Most if not all French or German knives use some variant of Krupp 4116 which, while an excellent steel for the purpose is not high on edge retention. In fact the lower HRC causes rolling which requires frequent strokes on a rod. If edge retention is what you are after, look to a Japanese knife that uses a powder steel like R2(SG2) or SRS15. These knives are usually around 62 HRC and will hold a sharpened edge for a very long time.