I'm not sure how this fixes it, since Clovis was still king of the Franks and Capet was still the first king of France. If you really want the answer to be Clovis, you could re-word the question to "who is usually considered to be the first king of the area that would later become France." Rolls off the tongue, donit? Or you could say "the originator of the French nation." But he wasn't the first king of France, even if De Gaulle liked to think of him that way :P
I agree with redsplat. The Franks also settled throughout Germany (Frankfurt, Franconia) Belgium, and elsewhere, and Clovis was their ruler. He may as well also be called the first king in Germany or Belgium. The historical fact is that there was no France and no Germany at the time of Clovis, and as a result the question could be seen as misleading.
Anyways, Hugh Capet is not the first king of France either, he's just the first capetian. The first true king of France is arguably Philippe II Auguste.
I'm on Team Quizmaster here. The history of France didn't start when it was called France. More importantly, in regard to this question, there's a fairly complete line of kings all the way back to Clovis.
Clovis is just a latinized version of Louis (U and V are the same in Latin, and the C was later dropped for some reason). So both Clovis and Louis I should be accepted as they mean the same thing... either that, or remove Louis I as an option.
To all those who claim that Hugues Capet was the first French king: he wasn't. Clovis of the Merovingian dynasty is listed as the first French king in any standard French history textbook, mostly because he was the first of the post-Rome pagan rulers to be baptized. I know that the territory controlled by Clovis doesn't correspond exactly to the borders of present-day France, but it's true of later Carolingian and Capetian kings too.
Had a look at that Wikipedia page, which does have Clovis I as the earliest monarch, but also begins by saying it concerns "The monarchs of the Kingdom of France and its predecessors". On kings of France it says, "The Capetian dynasty, the male-line descendants of Hugh Capet, included the first rulers to adopt the title of 'King of France' for the first time with Philip II (r. 1180–1223)". As far as Clovis I the best it says is that "Sometimes included as 'Kings of France' are the kings of the Franks of the Merovingian dynasty". So it's hardly conclusive about Clovis I being the first King of France. In fact, it appears to be saying that he wasn't, but sometimes people include him. Perhaps it's one of those commonly believed, and taught, things that isn't strictly accurate. At the very least it seems open to debate :)
I agree with Hypnon. Whether or not this might be anachronistic, Clovis is unanimously considered the first king of France. This is definitely what is taught in French schools.
^ Why can't the "English spelling" just go along with the actual name, as it does with Brasilia, Sao Paulo, Paramaribo, etc.- What is this obsession with anglicizing everything possible? - By adding the unnecessary "s" to the town's name, Americans especially, are apt to mispronounce it and cause confusion with "La Marseillaise" (the French National Anthem), in which the "s" is pronounced.
Because the speakers, not some higher authority, determines how the English language functions, and they apparently chose Marseilles as acceptable. Either way, I don't see how it changes anything in regards to how similar it is to Marseillaise.
I'm not sure Daguerre "invented" photography, although he was certainly one of the fathers of it. Photography was one of those disciplines that was developed by a few individuals around the same time (e.g. Henry Fox Talbot) and Daguerre was one of those (an important one nonetheless).
To all those who claim that Hugues Capet was the first French king: he wasn't. Clovis of the Merovingian dynasty is listed as the first French king in any standard French history textbook, mostly because he was the first of the post-Rome pagan rulers to be baptized. I know that the territory controlled by Clovis doesn't correspond exactly to the borders of present-day France, but it's true of later Carolingian and Capetian kings too.
PS I'm a French history professor.
I'm French and we used to say Clovis the 1st is the first monarch of France.
You have it also on the Wikipedia page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_French_monarchs