Narendra Modi Chief Guest at Bastille Day Parade

Bastille Day is the national day of France. It is celebrated on July 14 every year to mark the anniversary of the Storming of the Bastille in 1789. In France, this day is called the Fete nationale francaise. Bastille was a political prison which had withheld several French soldiers. In 1789, a mob of local residents attacked the prison, took control of it and released the prisoners held there. The domination of the Bastille by ordinary people marked the start of the French Revolution and symbolised the end of the monarchy. This is why it is an important event in the history of France and is celebrated annually. 

This year to celebrate the Bastille Day parade, French President Emmanuel Macron, invited Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to be the chief guest of the event. Every year on Bastille Day a military parade is organized along with dancing and other merry-making events. Narendra Modi arrived in Paris on July 13. To welcome him, the French President hosted a banquet dinner at Louvre Museum. The two revolutionaries attended a joint press conference where they discussed the political and friendly relationships between India and France. 

Before Narendra Modi, Prime Minister Manmohan Singh had attended the Bastille Day celebrations in 2009 along with 400 members of the Indian Army who participated in the military parade.