I’m somewhat embarrassed to think of the number of miles I’ve driven in Europe without fully understanding the Priorité à droite rules — that’s the French name, at least, though other countries have something similar. This means you should often give way to traffic simply because it’s coming from the right, even if, say, you’re on a larger road and other vehicles are approaching from a smaller road on your right.
When is this the case? This video is a good and detailed explanation, and is valuable viewing for anyone visiting France from the UK or US:
It’s also worth noting that the signs showing the name of a village, as you enter it, may also contain clues as to what is expected of you.
It used to be the case, I believe, that most French roundabouts also worked this way: when you were on the roundabout, you still had to give way to traffic approaching from the right. They changed this, though — I remember big signs when visiting in my youth that said ‘Vous n’avez pas la priorité!’ as you approached the roundabout — so I believe all French rond-points work the same way as the UK, now – but do post comments if I’m wrong!
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