Trump’s military parade taps an ancient tradition of power: from Mesopotamia to Maga

Critics see echoes of authoritarianism, a break from the US's usual restraint on military display

To Donald Trump, the inspiration is the pomp and pageantry of Bastille Day, France's annual celebration of the 1789 revolution.

For his critics, it is redolent of the authoritarian militarism proudly projected by autocracies like Russia, China and North Korea.