In September 1783 one of the first hot air balloons took flight from the Palace of Versailles. To test the effects of altitude on living beings, King Louis XVI proposed that a pair of convicted criminals be put on board, but in the end a trio of farm animals sufficed (and they all survived). Louis himself was not so lucky: just a few years later, the French Republic was born and he lost his head on the guillotine. And now, for our annual voyage across the pond, we’re leaving animals (and convicts) on terra firma and taking to the skies to celebrate the anniversary of another republic.
