PARIS (AP) — Paris welcomed a special guest on Sunday, France's national holiday. Olympic Torch Lighting up the city's spectacular military parade Bastille Day.
Just 12 days before an ambitious, highly-secure event is to take place in the French capital. Summer OlympicsThe torch relay was joined by thousands of soldiers, sailors, rescue workers and medical workers who marched through Paris under the roar of fighter jets.
As people across France celebrate the day with concerts, parties and fireworks, we take a look at what the holiday is all about and what's different this year.
What does Bastille Day celebrate?
On July 14, 1789, revolutionaries stormed the Bastille fortress and prison in Paris, marking the beginning of the French Revolution and the end of monarchy.
The holiday is central to the French calendar, with events held across the country. The holiday is meant to embody the country's motto of “Liberty, Equality, Fraternity,” but not all French people attach great importance to it. Keeping that promise.
The Paris parade is the highlight of the holiday, and this year it pays tribute to those who liberated France from Nazi occupation 80 years ago. The D-Day landings on June 6, 1944 Then there will be presentations by military personnel from 31 countries who contributed to liberation, about half of which are from African countries that were under French colonial rule during World War II.
Who is participating?
The meticulously choreographed procession included some 4,000 people and 162 horses, including troops from NATO missions in Eastern Europe, fighting Islamic militants in the Sahel, defending French territories in the South Pacific and maritime corridors around the world, and this year three German officers from the Transborder Brigade.
Decorative uniforms are imbued with symbolic meaning, most notably those of the French Foreign Legion's engineers, with their long beards, leather aprons and axes, a reference to their original role in clearing a path for the march.
Above, a formation of 65 aircraft flew, including British Typhoon fighter jets, French Mirage and Rafale jets, rescue helicopters and planes used for missions from Afghanistan to Mali and international drug busts.
President Emmanuel Macron kicked off Sunday's events with a military review.
The military band and choir played an important role, performing a medley of French military songs, American jazz tunes, Scottish bagpipe ballads, and the Marseillaise.
The decrease in figures compared to the previous year was due to Olympic Safety MeasuresAround 130,000 police officers have been deployed across France ahead of the holiday weekend.
What is the political context?
This year's Bastille Day was a distraction from the political turmoil unleashed by President Macron. Sudden election This has weakened pro-business centrist parties and the presidency.
That has left parliament in a deadlock with no clear mandate for responsibility: The prime minister could step down within days and the top-winning left-wing coalition has yet to agree on a proposed successor.
Meanwhile, Russia's war with Ukraine threatens European security. Speaking to military leaders on Saturday, Macron said France would continue to support Ukraine and called for increased defense spending next year, citing the looming threat.
What's different this year?
The Olympic torch relay arrived in Paris just in time.
The parade concluded with the arrival of the torch, escorted by horseback riders, 25 torchbearers and cadets dressed in the five Olympic colours and forming the shape of the five Olympic rings.
The first torchbearer was Colonel Thibaut Valette, an equestrian gold medalist at the 2016 Rio Olympics, who handed the torch to a group of young athletes on the presidential podium, who smiled broadly as they took the baton.
The parade usually takes place from the Napoleonic Arc de Triomphe to the Place de la Concorde, where the last King and Queen of France were beheaded.
This year, Concorde was transformed into a giant Olympic venue for breakdancing, skateboarding and BMX, so the parade route instead headed through the Bois de Boulogne park on the edge of the city.
Construction of the Olympic venues around the Eiffel Tower has also prevented spectators from gathering at the base of the tower to watch the annual fireworks show.
After its debut on Bastille Day, the torch relay is due to head to other Paris landmarks on Monday, passing through Notre Dame Cathedral, the historic Sorbonne university and the Louvre museum.
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Philippe Marion in Paris contributed.
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See AP's Olympics coverage here https://apnews.com/hub/2024-Paris-Olympics
