France Bastille Day 2022: History, significance and all you need to know

Every year, Bastille Day is celebrated on July 14 to commemorate the foundation of the French Republic. Bastille Day is basically the national day of France. Le quatorze juillet (The Fourteenth of July), Fête Nationale ("National Holiday") or La Fête du 14-Juillet (14th July Holiday) are some of the official names for the day in French. It also marks the anniversary of the “storming of the Bastille”, which occurred on 14 July 1789, a pivotal moment in the French Revolution. Further, it also observes the Fête de la Fédération, which acknowledged the unification of the French people on 14 July 1790.    

According to the French government, the July 14 celebrations are still quite popular. A meticulously orchestrated sight is the annual, traditional military parade on the Champs-Elysées in Paris. Throughout the nation, dances, fireworks displays, and special illuminations are staged. Other French government representatives and international visitors took part in addition to the President of the Republic in the celebrations. 

France Bastille Day history

This day honours the French people who had finally united together in a mass movement in an effort to seize control of their own nation after years of misrule by the monarchy with rising taxes and increased food costs. Parisians came together on July 14, 1789, to march on the Bastille. According to the Office Holiday website, the Bastille was a mediaeval fortification built in the 14th century that later served as a jail. 

The storming of the Bastille is considered to be the start of the French Revolution and came to represent liberty, democracy, and the fight against tyranny for all of France's citizens. In September of that year, the 800-year-old monarchy was eventually abolished in France, and Louis XVI was guillotined in January of the following year for treason. 

France celebrates Bastille Day

French citizens celebrate the day with their well-known Bastille Day military parade. This annual custom began in 1880 and is being practised today. Many visitors from around the world go to France to see this famous march. The parade, which is also shown on French television, is the biggest and oldest regular military representation in all of Europe. 

Besides the famous parade, French citizens also attend one of the many Bals des Pompiers, or firemen's balls in English, by dancing the night away. In addition, a number of major tourist destinations, including museums, are free to access on this day. This year, Bastille Day 2022 falls on Thursday.  

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