Bastille Day 2024: Military Parade, Fireworks & Paris Olympics Torch Relay To Mark France's National Holiday

Every year, France observes its national holiday - Bastille Day - on July 14. This year, the French holiday celebrations will go up a notch as they will be accompanied by the torch relay ceremony for the upcoming Paris Olympics 2024.

To mark the storming of the Bastille, "the oldest and largest military parade in Europe" is usually held on the Champs-Élysées in Paris. However, this year, the parade will be held on Avenue Foch, in front of President Emmanual Macron, French officials and foreign guests.

For Bastille Day parade last year, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi was the guest of honour.

Bastille Day 2024 Significance And History

Every year, the 14th of July is observed as a national holiday in France called the Bastille Day. On this day in 1789, the storming of the Bastille was carried out, which later on become a key event of the French Revolution.

Months after rising tensions between the reformist and conservative factions of Paris amid an economic crisis, French Finance Minister Jacques Necker was dismissed by King Louis XVI on July 11.

His dismissal triggered an angry response from the people of Paris. Crowds formed, protests were carried out across the city.

Following this, people of Paris "seized weapons from the armoury at the Invalides and marched in the direction of an ancient Royal fortress, the Bastille."

After a lot of bloodshed, the crowd broke into Bastille and released a handful of prisoners inside. This storming marked the first victory of Paris against the Old Regime and is known as a crucial turning point in the French Revolution.

Bastille Day is marked to commemorate the historical significance of the French Revolution and the impact it had on the advancement of democracy across the globe. July 14 is also a celebration of France's three fundamental ideals - liberty, equality and fraternity.

Bastille Day 2024 Celebrations To Be Accompanied With Paris Olympics

A parade of all parades outside the Champs-Élysées in Paris and fireworks mark the celebrations for July 14. However, this year's celebrations will also include the torch relay ceremony for the Paris Olympics. As part of the new additions, the July 14 parade will be held, for the second time in its history, on Avenue Foch.  

As per the official website, The Olympic Flame will travel a total of 58.5 kilometres on July 14 and 15 before reaching Saint-Quentin and the department of Aisne. The torch will make its first appearance during the traditional Bastille Day parade at 1 PM local time before starting its journey.

The flame will travel across with selected torchbearers, including BTS member Jin, across major hotspots of the city.