Did you know the French call their national holiday, the 14th of July, NOT Bastille Day?
La CérémonieThe year's ceremony that will take place at Concorde in lieu of the Military Parade will NOT be open to the public. It will certainly be televised and that is in any case the best way to watch it. There will be hommage to the healthcare workers. The air parade of planes and helicopters seems to be on the schedule also.
La MarseillaiseThe French national anthem sung on the 14th of July and many other occasions is La Marseillaise. Following France’s declaration of war on Austria and Prussia, the mayor of Strasbourg, Baron de Dietrich, asked army engineer Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle to write a marching song. On the night of April 25th 1792, Rouget de Lisle penned the Chant de guerre pour l’armée du Rhin - War song for the Rhine Army, named in honour of the garrison to which he belonged. The song was meant to inspire t…