- Viva la Vida is the second single from British alternative rock band Coldplay's fourth studio album, Viva la Vida or Death and All His Friends, released on May 7, 2008.
- It is Coldplay's most popular song, reaching number one in the United States and the United Kingdom.
- It won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals.
- The song was ranked #70 on XFM's 2010 list of the 100 Greatest British Songs of All Time.
- The song has an explicit link to two revolutions in France.
- The cover of the album Viva la Vida or Death and All Its Friends is based on the painting Liberty Guiding the People by French artist Eugene Delacroix, inspired by the July Revolution, the "Three Glorious".
- According to some, the lyrics of the song refer to Louis XVI, who, after triumphing over England in the American Revolutionary War, was the head of the most powerful country in Europe (France), from which the lyrics "I used to rule the world" and "feel the fear in my enemies' eyes" come.
- He was also the king during the French Revolution, and ended up being guillotined by the revolutionaries, hence the lyrics "the revolutionaries are waiting for my head on a silver platter".
- Another clue linking the single to Louis XVI is that the first few seconds of the song are inspired by the music played at the French court in the 18th century.
- Throughout the song's video, the flag of the French Republic, a revolutionary symbol, can be seen.
