Let them Eat Cake: La Fête Nationale

Known as “Bastille Day” in English speaking countries, Le 14 Juillet (14th of July) or La Fête Nationale (the national holiday) celebrates France’s patriotism and democracy.

In the lead up to our summer jaunt through France, I read one of Melissa’s old college textbooks: The Coming of the French Revolution in order to be a little more educated (goal achieved, I was a little more educated). The combination of France’s poor economic conditions (in part due to France’s support for the American Revolution), a few years of poor harvests, shortages of bread and tight control of the grain supply, the dying out of feudalism, new taxes on the clergy, bourgeoise and working classes and resentment of the elite top 3% of the country led to riots and uprisings, peaceful debate in the free press (which included the writings of the enlightenment writers) and at Versailles during a session of the representative government and the attack on the Bastille Prison.

The Bastille was a symbol. It had historically held political prisoners, but during the attack no one of note was held there and only seven “prisoners”, some of whose families were paying to keep them there, were in the Bastille. Yet, the attack was symbolic and gave legs to the National movement of a more representative government for France.

The first “Fête de la Federation” was celebrated on July 14, 1790 a year after the Bastille prison was attacked and was meant as a sign of peace and unity during the French Revolution. In the 1880s plans were made to transform the holiday into its more present day form.

The 14 of July was a problematic date, being a day marked as a symbol of violence, the illegality of the actions of July 14, 1789 and the bloodiness of the revolution itself. So the foundation of the national holiday was based on that of the original Fête de la Federation: a celebration of French unity and national pride.

And though Marie Antoinette (or any other member of the royalty for that matter) may not have ever uttered “let them eat cake” in response to the peasants’ plight to find bread during those bad harvest years, on the Fête Nationale, all of France comes to celebrate with baguette, brioche, biscuits and cake: with parades and fireworks and plenty of national pride.

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