The area of Île-de-France was born from the royal field made up since the 10th century by the kings Capétiens. Its limits varied until the end of the Ancien Mode. This province extended towards the west and especially north and was less vast than today in direction of the east and the south. It formed the zone of economic interest of the commercial Corporation S of Paris, which contributed to fix contours of them.

It was cut out, following the Révolution, in three departments: the Seine, Seine-et-Oise and Seine-et-Marne. In 1965, the number of departments was carried from three to eight, including Paris. Around Paris, the departments of the small crown (Hauts-de-Seine, Seine-Saint-Denis and the Valley-of-Marne) and large crown (Seine-et-Marne, Val-d'Oise, Yvelines and the Essonne are resulting from the cutting of old the department of Seine-et-Oise and of the the Seine.

The area is inhabited since the prehistoric time, which left many traces, of which monuments megalithic, often destroyed because of urbanization.

At the time Gallic, the current territory of the Ile-de-France was occupied by four tribe S Gallic: in the center the Parisii whose capital Lutèce was to become Paris, in north the Véliocasses which gave their name to the Vexin, in the west the Carnutes which occupied the current territory of the Yvelines and in south-east the Sénons whose capital was with Sens.

The name of island-of-France appeared well later, after the establishment of the Francs and corresponds to the plain located at the north of the Seine, or Pays of France,

See too

• History of Paris
• History of the Essonne
• History of Seine-et-Marne
• History of the Val-d'Oise
• History of Yvelines