out in the Versoyen unit. The basement of the Briançonnais microcontinent crop out at Gran Paradiso, Dora Maira, Ambine, Vanoise and Ruitor. The Briançonnais cover sequences crop out in the Zone Houillère. External massifs include the Belledonne massif, Mont Blanc massif, Pelvoux-Écrins massif and the Argentera massif. Sediments from the Piemont-Liguria Ocean crop out in Embrunais and Ubaye.{{cite web|last=Bousquet|first=Romain|title=Tectonic framework of the Alps|url=http://perso.univ-rennes1.fr/romain.bousquet/Alps/Maps/tecto.html|access-date=26 February 2013}} The Jura mountains are part of the Helvetic nappes, that represent deposits from the European margin that were involved in the Alpine orogeny.
Massif Central
File:France Massif central.jpg
{{Main|Massif Central (geology)}}
The geographic region of the Massif Central coincides with the geologic region with the same name. It is part of the Variscan orogenic cycle.{{cite journal|last=Lardeaux|first=J.M|author2=Ledru, P |author3=Daniel, I |author4= Duchene, S |title=The Variscan French Massif Central—a new addition to the ultra-high pressure metamorphic 'club': exhumation processes and geodynamic consequences|journal=Tectonophysics|date=28 February 2001|volume=332|issue=1–2|pages=143–167|doi=10.1016/S0040-1951(00)00253-5|url=http://patrick.ledru.info/pdf/Lardeaux%20et%20al.pdf|access-date=28 February 2013}} It was also a region of active volcanism during the Cenozoic.
References
{{Reflist}}