Bastille day English & French

Bastille Day

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This article is about the French holiday. For the Battlestar Galactica episode, see Bastille Day (Battlestar Galactica). For the song by Rush, see Bastille Day (song).

The Champs-Élysées decorated with flags for Bastille Day

Eiffel tower on Bastille Day

Bastille Day is the French national holiday, celebrated on 14 July each year . In France, it is called Fête Nationale ("National Celebration") in official parlance, or more commonly quatorze juillet ("14 July"). It commemorates the 1790 Fête de la Fédération, held on the first anniversary of the storming of the Bastille on 14 July 1789; the anniversary of the storming of the Bastille fortress-prison was seen as a symbol of the uprising of the modern French nation, and of the reconciliation of all the French inside the constitutional monarchy which preceded the First Republic, during the French Revolution.

Festivities are held the morning of 14 July, the largest on the Champs-Élysées avenue in Paris in front of the President of the Republic.

The parade opens with cadets from the École Polytechnique, Saint-Cyr, École Navale, and so forth, then other infantry troops, then motorised troops; aviation of the Patrouille de France flies above. In recent times, it has become customary to invite units from France's allies to the parade; in 2004 during the centenary of the Entente Cordiale, British troops (the band of the Royal Marines, the Household Cavalry Mounted Regiment, Grenadier Guards and King's Troop, Royal Horse Artillery) led the Bastille Day parade in Paris for the first time, with the Red Arrows flying overhead.[1]

Traditionally, the students of the École Polytechnique set up some form of joke.

The president used to give an interview to members of the press, discussing the situation of the country, recent events and projects for the future. Nicolas Sarkozy, elected president in 2007, has chosen not to give it. The President also holds a garden party at the Palais de l'Elysée.

Bastille Day falls during the Tour de France and is traditionally a day on which French riders try to take a stage victory for France, working harder than they might otherwise.

Article 17 of the Constitution of France gives the President the authority to pardon offenders, and since 1991 the President has pardoned many petty offenders (mainly traffic offences) on 14 July. In 2007, President Sarkozy declined to continue the practice[2].

[edit] History

[edit] The storming of the Bastille

Main article: Storming of the Bastille

Prise de la Bastille, by Jean-Pierre-Louis-Laurent Houel

On 5 May 1789, Louis XVI convened the Estates-General to hear their grievances. The deputies of the Third Estate representing the common people (the two others were clergy and nobility) decided to break away and form a National Assembly. On 20 June the deputies of the Third Estate took the Tennis Court Oath, swearing not to separate until a constitution had been established. They were gradually joined by delegates of the other estates; Louis started to recognize their validity on 27 June. The assembly re-named itself the National Constituent Assembly on 9 July, and began to function as a legislature and to draft a constitution.

In the wake of the 11 July dismissal of Jacques Necker, the people of Paris, fearful that they and their representatives would be attacked by the royal military, and seeking to gain arms for the general populace, stormed the Bastille, a fortress-prison in Paris which had often held people jailed on the basis of lettres de cachet, arbitrary royal indictments that could not be appealed. Besides holding a large cache of arms, the Bastille had been known for holding political prisoners whose writings had displeased the royal government, and was thus a symbol of the absolutism of the monarchy. As it happened, at the time of the siege in July 1789 there were only seven inmates, none of great political significance.

When the crowd (legend says it was organised by descendants of the Knights Templar)— eventually reinforced by mutinous gardes françaises — proved a fair match for the fort's defenders, Governor de Launay, the commander of the Bastille, capitulated and opened the gates to avoid a mutual massacre. However, possibly because of a misunderstanding, fighting resumed. Ninety-eight attackers and just one defender died in the actual fighting, but in the aftermath, de Launay and seven other defenders were killed, as was the 'prévôt des marchands' (roughly, mayor) Jacques de Flesselles.

The storming of the Bastille was more important as a rallying point and symbolic act of rebellion than a practical act of defiance.

Shortly after the storming of the Bastille, on 4 August feudalism was abolished and on 26 August, the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen proclaimed

Fête nationale française

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La fête nationale française a lieu chaque 14 juillet depuis 1880. Elle commémore la fête de la Fédération, qui fêtait elle-même sans le savoir le premier anniversaire de la prise de la Bastille qui est souvent confondue avec cette fête, et marquait la fin de la monarchie absolue. C'est un jour férié, chômé et payé.

Célébrations [modifier]

Article détaillé : Défilé militaire du 14 juillet.

Le 14 juillet donne lieu à un défilé des troupes sur les Champs-Élysées, à des défilés ou des cérémonies militaires dans la plupart des communes, et à des feux d'artifices. (Bien qu'en général ces feux d'artifices ont lieu dans la nuit du 14 au 15 Juillet, ils peuvent parfois être vus durant le soir du 13 au 14.)

Instauration comme fête nationale [modifier]

Le 21 mai 1880, le député Benjamin Raspail dépose la loi faisant du 14 juillet la fête nationale annuelle en commémoration du 14 juillet 1790, (fête de la Fédération). Le 14 juillet 1789 (prise de la Bastille) ayant été une journée jugée sanglante où des Français massacrèrent des Français, cela ne pouvais pas être une « fête » nationale (de surcroît) ainsi, c’est la Fête de la fédération qui emporta les suffrages. C'est finalement le 14 juillet 1790 seul qui est commémoré.

La loi, signée par 64 députés, est adoptée par l'Assemblée le 8 juin et par le Sénat le 29 juin. Elle est promulguée le 6 juillet 1880.

La lecture du rapport de séance du Sénat du 29 juin 1880[1] établissant cette fête nationale éclaire le débat sous-jacent portant sur laquelle de ces deux dates est commémorée le 14 juillet :

M. le rapporteur (Henri Martin) : - « Il y a eu ensuite, au 14 juillet 1789, il y a eu du sang versé, quelques actes déplorables ; mais, hélas ! dans tous les grands événements de l’histoire, les progrès ont été jusqu’ici achetés par bien des douleurs, par bien du sang. Espérons qu’il n’en sera plus ainsi dans l’avenir (« très bien » à gauche, interruptions à droite).

À droite. - Oui, espérons !

M. Hervé de Saisy. - Nous n’en sommes pas bien sûrs !

M. le rapporteur. - Nous avons le droit de l’espérer. Mais n’oubliez pas que, derrière ce 14 juillet, où la victoire de l’ère nouvelle sur l’ancien régime fut achetée par une lutte armée, n’oubliez pas qu’après la journée du 14 juillet 1789 il y a eu la journée du 14 juillet 1790 (« très-bien ! » à gauche).

Cette journée-là, vous ne lui reprocherez pas d’avoir versé une goutte de sang, d’avoir jeté la division à un degré quelconque dans le pays, Elle a été la consécration de l’unité de la France. Oui, elle a consacré ce que l’ancienne royauté avait préparé. L’ancienne royauté avait fait pour ainsi dire le corps de la France, et nous ne l’avons pas oublié ; la Révolution, ce jour-là, le 14 juillet 1790, a fait, je ne veux pas dire l’âme de la France – personne que Dieu n’a fait l’âme de la France – mais la Révolution a donné à la France conscience d’elle-même (« très-bien ! » sur les mêmes bancs) ; elle a révélé à elle-même l’âme de la France »

4 juillet - Fraternite des armes-Francais

1778-1783 : la fraternité des armes

La cour de Versailles avait suivi avec intérêt les signes annonciateurs de la révolte américaine. Quand, en 1776, les treize colonies proclamèrent leur indépendance, Vergennes, secrétaire d’Etat aux Affaires étrangères, y vit [’occasion rêvée de prendre une revanche sur l’Angleterre et conseilla au roi d’aider les rebelles. Louis XVI, lui-même souverain absolu, n’était guère porté à soutenir une rébellion contre la monarchie. Malgré une opinion plutôt favorable aux Insurgents, le soutien de la France était donc loin d’être acquis lorsque Benjamin Franklin arriva à Paris, le 27 décembre 1776, pour prêter main-forte à son compatriote Silas Deane, un riche commerçant du Connecticut, qui, dépêché comme ambassadeur par les Insurgents, n’avait, jusque-là, guère obtenu de résultats. La réputation de l’illustre savant, sa simplicité, son esprit eurent raison des réserves de la Cour.

Bientôt, [’aide aux rebelles s’organisa. D’abord discrète, puis ouverte, tandis que les volontaires affluaient pour mettre leur épée au service des Insurgents. Tout, en effet, attirait la jeunesse française vers l’Amérique : I’attrait des idées nouvelles, la soif d’en découdre avec l’ennemi héréditaire anglais, le besoin d’aventures et le dépaysement offert à cette génération préromantique par les vastes déserts du Nouveau Monde.

Quelques mois plus tard, Silas Deane put écrire : « La rage de s’engager au service de l’Amérique va croissant et la conséquence est que je suis inondé d’offres, dont beaucoup viennent de personnes de haut rang… » Le roi lui-même dut intervenir lorsque le comte de Noailles et le comte de Ségur, deux des plus grands noms du royaume, voulurent partir aux côtés du jeune marquis de La Fayette, au risque de compromettre prématurément la France. Noailles et Ségur s’inclinèrent, mais La Fayette acheta secrètement un bateau, la Victoire, et s’enfuit à Bordeaux puis en Espagne d’où il fit voile vers Georgetown, où il débarqua en juin 1777. Beaucoup de volontaires furent pourtant déçus en arrivant à destination : ne parlant pas anglais, pour la plupart, ils ne pouvaient s’imposer à des troupes qui ne ressemblaient en rien aux armées régulières d’Europe. Et les préjugés de leur classe les empêchèrent souvent de s ’adapter à la sensibilité démocratique des citoyens-soldats de George Washington. Accueilli sans grand enthousiasme à Philadelphie, La Fayette s’obstina, allant jusqu’à proposer de servir à ses frais, et comme simple soldat. Mais Franklin avait, entre-temps, expliqué au Congrès qu’il convenait de s’attacher les jeunes étrangers venus en Amérique, dans la mesure où [’influence de leur famille pouvait se révéler décisive à Versailles. La Fayette finit donc par obtenir un brevet de major général… Rejoignant le front au moment où le général anglais Howe marchait sur Philadelphie, il fut blessé à Brandywine, avant de suivre Washington à Valley Forge, où le commandant des Insurgents avait installé son quartier général. L’hiver de 1777-1778 fut très difficile pour les Américains : mal nourris, mal vêtus, mal armés, ils ne devaient plus qu’à l’énergie indomptable de leur chef d’être encore debout, et une attaque anglaise, à ce moment, aurait sans doute changé le cours de l’Histoire.

A Paris, Franklin se dépensait donc sans compter pour transformer [’attitude bienveillante de la France en alliance officielle. Mais Vergennes, prudent et surveillé de près par l’ambassadeur de Sa Gracieuse Majesté, Lord Stormont, voulait être sûr du soutien espagnol avant de franchir ce pas décisif. Annoncée en novembre 1777, la capitulation de l’anglais Burgoyne à Saratoga fit définitivement percher la balance en faveur des Insurgents. Et dès le 17 décembre, Vergennes, soucieux de devancer une éventuelle paix de compromis anglo-américaine, informa Franklin que Louis XVI avait décidé de reconnaître indépendance des Etats-Unis et de signer avec eux un traité de commerce et d’amitié. Ce sera chose faite le 6 février 1778.

La France aide les Insurgents

La situation des Insurgents était alors si critique que les Français auraient pu abuser de la situation. Ils n’en firent rien, comme l’explique Vergennes lui-même, dans une missive datée du 17 mars 1778 à son ambassadeur àLondres : « Nous n’avons voulu nous procurer aucun avantage de commerce que d’autres nations pourraient jalouser et que les Américains pourraient se reprocher, par la suite des temps, de nous avoir accordé. » Une semaine plus tard, le ministre précisait : « Les députés autorisés des Etats-Unis étaient disposés à nous accorder les privilèges exclusifs que nous aurions exigés. Nous ne l’ignorions pas, mais le Roi a voulu faire un ouvrage solide qui passât à la postérité et qui donnât à ses conventions avec ces Etats toute la solidité et la durée dont les transactions humaines sont susceptibles. » Ce qui vaudra à la France ce compliment de Benjamin Franklin, grand connaisseur de la nature humaine : « La vérité est que cette nation aime la gloire, particulièrement celle de protéger les opprimés. » Sur le théâtre des opérations, les Britanniques commençaient à comprendre que le temps jouait contre eux. Après avoir pris Philadelphie, ils s’y étaient installés sans tenter de porter le coup de grace à l’ennemi. C’est donc avec la ferme intention d’en finir une fois pour toutes en profitant des divisions du camp adverse -notamment de la rivalité entre Washington et Gates, le vainqueur de Saratoga - que le général Clinton prit la succession du général Howe, démissionnaire. Craignant un blocus français du Delaware et une attaque des milices américaines sur la ville, il fit mouvement vers New York.

Washington se lança à sa poursuite et l’attaqua à Monmouth - une audacieuse manœuvre qui auralt pu lui apporter une victoire décisive, si Charles Lee, commandant de [’avant-garde, désobéissant à ses ordres formels, n’avait inexplicablement reculé alors qu’il avait l’avantage. Traduit en cour martiale, Lee, que certains accusaient même de trahison, fut révoqué, mais le mal était fait et Washington, contraint de renoncer à [’offensive, dut prendre ses quartiers à New Brunswick tandis que Clinton se cantonnait à New York.

Arrivée à pied d’oeuvre en juillet 1778, la flotte française de l’amiral d’Estaing avait entamé une manoeuvre combinée avec le général américain Sullivan pour prendre Newport. Mais cette première coopération d’envergure entre les nouveaux alliés avait échoué à cause d’une tempête, et d’Estaing reprit le large pour hiverner aux Antilles. Ce demi-échec risquait fort de refroidir les ardeurs de Paris au moment même où le besoin de renforts se faisait le plus sentir… A la fin de 1778, La Fayette obtint donc du Congrès un congé pour se rendre à Versailles. II y fut bien reçu et sut convaincre Maurepas et Vergennes de jeter tout le poids de la France dans la bataille. Parmi les plans qui avaient été préparés figurait un débarquement outre-Manche et une flotte avait été concentrée dans ce dessein au Havre et à Saint-Malo. Projet mort-né, mais qui rendait envisageable l’envoi d’un corps expéditionnaire dans le Nouveau Monde comme le demandait La Fayette.

Mais s’il était techniquement possible de convoyer des milliers de soldats vers l’Amérique, les réserves politiques demeuraient fortes : on s’inquiétait des dissensions des Insurgents et l’on craignait que l’Espagne de Charles III, pourtant alliée de la France contre la Grande-Bretagne, ne vole d’un mauvais oeil une victoire trop nette de forces révolutionnaires aux portes de son vaste empire colonial. On décide cependant d’envoyer plus de 5 000 hommes, choisis parmi les meilleurs, au général Washington. La Fayette étant encore trop jeune pour en prendre la tête, on le dépêcha outre-Atlantique pour annoncer l’arrivée prochaine de ces troupes, dont on confia le commandement au comte de Rochambeau.

Ils arrivent !

Parti de Brest, le convoi parvint le 11 juillet 1780 en vue de Newport (Rhode Island). Parmi les officiers qui débarquèrent figuraient quelques-uns des plus grands noms de France : Montmorency, Custine, Chartres, Noailles, Lauzun… Mais l’espoir que l’arrivée des Français avait fait renaître dans le coeur des Insurgents fut de courte durée : I’arrivée peu après, à Newport, d’une importante flotte britannique, commandée par les amiraux Arbuthnot et Rodney, vint ruiner les plans d’une attaque rapide contre New York, et la rencontre de Hartford, organisée par La Fayette entre Rochambeau et Washington, ne put déboucher que sur une nouvelle demande de renforts : seul l’envoi par la France d’une force navale capable de faire échec aux Anglais pouvait désormais débloquer la situation. Pour couronner le tout, quand Washington revint à son quartier général de West Point, ce fut pour y apprendre la trahison de Benedict Arnold, l’un des plus brillants chefs militaires des Insurgents, qui venait de passer à l’ennemi. Devenu le conseiller du général Clinton, Arnold le pressait d’agir vite pour tirer avantage de la faiblesse ennemie. Victimes du blocus, les soldats américains n’étaient en effet, ni payés, ni nourris, ni vêtus et Rochambeau s’inquiétait légitimement des capacités de « ces gens à bout de ressources ». Une fois de plus, Louis XVI et Vergennes répondirent aux attentes de leurs alliés et, le 16 mai 1781, malgré l’état déplorable des finances publiques, un vaisseau français, la Concorde, apportait six millions de livres à Washington. Celui-ci voulait en profiter pour attaquer immédiatement New York. Rochambeau était plutôt d’avis de porter le fer au sud, où le général anglais Cornwallis ne parvenait pas à remporter une victoire décisive sur l’Américain Greene, qui, menant d’habiles actions de guérilla, l’entraînait toujours plus loin de ses bases. Ignorant ces hésitations, Clinton ordonna à Cornwallis de rallier Yorktown, sur la baie de la Chesapeake, avec ses 7 000 hommes, de tenir cette position en s’appuyant sur la Navy et de lui envoyer des renforts à New York où, pensait-il, se livrerait l’affrontement principal. Yorktown ainsi defendu paraissait nettement moins redoutable que New York, et Washington se laissa d’autant plus facilement convaincre de changer d’objectif que l’amiral de Grasse qui arrivait à la rescousse après ses belles victoires aux Antilles, lui avait fait connaître sa préférence pour la baie de la Chesapeake, plus profonde et propice aux manoeuvres que la baie de l’Hudson.

Le 19 août, traversant le New Jersey et franchissant le Delaware, les troupes alliées fonçaient vers la Virginie. Entrés triomphalement dans Philadelphie le 30 août, Washington et Rochambeau arrivèrent peu après devant Yorktown à la tête de plus de 18 000 hommes : 9 000 Américains et 5 000 Français, auxquels se joignirent, quelques jours plus tard, les 3 300 soldats du marquis de Saint-Simon, embarqués à Saint-Domingue par de Grasse.

Retranché dans la ville avec ses 7 000 Habits rouges, Cornwallis était en mauvaise posture. II se crut tiré d’affaire quand, le 5 septembre a l’aube, apparurent à [’entrée de l’estuaire les 22 navires de l’amiral Graves, venus de New York pour le secourir. Mais de Grasse sauva la situation : rester au mouillage, c’était offrir une cible facile à l’adversaire. Il fallait donc appareiller, et vite. Manoeuvrant brillamment, la flotte française parvint à doubler le cap Henry et à se ranger autour du Ville de Paris, le plus grand vaisseau de l’époque. Lorsque le combat s’engagea, au large, les Britanniques avaient laissé passer leur chance. Quand les canons se turent, ils avaient perdu un navire, et cinq autres étaient gravement endommagés. Côté français, aucun bâtiment n’avait été coulé, et deux seulement avaient été touchés. Graves se retire. La victoire française était complète.

Cornwallis, misant tout sur le soutien qui devait lui venir de la mer, avait négligé de renforcer ses positions. Le 28 septembre, les alliés se déployèrent avec leur artillerie - les Français à gauche, puis le premier corps d’armée américain, puis le détachement francoaméricain de La Fayette, puis le corps d’armée de Washington et les troupes du général prussien von Steuben, qui combattait aux côtés des Insurgents depuis 1777. Le sort de Yorktown était scellé. Le 17 octobre, anniversaire de la capitulation de Burgoyne à Saratoga, la bannière étoilée était hissée sur la ville. La garnison défaite défila entre les vainqueurs - les Français à droite, les Américains à gauche. Et, quand le général anglais représentant Cornwallis, qui se disait malade, voulut rendre son épée, c’est à Rochambeau qu’il la tendit. Celui-ci lui désigna Washington qui, respectueux du vaincu, la refuse.

Nouées dès la capitulation de Cornwallis, les négociations qui suivirent aboutirent, le 3 septembre 1783, au traité de paix de Versailles. Acte de naissance officiel des Etats-Unis, ce traité est aussi le symbole de l’amitié franco-americaine. Une amitié pour laquelle les deux nations auront maintes fois encore [’occasion de « donner leur or et verser leur sang ».

4th of July-Brotherhood English

Source Ambassade de France aux USA1778-1783: A Brotherhood of Arms

The court of Versailles followed closely the events leading up to the American Revolution. When, in 1776, the Thirteen Colonies proclaimed their independance, Vergennes, the Foreign Affairs Secretary, saw a perfect opportunity to take revenge on Britain, and thus advised the King to support the rebels. Fearing a war with the British, Turgot, the Minister of Finance, was less enthusiastic. King Louis XVI was not inclined to assist a rebellion which undermined another monarch. Despite popular opinion in favor of the Revolutionaries, France’s support was far from certain when Benjamin Franklin arrived in Paris on December 27,1776. He joined Silas Deane as American Minister to France. Deane was a wealthy Connecticut businessman, who, chosen in haste, had produced no concrete results. Franklin’s reputation as a man of great learning, who lived modestly, greatly pleased the Court. Franklin soon had French support for the Revolutionary cause. Official aid was at first discreet. But the number of volunteers offering to help the Revolutionaries grew rapidly. There was a great deal to draw young Frenchmen to America: the attraction of new ideas, a thirst to fight their hereditary British enemy, a desire for adventure and the chance for exotic travel in the New World. Several months later, Silas Deane wrote, "the rage to sign up to serve with the Americans is continually growing. As a consequence I am inundated with offers, many from persons of consequential rank…" The King himself had to intervene when members of distinguished families wanted to leave for the New World. The count of Noaille and the count of Ségur, two of the most important names in the French kingdom, wanted to leave with the young Marquis de La Fayette. It was feared that these young men would compromise the neutral position of France. Noailles and Ségur bowed to the pressure, but La Fayette stole onto the boat La Victoire which sailed first to Bordeaux, then to Spain, and finally on to Georgetown, where he arrived in June 1777. Many of the volunteers were greatly disappointed in the New World. Most of them did not speak English and they did not understand how the Revolutionary Army, unlike anything in Europe, could function on a battlefield. Furthermore, their social background made it difficult for them to adapt to the democratic style of George Washington’s soldiers. Welcomed with great enthusiasm in Philadelphia, La Fayette even offered to serve in the army as a foot soldier, and to pay his own way. Franklin, however, explained to the Continental Congress that it would be politically advantageous to enlist foreign soldiers whose families could influence the court at Versailles. La Fayette was finally appointed to the rank of General. Returning to the front just as the English General Howe marched on Philidelphia, he was injured at the battle of Brandywine. Soon after, he followed Washington to his headquarters at Valley Forge. The winter of 1777-1778 was a particularly tough one. Badly clothed, badly nourished and badly armed, Washington’s army was on the verge of collapse. At this point, an attack by the English would almost certainly have changed the course of the war. In Paris, Franklin did his best to convince the court to adopt the American cause officially through a formal alliance with the United States.

The French to the Rescue

The resulting Treaty of Commerce and Friendship was signed on February 6, 1778. The Revolutionaries’ situation was such that the French could have made any demand in the treaty, taking advantage of the vulnerable United States. Instead the French policy looked far into the future. Vergennes wrote to his ambassador in London on March 17, 1778: ’We did not want to procure any commercial favors that might make other nations jealous, such that the United States might one day accuse us of taking advantage of them." One week later he stated, "The authorized American deputies were open to giving us anyexclusive rights of trade we might have demanded. We were aware of that. But through the recognition of the United States as a member of the family of nations, the King wanted to create a bond that would serve posterity and be as solid and enduring as is possible in human affairs.’ The French policy prompted Benjamin Franklin, a great student of human nature, to say, "The truth is that this nation loves glory and loves to protect the oppressed." Back on the battlefields of North America, the British began to realize that time was against them. After taking Philidelphia they prepared themselves to deliver the death blow to the Revolutionaries. They wanted to quickly exploit tensions within the Revolutionary ranks, notably the rivalry between Washington and Gates, the victor of the battle of Saratoga. General Clinton took command of the British troops after Howe’s resignation. Fearing a French blockade of the Delaware and an attack on the city by the Continental Army, Clinton moved towards New York.

Washington followed behind and launched an attack at Monmouth - an audacious military manoeuvre that would have been a decisive victory if Charles Lee, the commander of the vanguard, had not inexplicably disobeyed orders and retreated from ground he had captured and held. Court martialled, Lee, accused by some of treason, was finally released. The error had been commited. Washington was forced to stop his offensive, and instead set up headquarters in New Brunswick while Clinton went on to New York. Arriving in July 1778, the French fleet under Admiral d’Estaing came to the aid of the Revolutionaries, for the first time in force. A siege was planned ; Estaing would move in by sea, while the American General Sullivan would arrive by land to take Newport, Rhode Island. Unfortunately a violent storm arose, putting an end to this first attempt at military cooperation between the new allies. Estaing headed south to the West Indies for the winter. This setback did not bode well for the Americans. Paris would not look kindly on a failed military operation; but the Revolutionaries were very much in need of assistance and reinforcements. At the end of 1778, La Fayette obtained permission from the Continental Congress togo to Versailles. He was well received, and knew how to convince Vergennes and Maurepas to throw the weight of France into the battle. Among the plans that had been envisaged was a large-scale landing in Britain. Ships had been prepared for this purpose. The Project never saw the light of day. But the fleet gathered in Saint Malo and Le Havre made it technically possible to send an expeditionary force to the New World as La Fayette requested. Louis XVI was still worried about dissent among the Revolutionaries and feared that Spain’s Charles III, although allied with France against England, would dislike to decisive an Amerlcan victory next door to his overseas empire. Still, France eventually sent to General Washington 5,000 men chosen from their best troops. La Fayette was too young to command the expeditionary force. He was sent back to America to announce the imminent arrival of the long-awaited re-enforcements under the command of Rochambeau.

America, we are here

Leaving Brest, the convoy sighted land at Newport, Rhode Island, on July 11, 1780. Among the officers, were some of the most important names in France : Montmorency, Custine, Chartres, Noailles, Lauzun… The hopes raised by the arrival of the French were short-lived : soon after, a large British fleet was sighted. It was under the command of Admirals Arbuth-not and Rodney. It spoiled the plans for a quick attack on New York. The Hartford meeting, organized by La Fayette between Rochambeau and Washington, resulted in another request for more French reenforcements. Only a full-sized naval force could save the situation. To make matters worse, when Washington returned to his camp at West Point, he learned of Benedict Arnold’s treason. One of the Colonels’ most brilliant military minds had gone over to the enemy. Becoming chief counsellor to General Clinton, Arnold pushed for quick action to exploit the weakness of the Continental Army. Victims of the naval blockade, the American soldiers were neither paid, nor fed, nor clothed. Rochambeau began to worry, quite legitimately, about the effectiveness of these 11 men pushed to the limits of their resources." Once moreLouis XVI and Vergennes responded to the needs of the Revolutionaries. On May 16, 1781, despite the terrible state of French finances, the ship La Concorde brought six million pounds to Washington. The American General wanted to attack New York. Rochambeau, however, thought it more prudent to head South, where the English General Cornwallis had not yet managed to win a decisive victory against the American fighter Greene, who used guerilla tactics. Clinton ordered Cornwallis to keep a minimal force in Yorktown, on the Chesapeake Bay, where they had the support of the Navy ; he would then send the remaining troops to reinforce the garrison in New York, where they thought the major battle would take place. Cornwallis was thus left vulnerable and Washington, knowing that de Grasse’s fleet was en-route, was readily convinced to attack Yorktown. Moreover, de Grasse, who was sailing back to the continent after a series of victories in the West Indies, had sent a message to George Washington, telling him that he preferred fighting in the Chesapeake Bay because it was deeper than the Hudson River, and allowed for greater manoeuvrability.

On August 19th, crossing New Jersey, the Franco-American troops headed toward Virginia. On August 30th, Washington and Rochambeau triumphantly entered Philadelphia. From there they marched on Yorktown with an army of 18,000 men. There were 9,000 Americans and 5,000 French to which were added 3,300 more when the Marquis de Saint Simon arrived from Saint-Domingue with de Grasse’s fleet. Cornered with a mere 7,000 Redcoats, Cornwallis was in a desperate situation. Hope appeared on September 5th, when 22 ships were sighted on the horizon. The fleet, commanded by Admiral Graves, had left New York two days earlier to rescue Yorktown. The tide seemed to be turning against the Revolutionaries, but de Grasse saved the day. In the Bay, the French ships were sitting ducks. De Grasse manoeuvered brilliantly; he slipped his fleet around Cape Henry and set up in formation around the Ville de Paris, the largest vessel of that period. When the battle began in the open seas, the English had already lost. When the canons stopped, one British ship had sunk andfive more were seriously damaged. No French ships were destroyed and only two were damaged. Graves retreated ; the French victory was complete. Cornwallis had counted on the naval re-enforcements to back him up so he hadn’t bothered to protect his positions. On September 28th, the Revolutionaries deployed their forces : the French on the left next to the Americans followed by La Fayette’s Franco-American corps General Washington’s troops ; and finally the troops under the command of Prussian General von Steuben (who had fought with the Revolutionaries since 1777). The fate of the British was sealed. On October 17th, the anniversary of the surrender of Burgoyne at Saratoga, the Star Spangled Banner flew over Yorktown. The defeated British garrison marched between two rows of the victors - the French on the left, the Americans on the right. The officer representing Cornwallis, who claimed to be ill, wanted to surrender his sword to Rochambeau. But the French General, gestured toward Washington, who respectfully refused the sword. The fall of Yorktown, which had been their stronghold, forced the British to negociate. The Treaty of Versailles, signed September 3, 1783, ended the American War of Independence. The official birth certificate of a new nation, this treaty was also a symbol of the friendship between France and the United States. It was a friendship for which the two countries would time and again pay for with their lives.

"Chanel a donne la liberte aux femmes, YSL leur a donne le pouvoir.

Legendary designer

Yves Saint Laurent dies at 71

AP

Posted: 2008-06-01 23:44:31

By ELAINE GANLEY
Associated Press Writer

PARIS (AP) - Legendary designer Yves Saint Laurent, who reworked the rules of fashion by putting women into elegant pantsuits that came to define how modern women dressed, died Sunday evening, a longtime friend and associate said. He was 71.

Pierre Berge, Saint Laurent's business partner for four decades, said he had died at his Paris home following a long illness.

A towering figure of 20th century fashion, Saint Laurent was widely considered the last of a generation that included Christian Dior and Coco Chanel and made Paris the fashion capital of the world, with the Rive Gauche, or Left Bank, as its elegant headquarters.

In the fast-changing world of haute couture, Saint Laurent was hailed as the most influential and enduring designer of his time. From the first YSL tuxedo and his trim pantsuits to see-through blouses, safari jackets and glamorous gowns, Saint Laurent created instant classics that remain stylish decades later.

"I am saddened by the loss of such a legendary talent," designer Tommy Hilfiger said in an e-mailed statement to The Associated Press. "He was a creative genius who changed the world of fashion forever."

"Chanel gave women freedom" and Saint Laurent "gave them power," Berge said on France-Info radio. Saint Laurent was a "true creator," going beyond the aesthetic to make a social statement, Berge said.

When Saint Laurent announced his retirement in 2002 at age 65 and the closure of the Paris-based haute couture house he had founded 40 years earlier, it was mourned in the fashion world as the end of an era. His ready-to-wear label, Rive Gauche, which was sold to Gucci in 1999, still has boutiques around the world.

"Mr. Saint Laurent revolutionized modern fashion with his understanding of youth, sophistication and relevance. His legacy will always be remembered," said Calvin Klein designer Francisco Costa.

Saint Laurent was born Aug. 1, 1936, in Oran, Algeria, where his father worked as a shipping executive. He first emerged as a promising designer at the age of 17, winning first prize in a contest sponsored by the International Wool Secretariat for a cocktail dress design.

A year later in 1954, he enrolled at the Chambre Syndicale school of haute couture, but student life lasted only three months. He was introduced to Christian Dior, then regarded as the greatest creator of his day, and Dior was so impressed with Saint Laurent's talent that he hired him on the spot.

When Dior died suddenly in 1957, Saint Laurent was named head of the House of Dior at the age of 21. The next year, his first solo collection for Dior - the "trapeze" line - launched Saint Laurent's stardom. The trapeze dress - with its narrow shoulders and wide, swinging skirt - was a hit, and a breath of fresh air after years of constructed clothing, tight waists and girdles.

In 1960, Saint Laurent was drafted into military service - an experience that shattered the delicate designer, who by the end of the year was given a medical discharge for nervous depression.

Bouts of depression marked his career. Berge, the designer's longtime business partner and former romantic partner, was quoted as saying that Saint Laurent was born with a nervous breakdown.

Saint Laurent returned to the spotlight in 1962, opening his own haute couture fashion house with Berge. The pair later started a chain of Rive Gauche ready-to-wear boutiques.

Life Magazine hailed his first line under his own label as "the best collection of suits since Chanel."

Nowhere was Saint Laurent's gift more evident than the valedictory fashion show that marked his retirement in January 2002.

Forty years of fashion were paraded in a 300-piece retrospective that blurred the boundaries of time, mixing his creations of yesterday and today in one stunning tribute to the endurance of Saint Laurent's style. He also designed costumes for theater and film.

There was the simple navy blue pea coat over white pants, which the designer first showed in 1962 when he opened his couture house and kept as one of his hallmarks.

His "smoking," or tuxedo jacket, of 1966 remade the tux as a high fashion statement for both sexes. It remained the designer's trademark item and was updated yearly until he retired.

Also from the 60s came Beatnik chic - a black leather jacket and knit turtleneck with high boots - and sleek pantsuits that underlined Saint Laurent's statement on equality of the sexes. He showed that women could wear "men's clothes," which when tailored to the female form became an emblem of elegant femininity.

"More than any other designer since Chanel, YSL represented Paris as the style leader," The Independent of London wrote in an editorial after Saint Laurent's retirement. "By putting a woman in a man's tuxedo, he changed fashion forever, in a style that never dated."

In his own words, Saint Laurent said he felt "fashion was not only supposed to make women beautiful, but to reassure them, to give them confidence, to allow them to come to terms with themselves."

Some of his revolutionary style was met with resistance. There are famous stories of women wearing Saint Laurent pantsuits who were turned away from hotels and restaurants in London and New York.

One scandal centered on the designer himself, when he posed nude and floppy-haired for a photographer in 1971, wearing only his trademark thick black glasses, to promote his perfume.

Saint Laurent's rising star was eternalized in 1983, when the Metropolitan Museum of Art devoted a show to his work, the first ever to a living designer.

Subsequent shows at the Hermitage in St. Petersburg and in Beijing made him a French national treasure, and he was awarded the Legion d'Honneur in 1985.

When France basked in the glory of its 1998 World Cup soccer final, it was Saint Laurent who took center field pre-kick off with an on-field retrospective at the Stade de France.

In 1999, Saint Laurent sold the rights of his label to Gucci Group NV, ceding control of his Rive Gauche collection, fragrances, cosmetics and accessories for US$70 million cash and royalties.

Industry insiders cited friction between Saint Laurent and Gucci's creative director, Tom Ford, as a likely factor in the fashion guru's decision to retire three years later. Ford stepped down in 2003.

When he bowed out of fashion in 2002, Saint Laurent spoke of his battles with depression, drugs and loneliness, though he gave no indication that those problems were directly tied to his decision to stop working.

"I've known fear and terrible solitude," he said. "Tranquilizers and drugs, those phony friends. The prison of depression and hospitals. I've emerged from all this, dazzled but sober."

Associated Press writers Rachid Aouli and Joelle Diderich in Paris and Samantha Critchell in New York contributed to this report.

Copyright 2008 The Associated Press. The information contained in the AP news report may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or otherwise distributed without the prior written authority of The Associated Press. Active hyperlinks have been inserted by AOL.

 

YVES SAINT LAURENT ( En Francais)

 

06/01/08 23:43 EDT

 

Yves Saint Laurent, l'un des couturiers majeurs du XXe siècle, est décédé dimanche à l'âge de 71 ans des suites d'une longue maladie.

 

Il avait notamment pour emblèmes le tailleur pantalon ou le smoking pour les femmes.

Yves Saint Laurent était l'une des grandes figures de la mode au XXe siècle et l'un des créateurs français les plus connus dans le monde.

sur ce sujet

La santé du couturier était déclinante depuis plusieurs mois en raison d'une tumeur au cerveau, au point qu'il ne venait plus au siège de la griffe, transformée en 2004 en Fondation, où il avait toujours son bureau. Pierre Bergé, le compagnon de toute sa vie, s'est déclaré «bouleversé».

 Pour lui, Yves Saint Laurent restera dans le panthéon de la mode avec Coco Chanel.

«(Gabrielle) Chanel a donné la liberté aux femmes. Yves Saint Laurent leur a donné le pouvoir. Il a quitté le territoire esthétique pour pénétrer sur le territoire social. Il a accompli une oeuvre à portée sociale», a-t-il dit sur France Info.

Les obsèques d'Yves Saint Laurent auront lieu jeudi à l'église Saint-Roch à Paris.

Débuts fulgurants

Né le 1er août 1936 à Oran (Algérie), celui qui s'appelle alors Yves-Mathieu Saint-Laurent débute aux côtés de Christian Dior, le couturier le plus célèbre de l'après-guerre. La mort prématurée de l'inventeur du New-Look le propulse directeur artistique de la maison Dior dès la fin des années 1950.

Avec sa ligne «Trapèze» (1958), qui rompt avec les tailles de guêpe de l'époque, le mince et timide jeune homme de 20 ans fait toute de suite sensation. En 1961, il crée sa propre maison en partenariat avec Pierre Bergé. Ensemble, le premier à la création, le second à la gestion, ils vont bâtir une griffe qui symbolise toujours l'élégance française.

Une nouvelle liberté aux femmes

Yves Saint Laurent était un homme timide et réservé.[Keystone]

Ancré dans son temps, il donnera aux femmesune nouvelle liberté en modernisant la couture et créant un prêt-à-porter puisé dans le vestiaire masculin: caban, saharienne, tailleur-pantalon et bien sûr smoking, porté par exemple avec une blouse très transparente, autre emblème Saint Laurent.

Le président français Nicolas Sarkozy a salué la mémoire du maître en affirmant qu'avec lui «disparaît un des plus grands noms de la mode, le premier à élever la haute couture au rang d'un art en lui assurant un rayonnement planétaire».

Féru de théâtre, d'opéra et de littérature, Yves Saint Laurent a dessiné des bijoux, des décors et des costumes pour des pièces et des spectacles. Toujours à l'avant-garde, il a créé des parfums, dont le premier Opium, en 1977, fut un succès immédiat et lancé le prêt-à-porter de luxe en ouvrant un magasin rive gauche.

Accompagner la libération féminine

«Je me suis toujours élevé contre les fantasmes de certains qui satisfont leur ego à travers la mode. J'ai au contraire toujours voulu me mettre au service des femmes. J'ai voulu les accompagner dans ce grand mouvement de libération que connut le siècle dernier», avait-il dit lors de l'annonce de ses adieux à la haute couture en 2002.

La maison Saint Laurent sera vendue deux fois: en 1993 à Elf Sanofi et en 1999 au groupe Gucci, filiale du groupe français PPR, qui a scindé la griffe en deux entités, la haute couture étant préservée au 5 avenue Marceau où Yves Saint Laurent créera ses modèles jusqu'en 2002. Cette année-là et pour ses adieux, il a présenté au centre Georges Pompidou, à Paris, un défilé rétrospective de 40 ans de création à la fin duquel il a été ovationné.

ats/cer

La vie en rose

LA VIE EN ROSE

Synopsis: According to Marlene Dietrich, chanteuse Edith Piaf's voice was "the soul of Paris." This French drama explores the often troubled life of the singer as her fame took her from the City of Lights to America to the South of France. Abandoned by her mother, Piaf grew up in her grandmother's brothel... According to Marlene Dietrich, chanteuse Edith Piaf's voice was "the soul of Paris." This French drama explores the often troubled life of the singer as her fame took her from the City of Lights to America to the South of France. Abandoned by her mother, Piaf grew up in her grandmother's brothel and her father's circus, which is hardly the fun one might imagine. While singing on the streets of Paris as a teen, Piaf (played as an adult by Marion Cotillard, A VERY LONG ENGAGEMENT) is discovered by club owner Louis Leplée (Gérard Depardieu), and this chance encounter changes the woman's life. Her powerful voice takes her all over the globe, but it can't guard her from the pain and suffering she can't avoid. As Piaf, Cotillard is mesmerizing. She fully inhabits the singer's ivory skin, crafting a character that never descends into caricature or camp. She lip syncs to Piaf's legendary voice, but the performance is seamless. Like WALK THE LINE and RAY, this biopic creates a fascinating picture of an artist whose songs only begin to reflect the singer's painful life. But director-writer Olivier Dahan (LA VIE PROMISE) doesn't take the traditional biopic route with LA VIE EN ROSE. Instead, the film jumps between various moments in the singer's life, with little concern for linear narrative. Cotillard is just as adept at playing the teenage Piaf as she is the songbird on her deathbed at the age of 47, and it's her amazing performance that makes LA VIE EN ROSE worth seeing.

La Vie en Rose  June 15, 2007

Cast & Credits Edith Piaf: Marion Cotillard Anetta Gassion: Clotilde Courau Louis Gassion: Jean Paul Rouve Momone: Sylvie Testud Louis Barrier: Pascal Greggory Marcel Cerdan: Jean Pierre Martins Titine: Emmanuelle Seigner Louis Leplee: Gerard Depardieu Louise: Catherine Allegret Marlene Dietrich: Caroline Silhol Edith, age 5: Manon Chevallier Edith, age 8: Pauline Burlet Picturehouse presents a film directed by Olivier Dahan. Written by Dahan and Isabelle Sobelman. Running time: 140 minutes. Rated PG-13. Opening today at Evanston CineArts, Pipers Alley and Landmark Renaissance.

by Roger Ebert

She was the daughter of a street singer and a circus acrobat. She was dumped by her mother with her father, who dumped her with his mother, who ran a brothel. In childhood, diseases rendered her temporarily blind and deaf. She claimed she was cured by St. Therese, whose shrine the prostitutes took her to. One of the prostitutes adopted her, until her father returned, snatched her away, and put her to work in his act. From her mother and the prostitute she heard many songs, and one day when his sidewalk act was doing badly, her father commanded her, "Do something." She sang "La Marseilles." And Edith Piaf was born.

Piaf. The French word for "sparrow." She was named by her first impresario, Louis Leplee. He was found shot dead not long after -- possibly by a pimp who considered her his property. She stood 4 feet, 8 inches tall, and so became "the Little Sparrow." She was the most famous and beloved French singer of her time -- of the century, in fact -- and her lovers included Yves Montand (who she discovered) and the middleweight champion Marcel Cerdan. She drank too much, all the time. She became addicted to morphine, and required ten injections a day. She grew old and prematurely stooped, and died at 47.

Olivier Dahan's "La Vie en Rose," one of the best biopics I've seen, tells Piaf's life story through the extraordinary performance of Marion Cotillard, who looks like the singer. The title, which translates loosely as "life through rose-colored glasses," is fromone of Piaf's most famous songs, which she wrote herself. She is known for countless other songs perhaps most poignantly for "Non je ne regrette rien" ("No, I regret nothing"), which is seen in the film as her final song; if it wasn't, it should have been.

How do you tell a life story to chaotic, jumbled and open to chance as Piaf's? Her life did not have an arc but a trajectory. Joy and tragedy seemed simultaneous. Her loves were heartfelt but doomed; after she begged the boxer Cerdan to fly to her in New York, he was killed in the crash of his flight from Paris. Her stage triumphs alternated with her stage collapses. If her life resembled in some ways Judy Garland's, there is this difference: Garland lived for the adulation of the audience, and Piaf lived to do her duty as a singer. From her earliest days, from the prostitutes, her father and her managers, she learned that when you're paid, you perform.

Oh, but what a performer she was. Her voice was loud and clear, reflecting her early years as a street singer. Such a big voice for such a little woman. At first she sang mechanically, but was tutored to improve her diction and express the meaning of her words. She did that so well that if you know what the words "Non je ne regrette rien" mean, you can essentially feel the meaning of every other word in the song.

Dahan and his co-writer, Isabelle Sobelman, move freely through the pages of Piaf's life. A chronology would have missed the point. She didn't start here and go there; she was always, at every age, even before she had the name, the little sparrow. The action moves back and forth from childhood to final illness, from applause to desperation, from joy to heartbreak (particularly in the handling of Cerdan's last visit to her).

This mosaic storytelling style has been criticized in some quarters as obscuring facts (quick: how many times was she married?). But think of it this way: Since there are, in fact, no wedding scenes in the movie, isn't it more accurate to see husbands, lovers, friends, admirers, employees and everyone else as whirling around her small, still center? Nothing in her early life taught her to count on permanence or loyalty. What she counted on was singing, champagne, infatuation and morphine.

Many biopics break down in depicting their subjects in old age, and Piaf, at 47, looked old. Gene Siskel once referred to an actor's old-age makeup as making him look like a turtle. In "La Vie en Rose" there is never a moment's doubt. Even the hair is right; her frizzled, dyed, thinning hair in the final scenes matches the real Piaf in the videos I cite below. The only detail I can question is her resiliency after all-night drinking sessions. I once knew an alcoholic who said, "If I wasn't a drinker and I woke up with one of these hangovers, I'd check myself into the emergency room."

Then there are the songs, a lot of them. I gather from the credits that some are dubbed by other singers, some are sung by Piaf herself, and some, in parts at least, by Cotillard. In the video clips you can see how Piaf choreographed her hands and fingers, and Cotillard has that right, too. If a singer has been dead 50 years and sang in another language, she must have been pretty great to make it onto so many saloon jukeboxes, which is how I first heard her. Now, of course, she's on my iPod, and I'm listening to her right now.

Pour moi toute seule.

A more sophisticated mind...

Neuroscientist Finds “Cognitive Edge”
when Children Learn French.

When children learn French, or another foreign language, they develop more sophisticated minds than their monolingual peers, according to a study of bilingual children presented to the Society for Neuroscience.

The report on bilingual children who learn French and English was presented by professor Laura-Ann Petitto, PhD, a cognitive neuroscientist at Dartmouth College, who has spent over 30 years researching the biological foundations of language.

“Our findings show that bilingual children can perform certain cognitive tasks more accurately than monolinguals,” Dr. Petitto said, in a press release. “Being bilingual can give you a cognitive edge.”

How much of an edge? When children learn French or another foreign language do they actually become “smarter” than kids who only speak English? So far, the research of Petitto and her colleagues has revealed no quantifiable answers to these questions but the overall implication is interesting.

Granted, most parents who encourage their children to learn French are more concerned with the culture – the chocolat and cinéma – than experiments in cognition. Even so, the science is provocative. By taking a look at recent studies in educational neuroscience, we can better understand the significance of their findings.

What does the “Simon Task” tell us about children who learn French?

Dr. Petitto’s research compared a group of monolingual children who spoke solely English or French, with a group of children who communicated in both languages. The groups were further categorized by age (from 4 to 6 years) and linguistic ability.

The children participated in the “Simon Task,” which involves colored squares flashing on a computer screen. As the squares jump randomly from side to side, the children are asked to quickly select whether they’re seeing a red or blue square. If red, they press a button on their right. If blue, they press a button onthe left. When correctly performed,a child who sees a blue square on the right-hand side of the screen will nonetheless press the left-hand button, signifying blue.

The bilingual children reportedly scored much better than the monolinguals, suggesting that when children learn French and English, they become better equipped to sort through abstract and contradictory information. Such activity requires a significant degree of mental sophistication, especially for a six-year-old.

Petitto attributed the difference in skill sets to the increased cognitive demands when children learn French and English or any other bilingual language pairing. By processing two languages, they develop greater mental flexibility and agility.

“For example, the brain that has been trained for bilingual language must look up and attend to the meaning for, say, ‘cup’ in one language, while suppressing the meaning for ‘cup’ in the child‘s other native language,” Petitto said, in the press release. “This requires heightened computational analysis in the brain.”

Other cognitive benefits when children learn French

Dr. Ellen Bialystok is a professor of psychology at York University in Canada, who collaborated with Dr. Petitto on the “Simon Task” study. For several years, Dr. Bialystok has been conducting her own research on the cognitive effects of learning another language. “There is a lot of fear that exposing children to languages will cause confusion and harm,” Bialystok told Cookie magazine in 2006.

Research led by Bialystok has shown that when children learn French and English or are bilingual in other languages, they consistently outperform monolingual kids on select cognitive tasks. The “Stroop Test,” for example, requires participants to name the color of ink on a flashcard that features a contradictory or confusing word; for example, the word “yellow” written in blue ink. Reportedly, bilinguals tend to be much better at naming the right color. Performance on the Stroop Test and Simon Task reflect levels of attention control, sorting ability, and the resolution of complex information. Cookie reports that 4-year-old bilingual children are generally more capable of sorting information and performing similar “frontal-lobe ‘executive’ functions” than monolingual children who are a full year older.

Children Learn French and Take Advantage of the Brain's Flexibility

While neuroscientists continue to debate the degree of cognitive benefits that come from learning a second language, educators and linguistic experts have determined that there are no benefits whatsoever to withholding second language education. In fact, when children learn French or another foreign language at an early age, they are much more likely to achieve fluency. The minds of preschoolers are surprisingly capable of acquiring and integrating new modes of communication.

Dr. Bialystok told Cookie that there is “not a shred of evidence” to support the superstition that when young children learn French or another foreign language, it leads to confusion or problems in English.

Dr. Petitto struck a similar chord when interviewed at a linguistics conference sponsored by George Washington University’s Graduate School of Education and Human Development. She declared : “I hope to make clear with regard to the architecture of the human brain that it is not set to learn only one language. The brain is not a closed system. It was not etched to learn one thing.”

“We have multiple ways and multiple languages,” Dr. Petitto concluded. “The brain can handle that.”

2008, Year of Languages

 

Pierre Kimm -2008- picture

The year 2008 has been proclaimed International Year of Languages by the United Nations General Assembly. UNESCO, which has been entrusted with the task of coordinating activities for the Year, is determined to fulfil its role as lead agency.

The Organization is fully aware of the crucial importance of languages when seen against the many challenges that humanity will have to face over the next few decades.

Languages are indeed essential to the identity of groups and individuals and to their peaceful coexistence. They constitute a strategic factor of progress towards sustainable development and a harmonious relationship between the global and the
local context.

They are of utmost importance in achieving the six goals of education for all (EFA) and the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) on which the United Nations agreed in 2000.

As factors of social integration, languages effectively play a strategic role in the eradication of extreme poverty and hunger (MDG 1); as supports for literacy, learning and life skills, they are essential to achieving universal primary education (MDG 2); the combat against HIV/AIDS, malaria and other diseases (MDG 6) must be waged in the languages of the populations concerned if they are to be reached; and the safeguarding of local and indigenous knowledge and know-how with a view to ensuring environmental sustainability (MDG 7) is intrinsically linked to local and indigenous languages.

Moreover, cultural diversity is closely linked to linguistic diversity, as indicated in the UNESCO Universal Declaration on Cultural Diversity and its action plan (2001), the Convention for the Safeguarding of the Intangible Cultural Heritage and the
Convention on the Protection and Promotion of the Diversity of Cultural Expressions (2005).

However, within the space of a few generations, more than 50% of the 7,000 languages spoken in the world may disappear. Less than a quarter of those languages are currently used in schools and in cyberspace, and most are used only
sporadically. Thousands of languages – though mastered by those populations for whom it is the daily means of expression – are absent from education systems, the media, publishing and the public domain in general.

We must act now as a matter of urgency. How? By encouraging and developing language policies that enable each linguistic community to use its first language, or mother tongue, as widely and as often as possible, including in education, while
also mastering a national or regional language and an international language. Also by encouraging speakers of a dominant language to master another national or regional language and one or two international languages. Only if multilingualism is fully accepted can all languages find their place in our globalized world.

UNESCO therefore invites governments, United Nations organizations, civil society organizations, educational institutions, professional associations and all other stakeholders to increase their own activities to foster respect for, and the promotion and protection of all languages, particularly endangered languages, in all individual and collective contexts.

Whether it be through initiatives in the fields of education, cyberspace or the literate environment; be it through projects to safeguard endangered languages or to promote languages as a tool for social integration; or to explore the relationship between languages and the economy, languages and indigenous knowledge or languages and creation, it is important that the idea that “languages matter!” be promoted everywhere.

The date of 21 February 2008, that of the ninth International Mother Language Day, will have a special significance and provide a particularly appropriate deadline for the introduction of initiatives to promote languages.

Our common goal is to ensure that the importance of linguistic diversity and multilingualism in educational, administrative and legal systems, cultural expressions and the media, cyberspace and trade, is recognized at the national, regional and international levels.

The International Year of Languages 2008 will provide a unique opportunity to make decisive progress towards achieving these goals.

Koïchiro Matsuura

 

 

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