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Seen from above, borders often bear traces of past conflicts: fortresses, bunkers, fortification lines, monitoring stations ... The border between France and Germany is a perfect example as it has continuously changed, from one conflict to the next, but also during the unification of Germany.

Borders are cultural structures, although they can follow reliefs, river beds or coast lines. There are no “obvious” borders that "naturally" set two peoples against each other.
The notion of borders has evolved in a purely military sense: it once referred to points of discontinued fortifications built to allow troops to advance. During the 18th century, it came to mean a continuous demarcation line that also relied on natural barriers. The border between France and Germany, though, had always been a military issue. Although over time, it gradually became a line of peace.