Bastille Day: Quick Facts

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Photos and Videos

Colored engraving showing a crowd of revolutionaries storming the Bastille fortress, with smoke and flames rising from a building, during the French Revolution on July 14, 1789.

Patrouille de France jets fly over Paris, leaving blue, white, and red smoke trails above the Grand Palais with a French flag on top, during Bastille Day celebrations.

French soldiers in formal uniforms with red plumed hats march in formation along the Champs Elysees under French flags, with trees lining the street in the background.

Rows of soldiers in uniform march with flags near the Arc de Triomphe during the Great Victory Parade in Paris, France, celebrating the end of World War I.

Black and white illustration of French revolutionaries storming the Bastille, with armed crowds, cannon, smoke, and the fortress gate in the background.

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