French Openings

The French openings are categorized by the order given to the Fleet in Brest, as follows:

• Manche Openings, aka the English Attack (F Bre-ENG)
• Atlantic Openings (F Bre-MAO)
• Norman Openings (F Bre-Pic)
• Biscay Openings (F Bre-Gas)

Many of the variants of each of these openings are recognized by unique names. A big French problem is that she has almost too many possible openings. The price of guessing wrong is often grim. In general, a valid French strategy is to get Spain and Portugal in the opening, even at the price of losing a home center. For France, such a loss is frequently only temporary if her diplomacy is sharp.