Starting Population     169                     % of Worldwide          0.5%                    

                                                Population                                      

Starting Income         2,789                   % of Worldwide          0.4%                    

                                                Income                                          

Starting GDP            14,817                  % of Worldwide GDP      0.2%                    

Starting Surplus        253                     % of Worldwide          0.8%                    

                                                Surplus                                         

4 fiefs in province                             Overlord:               d'Artois (240)
          

Kingdom: France

Comments: Ponthieu et Artois is a small county in northwestern France, just south of the Pas de Calais, bounded on the north by Flanders and the east by Picardie. Originally a part of Gallica Belgica, the county formed part of what became Flanders after the fall of Rome, not becoming a separate entity until 1180, when King Philip I married Isabel of Hainaut. In 1329 the county passed to a Burgundian line of counts. The county --actually two counties, Ponthieu and Artois-- forms a part of the Archiepiscopal province of Reims. There is considerable trade and industry in the towns, notably woolens, and the local region is quite fertile.