1789 - French Revolution: Citizens of Paris storm the Bastille and free seven prisoners.
1789年的今天,法国大革命中,巴黎市民攻占了巴士底狱并让七名囚犯获得自由。
背景资料:
During the reign of King Louis XVI, France was forced to confront a major financial crisis which had been brewing for decades. On May 5, 1789, the Estates-General of 1789 convened to deal with this issue, but was held back by archaic protocols and the conservatism of the Second Estate. On June 17, 1789, the representatives of the Third Estate reconstituted themselves as the National Assembly, a body whose purpose was the creation of a French constitution. The king initially opposed this development, but was forced to acknowledge the authority of the assembly, which subsequently renamed itself the National Constituent Assembly on July 9.
The Storming of the Bastille on July 14, 1789 was an important symbolic development in the French Revolution. Although at the time the Bastille contained only seven prisoners, its taking marked the beginning of open rebellion against the king. The first anniversary of the event was celebrated by holding the Fête de la Fédération. The Fête de la Fédération is itself commemorated each year in France in an event known in English as Bastille Day, France's national holiday.
巴士底狱是一座巴黎非常坚固的要塞,高30米,围墙很厚,有七个塔楼。上面架着大炮,里面有个军火库。它建造于12世纪,当时是一座军事城堡,目的是防御英国人的进攻,所以就建在巴黎城门前。后来,在巴黎市区不断扩大下,巴士底要塞成了市区东部的建筑,失去了防御外敌的作用。18世纪末,它是控制巴黎的制高点,法国国王在里面驻扎了大量军队,专门关押政治犯。例如,文学家伏尔泰在此处坐过牢。
19世纪的浪漫主义历史家把巴士底狱当作法国专制王朝的象征,并把1789年7月14日巴士底狱的攻占描写成伟大的功绩,代表英勇巴黎人民解放被压迫的农民的一个事件。
现代的法国历史家对于巴士底狱给予一些比较中肯的评价:当时的巴士底狱实际上是全法国生活条件最好的一个监狱,并且不是巴黎人民所畏惧的皇朝的象征。巴士底狱被攻占那一天,巴士底狱里发现只有7个囚犯,大部分是被自己人关押的贵族家庭的精神病患者。
自从1879年,为了纪念法兰西第一共和国的建立,法国政府宣布把7月14日作为国庆节。