If you say, "Happy Bastille Day" to a Frenchman, he'll give you a strange look. The French national holiday is known on the other side of the pond as, Le Quatorze Juillet, or the 14th of July. On that Summer day, in 1789, the people of Paris stormed the royal fortress of Bastille, and released prisoners. But wait - the French don't celebrate that event. Le Quatorze is about what happened on that July day in 1790, two years after the storming of the Bastille. Fete de la Federation, or Celebration of the Federation, was in honour of the new Republic.
Two years later, troops from Marseille sang a catchy tune, which would come to be known as La Marseillaise, and over the next few years, as it climbed the French hit parade, it was declared a National Anthem. Guess which day in July? On July 14th, 1795 La Marseillaise became the French National Anthem.
Liberty, Equality, and Brotherhood are celebrated in France with ringing church bells, a massive military parade, picnics, accordion music, and neighbourhood dance parties in every fire station in the country. As night falls, the day ends the way July 1st in Canada, and July 4th in the USA, end - with a massive fireworks display!
Marche Des Marseillois sheet music image Wikipedia Images.
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