Bastille

Bastille
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Name	Bastille
Native name	Bastille Saint-Antoine
Location	Paris, France
Coordinates	48, 51, 12, N...
Status	Demolished
Building type	Fortress, state prison
Completion date	1383
Demolition date	1789–1790
Architect	Hugues Aubriot

Bastille. The Bastille, formally the Bastille Saint-Antoine, was a formidable fortress and state prison in Paris, a symbol of royal authority in the Kingdom of France. Its dramatic storming by revolutionary crowds on 14 July 1789 became a pivotal and iconic event of the French Revolution, marking the collapse of the Ancien Régime. Although demolished shortly thereafter, its legacy endures as a powerful emblem of liberation and popular uprising in French and global history.

History

Construction of the fortress was initiated under Charles V in the 14th century, as part of improvements to the city's defenses against threats like the English during the Hundred Years' War. The chief architect was the provost of merchants, Hugues Aubriot, who also oversaw the building of the Wall of Charles V. Initially intended to guard the Porte Saint-Antoine and the eastern approach to Paris, its role evolved significantly over the centuries. By the 17th century, under ministers like Cardinal Richelieu and later Louis XIV, it was increasingly used as a state prison, housing inmates detained by royal lettre de cachet. Notable prisoners included the mysterious Man in the Iron Mask, the writer Voltaire, and the scandalous Marquis de Sade. Its population was often low and conditions varied, but its reputation as a dungeon for political and religious dissenters solidified its ominous stature.

Architecture and layout

The structure was a large, rectangular fortress with eight towers, each approximately 24 meters high, linked by walls of equal height and surrounded by a wide moat fed by the Seine. The towers were named for the provinces of Languedoc, Bretagne, and others. Access was via a drawbridge over the moat leading to a fortified gate on the Rue Saint-Antoine. Inside, the courtyards and buildings housed the governor's apartments, barracks for the garrison of Invalides veterans, and the prison cells. These cells, located mainly in the towers, ranged from grim, subterranean dungeons to relatively comfortable upper rooms for privileged inmates. The fortress also contained substantial magazines and was crowned with cannons, which were turned on the crowd during the final assault.

Role in the French Revolution

By the summer of 1789, amidst the crisis of the Estates-General and the formation of the National Assembly, the Bastille represented the tyranny of the monarchy. On the morning of 14 July, a crowd seeking arms and gunpowder for the newly formed militia besieged the fortress. The governor, the Marquis de Launay, commanded a small garrison and, after chaotic negotiations and some firing, surrendered. The fall of the fortress was less a military victory than a profound psychological and political triumph for the Parisians. The event immediately sparked celebrations and was swiftly mythologized; key figures like Camille Desmoulins and Georges Danton leveraged its symbolism. The seizure of its gunpowder was a practical boon for the revolutionaries, and the event prompted King Louis XVI to recall the reformist minister Jacques Necker and, more consequentially, to recognize the new Paris Commune.

Demolition and legacy

Demolition began almost immediately, ordered by the new revolutionary authorities and overseen by entrepreneur Pierre-François Palloy. Palloy turned the site into a patriotic enterprise, selling relics carved from its stones and creating models of the fortress. The area, the Place de la Bastille, was left open and later became a significant public square. The event of its storming was commemorated annually, evolving into Bastille Day, France's national holiday. The Colonne de Juillet, commemorating the July Revolution of 1830, now stands at the center of the square. The fortress's legacy is complex, viewed both as a genuine act of popular justice and as a potent symbol manipulated for political narratives throughout the 19th century and beyond, influencing thinkers from Thomas Carlyle to modern historians.

In popular culture

The Bastille and its storming have been immortalized in countless works of art, literature, and media. It is a central setting in Charles Dickens's novel A Tale of Two Cities, which dramatizes the revolutionary period. The event has been depicted in major films like the 1935 adaptation of Dickens's work and Andrzej Wajda's Danton. It features prominently in Victor Hugo's Les Misérables and is referenced in the lyrics of the musical. The fortress also appears in video games such as Assassin's Creed Unity, which recreates revolutionary Paris. The phrase "storm the Bastille" has entered the global lexicon as a metaphor for challenging any powerful, oppressive institution, demonstrating its enduring symbolic resonance far beyond its physical existence.

Category:Buildings and structures in Paris Category:French Revolution Category:Demolished buildings and structures in France Category:Former prisons in France