Louis de Flue

The Bastille was a large fortress and prison located on the outskirts of Paris. On July 14, 1789, a large crowd of French citizens—who doubted the sincerity of King Louis XVI’s support for economic and financial reforms—stormed the Bastille in search of weapons in case the king ordered his troops to attack the city. The march on the fortress and its capture by the crowd resulted in the deaths of ninety-eight civilians and the execution of the Bastille’s governor, Marquis de Launay, along with several other key officers. In the following viewpoint Louis de Flue, an officer stationed at the Bastille, describes his experiences defending the Bastille and criticizes the actions of the crowd. He supports the decisions made by de Launay, explaining that...