RSS
Home
Celebrate liberté in Philadelphia this Bastille Day
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
"The Tennis Court Oath" by Jacques-Louis David
On July 14, 1789, citizens of France stormed the Bastille prison in Paris in a revolt against the monarchy. King Louis XVI had outraged the French population with his extravagant lifestyle and exorbitant taxation policies, which had plunged the nation into a financial crisis and created vast inequality between the nobility and the common man. The storming of the Bastille and the resulting Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen were the third in a series of events marking the beginning of the French Revolution.
In France, the Quatorze Juillet is celebrated with grand parades, concerts, fireworks, and garden parties. This weekend, celebrate liberté, fraternité, and égalité in the town where American patriots like Thomas Jefferson supported their counterparts across the pond in their quest for freedom.
On Saturday, July 11, Philadelphia holds its annual Bastille Day Street Festival at the Eastern State Penitentiary, which includes tours of the prison, live music from Philadelphia Freedom Band and Musette, a pet parade and tricycle Tour de France, a costume contest, childrens arts and crafts and face painting, and a variey of food and wine exhibits. The event will be topped off with the "storming of the Bastille" at 5:30 p.m., when bourgeoisie and aristorcats alike can take up their pitchforks and carry Marie Antoinette (played by Terry McNally) to the guillotine in a rowdy Tale of Two Cities-style revolt.
Once the monarchy has been successfully guillotined, enjoy a twilight tour of the penitentiary or party like a peasant at participating restaurants, including Mugshots, the London Grill, the Belgian Cafe, and Rembrandt's.
For more information about participating in Bastille Day parades and activities, go to EasternState.org.
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
