Compared to the united states, france during the 19th century was ?

At the time of the French Revolution, France had expanded to nearly the modern territorial limits. The 19th century would complete the process by the annexation of the Duchy of Savoy and the city of Nice (first during the First Empire, and then definitively in 1860) and some small papal (like Avignon) and foreign possessions. France's territorial limits were greatly extended during the Empire through Revolutionary and Napoleonic military conquests and re-organization of Europe, but these were reversed by the Vienna Congress. Savoy and the Nice were definitively annexed following France's victory in the Franco-Austrian War in 1859.

The executive branch is more responsible for interpreting laws !