Today in History: Bastille Day!

On this day (July 14) in 1789, a mob of Parisians, frightened that the king would bring in the army against the National Assembly, stormed a medieval fortress known as the Bastille to get control of the arsenal of muskets there and free political prisoners. (There were only seven prisoners in the Bastille at the time and none were held for “political” crimes.) This was a turning point in the French Revolution changing the political equation by putting serious arms in the hands of the population of Paris and pushing the Revolution further toward radical change. Today it is a celebration of the unity of France which sports the oldest regular military parade in Europe. To all of our French friends and readers, Happy Bastille Day!