Lafayette Fete Du Void
. Politician.
(Auvergne). Member of the.
Chamber of Representatives. Chamber of DeputiesSignatureMarie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette ( French:; 6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States simply as Lafayette, was a French aristocrat and military officer who fought in the, commanding American troops in several battles, including the. After returning to France, he was a key figure in the of 1789 and the of 1830.Lafayette was born into a wealthy land-owning family in in the province of in south central France.
He followed the family's martial tradition and was commissioned an officer at age 13. He became convinced that the American revolutionary cause was noble, and he traveled to the New World seeking glory in it. He was made a major general at age 19, but he was initially not given American troops to command. He was wounded during the but still managed to organize an orderly retreat, and he served with distinction in the. In the middle of the war, he sailed for home to lobby for an increase in French support. He returned to America in 1780 and was given senior positions in the.
In 1781, troops under his command in Virginia blocked forces led by until other American and French forces could position themselves for the decisive.Lafayette returned to France and was appointed to the in 1787, convened in response to the fiscal crisis. He was elected a member of the, where representatives met from the three traditional orders of French society: the clergy, the nobility, and the commoners. After forming the, he helped to write the with 's assistance. This document was inspired by the and invoked natural law to establish basic principles of the democratic nation-state. He also advocated the end of slavery, in keeping with the philosophy of natural liberty. After the, he was appointed commander-in-chief of France's National Guard and tried to steer a middle course through the years of revolution. In August 1792, radical factions ordered his arrest, and he fled into the Austrian Netherlands.
He was captured by Austrian troops and spent more than five years in prison.Lafayette returned to France after secured his release in 1797, though he refused to participate in Napoleon's government. After the of 1814, he became a liberal member of the Chamber of Deputies, a position that he held for most of the remainder of his life. In 1824, President invited him to the United States as the nation's guest, and he in the union and met a rapturous reception. During France's July Revolution of 1830, he declined an offer to become the French dictator.
Instead, he supported as king, but turned against him when the monarch became autocratic. He died on 20 May 1834 and is buried in in Paris, under soil from. He is sometimes known as 'The Hero of the Two Worlds' for his accomplishments in the service of both France and the United States. 1879 print of Lafayette (center) being introduced by Baron (left) toIn September 1775, when Lafayette turned 18, he returned to Paris and received the captaincy in the Dragoons he had been promised as a wedding present.
In December, his first child, Henriette, was born. During these months, Lafayette became convinced that the American Revolution reflected his own beliefs, saying 'My heart was dedicated.' The year 1776 saw delicate negotiations between American agents, including, and Louis XVI and his foreign minister, Comte. The king and his minister hoped that by supplying the Americans with arms and officers, they might restore French influence in North America, and exact revenge against Britain for the loss in the.
When Lafayette heard that French officers were being sent to America, he demanded to be among them. He met Deane, and gained inclusion despite his youth. On 7 December 1776, Deane enlisted Lafayette as a major general.The plan to send French officers (as well as other aid) to America came to nothing when the British heard of it and threatened war.
Lafayette's father-in-law, de Noailles, scolded the young man and told him to go to London and visit, the ambassador to Britain and Lafayette's uncle by marriage, which he did in February 1777. In the interim, he did not abandon his plans to go to America. Lafayette was presented to, and spent three weeks in London society. On his return to France, he went into hiding from his father-in-law (and superior officer), writing to him that he was planning to go to America. De Noailles was furious, and convinced Louis to issue a decree forbidding French officers from serving in America, specifically naming Lafayette.
Vergennes may have persuaded the king to order Lafayette's arrest, though this is uncertain. Departure for America. Plaque at in the Basque Country, Spain, commemorating La Fayette's departure in 1777Lafayette learned that the lacked funds for his voyage; hence, he acquired the sailing ship Victoire with his own money, for 112,000 pounds. He journeyed to Bordeaux, where Victoire was being prepared for her trip, and sent word asking for information on his family's reaction. The response, including letters from his wife and other relatives, threw Lafayette into emotional turmoil.
Soon after departure, he ordered the ship turned around and returned to Bordeaux, to the frustration of the officers traveling with him. The army commander there ordered Lafayette to report to his father-in-law's regiment in Marseilles. De Broglie, who hoped to become a military and political leader in America, met with Lafayette in Bordeaux and convinced him that the government actually wanted him to go. This was not true, though there was considerable public support for Lafayette in Paris, where the American cause was popular. Lafayette wanted to believe it, and pretended to comply with the order to report to Marseilles, going only a few miles east before turning around and returning to his ship.
Victoire set sail out of on the shores of the on 25 March, 1777. The two-month journey to the New World was marked by seasickness and boredom. The ship's captain, Lebourcier, intended to stop in the to sell cargo, but Lafayette, fearful of arrest, bought the cargo to avoid docking at the islands. He landed on North Island near, on 13 June 1777. American Revolution. Main articles: andOn arrival, Lafayette met Major, a wealthy landowner, with whom he stayed for two weeks before going to Philadelphia.
The Continental Congress had been overwhelmed by French officers recruited by Deane, many of whom could not speak English or lacked military experience. Lafayette had learned some English en route (he became fluent within a year of his arrival), and his Masonic membership opened many doors in Philadelphia. After Lafayette offered to serve without pay, Congress commissioned him a major general on 31 July 1777. Lafayette's advocates included the recently arrived American envoy to France, who by letter urged Congress to accommodate the young Frenchman.
The Marquis de Lafayette first meets on 5 August 1777. By.General, commander in chief of the, came to Philadelphia to brief Congress on military affairs. Lafayette met him at a dinner on 5 August 1777; according to Leepson, 'the two men bonded almost immediately.' Washington was impressed by the young man's enthusiasm and was inclined to think well of a fellow Mason; Lafayette was simply in awe of the commanding general. General Washington took the Frenchman to view his military camp; when Washington expressed embarrassment at its state and that of the troops, Lafayette responded, 'I am here to learn, not to teach.' He became a member of Washington's staff, although confusion existed regarding his status.
Congress regarded his commission as honorary, while he considered himself a full-fledged commander who would be given control of a division when Washington deemed him prepared. Washington told Lafayette that a division would not be possible as he was of foreign birth, but that he would be happy to hold him in confidence as 'friend and father'.
Lafayette wounded at the battle of BrandywineLafayette's first battle was at Brandywine on 11 September 1777. The British commanding general, General, by moving troops south by ship to (rather than the heavily defended ) and bringing them overland to the rebel capital. After the British outflanked the Americans, Washington sent Lafayette to join General. Upon his arrival, Lafayette went with the Third Pennsylvania Brigade, under Brigadier, and attempted to rally the unit to face the attack. The British and forces continued to advance with their superior forces, and Lafayette was shot in the leg.
During the American retreat, Lafayette rallied the troops, allowing a more orderly pullback, before being treated for his wound. After the battle, Washington cited him for 'bravery and military ardour' and recommended him for the command of a division in a letter to Congress, which was hastily evacuating, as the British took Philadelphia later that month.Lafayette returned to the field in November after two months of recuperation in the settlement of, and received command of the division previously led by Major General.
He assisted General in reconnaissance of British positions in New Jersey; with 300 soldiers, he in, on 24 November 1777. John Ward Dunsmore's depiction of Lafayette (right) and Washington at Valley ForgeLafayette stayed at Washington's encampment at in the winter of 1777–78, and shared the hardship of his troops. There, the, led by, asked Lafayette to prepare an invasion of from Albany, New York. When Lafayette arrived in Albany, he found too few men to mount an invasion. He wrote to Washington of the situation, and made plans to return to Valley Forge. Before departing, he recruited the, who referred to Lafayette as Kayewla (fearsome horseman), to the American side.
In Valley Forge, he criticized the board's decision to attempt an invasion of Quebec in winter. The Continental Congress agreed, and Gates left the board. Meanwhile, treaties signed by America and France were made public in March 1778, and France formally recognized American independence. Barren Hill, Monmouth, and Rhode Island.
Map of the by Michel Capitaine du Chesnoy, aide-de-camp to LafayetteFaced with the prospect of French intervention, the British sought to concentrate their land and naval forces in New York City, and they began to evacuate Philadelphia in May 1778. Washington dispatched Lafayette with a 2,200-man force on 18 May to reconnoiter near, Pennsylvania. The next day, the British heard that he had made camp nearby and sent 5,000 men to capture him.
General Howe led a further 6,000 soldiers on 20 May and ordered an attack on his left flank. The flank scattered, and Lafayette organized a retreat while the British remained indecisive. To feign numerical superiority, Lafayette ordered men to appear from the woods on an outcropping (now ) and to fire upon the British periodically. His troops simultaneously escaped via a sunken road, and he was then able to cross Matson's Ford with the remainder of his force. Map of the by Michel Capitaine du Chesnoy, aide-de-camp to LafayetteThe British then marched from Philadelphia toward New York. The Continental Army followed and finally attacked at in central New Jersey.
Washington appointed General to lead the attacking force at the, and Lee moved against the British flank on 28 June. However, he gave conflicting orders soon after fighting began, causing chaos in the American ranks. Lafayette sent a message to Washington to urge him to the front; upon his arrival, he found Lee's men in retreat. Washington relieved Lee, took command, and rallied the American force. After suffering significant casualties at Monmouth, the British withdrew in the night and successfully reached New York.The French fleet arrived at Delaware Bay on 8 July 1778 under Admiral, with whom General Washington planned to attack, the other major British base in the north. Lafayette and General Greene were sent with a 3,000-man force to participate in the attack.
Lafayette wanted to control a joint Franco-American force but was rebuffed by the admiral. On 9 August, the American land force attacked the British without consulting d'Estaing. The Americans asked d'Estaing to place his ships in, but he refused and sought to defeat the British fleet at sea. The fighting was inconclusive as a storm scattered and damaged both fleets.
A 1778 French military map showing the positions of generals Lafayette and Sullivan around Narragansett Bay on August 30D'Estaing moved his ships north to Boston for repairs, where it faced an angry demonstration from Bostonians who considered the French departure from Newport to be a desertion. And Lafayette were dispatched to calm the situation, and Lafayette then returned to Rhode Island to prepare the retreat made necessary by d'Estaing's departure. For these actions, he was cited by the Continental Congress for 'gallantry, skill, and prudence'. He wanted to expand the war to fight the British elsewhere in America and even in Europe under the French flag, but he found little interest in his proposals.
In October 1778, he requested permission from Washington and Congress to go home on leave. They agreed, with Congress voting to give him a ceremonial sword to be presented to him in France.
Lafayette Fete Du Void Youtube
His departure was delayed by illness, and he sailed for France in January 1779. Return to FranceLafayette reached Paris in February 1779 where he was placed under house arrest for eight days for disobeying the king by going to America. This was merely face-saving by; Lafayette was given a hero's welcome and was soon invited to hunt with the king. The American envoy was ill, so Benjamin Franklin's grandson presented Lafayette with the gold-encrusted sword commissioned by the Continental Congress.Lafayette pushed for an invasion of Britain, with himself to have a major command in the French forces. Spain was now France's ally against Britain and sent ships to the English Channel in support. The Spanish ships did not arrive until August 1779 and were met by a faster squadron of British ships that the combined French and Spanish fleet could not catch.
In September, the invasion was abandoned, and Lafayette turned his hopes toward returning to America. In December 1779, Adrienne gave birth to.Lafayette worked with Benjamin Franklin to secure the promise of 6,000 soldiers to be sent to America, commanded by General.
Lafayette would resume his position as a major general of American forces, serving as liaison between Rochambeau and Washington, who would be in command of both nations' forces. In March 1780, he departed from for America aboard the frigate, arriving in Boston on 27 April 1780. French frigate Hermione that brought Lafayette to America in 1780 Second voyage to AmericaOn his return, Lafayette found the American cause at a low ebb, rocked by several military defeats, especially in the south. Lafayette was greeted in Boston with enthusiasm, seen as 'a knight in shining armor from the chivalric past, come to save the nation'. He journeyed southwest and on 10 May 1780 had a joyous reunion with Washington at. The general and his officers were delighted to hear that the large French force promised to Lafayette would be coming to their aid. Washington, aware of Lafayette's popularity, had him write (with to correct his spelling) to state officials to urge them to provide more troops and provisions to the Continental Army.
This bore fruit in the coming months, as Lafayette awaited the arrival of the French fleet. However, when the fleet arrived, there were fewer men and supplies than expected, and Rochambeau decided to wait for reinforcements before seeking battle with the British. This was unsatisfactory to Lafayette, who proposed grandiose schemes for the taking of New York City and other areas, and Rochambeau briefly refused to receive Lafayette until the young man apologized. Washington counseled the marquis to be patient.
The young Marquis de Lafayette wears the uniform of a major general of the Continental Army. Painting byThat summer Washington placed Lafayette in charge of a division of troops. The marquis spent lavishly on his command, which patrolled and adjacent New York State. Lafayette saw no significant action, and in November, Washington disbanded the division, sending the soldiers back to their state regiments. The war continued badly for the Americans, with most battles in the south going against them, and General abandoning them for the British side.Lafayette spent the first part of the winter of 1780–81 in Philadelphia, where the elected him its first foreign member. Congress asked him to return to France to lobby for more men and supplies, but Lafayette refused, sending letters instead.After the Continental victory at the in South Carolina in January 1781, Washington ordered Lafayette to re-form his force in Philadelphia and go south to Virginia to link up with troops commanded.
The combined force was to try to trap British forces commanded by Benedict Arnold, with French ships preventing his escape by sea. If Lafayette was successful, Arnold was to be summarily hanged. British command of the seas prevented the plan, though Lafayette and a small part of his force (the rest left behind in Annapolis) was able to reach von Steuben in. Von Steuben sent a plan to Washington, proposing to use land forces and French ships to trap the main British force under. When he received no new orders from Washington, Lafayette began to move his troops north toward Philadelphia, only to be ordered to Virginia to assume military command there.
An outraged Lafayette assumed he was being abandoned in a backwater while decisive battles took place elsewhere, and objected to his orders in vain. He also sent letters to, French ambassador in Philadelphia, describing how ill-supplied his troops were. As Lafayette hoped, la Luzerne sent his letter on to France with a recommendation of massive French aid, which, after being approved by the king, would play a crucial part in the battles to come. Washington, fearing a letter might be captured by the British, could not tell Lafayette that he planned to trap Cornwallis in a decisive campaign. Virginia and Yorktown.
A map of key sites in the Battle of YorktownLafayette evaded Cornwallis' attempts to capture him in. In June 1781, Cornwallis received orders from London to proceed to the Chesapeake Bay and to oversee construction of a port, in preparation for an overland attack on Philadelphia. As the British column traveled, Lafayette sent small squads that would appear unexpectedly, attacking the or foraging parties, and giving the impression that his forces were larger than they were.On 4 July, the British left and prepared to cross the.
Cornwallis sent only an advance guard to the south side of the river, hiding many of his other troops in the forest on the north side, hoping to ambush Lafayette. On 6 July, Lafayette ordered General 'Mad' to strike British troops on the north side with roughly 800 soldiers. Wayne found himself vastly outnumbered, and, instead of retreating, led a bayonet charge. The charge bought time for the Americans, and the British did not pursue. The was a victory for Cornwallis, but the American army was bolstered by the display of courage by the men.By August, Cornwallis had established the British at Yorktown, and Lafayette took up position on, stationing artillery surrounding the British, who were close to the, and who had orders to construct fortifications to protect the British ships in.
Lafayette's containment trapped the British when the French fleet arrived and won the, depriving Cornwallis of naval protection. On 14 September 1781, Washington's forces joined Lafayette's. On 28 September, with the French fleet blockading the British, the combined forces laid. On 14 October, Lafayette's 400 men on the American right took 9 after Alexander Hamilton's forces had charged Redoubt 10 in hand-to-hand combat. These two redoubts were key to breaking the British defenses. After a failed British counter-attack, Cornwallis surrendered on 19 October 1781.
Hero of two worldsYorktown was the last major land battle of the American Revolution, but the British still held several major port cities. Lafayette wanted to lead expeditions to capture them, but Washington felt that he would be more useful seeking additional naval support from France. Congress appointed him its advisor to America's envoys in Europe, Benjamin Franklin in Paris, in Madrid, and in The Hague, instructing them 'to communicate and agree on everything with him'. It also sent Louis XVI an official letter of commendation on the marquis's behalf.Lafayette left Boston for France on 18 December 1781 where he was welcomed as a hero, and he was received at the on 22 January 1782. He witnessed the birth of his daughter, whom he named Marie-Antoinette Virginie upon Thomas Jefferson's recommendation. He was promoted to, skipping numerous ranks, and he was made a Knight of the.
He worked on a combined French and Spanish expedition against the British West Indies in 1782, as no formal peace treaty had yet been signed. The was signed between Great Britain and the United States in 1783, which made the expedition unnecessary; Lafayette took part in those negotiations.Lafayette worked with Jefferson to establish trade agreements between the United States and France which aimed to reduce America's debt to France. He joined the French abolitionist group which advocated the end of the slave trade and equal rights for free blacks. He urged the emancipation of slaves and their establishment as tenant farmers in a 1783 letter to Washington, who was a slave owner. Washington declined to free his slaves, though he expressed interest in the young man's ideas, and Lafayette purchased a plantation in French Guiana to house the project. ', proposed to the Estates-General by LafayetteOn 29 December 1786, King Louis XVI called an, in response to. The king appointed Lafayette to the body, which convened on 22 February 1787.
In speeches, Lafayette decried those with connections at court who had profited from advance knowledge of government land purchases; he advocated reform. He called for a 'truly national assembly', which represented the whole of France. Instead, the king chose to summon an, to convene in 1789. Lafayette was elected as a representative of the nobility (the ) from.
The Estates General, traditionally, cast one vote for each of the three Estates: clergy, nobility, and commons, meaning the much larger commons was generally outvoted.The Estates General convened on 5 May 1789; debate began on whether the delegates should vote by head or by Estate. If by Estate, then the nobility and clergy would be able to outvote the commons; if by head, then the larger Third Estate could dominate.
Before the meeting, as a member of the 'Committee of Thirty', Lafayette agitated for voting by head, rather than estate. He could not get a majority of his own Estate to agree, but the clergy was willing to join with the commons, and on the 17th, the group declared itself the.
The loyalist response was to lock out the group, including Lafayette, while those who had not supported the Assembly met inside. This action led to the, where the excluded members swore to not separate until a constitution was established. The Assembly continued to meet, and on 11 July 1789, Lafayette presented a draft of the ' to the Assembly, written by himself in consultation with Jefferson. The next day, after the dismissal of Finance Minister (who was seen as a reformer), lawyer led an armed mob. The king had the royal army under the surround Paris. On 14 July, the fortress known as the by the mob.
National Guard, Versailles, and Day of Daggers. Lafayette's sabre as general of the Garde nationale, on display at the, ParisOn 15 July, Lafayette was acclaimed commander-in-chief of the National Guard of France, an armed force established to maintain order under the control of the Assembly. Lafayette proposed the name and the symbol of the group: a blue, white, and red cockade. This combined the red and blue colors of the city of Paris with the royal white, and originated the French tricolor.
He faced a difficult task as head of the Guard; the king and many loyalists considered him and his supporters to be little better than revolutionaries, whereas many commoners felt that he was helping the king to keep power.The National Assembly approved the Declaration on 26 August, but the king rejected it on 2 October. Three days later, a Parisian crowd led by women fishmongers in response to the scarcity of bread.
Members of the National Guard followed the march, with Lafayette reluctantly leading them. At Versailles, the king accepted the Assembly's votes on the Declaration, but refused requests to go to Paris, and the crowd broke into the palace at dawn. Lafayette took the royal family onto the palace balcony and attempted to restore order, but the crowd insisted that the king and his family move to Paris and the. The king came onto the balcony and the crowd started chanting 'Vive le Roi!'
Then appeared with her children, but she was told to send the children back in. She returned alone and people shouted to shoot her, but she stood her ground and no one opened fire. Lafayette kissed her hand, leading to cheers from the crowd. The oath of Lafayette at the, 14 July 1790; French School, 18th century atAs leader of the National Guard, Lafayette attempted to maintain order and steer a middle ground, even as the radicals gained increasing influence. He and Paris' mayor instituted a political club on 12 May 1790 called the whose intention was to provide balance to the influence of the radical. Lafayette took the civic oath on the on 14 July 1790 before a huge assembly at the, vowing to 'be ever faithful to the nation, to the law, and to the king; to support with our utmost power the constitution decreed by the National Assembly, and accepted by the king.'
That oath was also taken by his troops and by the king.Lafayette continued to work for order in the coming months. He and part of the National Guard left the Tuileries on 28 February 1791 to handle a conflict in Vincennes, and hundreds of armed nobles arrived at the Tuileries to defend the king while he was gone. However, there were rumors that these nobles had come to take the king away and place him at the head of a counter-revolution. Lafayette quickly returned to the Tuileries and disarmed the nobles after a brief standoff. The event came to be known as the, and it boosted Lafayette's popularity with the French people for his quick actions to protect the king. Nonetheless, the royal family were increasingly prisoners in their palace.
The National Guard disobeyed Lafayette on 18 April and prevented the king from leaving for Saint-Cloud where he planned to attend Mass. Decline: Flight to Varennes and Champs de Mars massacreA plot known as the almost enabled the king to escape from France on 20 June 1791. Lafayette had been responsible for the royal family's custody as leader of the National Guard, and he was thus blamed by extremists such as and called a traitor to the people. These accusations made Lafayette appear a royalist, damaged his reputation in the eyes of the public, and strengthened the hands of the Jacobins and other radicals. He continued to urge the constitutional rule of law, but he was drowned out by the mob and its leaders.
A depiction of the with Lafayette at center with swordLafayette's public standing continued to decline through the latter half of 1791. The radical organized an event at the Champ de Mars on 17 July to gather signatures on a petition to the National Assembly that it either abolish the monarchy or allow its fate to be decided in a referendum. The assembled crowd was estimated approximately 10,000, and they hanged two men believed to be spies. Lafayette rode into the Champ de Mars at the head of his troops to restore order, but they were met with gunshots and stones.
When a dragoon went down, the soldiers, wounding and killing dozens. Martial law was declared, and the leaders of the mob fled and went into hiding, such as Danton. His reputation among the common people suffered dramatically after the massacre, as they believed that he sympathized with royal interests. Immediately after the massacre, a crowd of rioters attacked Lafayette's home and attempted to harm his wife. The Assembly finalized a constitution in September, and Lafayette resigned from the National Guard in early October, with a semblance of constitutional law restored. Conflict and exileLafayette returned to his home province of Auvergne in October 1791. France declared on 20 April 1792, and preparations to invade the (today's Belgium) began.
Lafayette, who had been promoted to on 30 June 1791, received command of one of the three armies, the, based at Metz, on 14 December 1791. Lafayette did his best to mold inductees and National Guardsmen into a cohesive fighting force, but found that many of his troops were Jacobin sympathizers and hated their superior officers. This emotion was common in the army, as demonstrated after the, when the routed French troops dragged to, where he was torn to pieces by the mob.
One of the army commanders, Rochambeau, resigned. Lafayette, along with the third commander, asked the Assembly to begin peace talks, concerned at what might happen if the troops saw another battle.In June 1792, Lafayette criticized the growing influence of the radicals through a letter to the Assembly from his field post, and ended his letter by calling for their parties to be 'closed down by force'. He misjudged his timing, for the radicals were in full control in Paris. Lafayette went there, and on 28 June delivered a fiery speech before the Assembly denouncing the Jacobins and other radical groups.
He was instead accused of deserting his troops. Lafayette called for volunteers to counteract the Jacobins; when only a few people showed up, he understood the public mood and hastily left Paris.
Robespierre called him a traitor and the mob burned him in effigy. He was transferred to command of the on 12 July 1792.The 25 July, which warned that Paris would be destroyed by the Austrians and Prussians if the king was harmed, led to the downfall of Lafayette, and of the royal family. A mob attacked the Tuileries on 10 August, and the king and queen were imprisoned at the Assembly, then taken to the.
The Assembly abolished the monarchy—the king and queen would be beheaded in the coming months. On 14 August, the minister of justice, Danton, put out a warrant for Lafayette's arrest. Hoping to travel to the United States, Lafayette entered the, the area of present. Portrait of General Lafayette by in 1825President James Monroe and Congress invited Lafayette to visit the United States in 1824, in part to celebrate the nation's upcoming 50th anniversary. Monroe intended to have Lafayette travel on an American warship, but Lafayette felt that having such a vessel as transport was undemocratic and booked passage on a merchantman. Louis XVIII did not approve of the trip and had troops disperse the crowd that gathered at to see him off.on 15 August 1824, accompanied by his son Georges Washington and his secretary. He was greeted by a group of Revolutionary War veterans who had fought alongside him many years before.
New York erupted for four continuous days and nights of celebration. He then departed for what he thought would be a restful trip to Boston but instead found the route lined by cheering citizens, with welcomes organized in every town along the way. According to Unger, 'It was a mystical experience they would relate to their heirs through generations to come.
Lafayette had materialized from a distant age, the last leader and hero at the nation's defining moment. They knew they and the world would never see his kind again.' New York, Boston, and did their best to outdo each other in the celebrations honoring Lafayette. Philadelphia renovated the Old State House (today ) which might otherwise have been torn down, because they needed a location for a reception to him.
Until that point, it had not been usual in the United States to build monuments, but Lafayette's visit set off a wave of construction—usually with him laying the cornerstone himself, in his capacity as mason. The arts benefited by his visit, as well, as many cities commissioned portraits for their civic buildings, and the likenesses were seen on innumerable souvenirs. Lafayette had intended to visit only the original 13 states during a four-month visit, but the stay stretched to 16 months as he visited all 24 states. Gloves portraying Lafayette, possibly commemorating his visit to the United States in 1824The towns and cities that he visited gave him enthusiastic welcomes, including, the first city named in his honor. He visited the capital in, and was surprised by the simple clothing worn by President Monroe and the lack of any guards around the. He went to Mount Vernon in Virginia as he had 40 years before, this time viewing Washington's grave. He was at Yorktown on 19 October 1824 for the anniversary of Cornwallis's surrender, then journeyed to to meet with his old friend Jefferson—and Jefferson's successor, who arrived unexpectedly.
He had also dined with 89-year-old John Adams at his home near Boston, who was the other living former president.With the roads becoming impassable, Lafayette stayed in Washington City for the winter of 1824–25, and thus was there for the climax of the hotly contested 1824 election in which no presidential candidate was able to secure a majority of the, throwing the decision to the House of Representatives. On 9 February 1825, the House selected Secretary of State as president; that evening, runner-up General shook hands with Adams at the White House as Lafayette looked on.In March 1825, Lafayette began to tour the southern and western states. The general pattern of the trip was that he would be escorted between cities by the state militia, and he would enter each town through specially constructed arches to be welcomed by local politicians or dignitaries, all eager to be seen with him. There would be special events, visits to battlefields and historic sites, celebratory dinners, and time set aside for the public to meet the legendary hero of the Revolution.
USS Brandywine, the ship that returned Lafayette to France after his 1824–1825 tour of the United StatesLafayette visited General Jackson at his home in. He was traveling up the Ohio River by steamboat when the vessel sank beneath him, and he was put in a lifeboat by his son and secretary, then taken to the Kentucky shore and rescued by another steamboat that was going in the other direction. Its captain insisted on turning around, however, and taking Lafayette to. From there, he went generally northeast, viewing and taking the to Albany, considered a modern marvel. He laid the cornerstone of the in Massachusetts in June 1825 after hearing an oration. He also took some soil from Bunker Hill to be sprinkled on his grave.After Bunker Hill, Lafayette went to Maine and Vermont, thus visiting all of the states.
He met again with John Adams, then went back to New York and then to, where he laid the cornerstone for its public library. He celebrated his 68th birthday on 6 September at a reception with President John Quincy Adams at the White House, and departed the next day. He took gifts with him, besides the soil to be placed on his grave. Congress had voted him $200,000 in gratitude for his services to the country at President Monroe's request, along with a large tract of public lands in Florida. He returned to France aboard a ship that was originally called the Susquehanna but was renamed the in honor of the battle where he shed his blood for the United States.
Revolution of 1830.