I'm sure it's a point of pride. French people are very proud of their language, in general. And, despite being at-peace and having relatively friendly relations with the UK for at least a century, I'm sure there is a lingering sense of rivalry between them. The Britain and France have been adversaries for nearly a thousand years, after all.
> I'm sure there is a lingering sense of rivalry between them.
That's a common stereotype I hear coming from english-speaking people, but it doesn't really translate to any meaningful behaviour in France. I'm afraid if such a rivalry actually persists, it is one-sided.
> The Britain and France have been adversaries for nearly a thousand years, after all.
Germany and France have been pretty cross too in the past, and bad feelings have died off in a generation. I wouldn't give too much credit to this kind of claims based on folk history.
A similar thing seems to be UK-Germany - and no, not just around football (although there it is very pronounced), with UK seeing things way more as a rivalry. (and they love their war references, which is kinda awkward nowadays... I say as a German)
My phrasing was unfairly generalizing, yes. I know these things are not about everyone, but more about trends in tone in media etc, which often can be influenced by quite small groups.
Now, this is just for fun, but did you know that Queen Elizabeth's grandson is named "George Alexander Louis"? How fun would it be if he decided to call himself "King Louis I" when crowned?
I too often like to point out the language of the Franks is currently English 8)
France has an institution: "The Immortals" (1) which looks after the French language. Seat 31 is currently this bloke: Michael Edwards (2). He is British.
