This past Tuesday was Bastille Day, a French holiday celebrating the country’s independence. The French National Day is celebrated on July 14 and is celebrated to commemorate the storming of the Bastille prison in 1789, which helped spark the French Revolution. This was the culmination in Paris of a violent revolution that had begun two days earlier.
Bastille Day festivities include fireworks and a parade, similar to 4th of July celebrations in America. The parade is the oldest and largest regular military parade in Europe, and many foreign dignitaries are invited. The Bastille Day Military Parade has been held on the morning of July 14th each year in Paris since 1880. Allies have participated in the event since 1918, except for the German occupation between 1940 and 1944, to represent the Versailles Peace Conference.
To view the Paris 2015 firework’s display, click here: http://www.bbc.com/news/world-europe-33536025
