14-07-2025
- Entertainment
- The Independent
Gisele Pelicot awarded France's highest honour as country marks Bastille Day
Gisele Pelicot has been given France 's highest award as part of Bastille Day celebrations that included a traditional military parade and fly-past.
Ms Pelicot – a global symbol in the struggle against sexual violence – was named knight of the Legion of Honour on a list published ahead of the national holiday.
She waived her right to anonymity during the trial of her then-husband, who had drugged and raped her and invited dozens of strangers to also abuse her over the course of years.
Following the three-month trial, her husband and the 50 other abusers were sentenced to a total of 428 years in prison.
Nearly 600 other people were also given the award, including Holocaust survivor and French Resistance fighter Yvette Levy, and musician Pharrell Williams who has designed a collection for Louis Vuitton.
Celebrations were taking place across the country on Monday culminating in fireworks in nearly every French town.
The heart of the festivities was in Paris, where 7,000 participants marched on horseback or armoured vehicles in a military parade along the cobblestones of the Champs-Élysées.
The annual event commemorates the storming of the Bastille fortress and prison on 14 July 1789, a pivotal moment that ignited the French Revolution and led to the overthrow of the monarchy.
This year's event returned to Champs-Élysées after being moved to Avenue Foch by last year's Olympic Games.
The French Army, Navy and air force paraded in front of French officials and visiting political leaders including Indonesia's President Prabowo Subianto who is representing the world's biggest Muslim country. Indonesia contributed 451 soldiers to the parade, including a drum band of 189 musicians.
For the first time, a prison dog was part of the Bastille Day parade, alongside his handler. The Belgian Malinois shepherd, Gun, is specialised in weapons and ammunition detection.
Beyond the military spectacle in Paris are growing concerns about an uncertain world.
On the eve of Bastille Day, Mr Macron announced €6.5 billion ($7.6 billion) in extra French military spending in the next two years because of new threats ranging from Russia to terrorism and online attacks. The French leader called for intensified efforts to protect Europe and support for Ukraine.
'Since 1945, our freedom has never been so threatened, and never so seriously,″ Mr Macron said. ''We are experiencing a return to the fact of a nuclear threat, and a proliferation of major conflicts.″
Many parts of France celebrated on Sunday evening, including in parts of Paris were 176 arrests were made in the metropolitan area according to Laurent Nuñez, prefect of police for Paris.
