national holiday on July 6th, 1880. Bastille Day has such a strong signification for the French because the holiday symbolizes the birth of the Republic.
Bastille Day is commemorated world-wide. For instance, in Philadelphia people dressed as French revolutionaries mark the day by singing the speaker icon La Marseillaise, the French national anthem.
In France, the day holds many festivities. Military parades are held in the morning, the largest of which takes place on the Champs-Elysees avenue in Paris in front of the President of the Republic. The parade opens with cadets from certain schools, followed by infantry troops, which are then followed by motorized troops. During the entire parade, aviation flies above. In recent times, it has become customary to invite units from France’s close allies into the parade. For instance, in 2002