Off With Their Heads!

No, I'm not smoking something.  No, I haven't gone off my rocker.  Although I am close.

Image Courtesy Google Images

Today is France's Independence Day!  Being married to a Frenchie, today is second only to July 4th as to our family's favorite summer days.  Each year, Jerome's parents throw a huge party and all the French ex-pats and Francophiles (French-loving people) show up.  You can read all about last year's shindig here.


Strange as it is, I have started looking forward to this.  We used to dread it, because we would spend the entire week before preparing, the entire day of it running around like psycho people, and end up too exhausted and frustrated with each other to really enjoy it.  Thankfully, we have been kicked out of the manual labor the last few years in lieu of the bakery employees, so now I just get to come and have fun! 


I will post pictures later, but I thought I would share some random Bastille Day trivia with you.  Do you know the French national anthem?  It is called La Marseillaise.  It was written by Claude-Joseph Rouget de Lisle in 1792 and was declared the French national anthem in 1795.  It sounds absolutely beautiful when sung.  I should qualify that.  It sounds absolutely beautiful when sung by a trained choir.  It sounds like a bawdy bar song when sung by my FIL and his champagne-enhanced buddies.


One year, frustrated in my attempts to understand their drunk joyous ramblings, I googled the lyrics to see what they actually meant.  And now I will share them with you all.  Don't thank me yet.  I give you:

La Marseillaise

Let's go children of the fatherland,
The day of glory has arrived!

Against us tyranny's

Bloody flag is raised! (repeat)

In the countryside, do you hear

The roaring of these fierce soldiers?

They come right to our arms

To slit the throats of our sons, our friends!

Refrain

Grab your weapons, citizens!

Form your batallions!
Let us march! Let us march!

May impure blood

Water our fields!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

This horde of slaves, traitors, plotting kings,

What do they want?

For whom these vile shackles,

These long-prepared irons? (repeat)

Frenchmen, for us, oh! what an insult!

What emotions that must excite!

It is us that they dare to consider

Returning to ancient slavery!

What! These foreign troops

Would make laws in our home!

What! These mercenary phalanxes

Would bring down our proud warriors! (repeat)

Good Lord! By chained hands

Our brows would bend beneath the yoke!

Vile despots would become

The masters of our fate!

Tremble, tyrants! and you, traitors,

The disgrace of all groups,

Tremble! Your parricidal plans

Will finally pay the price! (repeat)

Everyone is a soldier to fight you,

If they fall, our young heros,

France will make more,

Ready to battle you!

Frenchmen, as magnanimous warriors,

Bear or hold back your blows!

Spare these sad victims,

Regretfully arming against us. (repeat)

But not these bloodthirsty despots,

But not these accomplices of Bouillé,

All of these animals who, without pity,

Tear their mother's breast to pieces!

~ ~ ~ ~ ~

Sacred love of France,

Lead, support our avenging arms!

Liberty, beloved Liberty,

Fight with your defenders! (repeat)

Under our flags, let victory

Hasten to your manly tones!

May your dying enemies

See your triumph and our glory!

Refrain

We will enter the pit

When our elders are no longer there;

There, we will find their dust

And the traces of their virtues. (repeat)

Much less eager to outlive them

Than to share their casket,

We will have the sublime pride

Of avenging them or following them!

Refrain

Translated by Laura K. Lawless and found on About.com

In my defense, the stanzas in between the ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ are no longer sung today.  I told you not to thank me.  Please don't email me to tell me about all the nightmares this song gave you.

And now, I am off to enjoy escargot, stinky cheese, champagne, and lots of cheek kisses.  Joyeux Quatorze everyone!