Bastille Day!

[TheBarrett]

In the wake of the 11 July dismissal of the royal finance minister Jacques Necker, the people of Paris, fearful that they and their representatives would be attacked by the royal military, and seeking to gain arms for the general populace, stormed the Bastille, a prison which had often held people jailed on the basis of lettre de cachet, arbitrary royal indictments that could not be appealed. Besides holding a large cache of arms, the Bastille had been known for holding political prisoners whose writings had displeased the royal government, and was thus a symbol of the absolutism of the monarchy. As it happened, at the time of the siege in July 1789 there were only seven inmates, none of great political significance.

When the crowd (legend says it was organised by descendants of Knights Templar)— eventually reinforced by mutinous gardes françaises — proved a fair match for the fort's defenders, the commander of the Bastille, Governor de Launay capitulated and opened the gates to avoid a mutual massacre. However, possibly because of a misunderstanding, fighting resumed. Ninety-eight attackers and just one defender died in the actual fighting, but in the aftermath, De Launay and seven other defenders were killed, as was the 'prévôt es marchands' (roughly, mayor) Jacques de Flesselles.

The storming of the Bastille was more important as a rallying point and symbolic act of rebellion than a practical act of defiance.

Shortly after the storming of the Bastille, on 4 August feudalism was abolished and on 26 August, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen proclaimed.


The Bastille Day is a yearly holiday in France held on July 14th to celebrate the storming of the Bastille, a symbol of oppression to the French Revolutionaries during the rule of the mishapen King Louis XVI.

So on behalf of France (and Alizée), happy Bastille Day!

[tbailey]

just watched a show on the history channel on the french revolution

it's really interesting stuff - the should make a high-budget modern movie trilogy on it

[BlackAdder]

I was going to post something on this yesterday, but I was stuck out of town and could not get to a computer with internet access.

I get the unique honor of acutally having the last name of Bastille, so this day has always had significance for me.

Happy Bastille Day! (Belated)

[puffyrock2]

Looks like a good opportunity to listen to "Bastille Day" by Rush
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[TheBarrett]

My sentiments exactly Puffyrock2.

Guillotine WILL claim her bloody prize.