The
Fête de la Fédération of the 14 July 1790 was a huge feast and official event to celebrate the establishment of the short-lived
constitutional monarchyA constitutional monarchy is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a written , unwritten or blended constitution...
in
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
and what people of the time considered to be the happy conclusion of the
French RevolutionThe French Revolution was a period of political and social upheaval and radical change in the history of France, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based...
, the outcome hoped for by the
monarchiens. Held on the first anniversary of the
storming of the BastilleThe Storming of the Bastille in Paris occurred on 14 July, 1789. The medieval fortress and prison in Paris known as the Bastille represented royal authority in the center of Paris. While the prison only contained seven prisoners at the time of its storming, its fall was the flashpoint of the French...
, it is commemorated every year by what is commonly known in English as "
Bastille DayBastille Day is the French national holiday, celebrated on 14 July each year. In France, it is called Fête Nationale in official parlance, or more commonly le quatorze juillet ....
" (
Fête du 14 juillet in French).
The
Fête de la Fédération in Paris was the most prominent event of a series of spontaneous celebrations all over France: from August 1789,
Fédérations appeared in towns and countryside; on 5 June 1790, with lots of individual feasts to celebrate the new state of France, a constitutional monarchy.
The
Fête de la Fédération of the 14 July 1790 was a huge feast and official event to celebrate the establishment of the short-lived
constitutional monarchyA constitutional monarchy is a form of government in which a monarch acts as head of state within the parameters of a written , unwritten or blended constitution...
in
FranceFrance , officially the French Republic , is a country located in Western Europe, with several overseas islands and territories located on other continents. Metropolitan France extends from the Mediterranean Sea to the English Channel and the North Sea, and from the Rhine to the Atlantic Ocean...
and what people of the time considered to be the happy conclusion of the
French RevolutionThe French Revolution was a period of political and social upheaval and radical change in the history of France, during which the French governmental structure, previously an absolute monarchy with feudal privileges for the aristocracy and Catholic clergy, underwent radical change to forms based...
, the outcome hoped for by the
monarchiens. Held on the first anniversary of the
storming of the BastilleThe Storming of the Bastille in Paris occurred on 14 July, 1789. The medieval fortress and prison in Paris known as the Bastille represented royal authority in the center of Paris. While the prison only contained seven prisoners at the time of its storming, its fall was the flashpoint of the French...
, it is commemorated every year by what is commonly known in English as "
Bastille DayBastille Day is the French national holiday, celebrated on 14 July each year. In France, it is called Fête Nationale in official parlance, or more commonly le quatorze juillet ....
" (
Fête du 14 juillet in French).
The
Fête de la Fédération in Paris was the most prominent event of a series of spontaneous celebrations all over France: from August 1789,
Fédérations appeared in towns and countryside; on 5 June 1790, with lots of individual feasts to celebrate the new state of France, a constitutional monarchy. The
National AssemblyThe National Constituent Assembly was formed from the National Assembly on 9 July 1789, during the first stages of the French Revolution. It dissolved on 30 September 1791 and was succeeded by the Legislative Assembly.-Background:...
approved the suggestion by the
Commune de Paris to organise a "general Federation". Organised late, it was largely an improvisation. The idea was not to contest the legitimacy of the king
Louis XVILouis XVI of France ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1774 until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792. Suspended and arrested during the Insurrection of 10 August 1792, he was tried by the National Convention, found guilty of treason, and executed by guillotine on 21...
, but to show the general will for stable institutions and a national reconciliation and unity. In the words of
Jean Sylvain BaillyJean-Sylvain Bailly was a French astronomer and orator, one of the leaders of the early part of the French Revolution...
, astronomer and mayor of Paris: "We suggest that this meeting (...) be sworn on the next 14 July, which we shall all see as the time of liberty: this day shall be spent swearing to uphold and defend it". Charon, President of the Commune of Paris, stated: "French, we are free! French, we are brothers!".
Preparation of the feast: the "Journée des brouettes"
The event took place on the
Champ de MarsThe Champ de Mars is a large public green-space in Paris, France, located in the 7th arrondissement, between the Eiffel Tower to the northwest and the École Militaire to the southeast. The park is named after the Campus Martius of Rome. Champ de Mars means "Field of Mars", after Mars the god of...
, which was at the time far outside Paris. The place had been transformed on a voluntary basis by the population of Paris itself, in what was recalled as the
Journée des brouettes ("Wheelbarrow Day").
Two 400 000 spectator earth steps were built on each side of the field (they remained there until the Second Empire). The
SeineThe Seine is a slow-flowing major river and commercial waterway within the regions of Île-de-France and Haute-Normandie in France and famous as a romantic backdrop in photographs of Paris, France. It is also a tourist attraction, with excursion boats offering sightseeing tours of the Rive Droite...
was crossed by a bridge of boats leading to an altar where oaths were to be sworn. The new military school was used to harbour members of the National Assembly and their families. At one end of the field, a huge tent was the king's step, and at the other end, a
Triumphal ArchA triumphal arch is a structure in the shape of a monumental archway, in theory built to celebrate a victory in war, but often used to celebrate a ruler....
was built. At the centre of the field was an altar for the mass.
Official Celebration
The feast began as early as four in the morning, under a strong rain which would last the whole day (the
Journal de Paris had predicted "frequent downpours").
14 000 Federated (
Fédérés) came from the province, every single
National GuardThe National Guard was the name given at the time of the French Revolution to the militias formed in each city, in imitation of the National Guard created in Paris. It was a military force separate from the regular army...
unit having sent two men out of every hundred. They were ranged according to their
département under 83 banners. They were brought to the place were the Bastille once stood, and went through Saint-Antoine, Saint-Denis and Saint-Honoré streets before crossing the temporary bridge and arriving at the Champ de Mars. Deputies from other nations, "Swedes, Spaniards, Polacks, Turks, Chaldeans, Greeks, and dwellers in Mesopotamia," representatives of the human race, "with three hundred drummers, twelve hundred wind-musicians, and artillery planted on height after height to boom the tidings all over France, the highest recorded triumph of the Thespian art."
A mass was celebrated by Charles Maurice de Talleyrand, bishop of Autun under the
Ancien RégimeAncien Régime refers primarily to the aristocratic, social, and political system established in France under the Valois and Bourbon dynasties...
. The very popular General
marquis de La FayetteMarie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette was a French aristocrat and military officer born in the province of Auvergne in south central France...
, as both captain of the National Guard of Paris and confident of the king, took his oath to the Constitution:
It is noticeable that at this time, the
French Constitution of 1791The short-lived French Constitution of 1791 was the first written constitution of France. One of the basic precepts of the revolution was adopting constitutionality and establishing popular sovereignty, following the steps of the United States of America....
was not yet written; it would only take effect in September 1791. La Fayette was followed by the President of the National Assembly. Eventually,
Louis XVILouis XVI of France ruled as King of France and of Navarre from 1774 until 1791, and then as King of the French from 1791 to 1792. Suspended and arrested during the Insurrection of 10 August 1792, he was tried by the National Convention, found guilty of treason, and executed by guillotine on 21...
took his oath
The
QueenMarie Antoinette ; was an Archduchess of Austria and the Queen of France and Navarre. She was the fifteenth and penultimate child of Empress Maria Theresa and Emperor Francis I....
rose and showed the Dauphin, future
Louis XVIILouis XVII of France, also Louis VI of Navarre , from birth to 1789 known as Louis-Charles, Duke of Normandy; then from 1789 to 1791 as Louis-Charles, Dauphin of Viennois; and from 1791 to 1793 as Louis-Charles, Prince Royal of France, was the son of King Louis XVI of France and Maria Antonia of...
, saying :
With the permission of the National Assembly, a delegation of the United States of America, led by
John Paul JonesJohn Paul Jones was the United States' first well-known naval fighter in the American Revolutionary War. Although he made enemies among the American ruling class, his actions in British waters during the Revolution earned him an international reputation which persists to this day.During his...
, founder of the US Navy, joined the feast. It also included
Thomas PaineThomas Paine was an author, pamphleteer, radical, inventor, intellectual, revolutionary, and one of the Founding Fathers of the United States. Born in England, Paine emigrated to the British American colonies in 1774 in time to participate in the American Revolution...
,
James SwanJames Swan is a bantamweight boxer from Australia, who represented his native country at two consecutive Summer Olympics, starting in 1996....
, Georges Howell, Benjamin Jarvis, Samuel Blackden,
Joel BarlowJoel Barlow was an American poet and politician-Biography:Barlow was born in Redding, Fairfield County, Connecticut. He briefly attended Dartmouth College before graduating from Yale University in 1778, where he was also a post-graduate student for two years...
and William Henry Vernon. The delegation arrived at the Champ de Mars with its flag, the first instance ever of a US flag flown outside of the USA, and was cheered by the people.
Popular feast
After the end of the official celebration, the day ended in a huge popular feast. It was also a symbol of the reunification of the
Three EstatesThe Estates of the realm were the broad divisions of society, usually distinguishing nobility, clergy, and commoners recognized in the Middle Ages and later, in some parts of Europe...
, after the heated
Estates-General of 1789The Estates-General of 1789 was the first meeting since 1614 of the French Estates-General, a general assembly representing the French collection of peoples...
, with the Bishop (First Estate) and the King (Second Estate) blessing the people (Third Estate).
In the gardens of the
Château de La MuetteThe Château de la Muette is a château located on the edge of the Bois de Boulogne in Paris, France, near the Porte de la Muette.Three châteaux have been located on the site since a hunting lodge was transformed into the first château for Marguerite de Valois, the first wife of King Henry IV, in the...
, a meal was offered to 22,000, before balls took place. People drank, danced, sang and toasted. The organisation went up to deciding of the price of the
filles du Palais-Royal (prostitutes). The feast ended on the 18 July.
Reaction in foreign countries
In Germany and Italy, the French Revolution was rather well considered by urban bourgeoisie, impregnated with the ideas of the
Lumières of the
EnlightenmentThe Age of Enlightenment, or simply The Enlightenment, is a term used to describe a time in Western philosophy and cultural life, centered upon the eighteenth century, in which reason was advocated as the primary source and legitimacy for authority....
:
VoltaireFrançois-Marie Arouet , better known by the pen name Voltaire, was a French Enlightenment writer, essayist, and philosopher known for his wit and his defense of civil liberties, including both freedom of religion and free trade.Voltaire was a prolific writer and produced works in almost every...
, Rousseau, Montesquieu, D'Alembert and others.
In Britain, the movement was welcomed by Prime Minister
William Pitt the YoungerWilliam Pitt, the Younger was a British politician of the late eighteenth and early nineteenth centuries. He became the youngest Prime Minister in 1783 at the age of 24 . He left office in 1801, but was Prime Minister again from 1804 until his death in 1806...
(possibly because it was weakening his hereditary foe). His opponent, Liberal
Charles FoxCharles Fox may refer to:*Charles Douglas Fox , British civil engineer*Charles James Fox , British politician*Charles Fox , film and television composer...
said before the Parliament of Westminster: "Never before was made such a great step toward freeing Humanity"
Trivia
- The song Ah, ça ira
"Ah ! ça ira" is an emblematic song of the French Revolution, first heard in May 1790. It underwent several changes in wording, all of which used the title words as part of the refrain.-Original version:...
became popular during the journée des brouettes.
- The Chant du 14 juillet, written by Marie-Joseph Chénier and François Gossec, was sung in the Écoles Normales until the Second World War
External links