Contents

• 1. Genesis of a Political Symbol: The Bastille, 1715-1789. Anti-Bastille Journalism: Scandalous Stories of Prisoners. The Reality-Forming Power of the Symbolic: Prison Practice versus Social Consciousness
• 2. The Storming of the Bastille: The Historical Event as Collective Symbolic Action. The Storming of the Bastille: Causes and Process. How a Decisive Event in World History Is "Made": The Symbolic Exaggeration of 14 July 1789
• 3. Revolutionary Symbolism under the Sign of the Bastille, 1789-1799: A Prime Example of the Self-Mystification of the French Revolution. Radicalization and Diversification of a Collective Symbol. The New Heroes: The Role-Model Function and Self-Staging of the Victors of the Bastille. Martyrs of Freedom, Victims of Despotism: The Triumph of the Prisoners of the Bastille. "The Patriot" Palloy: Conqueror of the Bastille and Vulgarizer. The Patriotic Cult of Relics: The Staging of the Bastille Stones in Paris and in the French Provinces. The Symbolic Foundation of National Identity: Festivals, Speeches, and Monuments Commemorating 14 July 1789. Revolutionary Activism under the Sign of the Bastille. Echo and Export of Bastille Symbolism Abroad: Germany as a Significant Example
• 4. Bastille Symbolism in Modern France: The Republican Legacy of the French Revolution. Heroic Martyrs of Freedom in History and Literature. The Storming of the Bastille: A National Act of Faith. Utilizations in Domestic Politics: From the July Revolution to the Resistance
• Final Remarks: On the Origin and Function of a Historical Symbol
• Appendix. Reports on the Storming of the Bastille, 1789