July 14th begins with morning gun salutes and a parade down the main street of Jacques and Luc’s town in the Bordeaux region of France. The vineyard where Jacques and Luc live hosts a huge Bastille Day picnic every year. They have a lot of delicious food like merguez et frites (a spicy North African sausage with fries), croissants, and crepes (very thin pancakes).

Jacques and Luc love the fireworks the most! Bordeaux celebrates on the eve of Bastille Day with open-air dancing and fireworks, set off from a barge on the Garonne river. Jacques and Luc can see these fireworks from their house! They are the most beautiful fireworks.

Just like the signing of the Declaration of Independence on July 4th is recognized as the beginning to the American Revolution, the storming of the Bastille is seen as the beginning to the French Revolution. Both these events brought the end to kings and queens and the start of people governing themselves.

The Bastille was a prison in France. Many people saw it as a symbol of all the bad things done by the kings and queens in France. On July 14, 1789 some French citizens broke into the Bastille to free prisoners who were unfairly kept there! This day is now France’s most important national holiday.

Bastille Day is celebrated all over France with ceremonies, dancing and parties. In Paris, there is a huge military parade on the Champs Elysées and jets fly overhead in formation! When night falls, colorful fireworks light up the sky around the Eiffel Tower.

Jacques and Luc are going to have a wonderful Bastille Day in France! They wish you a happy Independence Day wherever you are.