The history of the Jews of France deals with the Jews and Jewish communities in France. There has been a Jewish presence in France since at least the early Middle Ages. France was once a center of Jewish learning, but persecution increased as the Middle Ages wore on, including multiple expulsions and returns. Later on, during the French Revolution, France was the first country in Europe to emancipate its Jewish population, but antisemitism remained an issue despite legal equality, as illustrated in the Dreyfus affair of the late 19th century. During World War II, 75% of the Jewish population in France survived the Holocaust. France has the largest Jewish population in Europe and the third largest Jewish population in the world (after Israel and the United States). The Jewish community in France is estimated from a core population of 480,000-500,000 to an enlarged population of 600,000. French Jewish communities are found mainly in the metropolitan areas of Paris, Marseille, Lyon, Strasbourg, and Toulouse.