Two weeks ago we celebrated Independence Day here in America. I shot digital pictures at the Centerville, Ohio Americana Parade for the local public access TV station, the Miami Valley Communications Council.
A week ago, on the 14th, France did the same thing in celebrating Bastille Day. Complete with parades and fireworks in the streets, on television, and a spectacular view of nighttime fireworks at the Eiffel Tower, the French people reveled in their Fete Nationale. Also known as French National Day or Le Quatorze Juilliet, this day commemorates the storming of the Bastille. The Bastille was a prison in Paris, and a symbol of the absolute monarchy of King Louis XVI. By storming the Bastille on Tuesday, July 14, 1789, the French people signaled the end of the absolute, and often tyrannical, monarchy, and the birth of liberty, equality, and fraternity in France, and a separation of powers in their government.
This idea has spread all over the world ever since, the latest being in Egypt. And I wanted to take a moment to honor the French people for their courage and bravery in fighting for freedom at a time when that was a new idea, just as the American colonists had a decade earlier. The French were true pioneers!
Excellent blog. It was informative and well written. Thanks for the education, Gene! I am looking forward to your future blogs!
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ReplyDeleteInformative yet succinct. Another winner, Gene. Great job!
ReplyDeleteYou know, it's wonderful to see the citizens of a country celebrate their freedom. Many different countries fought their battles hard and long for those freedoms. It is something well worth celebrating. Maybe one day we will be able to celebrate as a world at peace, not just countries.
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