Lafayette’s Tour
by Kathryn Stamps

Lafayette visited at a time when many of the well-known heroes and founding fathers of the U. S. had either passed away or were well into their later years. America was losing its first generation, and Lafayette’s return renewed enthusiasm and created a joyous occasion for people on his tour route. Excitement spread throughout the country in 1824 and 1825 as he was received as “the Nation’s Guest” in many towns and cities. Songs were written about him, and commemorative ceramic items such as plates and cups were made bearing his image.

When Lafayette was nineteen years old and a citizen of France, his zeal for supporting the colonists’ fight against the British led him to join the Continental Army. He used his own funds to purchase a ship to transport himself and other French officers who championed the American desire for independence. The ship’s name was La Victoire.

It was difficult to set sail because Lafayette needed permission from King Louis XVI, who did not approve of such a public display of support for the colonists. Nevertheless, Lafayette managed to depart from the Bay of Biscay in Spain, and La Victoire landed in South Carolina in 1777, with Lafayette and other French soldiers ready to fight.

When Lafayette arrived in Philadelphia, his position in the army was rejected at first, but when it was learned that he came from French nobility with connections to the king and that he would volunteer without pay, he was accepted as a major general. He was immediately introduced to George Washington and quickly became a part of Washington’s inner circle.

Lafayette proved his capacity for courage and leadership on the battlefield at Brandywine in Pennsylvania on September 11, 1777, and his reputation began to grow. He was an aide-de-camp for Washington at Valley Forge and showed bravery there as well as in several other battles. In Delaware, he implored Washington to let him lead a covert attack, saying, “Consider, if you please, that Europe and particularly France is looking upon me–that I want to do some thing by myself, and justify that love of glory which I let be known to the world. . .” Washington allowed Lafayette to take four hundred soldiers, and, when he was successful in attacking the Hessian fighters and taking prisoners, Washington formally granted him command of his own division.

After establishing himself in battle, Lafayette spent two years in France rallying support for the war. From 1778 to 1780, Lafayette, with Benjamin Franklin and John Adams, worked to convince the king to provide more soldiers and supplies.

After his return from France, Lafayette commanded troops in Virginia, fighting the English troops that were led by General Cornwallis. Approximately eight thousand British troops were forced to surrender at Yorktown, where Lafayette, Washington, and Rochambeau had blocked them by land and the French navy ships had blocked any further British aid by sea.

On returning to France after the war, Lafayette was welcomed as a hero. As the French Revolution escalated, he was jailed in Austria as a political prisoner for not being supportive enough of the cause, tending instead to keep credibility with both the king and the revolutionaries in his country. During the Reign of Terror, Lafayette’s land was taken away and his wife was imprisoned. In 1797, due to Napoleon’s invasion of Austria, Lafayette and his family were released and found a home again in France.

In 1824, Lafayette toured the United States at the invitation of the United States Congress. His tour route began in New York, went north through Connecticut to Boston, and then continued around New England and back through Connecticut. He also visited Washington, D. C., and traveled throughout the American South.

Sources/Further Reading
Auricchio, Laura. The Marquis: Lafayette Reconsidered. Alfred A. Knopf. New York, NY, 2014
Lafayette CT Trail. https://lafayettecttrail.org. Accessed June 2024
Shachtman, Tom. How the French Saved America: Soldiers, Sailors, Diplomats, Louis XVI, and the Success of a Revolution. St. Martin’s Press, New York, NY, 2017

Kathryn Stamps is a former Museum Assistant and Archives Researcher at the Andover Center for History & Culture in Massachusetts. She continues to contribute articles to their online publication, History Buzz, which focuses on regional history related to its collection items.