Bastille Day: What You Need to Know About France’s National Day
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Bastille Day is the English name for France’s national day on July 14. In France, you’ll more often hear la fête nationale (“the national holiday”) or le 14 juillet (“July 14”). The date recalls both the storming of the Bastille in 1789 and the Fête de la Fédération held on the same date in 1790. It has been France’s official national holiday since 1880.
I studied French at university and speak it fluently. Below, I’ll explain that history, the main traditions, what visitors should check before attending an event, and useful French vocabulary with audio.
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A Brief History of Bastille Day
By July 1789, the French Revolution was already under way. In Paris, food shortages, the dismissal of finance minister Jacques Necker and fears about royal troops fuelled unrest. Crowds sought weapons and gunpowder, then attacked the Bastille, a medieval fortress that had become a state prison and a symbol of arbitrary royal power. When it fell on July 14, only seven prisoners were inside, but the event gained enormous symbolic force.
The storming did not single-handedly start the Revolution, but it became one of its defining events. On July 14, 1790, the Fête de la Fédération celebrated national unity on the first anniversary of the Bastille’s fall. When France made July 14 its national holiday in 1880, the law named the date without specifying a year; the public memory of the holiday therefore connects the revolutionary event of 1789 with the federation of 1790.
The republican motto Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité (“Liberty, Equality, Fraternity”) was not created at the Bastille. The three words came together during the Revolution, became a principle of the Republic in 1848 and were established more firmly under the Third Republic. Today, the public holiday is observed across metropolitan and overseas France, while local programmes and experiences vary.
Bastille Day Traditions and Celebrations
July 14 is a public holiday, but opening hours vary: public services and many workplaces close, while some shops, restaurants and attractions remain open. Check each venue rather than assuming the whole country shuts down.
Military ceremony: Paris holds the best-known défilé militaire du 14 juillet (“July 14 military parade”). Its route, participating units and visitor arrangements can change from year to year.
Fireworks: Cities and towns often schedule des feux d’artifice (“fireworks”) on July 13 or 14. Times, locations, cancellations and access rules are local decisions.
Bals des pompiers: Some fire stations host public dances on July 13 or 14. The programme, admission arrangements and age rules vary by station.
Tricolour decorations: The blue, white and red French flag is le drapeau tricolore (“the tricolour flag”). You’ll see it on public buildings and along parade routes.
La Marseillaise: The French national anthem begins Allons enfants de la Patrie, le jour de gloire est arrivé ! A closer translation is “Arise, children of the Fatherland, the day of glory has arrived!”
Bastille Day in Paris and Other French Cities
Paris usually holds its national military parade on or near the Champs-Élysées, with the President of the Republic and invited officials at the state ceremony. The route and format can move when major works, security needs or exceptional events require it, so use the current official programme rather than an old itinerary.
Paris also commonly schedules a concert and fireworks around the Eiffel Tower. Large crowds, transport changes and security perimeters are part of the day. Elsewhere in France, local councils publish their own parade, concert, dance and fireworks plans; some events happen on the evening of July 13.
The Louvre’s current policy offers free museum admission on July 14 unless the date falls on its regular Tuesday closure, and a timed reservation is required. Check the Louvre’s official guidance before planning a visit. For a sense of the Paris display, you can also watch the Eiffel Tower fireworks.
Bastille Day Vocabulary in French
Here are the main terms in French. Common nouns stay lowercase; proper names such as France, la Bastille, la Révolution française and La Marseillaise keep their capitals. The audio gives you each full table entry. For four useful reference points, la fête nationale is /la fɛt na.sjɔ.nal/, le quatorze juillet is /lə ka.tɔʁz ʒɥi.jɛ/, Vive la France ! is /viv la fʁɑ̃s/, and feux d’artifice is /fø daʁ.ti.fis/.
| English | French | Audio |
|---|---|---|
| “National day” | la fête nationale | |
| “Have a good National Day!” | Bonne fête nationale ! | |
| “Long live France!” | Vive la France ! | |
| “July 14” | le quatorze juillet | |
| “The Bastille” (prison) | la Bastille | |
| “The French Revolution” | la Révolution française | |
| “Liberty, equality, fraternity” | Liberté, Égalité, Fraternité | |
| “Military parade” | le défilé militaire | |
| “To watch the parade” | regarder le défilé | |
| “Fireworks” | les feux d’artifice | |
| “To enjoy the fireworks” | profiter des feux d’artifice | |
| “Firefighters’ ball” | le bal des pompiers | |
| “The French tricolour flag” | le drapeau tricolore | |
| “La Marseillaise” (the French national anthem) | La Marseillaise | |
| “Public holiday” | jour férié (usually un jour férié in a sentence) | |
| “Celebration, festival” | la fête | |
| “Crowd” | la foule | |
| “Event” | l’événement | |
| “Ceremony” | la cérémonie |
Vive la France !
If your visit to France falls around July 14, check the official programme for the town or city you’ll be in. Confirm transport, access, reservations and cancellation notices before setting out. Then use the vocabulary above to ask about le défilé, le bal des pompiers or les feux d’artifice. The history behind the holiday is also a useful companion to exploring French food and the basics of the language.
For your next step, choose three terms from the table, listen to each clip, and use them to describe a local July 14 event. You can find more practice in our French learning resources.
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