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The American Society of Le Souvenir Français Inc.
Monthly Bulletin - Vol. IV. No 8 - August 2024
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The legacy of Lafayette in America | |
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Cover illustration:
1824 portrait by Ary Scheffer, housed in the U.S. House of Representatives, to the left of the Speaker of the House
United States Capitol, Washington D.C.
(More on this portrait and its political significance in the pages below)
Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9646036
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EDITORIAL
As we celebrate this month the kick-off of Lafayette’s Farewell Tour Bicentennial, it is fitting that we devote this Bulletin to “America’s best friend”. Our intention is not to write another full biography, as professional historians and biographers have written dozens of excellent books on this illustrious Frenchman, and which we heartily recommend for a complete understanding of this historical figure.
In this Bulletin, we will instead feature several noteworthy sites in America where he is duly honored. Reading the inscriptions on the many statues, pedestals, memorials and plaques is quite instructive, and serve as a vibrant reminder of his contributions to the birth of our great nation.
We will also endeavor to publicize all the upcoming festivities that are organized throughout the 24 States he visited in 1824-1825 by our friends and partners The American Friends of Lafayette, as well as other civic and patriotic organizations.
Certainly, the salient facts of his lifelong devotion to the United States are generally (but not always) known by the public at large. But there is more to it than the dashing, courageous, and flamboyant general we all know. All the symposiums which are slated in the coming weeks and months will help present other important aspects of his political philosophy, such as his steadfast abolitionist stance, or his proto-feminists views. The political turmoil that the United States experienced at the time of his triumphal tour is not without parallels in our present times. Lafayette’s advice was eagerly sought and welcomed. His boundless optimism and faith in America’s future is an inspiration to all of us.
At the end of this Bulletin you will find a Photo Album of the kickoff festivities in New York of August 16-17. You can get information on all the events that are organized by the American Friends of Lafayette over 24 States and during the next 13 months at: www.Lafayette200.org. Please support these celebrations with your presence or financial help (the e-boutique is replete with wonderful gifts).
Lafayette is a rallying call to all those who love freedom and democracy. Such was the case during World War One when many American volunteers went to fight alongside their French comrades-in-arm, and especially at the Lafayette Escadrille, later part of the Lafayette Flying Corps after the United States entry into the fray in 1917.
As is now a well-established tradition, we are paying tribute every month to American volunteers who "Died for France"*: This month we honor Sergeant Arthur Bluethenthal, who first volunteered in the American Field Service and later joined the Lafayette Flying Corps. He was killed in combat over the lines, near Maignelay, June 5, 1918, region of Amiens.
"My life does not belong to me now, " he wrote on one occasion to a friend in America. "It belongs to France, to the Allies, to the cause to which I have pledged it".
It echoes what Lafayette wrote to Henry Laurens, then President of Congress:
“The moment I heard of America I loved her; the moment I knew she was fighting for freedom I burnt with a desire of bleeding for her; and the moment I shall be able to serve her, at any time, or in any part of the world, will be the happiest of my life.”
Such are the bonds of American and French patriots: they transcend centuries.
We wish you a continued peaceful summer, and a great labor Day holiday weekend.
On behalf of the Board of Directors,
Thierry Chaunu
President, American Society of Le Souvenir Français, Inc.
Note*: "Mort pour la France" meaning "died for France," is a legal term in France. It is an honor given to those who lost their lives in conflicts while serving the country. This phrase appears on their death certificates. Both French citizens and foreign volunteers can receive this recognition.
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Lafayette, "Hero of Two Worlds" | |
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Introduction to Lafayette
We won't be presenting a biography of Lafayette here. This is not the aim of our monthly Bulletins, which seek to shed light on certain aspects, often overlooked or forgotten, of the long shared history between France and America.
There are many professional historians who have written excellent and complete biographies, replete with the most minute details, almost day by day. Below, we recommend a number of books and websites detailing the extraordinary and long life of this illustrious man, rightly called the “Hero of Two Worlds”.
We will point out a few key elements of his life story below, as they clearly show that without Lafayette, the course of history might have changed significantly.
In many ways, he was well prepared for the historic role he was to play...
• Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette (6 September 1757 – 20 May 1834), known in the United States as Lafayette
was born out of one of the most distinguished and wealthiest noble lineage in France. Yet, as a pure product of the French Age of Enlightenment, young Lafayette embraced the ideal of Liberty and went to America to offer his service and his fortune to help the Insurgents.
• Thanks to his military education (he joined the Musketeers at the age of 13 with the rank of sub lieutenant, and joined the Noailles Dragoons regiment at 16 as a lieutenant, before being promoted captain at 18), but also mainly because of his close proximity to the King and the royal court at Versailles, the Continental Congress commissioned him a Major General in the Continental Army at the age of 19. His brilliant military skills and valor in combat were immediately evident; he shed blood at the battle of Brandywine. Throughout the War of Independence, he played a prominent military role, especially in the months leading to the victory in Yorktown.
His bravery and audacity on the battlefield, his military tactical skills, his commanding style and natural authority which endeared him to his soldiers, would alone suffice to earn him a place of choice in history manuals.
• His father/son relationship with George Washington, his friendship and proximity with many Founding Fathers, his visit back in America in 1784, affirmed his political views, which he never departed from throughout the rest of his life.
• During the early phase of the French Revolution, from 1789 till 1792, he played a key role as commanding General of the Garde Nationale, seeking to buttress a constitutional monarchy that would not take hold, and writing in good part the Universal Declaration of the Rights of Man and Citizen. When the Revolution took a radical turn, the royal family executed along with scores of nobles (or really anyone accused of treason), he barely saved his life by crossing the front lines, only to be thrown by the Austrians in a dungeon cell where he languished for five long years (and where his cherished wife Adrienne, who pleaded to share her husband misfortune with their two daughters, lost her health and died prematurely in 1807). Napoleon was able to free him; however, he had to remain in his estate of La Grange outside of Paris and stay out of public life. The restoration of the Bourbons to the French throne in 1815 opened a new chapter of his long political life until his death in 1834, which is outside the scope of this Bulletin.
Throughout these turbulent times he always remained faithful to his ideals of democracy, constitutional government with a liberal bent.
Lafayette championed principles such as liberty, democracy, and individual rights. He was a proponent of freedom and equality, striving to actualize these ideals in both the United States and France, and beyond.
• In 1824, he was invited by President James Madison as “Guest of the Nation” to tour the United States. During this triumphal tour which lasted 13 months, he toured 24 States and received a historic welcome. In every city he toured, throngs came from miles away in order to have a chance to see him, listen to him, shake his hands. Just in the city of New York, it is estimated that 50,000 lined up on the harbor to see his arrival.
A staunch abolitionist, and an early proponent of women rights, he advised politicians of both sides at a time when the young American republic was going through a difficult political episode.
• His name has become a symbol of French-American friendship, as we will see in the pages below.
Selected biographies:
• The Marquis: Lafayette Reconsidered by Laura Auricchio (Knopf, 2014)
• Hero of Two Worlds: The Marquis de Lafayette in the Age of Revolution by Mike Duncan (PublicAffairs, 2021)
• Lafayette in the Somewhat United States by Sarah Vowell. (Riverhead Books, 2015)
• Lafayette: Lessons in Courage by Russell Freedman (Holiday House, 2010)
• Lafayette by Gonzague Saint-Bris, translated from the French (Pegasus Books, 2010)
• Of course, an all-time favorite, often quoted in our Bulletins, the indispensable account day-by-day of Lafayette’s Farewell Tour by his faithful and devoted personal secretary, Auguste Levasseur, Lafayette in America in 1824 and 1825, or Journal of a Voyage to the United States (Carey and Lea, Philadelphia, 1829)
Last but not least…just released :
• General Lafayette’s Journey to the United States of America in 1824 and 1825, By Charles Ogé Barbaroux & Joseph Alexandre Lardier, translated by Norman Desmarais*, edited by Alan R. Hoffman** and Jan O’Sullivan, published by The American Friends of Lafayette (2024).
*Prof. Norman Desmarais, Professor Emeritus at Providence College and author of many books and articles on the American Revolution is also Regional Delegate of our Society.
**Alan R. Hoffman is president of the American Friends of Lafayette.
Among the best dedicated sites on Lafayette:
https://friendsoflafayette.wildapricot.org/Timeline
https://friendsoflafayette.wildapricot.org/27-Reasons
https://www.thelafayettetrail.org/
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Lafayette Legacy in America | |
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A LASTING LEGACY
Lafayette is celebrated as a national hero in the United States, while in France, he is regarded as a prominent, yet contentious figure due to his role in the French Revolution.
In America, he is cherished as the most admired Frenchman, nearly on par with the Founding Fathers, with numerous locations, monuments, and statues named after him. His close bond with George Washington resembled a father-son relationship, and he wielded significant political influence in both the New and Old Worlds throughout his life.
He is honored and remembered in so many ways: dozens of monuments, memorials, statues, markers, plaques, tablets... The list of counties and cities named after him is equally impressive, as are the number of streets, avenues, public parks, high schools, even a mountain. The list would take volumes!
In the compilation "Memories of France, Five centuries of French presence in the United States", whose second revised and augmented edition will be published soon on Amazon, we have identified and listed more than 200 sites where Lafayette is memorialized, out of a total of 2,000 sites.
In this Bulletin, we will present all the statues and some of the most noteworthy sites materialized with a marker. The inscriptions found on these markers, plaques, and tablets are more often than not highly informative, offering various perspectives that are not always recognized, even in the most erudite biographies.
Perhaps no other marker is as eloquent as the one erected in the City of LaGrange, LA. (presented further below) as it encapsulates an eventful lifetime in a few words.
On the other end of the spectrum, there is a sign in Warrenton, Virginia, informing us of the following:
"Lafayette Stepping Stone":
“During his 1825 visit to Warrenton,
General Lafayette is said to have stood upon this stone."
What appears as a rather futile message, strikes us on second thought as a testimony of how much our "Dear Marquis" has left, quite literally, an imprint in the minds and hearts of the American people.
We hope that you will enjoy surveying the sites presented below, and, if the last days of summer allow you to read this Bulletin in full, gain more appreciation for this formidable and undomitable "Citizen of the World".
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Statue of Lafayette, Union Square, New York | |
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Above:
Statue of Lafayette, Union Square
Along Park Avenue South, between 15th & 16th Street, Union Square, New York, NY 10003
GPS: 40.735680, -73.989970
Photo: TC © ASSFI 2021
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• This bronze sculpture is the oldest one honoring the Marquis de Lafayette. Cast in 1873 and dedicated on September 6, 1876, it is a gift from the French government and French residents of New York for the aid New York provided to Paris during the Franco-Prussian War (1870-1) -- thus the inscription “in remembrance of sympathy in times of trial.”
• The larger-than-life-sized figure was sculpted by Frédéric-Auguste Bartholdi (1834–1904), who also designed the Statue of Liberty (1886), another famous gift from the French people. The granite pedestal designed by H.W. DeStuckle was donated by French citizens living in New York.
• The statue rests on a Quincy granite pedestal. In 1991, it was conserved by the Municipal Art Society and the New York City Art Commission's joint Adopt-A-Monument Program.
• Inscriptions:
North Side:
"As Soon As I Heard of
American Independence,
My Heart Was Enlisted"
1776
South Side:
“To The City of New York,
France,
In Remembrance of Sympathy
In Times of Trial"
1870-71
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Statue of Lafayette & Washington
Lafayette Square, New York City
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Above:
Statue of Lafayette & Washington
Lafayette Square, New York City
Manhattan Avenue, 114th Street, and Morningside Avenue, New York City
GPS: 40.803740, -73.958048
Photo: TC © ASSFI 2021
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• Lafayette Square is located in the Morningside Heights section of Manhattan. The City of New York acquired this property by condemnation on July 28, 1870 along with the land used to build Morningside Park.
• The square contains large, shady sycamore trees and a monument entitled “Lafayette and Washington.”
• French sculptor Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi (1834-1904) designed the bronze statue, which depicts both figures on a marble pedestal, clothed in colonial uniforms, and shaking hands with the flags of their respective countries behind them. Famed publisher, Joseph Pulitzer (1847-1911) commissioned the sculpture based on the artist’s previous major accomplishment: the Statue of Liberty in the New York Harbor. Bartholdi completed the original “Lafayette and Washington,” which was installed and dedicated in the Place des États-Unis in Paris in 1895.
• On April 19, 1900, department store owner Charles Broadway Rouss bequeathed this fine replica to the residents of Morningside Heights.
• Inscription:
"Presented to the City of New York
by Charles B Rouss
April Nineteenth – Nineteen Hundred
Erected 1900"
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Lafayette Memorial, Brooklyn, NY | |
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• The Lafayette Memorial is a public memorial located in Brooklyn's Prospect Park in New York City at the Ninth Street entrance on the park's west side.
• The memorial, designed by sculptor Daniel Chester French (1850–1931) and architect Henry Bacon, consists of a bas-relief of Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette alongside a groom (speculated by some historians to be James Armistead Lafayette) and a horse. The nearly ten-foot-high relief was a gift of Henry Harteau, a Brooklyn glass insurer (and NYC Parks Commissioner) of French ancestry, and was unveiled by French Marshall Joffre and René Viviani, ex Prime Minister of France (1914-1915) who came to the States as members of the French War Commission.
• The sculpture shows Lafayette at center with stoic demeanor, while to his left the horse appears to nip at the groomsman who seems to recoil to avoid injury, giving humanity to the otherwise formal narrative. The bas-relief is based in part on a painting Lafayette at Yorktown by Jean-Baptiste Le Paon, as dictated in the bequest by Harteau. Some historians have speculated that the figure of the groomsman in Le Paon’s painting and other related engravings of the time is James Armistead.
• James Armistead (c. 1748 – 1830) was born into slavery in Virginia, taking his last name from his owner William Armistead. He volunteered for military service during the Revolution, and served Lafayette as a spy, posing as a runaway slave to gain information beyond enemy lines, which was instrumental in the successful Yorktown campaign. On January 7, 1787, in acknowledgement of his valor, Armistead was granted freedom by the Virginia legislature. In gratitude to the Marquis, who was a staunch abolitionist, he adopted Lafayette as his last name. He later became a prosperous farmer in Virginia, owning slaves himself.
• Inscription:
The Marquis de Lafayette
"This monument was erected and presented by Henry Harteau
A distinguished citizen of Brooklyn to be an enduring tribute
To the memory of one who as friend and companion of the
Immortal Washington fought to establish in our country
Those vital principles of liberty and human brotherhood
Which he afterward labored to establish in his own."
"This Memorial was unveiled and dedicated by Marshal Joffre
and M. Viviani of the French War Commission May 10, 1917"
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Equestrian statue of Lafayette, Hartford, CT | |
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• The statue in Hartford, Connecticut was dedicated in l932. It is a replica of the statue by Paul Wayland Bartlett located at the Louvre and in Metz, France. Mrs. Frances Storrs donated $20,000 to make the bronze casting. In 1907, Bartlett gave the plaster model of the “new” Louvre statue to the State of Connecticut.
• It was finally cast in1932. The turtle which appears under the horse’s left rear hoof is not on the original Metz statue, but does appear on the l908 Louvre rendition. After Paul Bartlett had completed the statue of LaFayette, he waited a long time for the city to mount the statue on a pedestal. It took so long, that he became frustrated and added the small turtle to the statue to show how slowly he thought the project was going. He died in 1925, and never saw the completion of his work. The turtle stayed….
• Inscription (bronze plaque added in 1957):
“A true friend of liberty, who served as a major general in the Continental Army with ‘all possible zeal, without any special pay or allowances’ until the American colonists secured their freedom, and whose frequent visits to this State as aide to Washington as liaison officer with supporting French troops, and in the pursuit of freedom, are gratefully remembered."
"This Plaque is dedicated by the Connecticut La Fayette Bicentennial Committee in the Bicentennial Year of the birth of this great Frenchman, September 21, 1957.”
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Memorial, The Lafayette Mall, Boston, MA. | |
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Above:
The Lafayette Monument, Lafayette Mall, Boston Common, Boston
Parkman Plaza, part of the Boston Common, Tremont St, Boston, MA 02110
GPS: 42.3557167,-71.0628667
Photo: Wikipedia creative commons
By Daderot - Own work, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=10940076
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• The Lafayette Monument bronze plaque was designed in 1924 by John Francis Paramino, (1888/89-1956), sculptor and created by the Gorham Manufacturing Company foundry.
• The monument commemorates the 100th anniversary of Lafayette's march to Bunker Hill on the 50th anniversary of that battle. The Tremont Street Mall was renamed Lafayette Mall in his honor.
• Inscription:
“This mall is named in honor of Marquis de Lafayette, distinguished French soldier, Major-General in the War of American Independence and illustrious patriot of the French Revolution who nobly served the cause of liberty on two continents, invited by act of Congress to revisit the United States as a guest of the nation in 1824. He was welcomed with signal honor as he passed along this mall. He laid the corner-stone of Bunker Hill Monument, June 17, 1825."
"Heaven saw fit to ordain that the electric spark of liberty should be conducted through you from the New World to the Old"
Erected by the city of Boston 1924"
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Equestrian statue of Lafayette, Haverhill, MA. | |
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Above:
Statue of Lafayette, Haverhill, MA
Lafayette Square, Corner of Winter & Essex Streets, Haverhill, MA 01832
GPS: 42.7773799,-71.0892873
Photo: courtesy Laura Ingenluyff, D.A.R.
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• On November 5, 1919, James Boiselle, Simon Cyr, and Edmund Lagasse gathered in Boiselle’s barber shop and came up with the idea for a statue to honor General Lafayette's contributions to the American Revolution. The fund raising campaign took 13 years.
• At the time, the region was heavily populated by French settlers. The heart of the French community was located around Hilldale Avenue and Broadway. Storefronts displayed a range of French surnames as business owners. The French Catholic church of St. Joseph’s, now known as All Saints, along with St. Joseph’s parochial school, catered to the needs of the Franco-American community.
• This statue of General Marquis de Lafayette on a horse is situated on Lafayette Square in the center of town. Lafayette sits atop a horse, raising his right hand while holding a hat. The horse's front left leg is elevated. Unreadable memorial plaques are affixed to the stone base.
• It is made of bronze by Italian Sculptors Ettore and Arnaldo Zucchi. The pedestal is made of stone blocks. Lafayette is on his horse, with one hand on the reigns, and the other holding his hat. The horse is in a slightly crouched position and has one hoof in the air. It is a duplicate of the statue in Fall River, MA. and was inaugurated on September 17, 1932.
• The dedication ceremonies included a parade with more than 3,000 marchers.
• The statue was the centerpiece of the town, situated on an island in the center of a square, with traffic flowing around it. In 2004, however, the square was rebuilt and the statue was repositioned on the side of the road.
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Equestrian statue of Lafayette, Fall River, MA. | |
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• This statue of General Marquis de Lafayette on a horse is situated at the east end of a park named after him, as well, and marks the occasion when he marched through Fall River.
• It is made of bronze by Italian Sculptors Ettore and Arnaldo Zucchi. The pedestal is in granit. Lafayette is on his horse, with one hand on the reigns, and the other holding his hat. The horse is in a slightly crouched position and has one hoof in the air.
• Inscription (front bronze plaque):
"Major General Lafayette and his troops passed through Fall River
on his way to Newport, RI, July, 1778.”
• Inscription (side bronze plaque):
"Presented to the City of Fall River September 4th, 1916
Its citizens of French descent have erected this monument
to a great Frenchman.
His sword succored the nascent Republic
and made American liberty possible”
• Inscription (back bronze plaque):
"Lafayette 1757 - 1834."
• Another bronze plaque on the other side states the same in French.
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Statue of Lafayette, University of Vermont | |
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Above:
Statue of Lafayette on north end of University of Vermont Green, 15 Colchester Avenue, Burlington, VT
GPS: 44.479661,-73.196435
Photo by: Niranjan Arminius - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=49833867
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• “America’s favorite fightin’ Frenchman” -- in Lin-Manuel Miranda’s Broadway blockbuster — holds a special place in the history of the University of Vermont. On June 28-29, 1825, Lafayette visited Burlington during his triumphal tour at the invitation of President James Monroe.
• He was greeted there by Revolutionary War Veterans. On June 25 took place the ceremonial laying of the cornerstone for the building that would come to be known as Old Mill, replacing the “College Edifice” that had been destroyed by fire a year before. Who better to bless this new era for the university and Burlington than the great man Lafayette? In their recent book Grafting Memory: Essays on War and Commemoration, Professor Emeritus Bill Lipke and William Mares note that the UVM students on-hand for the cornerstone ceremony honored Lafayette by singing “La Marseillaise.”
• The Lafayette Statue was dedicated on June 26, 1883. Some accounts claim that nearly 10,000 people were in attendance. The statue was a gift of John P. Howard, cast in bronze in Philadelphia, and was the work of prominent artist J.Q.A. Ward. It is estimated to have cost between $22,000 and $25,000. It weighs approximately1800 pounds, lost its cane to vandals, and has now a “theft-proof” replacement cane.
• Originally, the statue stood in front of Old Mill. It was moved to the north end of the green to make way for a statue of Ira Allen, founder of University of Vermont.
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The Alliance Statues, Morristown, N.J.
“The French are coming!”
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• This monument, known as “The French Are Coming”, in Morristown, NJ, portrays a grouping of three standing figures without a pedestal. The picture shows, left to right: Lafayette, Alexander Hamilton and George Washington conversing.
• Dedicated on the Morristown Green in 2007, this life-size sculptural grouping in bronze, also known as “The French are coming” commemorates the meeting of George Washington, the young Marquis de Lafayette and young Alexander Hamilton, depicting them discussing aid of French tall ships and troops being sent by King Louis XVI of France as support for the budding nation.
• Inscription of marker:
“General George Washington and
Colonel Alexander Hamilton
are advised at Morristown by
the Marquis de Lafayette
that the French are coming to
support the American cause.
May 10, 1780”
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Statue of Lafayette, Philadelphia, PA | |
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Above:
Statue of Lafayette, William M. Reilly Memorial: Revolutionary War Heroes
Terrace northwest of the Philadelphia Museum of Art, at Waterworks Drive, Philadelphia, PA 19130
GPS: 39.967004, -75.183177
Photo: Wikimedia/Smallbones, 2012 © Artist : Fair Use (Section 107, Copyright Act 1976)
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• This bronze statue by Raul Josset (1899 - 1957) was inaugurated in 1947. Its base is in granite. It is part of an ensemble dedicated to American Revolutionary War Heroes: the other three statues depict Montgomery, Pulaski, von Steuben, John Paul Jones and Nathanael Greene.
• It was commissioned as part William M. Reilly Memorial. In addition to honoring their achievements, General Reilly wrote, the memorial would express “appreciation and gratitude to the lands which gave these liberty-loving men their birth.”
• Though born in New York, Jousset was educated in Paris, and in the aftermath of World War I he created war memorials throughout France. He became well known for his monumental sculptures at the Chicago World’s Fair (1933) and the Texas Centennial Exposition (1936).
• Inscription:
“Native of France
Devoted and faithful to the cause of American Independence.
General of the Continental Army.
An indispensable ally of freedom."
Erected 1947 by Sidney Waugh, sculptor.”
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Statue of Lafayette, York, PA. | |
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Statue and marker of Marquis de Lafayette
General Horatio Gates house, 157 W Market St, York, PA 17401
GPS: 39.961400, -76.731400
Photo: Image capture Sept 2015 (c) Google 2022
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• Some officers of the Continental Army were part of the “Conway Cabal”, trying to convince Congress to strip George Washington of its command in favor of General Horatio Gates who had just won the battle of Saratoga. In this house, Lafayette thwarted the Cabal with a famous toast to General Washington at dinner in front of Gates and all the officers. Members of Congress were keen to keep the support of France. It was called “the toast that saved America”.
The statue was sculpted by Lorann Jacobs and placed in the sidewalk at this location in 2007. The identifying marker is mounted on the sidewalk, in front of the statue.
• The 800-pound statue underwent renovation in 2015 as too many tourists leaned on the 6-foot 6-inch statue. The bronze base has been replaced with stainless steel.
• Inscription at the base of the statue:
General Marquis de Lafayette
1757-1834
“Member Society of the Cincinnati of France”
Presented jointly by the State Society of the Cincinnati and the City of York, Pennsylvania, this day January 27th 2007.
"Serving America is to my heart an inexpressible happiness"
• Inscription of the marble tablet:
“It was here, in 1778, at a banquet in the temporary home of Gen. Gates, that Gen. Lafayette proposed his immortal toast to the Commander-in-Chief. Its declaration of loyalty thwarted the "Conway Cabal", a scheme to displace Gen. Washington in favor of Gen. Gates.
Placed by the Yorktown Chapter Daughters of the American Revolution 1932”
• Inscription of the marker “Horatio Gates:
“This building was the residence of Gen. Gates in 1778. At that time he was President of Board of War. It was said that the "Conway Cabal" was thwarted here by Lafayette's loyalty to Washington.
Erected by Pennsylvania Historical and Museum Commission.”
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Marker and Statues of Lafayette, Lafayette College, Easton, PA. | |
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Above:
Marker and Statues of Lafayette, Lafayette College
Lafayette College, Colton Chapel, College Hill, 730 High St, Easton, PA 18042
GPS: 40.691587, -75.208655 (marker)
GPS: 40.697699, -75.208930 (statue)
Photos: By Daniel Chester French - Own work, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=27716440
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• The Marquis de Lafayette statue is a monumental statue on the campus
of Lafayette College. The statue, designed by Daniel Chester French and standing on a pedestal designed by Henry Bacon, was dedicated in 1921 in honor of the college's namesake, Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette. The statue is located at the south entrance of Colton Chapel.
• The statue was dedicated on the university's annual Founder's Day, on November 17, 1921. In 2007, the statue and surrounding area underwent a significant renovation that saw the creation of a new plaza surrounding the monument. The plaza includes a fountain, benches, and flagstone patio. The renovations were part of the college's celebration of the 250th anniversary of Lafayette's birth. The sword has been replaced several times…
• The base of the monument is made of concrete and features a quote from Lafayette.
• Inscription:
"I read, I study, I examine, I listen, I reflect and out of all this I try to form an idea into which I put as much common sense as I can."
• There is also a marker explaining the origins of Lafayette College:
Marker, “Lafayette College Founding”
62 Centre Sq Cir, Easton, PA 18042
GPS: 40.691583, -75.208650
• Inscription:
“At White’s hotel near here, on Dec. 27 1824, local citizens gathered to found Lafayette College. One of their leaders, James Madison Porter, had recently met Lafayette during the French general’s well-received American tour of 1824-25 that revived widespread patriotic sentiments about American independence. The College is one of the principal US memorials to this statesman and military leader instrumental in our nation’s birth.”
• There is another Statue of Lafayette, located near Hogg Hall on the campus. It was donated by John Wanamaker, of Wanamaker’s Department store. It was dedicated in l938 and is a copy of the statue by Parisien sculptor Jean-Pierre Gras which was added in the Rohan-Rivoli wing at the Louvre in 1917:
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Above:
Lafayette College, near Hogg Hall, 151 Quad Dr, Easton, PA 18042
GPS: 40.699109, -75.207309
Photo: Statue of Lafayette, donated by John Wanamaker. By The Mebane Greeting Card Co., Wilkes-Barre, PA., Boston Public Library Tichnor Brothers collection #78870, Public Domain,
https://www.digitalcommonwealth.org/search/commonwealth:pv63g248f
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The Lafayette Monument, Baltimore, MD. | |
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• The Lafayette Monument is a bronze equestrian statue of Gilbert du Motier, marquis de Lafayette, by Andrew O'Connor, Jr. (1874-1941). It is located directly across a cobblestone circle from The Washington Monument.
• It was dedicated on September 6, 1924, with President Calvin Coolidge in attendance.
• Inscription:
(Base, front:)
"La Fayette 1757 - 1834"
(Base, east side, translated from the French:)
“In 1777 La Fayette crossing the seas
With French volunteers
Came to bring fraternal help
To the American people
Who fought for its national freedom
***In 1917***
France was in turn defending its life
And the freedom of the world. America, which had
Never forgotten La Fayette , crossed the seas
To help France, and the world was saved"
- R. Poincaré
(Base, west side:)
"La Fayette immortal
Because a self-forgetful servant of
Justice and humanity
Beloved by all Americans
Because he acknowledged no duty more
Sacred than to fight for the freedom
Of his fellow-men"
- Woodrow Wilson.
[Signed] Andrew O’Connor 1924 / T. F McGann & Sons co foundry Boston Mass”
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Statue of Lafayette, Havre de Grace, MD. | |
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• The town name, French for "Harbor of Grace," is pronounced locally with the French pronunciation of Havre ((HAWV-re) but the English pronunciation of Grace (rhyming with Trace). In keeping with town's affinity for many things French, the statue was erected to mark America's bicentennial in 1976.
• In 1975, David Craig, a history teacher and mayor of the city, presented the idea of erecting a statue to Marquis de Lafayette at the time of the Bicentennial in 1976.
• He found the artist, Gary Siegel, then a student at Maryland College of Art in Baltimore and proposed the location. After being approved by the City Commission, and after a fund raising drive encouraged by the French Ambassador in the US, Jacques Kosciusco-Morizet, the New Arts Foundry in Baltimore realized the statue. The organization responsible for installation was the American Legion Post 47.
• As David Craig explained: “Lafayette played a major role in re-naming the city. Prior to 1781 it was known as Lower Susquehanna. It was not a municipality at the time. Then, a French army traveled through and camped here on their way to the future battle at Yorktown, Va. While it was here, local residents suggested that the place be renamed to Havre de Grace since many people had told them that it looked like Le Havre, France. The French officers agreed and presented the idea to Lafayette and he agreed and was given the credit for the official suggestion. When the place was charted in 1785, becoming the second official municipality in Maryland with continuous existence, it was named 'Havre de Grace.’
• After the American Revolution ended, Maryland made Lafayette a citizen of the state. During his tour of the United States (1824-5) he briefly visited Havre de Grace. In the early 1980’s Havre de Grace, Maryland, created a “Sister City” relationship with Le Havre, France.
• Inscription:
[Front:]
Major General Marquis de LaFayette
"C'est le Havre"
[Translation:] "It's the Harbor"
[Reverse]
"To all those who have risked their lives for liberty and freedom this statue is dedicated."
[Signed]: "Erected as a bicentennial project for the City of Havre de Grace by the Joseph L. Davis Post No. 47 American Legion and the Havre de Grace Bicentennial Committee
November, 1976, Gary Siegel — Sculptor"
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Statue, Lafayette and his compatriots, Washington D.C. | |
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• The statue was erected in 1891 to honor Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette and his contribution in the American Revolutionary War. The square, originally part of the President’s Park, was named in honor of the Marquis in 1824. The statuary was made by Alexandre Falguière and Antonin Mercié, and the architect who designed the marble pedestal was Paul Pujol.
• The completed bronze and marble parts were shipped on the steamer La Normandie in 30 heavy boxes weighing 62,500 lb (28,300 kg). The boxes arrived in New York City in August 1890, and then were transported by train to Washington, D.C. The installation was completed in April 1891.
• The statue of Lafayette faces south towards the White House. He is depicted in civilian dress, booted and dressed in a long coat bearing the badge of the Society of the Cincinnati.
• The east and west faces have pairs of bronze statues of French military figures associated with the American Revolutionary Wars. The east face has statues of Comte d’Estaing and the Comte de Grasse in military uniform, conversing, with an anchor symbolizing their command of French naval forces, and the west face has statues of the Comte de Rochambeau and the Chevalier du Portail also in military uniform, with a cannon symbolizing their command of French armies.
• When the installation of the statue was completed in April 1891, there were no funds left to hold a dedication ceremony. For many years, the Sons of the Revolution laid a wreath on Lafayette's birthday, September 6; and the 200th anniversary of Lafayette's birth was celebrated in 1957.
• The statue is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
• Inscription:
"By The Congress
In CommemorationOf The Services
Rendered By
General Lafayette
And His Compatriots
During The Struggle
For The Independence
Of The United States Of America".
[Signed]: Maurice Denonvilliers Fondeur, Paris, 1890.
Erected 1891 By the United States Congress
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Statue, “Lafayette”, Fayetteville, West Virginia | |
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• The statue created by sculptor Joel Randell that stands on the Fayette County Courthouse ground. Randell secured the project in 2004 to design Lafayette's sculpture by winning a competition organized by the Fayette County Historic Landmarks Commission in Fayetteville, W.Va.
• Inscription:
Front Plaque:
"French Statesman
Friend of the American Revolution
'...The new County so to be formed be called Lafayette or Fayette County to perpetuate a remembrance of his virtues and philanthropy through future ages of our political existence...' Petition to the General Assembly of Virginia 1830”
Rear Plaque:
"Presented to the Citizens of Fayette County September 25, 2004
by the Fayette County Historic Landmark Commission
Daniel E. Wright, Chairman, Carolyn A. Hill, Vice Chairman, Ann Z. Skaggs, Secretary
Pat Phillips Wendell, Treasurer, Thomas B. Bell, Past Commissioner
Sculptor – Joel A. Randell
Erected 2004 by Fayette County Historic Landmark Commission”
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Statue of Lafayette, Fayetteville, NC | |
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• Many cities and towns in the United States have been named after Lafayette, but the original one and the one he ever visited is Fayetteville, North Carolina.
• The monument is a statue of Marquis de Lafayette standing tall with a sword at his side and a scroll of paper in his out-stretched hand. He stands with his right foot stepping forward on a stone pedestal that is covered with a bottom tier of roughly cut rocks and an upper tier of slate grey tiles.
• The statue base had been surrounded by a 30-foot circle of rose bushes - until 2018 when the Lafayette Society privately raised about $55,000 to replace the front half of the circle with a brick seating area, raised speaker’s dais and a brick perimeter “sitting wall.”
• The 8-foot bronze statue was designed by artist Ferenc Varga and was erected in 1983 with private money raised by the Lafayette Society. It was 200 years before that date, in 1783, that Fayetteville was named after the Marquis de Lafayette
• Lafayette received a hero’s welcome when he visited Fayetteville on March 4th & 5th, 1825. Fayetteville is the only city in the United States that Lafayette visited that is named for him. Fayetteville is sister-city with Saint-Avold in Moselle, France where another statue of Lafayette stands.
• The town and the Lafayette Society holds an annual Lafayette Birthday Celebration on September 6.
• Inscription:
"Lafayette 1757-1834
Presented To / City Of Fayetteville
By The Lafayette Society, Inc.
Mrs. Clifford C. Duell President / April 9, 1983"
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Statue of Lafayette and fountain, LaGrange, GA | |
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• This statue of Lafayette in LaGrange, Georgia, is an exact copy of the original par Ernest-Eugene Hiolle (1834-1886) that stands in Le Puy, Auvergne, France, near where Lafayette ws born. It was cast par American sculptor Harry Jackson (1924-2011) at his Wyoming Foundry Studies, Camaiore, Italy, in 1974.
• It depicts Marquis in his French National Guard uniform holding aloft a French tricolor cockade of blue, white, and red, which proclaims the rights of man before the French National Assembly.
• Dr. Waights G. Henry, Jr., President of LaGrange College, initiated the project in 1974 which was backed par the Callaway Foundation. The statue was erected in 1975 as a tribute to the Marquis and to the Bicentennial of the American Revolution.
• It is on permanent loan to the City of LaGrange from LaGrange College. On March 31, 1825, during his grand tour, Lafayette reached this area in west Georgia from Macon. Lafayette’s remark that the area’s Hautography reminded him of the Chateau de la Grange, his wife Adrienne’s family home near Paris. It was thus in his honor that they chose “LaGrange” as the name of their county seat when it was incorporated in 1828
• The Lafayette Alliance is an organization founded in 2017 and based in LaGrange, Georgia that seeks to inspire, illuminate, and unite, all in the Spirit of Lafayette. Each year the Lafayette Alliance hosts a wreath-laying ceremony on the LaGrange square to commemorate the life and legacy of Lafayette.
Marker, « Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de LaFayette"
"Soldier • Diplomat • Visionary • Champion of Liberty”
12 N Lafayette Square, Lagrange GA 30240
GPS: 33.039300, -85.031367
• Inscription (excerpts):
”[...] The statue of the Marquis de Lafayette was dedicated here on Lafayette Square in 1976, during the 200th anniversary of the American Revolutionary War. Gilbert du Motier was born into French nobility on September 6, 1757, and assumed the title Marquis after his father's death. At age nineteen he was already a trained soldier. At his own expense he sailed from France to North America to fight for the bold ideals of the thirteen colonies as declared in the Declaration of Independence [...] Lafayette worked closely with founding fathers Benjamin Franklin, Thomas Jefferson, James Madison, and Alexander Hamilton. He became a general in the Continental Army and an enduring friend of George Washington. It was Lafayette who commanded the right flank of the American forces at the Battle of Yorktown when General Cornwallis surrendered and thus ensured the end of the American Revolutionary War. For his efforts, the United States Congress invited Lafayette to undertake a "Farewell Tour of America." For thirteen months, he visited all twenty-four states. Throngs celebrated his arrival with parades, banquets and triumphal arches. In March of 1825 he visited Georgia, whose western frontier area reminded him of the Chateau de LaGrange, his home in France. Afterwards the newly established town here chose the name LaGrange as its own in honor of Lafayette. All over America, cities, towns, streets, and counties were named in honor of this champion of liberty and human rights. Lafayette is remembered and respected for his noteworthy character traits of courage, friendship, loyalty, sacrifice, perseverance, and advocacy for the rights of all persons including the abolition of slavery in all situations in the world. He argued for expanded legal rights for women, he defended the rights of French Protestants and Jews during the French Revolution, and supported movements to spread the cause of liberty in South America, Italy, Ireland, Greece, and Poland. Lafayette was married to Adrienne de Noailles, who fully supported his human rights activism. Together they had four children and named their oldest son George Washington Lafayette.”
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Statue and Fountain of Lafayette, Lafayette, IN | |
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• Lafayette was established in 1825 (after Lafayette's visit to the area) on the southeast side of the Wabash River, close to the point where riverboats can no longer navigate upstream. However, a French fort and trading post had been present on the opposite bank since 1717, located three miles downstream. The city was named in honor of the French general Marquis de Lafayette, a hero of the Revolutionary War. When French explorers first arrived in this region, it was home to the Miami Native American tribe known as the Ouiatenon or Weas. In 1717, the French government built Fort Ouiatenon across the Wabash River, three miles south of what is now Lafayette. This fort became a hub for trade among fur trappers, merchants, and Native Americans. Each autumn, an annual reenactment and festival called the Feast of the Hunters' Moon takes place at this historic site.
• Lafayette Fountain is an 1887 fountain by sculptor Lorado Taft, in the grounds of the Tippecanoe County Courthouse in Lafayette, Indiana. The fountain is composed of a number of tiered bowls with a marble statue of the Marquis de LaFayette on top. He holds a sword next to his heart in his right hand and has a cape draped over his left arm.
• Inscription:
“In honor of General
Marie Jean Paul Roch Yves Gilbert
Motier de Lafayette
Born In Auvergne France
1757
Fought with Washington
For American Independence
1776 to 1782
Died 1834
Erected by The City of Lafayette
1887”
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Sculpture of Lafayette, Lafayette, IN
Pediment on the Tippecanoe County Courthouse
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• Built in 1882, the pediment of the Tippecanoe County Courtouse in Lafayette, Indiana, features 3 statues: William Henry Harrison, Lafayette and Indian Chief Tecumseh (sometimes identified as George Rogers Clark, George Washington and Indian Chief Tecumseh)
Marker, “1825 Lafayette 1925
1826 Tippecanoe County 1926”
Tippecanoe County Courthouse, 301 Main St, Lafayette, IN 47901
GPS: 40.418700, -86.893350
• Inscription (excerpts):
“Lafayette. Named for America’s friend from France. Founded by William Digby in May 1825. [...]
Tippecanoe County. Long a favorite abode of the red man. Scene of French and British rivalry, of Fort Ouiatenon [...]
Erected 1926 by Lafayette - Tippecanoe County Joint Centennial Council.
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Three Statues of Lafayette, Lafayette, LA | |
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Above:
Top: Statue of Lafayette, Lafayette Consolidated Gov't Bldg, 1010 Lafayette St, Lafayette, LA 70501
GPS: 30.2224659,-92.0232709
Bottom left: Equestrian Statue of Lafayette, Northern entrance of Entrance of Parc Lafayette,
Kaliste Saloom Road at Camellia Boulevard, Lafayette LA 70508
GPS: 30.1683995,-92.0376305
Bottom right: Statue of Lafayette, Southern entrance of Parc Lafayette,
Starling Ln, Lafayette, LA 70508
GPS: 30.166243, -92.033381
Photos: Image Capture Google Maps
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• Lafayette, Louisiana, was originally Vermillionville. In 1884 the name was changed to Lafayette. Their statue was dedicated in 1987, to celebrate the Centennial of the city's name change from Lafayette to Vermilionville. It was designed by Charles Correia, the owner of the Shidoni Foundry in Santa Fe, New Mexico.
• It was moved to its present location, in the courtyard of the Lafayette Consolidated Government Building and was re-dedicated September 6, 2007 for the 250th birthday of Lafayette. This statue was replicated and a copy is at Lafayette, California.
• Inscription in front of pedestal:
“Sculpture by Charles Correia. Cast by Shidoni Foundry. Erected by the Lafayette Centennial Commission on July 2, 1987 as a gift to the people of Lafayette, Louisiana following the celebration of the centennial of the city's name change in 1884 from Vermilionville to Lafayette”.
• Inscription on the side:
“Hommage des habitants de Lafayette Louisiane, au Marquis de la Fayette, 6 Septembre 2007”
“A Tribute from the people of Lafayette Louisiana to the Marquis de la Fayette September 6, 2007.”
Erected 1987 by Lafayette Centennial Commission.
• Two additional statues of General Lafayette are also located in Fayetteville, both at the main two entrances of Parc Lafayette, a recent commercial development.
• The equestrian statue at the Northern entrance was sculpted by Dee Jay Bawden, a contemporary Mormon American sculptor born in 1951 and based in Provo, Utah. Lafayette is majestically depicted on a horse, with sword raised. It is a replica of the statue by Paul Wayland Bartlett sculpted in 1908, a gift from five million American school children, and therefore known as "The Children’s Statue of Lafayette" which was standing at the Cour du Louvre and moved to the Cours-la Reine Paris (8th arrondissement) when architect I.M. Pei built the Pyramide du Louvre.
• Its principal inscription states:
"Hero of the American Revolution and Defender of Liberty."
• One of the statue's other inscriptions declares that: "when the government violates the people's rights, insurrection is, for the people and for each portion of the people, the most sacred of the rights and the most indispensable of duties."
• Like the equestrian statue placed at the other entrance of the commercial Park, the statue at the Southern Entrance was sculpted by Dee Jay Bawden.
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Statue of Lafayette, Lafayette, CA | |
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• Lafayette is a town in the U.S. county of Contra Costa, California. The city is part of the greater San Francisco Bay Area and has its own mass transit station on the BART system. Lafayette is situated between Walnut Creek, Moraga and Orinda and is culturally known as part of "Lamorinda" together with the latter two cities.
• The name "LaFayette" came together with the community's first post office. In 1857 Benjamin Shreve, owner and manager of a roadside hotel-general store (which faced today's Lafayette Plaza), applied for a post office for the community, first requesting the name Centerville. When informed that a post office with that name already existed in California, Shreve suggested La Fayette, after the French general who became a hero of the American Revolution (probably not because his wife was a native of Lafayette, Indiana). The first LaFayette post office was established at 3535 Plaza Way and Shreve became the town's first permanent postmaster, holding the job for 30 years.
• Spelling: On the original document from the U.S. Postal Service, dated March 2, 1857, the name “LaFayette” is unmistakably written as one word with a capital “F” in the middle. In 1864 the place name "Lafayette" first appeared on a map of the area. Then by 1905 it was back to two words. Finally on March 31, 1932 the name of the post office was officially changed to Lafayette, which has remained unchanged to this day.
• This bronze statue is a replica of the Lafayette, Louisiana statue by Charles Correia and was cast by Shidoni from the same mold.
It is a Full-length portrait of General Lafayette. He wears a military uniform of the eighteenth century including breeches, boots, vest and tailed jacket with epaulets. His proper right hand rests on his chest beneath a sash. His proper left hand holds the hilt of a sword which hangs at his proper left hip. The bronze sculpture stands on a square green marble base.
The sculpture was funded by the Langeac Society. It is located in Lafayette Plaza Park. In 1864, Elam Brown donated this small area in the town center to the citizens of Lafayette to be used as a park. In the 1980's, Norman Tuttle, a big admirer of Lafayette, was instrumental in the installation of the statue.
• Lafayette is sister-city with Langeac, in Auvergne, France, which is nearby the village of Chavagnac-Lafayette.
• The statue was dedicated on September 9, 1991.
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Statue of Lafayette, Los Angeles, CA | |
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Above:
South Lafayette Park & Wilshire Avenue, Los Angeles, CA 90005
GPS: 34.061846, -118.283651
Left: Photo by Andrew Laverdiere, Wikimedia Commons
Right: Photo courtesy of Terri Mitchell, D.A.R.
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• The other statue of Lafayette in California is in Los Angeles, standing on a pedestal design. It was sculpted by Arnold Foerster and unveiled on March 30, 1937. It is made of concrete over a layer of plaster.
• This was a New Deal Project. At the base an inscription says “Federal Art Project, 1937”
• The original location was called Sunset Park, but the name was changed in 1918 to Lafayette Park.
• The statue is in disrepair. The bottom half of his face is missing his sword had broken off and the hilt is gone. Older photos show a fence which no longer exists.
• As per https://losangelesexplorersguild.com/2022/05/04/lafayette-statue/ : "Such an undignified fate for a man to whom Americans owe their freedom."
• Inscription (barely legible):
“La Fayette
Voici Mon Epée”
(Translation: "Here is My Sword")
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NOTABLE PORTRAITS OF LAFAYETTE | |
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Above:
Top Left: United States House of Representatives, White House photo by Susan Sterner - President Delivers "State of the Union", Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=18164
Top Right : Portrait of Lafayette, gift of artist, located in old House Chamber, until 1857 when moved to the new House Chamber. Oil Painting by Dutch-French artist Ary Scheffer (1795-1858) , Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9646036
Middle Left: Portrait of Lafayette inside Blair House entrance hall, Photo: https://www.diablogazette.com/2019/06/7993/
Middle Right: Official residence of visiting Heads of State, Blair House, Washington D.C.
Photo: Photo Bruce White for the White House Historical Association/Blair House https://history.house.gov/Blog/2013/February/2-18-Lafayette_Portrait/
Bottom Left: James Monroe reception room, US Department of State, Washington D.C.
Photo: https://tour.diplomaticrooms.state.gov/index.html?s=pano281
Bottom Right: Oil portrait of Lafayette by Adolphe Phalipon (French 1825-1880), after Ary Scheffer
Photo: https://www.diplomaticrooms.state.gov/rooms/the-james-monroe-state-reception-room/
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Lafayette Portrait, US Congress, Washington D.C.
House of Representative, embedded on the wall to the left of the Speaker
GPS: 38.889007, -77.009083
• The portrait of the Marquis de Lafayette was presented to the House by Dutch-French artist Ary Scheffer in 1824. The Marquis de Lafayette wears a black suit in his House Chamber portrait, the traditional dress of commoners in the French court. He downplays his aristocratic roots to emphasize his role as a revolutionary with this fashion choice.
• It is part of the wall to the left of the Speaker of the House (George Washington portrait is to the Speaker’s right)
• The portrait came to the House to commemorate Lafayette’s triumphal tour of the United States. During this visit, Lafayette became the first foreign dignitary to address a Joint Session of Congress. Reportedly Lafayette’s favorite likeness, this portrait was reproduced in prints and on every souvenir imaginable, and even on printed currency by banks in 27 States!
• The 1950 renovation included frames built into the new wood paneling, making the two paintings of Lafayette and Washington permanent Chamber fixtures, physically as well as symbolically.
Lafayette Portrait, Blair House, Washington D.C.
In the Entrance Hall of Blair House, official residence of visiting Heads of State
1651 Pennsylvania Avenue NW, Washington, DC 20503
GPS: 38.899028, -77.038583
• Blair House, also known as The President's Guest House, is an official residence in Washington, D.C. Operated by the Office of the Chief of Protocol, U.S. Department of State. Blair House provides accommodations for visiting foreign delegations
• It is located across from the White House on the other side of Lafayette’s Park. Originally purchased in 1836 by Francis P. Blair, Sr., a friend of Andrew Jackson, publisher of the Washington "Globe"and the "Congressional Globe”, it was acquired by the US Government in 1941 to host visiting dignitaries, particularly Winston Churchill who came very often during WWII.
• “The portrait of Lafayette is the first work of art guests observe upon entering the house. This is a fitting location for his painting since Lafayette was the Nation’s Guest and Blair House serves as the President’s guesthouse for today’s visiting heads of state”. - Bruce White for the White House Historical Association/Blair House.
Portrait of Lafayette, Diplomatic Reception Room, US Department of State
James Monroe reception room, 8th Floor
2201 C Street, NW, Washington, D.C. 20520
GPS: 38.894807, -77.046930
• The James Monroe Reception Room, honoring the fourth president of the United States, was created by architect Walter M. Macomber in 1983. It serves as a venue for luncheons and official events with a limited guest list. For casual conversations, there is a cozy seating area in front of a bay, accentuated by Doric columns. Guests can admire expansive views of the Lincoln Memorial and National Mall through the large windows. The room's furnishings reflect the early 19th century, a period when Madison was Thomas Jefferson's secretary of state and later president.
• James Monroe invited Lafayette as as "Guest of “the Nation” for his Farewell Tour of 1824-182
• The oil portrait is by Adolphe Phalipon (French, active ca. 1825-1880), a largely overlooked student of Scheffer, who replicated Scheffer’s portrait from 1825. It was created in response to the increased demand for portraits of Lafayette following his return to Paris.
• The general's civilian republican attire showcased his political beliefs. Phalipon’s dependence on Scheffer’s portrait is clear and undeniable.
This is an excellent reproduction, skillfully painted with nuanced light and shadow. The serious, contemplative look that Scheffer skillfully depicted is accurately maintained
| NOTABLE PORTRAITS IN NEW YORK, NY | |
Above:
2nd Row, Left: New York City Council, Photo by https://www.sbldstudio.com/project/new-york-city-hall-council-chamber/
2nd Row, Right: Portrait of Lafayette by Samuel Finley Breese Morse - Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=60679582
5th Row Left: Portrait of Lafayette in Boardroom, NY Park Avenue Armory, Photos: TC © ASSFI 2023
5 Row Right: New York Park Avenue Armory, home of Seventh Regiment, NY National Guard, by Ajay Suresh from New York, NY, USA - Seventh Regiment Armory - Park Avenue Armory - Front, CC BY 2.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=80787948
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Portrait of Lafayette at New York City Hall
City Council Chamber, City Hall Park, New York, NY 10007
GPS: 40.713368, -74.005565
• The portrait of Lafayette is on the right wall of the City’s Council Chamber, closest to the balcony.
• Samuel Finley Breese Morse (1791-1872) is renowned for his invention of the electric telegraph and the Morse code. However, it is worth noting that Morse was not only an inventor but also a talented artist and educator. He received his education at Yale University and later became a Professor of Painting and Sculpture at the University of the City of New York. Among his notable works is a portrait of Marquis de Lafayette, which holds a significant place in the City Hall collection.
• He established the National Academy of Design and held the position of president. In 1825, he received an offer from the Common Council to create a portrait of the Marquis de Lafayette, commemorating his year-long visit to the United States in honor of the 50th Anniversary of the American Revolution. At that time, Lafayette was the sole surviving general from the war.
• Standing tall amidst the dramatic clouds, he gazes confidently to his right, his hand delicately placed on the pedestal adorned with the busts of Washington and Hamilton. This gesture symbolizes his connection to the nation's founding fathers and highlights his own immortal status as a living statue.
Portrait of Lafayette, a gift from the French Government (1934)
Seventh Regiment Armory, 643 Park Ave, New York, NY 10065
GPS: 40.767396, -73.966135
• The regiment, located in New York City, (companies, A, B, C, and D), was organized during the furor created by the firing of British at American vessels off Sandy Hook in April 1806, as the 1st, 2nd, 3rd and 4th companies. In 1812-14 the regiment was deployed in the harbor forts of New York.
• On 25 August 1824, the battalion was named Battalion of National Guards (its distinctive name until, in 1862, the legislature appropriated it for the uniformed militia) in tribute to the Marquis de Lafayette.
In 1917 the regiment was called into federal service and redesignated the 107th Infantry Regiment. The 107th Infantry served in combat in France as part of the 27th Division during World War I, where units broke successfully the German Hindenburg Line on September 1918. During World War II, units of the regiment also fought in the Ardennes-Alsace region in the Battle of the Bulge in 1944.
• It is during his triumphal tour of 1824-1825 of the Marquis de Lafayette that the Regiment adopted the name “National Guard” in his honor (Lafayette commanded La Garde Nationale during the French Revolution). Every State of the Union followed suit and called their militia “National Guard”. His portrait is hung on the wall of the Boardroom, opposite his mentor and friend General George Washington.
• Inscription under the portrait of General Lafayette:
“The marquis de Lafayette, Commandant de la Garde Nationale. Presented to the Seventh Regiment by the Republic of France April 12 ,1934 In recognition of the adoption by this Regiment, in the year 1824, of the name "National Guard" in honor of the First Citizen Soldier of France”.
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A Very Special Place....
The Lafayette Window at Washington Memorial Chapel
Valley Forge, PA.
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Above:
Left: The Lafayette Window
Valley Forge Memorial & Washington Memorial Chapel
2000 Valley Forge Park Rd, King of Prussia, PA 19406
GPS: 40.104526, -75.437874 (Chapel)
Top: Photo by Acroterion - Own work, CC BY-SA 4.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org
Middle: Photos courtesy Gardiner Pearson, May 2, 2021
Bottom: Photo: TC © ASSFI 2024
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• The "Lafayette Window" was given by Daniel Baugh, a Philadelphia businessman and philanthropist, in 1917 at the height of the First World War.
“When France was striving to hold back the Hun and save civilization to the world, Mr. Daniel Baugh gave the Lafayette Window in appreciation of his services to the American people and France’s aid in the War of the Revolution. The window tells the story of the Settlement of America and recognizes both the racial and religious forces involved.”
• Designed and crafted by Nicola D’Ascenzo, a stained glass artist from Philadelphia who immigrated from Italy in the 1880s, the window is one of 13 in the chapel.
• The window was placed in October 1919.
• This window, a representation of freedom and early immigration in the United States, is also referred to as the “Window of Settlement” due to its depiction of America’s early colonization. It contains 12 medallions, each illustrating a key event in the settlement history and showcasing the diverse religious beliefs and ethnic backgrounds of the early settlers.
• In 2017, the chapel at Valley Forge announced a significant restoration project by Beyer Studio which was made possible through the generosity of the Huguenot Society of Pennsylvania in 2018 under the Presidency of Lydia Freeman and it was re-dedicated on 18 October 2018.as one of the medallions commemorates the granting of rights to Huguenot immigrants in Charleston in 1697.
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A FEW SELECTED SITES NAMED FOR LAFAYETTE | |
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• There are dozens of counties and cities named after Lafayette. For a complete list: https://academicmuseum.lafayette.edu/special/marquis/CelebratingLafayette/towntributes.htm
We are just presenting a few below:
Fayette County & Uniontown, PA
Road Sign and Flag, US 119, after crossing McClure Road, Upper Tyrone Township, Mt Pleasant, PA 15666
GPS: 40.104293, -79.556333
• The county was created on September 26, 1783, from part of Westmoreland County and named after the Marquis de Lafayette. Its county seat is Uniontown, PA., population 9,803 (est. 2021)
• It is part of the greater Pittsburgh metropolitan area. Sign is located to the right of the southbound lane, US 119, after crossing McClure Road.
• Inscription on road sign:
“Welcome to Fayette County
Pennsylvania
Home of Frank Lloyd Wright’s
Falling Water and Kentuck Knob
Named in honor of Marquis de Lafayette”
• County Flag description:
"Flag of France (vertical tricolor, blue-white-red), overlain by a map of the county in very light blue, on which is a portrait of the Marquis de La Fayette, above a yellow ribbon bearing the county name, and below another yellow ribbon stating: “Liberté - Egalité – Fraternité” (motto of the French Republic)"
Source: https://www.fotw.info/flags/us-pa-fa.html
Marker, “Fayette County”
At the northwest corner of the Fayette County Old Courthouse Square
92 Glynn St S, Fayetteville, GA 30214
GPS: 33.448450, -84.454883
• The county was set up on May 15, 1821 after a treaty was signed at Indian Springs, Georgia, where the Creek people agreed to give up a significant part of their land. It was named after the Marquis de Lafayette.
• The courthouse, built in 1825, is the oldest courthouse in Georgia still in use, although a new courthouse annex was erected in 1985 after a fire. The courthouse was restored, and a Fayette County Administrative Complex was completed in 1992.
• Inscription:
“This County, created by Acts of the Legislature May 15 and December 24, 1821, is named for the Marquis de LaFayette, famous French General who came to this country to fight under General George Washington in the Revolutionary War. After returning to France he revisited Georgia in 1825. Fayetteville was incorporated and made the County Site in 1823."
Erected 1954 by Georgia Historical Commission”
Marker ,“Lafayette County”
Mayo Courthouse lawn Monroe St, Mayo, FL 32066
GPS: 30.053167, -83.175900
• Inscription:
“Lafayette County was created December 23, 1856, from Madison County. The county was named in honor of the Marquis de Lafayette, the French citizen who rendered invaluable assistance to the Colonies during the Revolutionary War. The famed Suwannee River forms the entire eastern boundary of the county. The county courts first met at the house of Ariel Jones near Fayetteville. The county seat was moved from New Troy to Mayo in 1893. Dixie County was created from the lower part of the county in 1921.
Erected 1974 by Lafayette County Development Authority and Department of State. (Marker Number F-221.)”
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LAFAYETTE ON US POST OFFICE STAMPS & COINS | |
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Above:
US Post Office stamps honoring Lafayette
Top: : 3-cent US stamp Lafayette, 1952, By U.S. Bureau of Engraving and Printing; Stamp designed by Victor S. McCloskey, Jr.; Imaging by Gwillhickers - U.S. Post Office; Smithsonian National Postal Museum, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=34160959
Middle Left: 3-cent US stamp Lafayette, 1957, By Bureau of Engraving and Printing - U.S. Post Office; Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=9555862
Middle Right: 13-cent US Stamp Lafayette, Smithsonian Postal Museum, Public Domain
https://postalmuseum.si.edu/object/npm_1980.2493.6209
Bottom: US Lafayette silver dollar
Bottom Left: Lafayette dollar obverse, US Silver Dollar Commemorative medal, 1900 (actually struck in 1899)
Bottom Right: Lafayette dollar reverse
Photos by By Lost Dutchman Rare Coins for image, Charles E. Barber for coin - Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29975138
https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=29975176
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• The 3-cent 1952 Lafayette commemorative stamp has a long history. The American Friends of Lafayette initiated efforts for a commemorative stamp honoring Lafayette as early as 1934. The Post Office Department eventually issued the 3-cent stamp on June 13, 1952, coinciding with the 175th anniversary of his arrival in America to assume a major general's role in the Continental Army. Georgetown, South Carolina, the landing site of Lafayette's ship, La Victoire, in 1777, hosted the First Day of Issue ceremony for the stamp.
• Some philatelists criticized the stamp's design, noting that while the cannon and ship were accurate for the time, the flags were not. In June 1777, the French flag was the white royal standard of the House of Bourbon, and the thirteen-star 'Betsy Ross' American flag was adopted by the Continental Congress the day after Lafayette's arrival. The Post Office Department clarified that "no attempt was made to present the flags that were in use at the time of Lafayette's arrival." In addition, the resemblance with our "dear Marquis" is questionable.
• The stamp was issued at a denomination of 3 cents, which covered the domestic first-class letter rate back then....
• The 3-cent 1957 Lafayette stamp issued on September 6, 1957 features a portrait created by Joseph Desire Court. It depicts the decorative sword given to Lafayette by the U.S. government as a token of gratitude for his assistance. It celebrates the 200th anniversary of Lafayette's birth. The cost of a stamp was the same , as inflation back in the 1950's was on average less than 2% per year.
• The 13-cent 1977 Lafayette commemorative stamp was released on June 13, 1977, in Charleston, South Carolina. This stamp marks the 200th anniversary of the Marquis de Lafayette's arrival on the South Carolina coast. The design of the stamp was created by Bradbury Thompson.
• The Lafayette dollar is a silver coin that was minted to commemorate the United States' involvement in the 1900 Paris World's Fair. It features the likenesses of Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, alongside George Washington, and was crafted by Chief Engraver Charles E. Barber.
• The front of the coin showcases the joined profiles of Washington and Lafayette. Barber drew inspiration from a sculpture of Washington created by Jean-Antoine Houdon and an 1824 medal of Lafayette designed by François-Augustin Caunois.
• The reverse side of the coin displays an early design of the statue of Lafayette planned for Paris, created by Paul Wayland Bartlett, whose name is inscribed on the statue's base.
• Currently, the Lafayette dollar can be worth anywhere from several hundred to tens of thousands of dollars, depending on its condition.
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EPILOGUE - LEGACY
Preserving Democracy and Freedom
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Above:
Top: An artist rendering of the U.S. Navy guided-missile frigate FFG(X). One of them will be christened USS Lafayette. The new small surface combatant will have multi-mission capability to conduct air warfare, anti-submarine warfare, surface warfare, electronic warfare, and information operations. The design is based on the FREMM multipurpose frigate. A contract for ten ships was awarded to Marinette Marine Corporation, Wisconsin (USA), on 30 April 2020. Photo: By U.S. Navy graphic/Released - This image was released by the United States Navy with the ID 200430-N-NO101-150, Public Domain, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=89647454
Middle: Secretary of the Navy Carlos Del Toro announced that a future Constellation-class guided-missile frigate will be named USS Lafayette (FFG-65) while in Paris. US Navy Photo, Public Domain.
Bottom: The French Navy frigate La Fayette going up the Seine river (2nd of July 2003). Photo: By Guillaume Rueda - CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=61241
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Lafayette's life-long commitment to democracy and freedom still resonates today, and the name is a strong symbol of shared values between the United States and France. The navies of both countries have at various times christened warships with the name Lafayette.
• USS Lafayette (FFG-65) is set to be the fourth guided-missile frigate of the Constellation class. This vessel will be the fourth in the U.S. Navy to carry the name and is being constructed by Marinette Marine, a subsidiary of Fincantieri, with an anticipated completion in 2029. The frigate honors Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de Lafayette, a celebrated French figure from the American Revolutionary War. Navy Secretary Carlos Del Toro revealed the name on June 29, 2023, during his visit to Paris.
“Just as her namesake, the Marquis de Lafayette did almost 250 years ago, USS Lafayette and her crew will stand ready to answer our Nation’s call to defend our shared principles around the world, ensuring that our global maritime commons remain free and open for all who wish to use them for lawful activities,” Navy Secretary Del Toro said in a release.
• The French Navy La Fayette (F-710) is a versatile stealth frigate, the second ship to honor the 18th-century general Marquis de Lafayette and the lead vessel of its class.
She was commissioned in March 1996 and her home port is Toulon on the Mediterranean sea.
Variants of this type are currently utilized by the navies of Saudi Arabia, Singapore, and Taiwan.
She is to remain active until 2031.
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Tribute to Sergeant Arthur "Bluey" Bluethenthal
Lafayette Escadrille
"Died for France"
June 5, 1918, at Coivrel, Oise, France.
We continue our series started this past October with tributes to members of the Escadrille Lafayette, later part of the Lafayette Flying Corps. For access to our Bulletin dedicated to the Escadrille Lafayette, please click on:
https://conta.cc/3Qz0Xjl (original version in English)
https://conta.cc/3QCRqYM (version en français)
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Decoration:
Médaille Militaire
Croix de Guerre
Service:
• Arthur Bluethenthal, known as "Bluey," was born on November 1, 1891.
A Wilmington native, he studied at Princeton and excelled as a football player. In 1911, he was named first team All-America coach and graduated in 1913.
• In 1916, nearly a year prior to the U.S. joining the war, he became a member of Section 3 of the American Ambulance Field Service. This organization was primarily composed of affluent college graduates. This was partly due to the fact that volunteers were required to operate vehicles, which were a costly and relatively new technology at the time. Young men from wealthy backgrounds were more likely to possess driving skills and have financial backing to support their overseas volunteering efforts.
• Bluethenthal fought in the Battle of Verdun as part of the French 129th Infantry Division, where he had, as he put it to his sister, “…many pretty dangerous experiences.” In October, 1916, he and fellow members of Section 3 went to the Balkans with the French Army of the Orient.
• In the Spring of 1917, for his exceptional courage, France honored him with the Croix de Guerre with Star. According to the citation, he was “...a constant example of indefatigable ardor and ignoring of danger, particularly in June 1916 in the most perilous of the evacuation before Verdun, operated on a road continually and violently shelled, continued his example and excellent services in the Bois le Prétre in the summer of 1916 and at Monastir [Tunisia] in December 1916 and January 1917.”
• After the United States joined the war in April 1917, Arthur chose to remain with the French forces and requested a transfer to the French Foreign Legion to serve as an aviator. After completing his aviator training, he obtained a coveted leave and returned to Wilmington in January 1918. Once back in France, he thought of seeking a transfer to the U.S. Army or Navy. However, since he was actively flying missions with the French, he hesitated to abandon them. In March 1918, he wrote home that he didn’t want to switch to the U.S. Army because “when the American Aviation is not in the field it would be almost like quitting to go and get out now…. I don’t feel like going to the rear now when every trained man is so badly needed.” Bluethenthal expressed the same sentiments in May of 1918: “We are all being left in our French squadrons during the attack. Soon as we aren’t need out here, we will be called in to join up. I am not very keen on quitting here but I suppose I’ll be better off in the American service.”
He thus joined the Lafayette Flying Corps, Escadrille 227, serving as a bomber pilot for France in March 1918.
• He was killed in battle in aerial combat with four German planes while directing artillery fire on June 5, 1918, at Coivrel near Maignelay, in the Oise region.
• Immediately after his death,France posthumously awarded him a second Croix de Guerre, with Palm. In 1922, France further honored him with the Médaille Militaire.
• When news of Bluethenthal’s passing reached Wilmington, the entire city paused to pay tribute to his service. The mayor at the time, P. Q. Moore, directed that all flags be flown at half-mast. On June 20th, local businesses shut down for an hour during lunchtime.
• In June 1918 Captain Hugh Alwyn Inness-Brown paid tribute to Bluethenthal in the Paris Herald:
"In the death of Arthur Bluethenthal, killed in an aerial battle some days ago, France and America lost one of their staunchest patriots. To come to death alone, high in the air, with no friend to tell the story of the struggle and to be buried in a lonely spot near the front, unofficially, with little publicity, would have been the fate that Bluethenthal would have desired, could he have chosen. At all times, he shunned being considered a hero, and when a friend said to him jokingly that his fear of publicity amounted to conceit, he replied, 'Conceit it may be, but I've always taken serving France so seriously that I hardly ever want to talk about it."
• He became the first North Carolinian to die in action during World War I. His remains were returned home in 1921 and reburied at Oakdale Cemetery.
When his remains were exhumed for repatriation to Wilmington, the American Vice Consul, Harold Finley, informed the family that “The decorations which had been placed on the grave were enclosed in the outside case of the new coffin.” Notably, a bronze palm leaf labeled “From Section 3” was affixed to the underside of the outer box. Louis B. Orrell from Wilmington, who witnessed the exhumation, reassured the family, stating, “You can take comfort in knowing that your son was buried with great tenderness and care, as shown by the condition of his body. He was found wearing a French Aviator’s uniform, a heavy fur-lined overcoat, and his underclothes bore the initials A.B.”
• On Memorial Day, May 30, 1928, Wilmington airport was renamed Bluethenthal Field in his memory.
..."My life does not belong to me now," he wrote on one occasion to a friend in America. "It belongs to France, to the Allies, to the cause to which I have pledged it"...
It echoes the words and sentiments of Lafayette, when the Marquis wrote to Henry Laurens, then President of Congress:
“The moment I heard of America I loved her; the moment I knew she was fighting for freedom I burnt with a desire of bleeding for her; and the moment I shall be able to serve her, at any time, or in any part of the world, will be the happiest of my life.”
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ANNOUNCEMENTS AND SAVE THE DATES | |
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Our Hermione Fund raising appeal continues!
• This past November, our Society helped launch the US Fund raising campaign to help Save the Hermione and have it sail back in time for the United States Semiquicentennial. This is an ongoing campaign and all donations are tax-deductible.
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News from the "Merci Train" 75th Anniversary Celebrations | |
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• Our November 2022 Bulletin narrated the incredible story and ongoing legacy of the "Train de la Reconnaissance Française", affectionately called "The Merci Train" (November 2022: "The Merci Train, 49 boxcars of French gifts"
https://conta.cc/3OLtgJ3 (original version in English)
https://conta.cc/3VpKzRP (version en français)
• 2024 is the 75th anniversary of the "Merci Train", a gesture of friendship and gratitude from the French people to Americans who gave 49 boxcars full of gifts for each State in 1949.
• The Merci Train, the 40&8 National Box Car Association and many other local organizations, custodians of the various "Merci train" boxcars in several States are planning celebrations throughout the year. We express our sincere gratitude for the fantastic work they are doing and we are honored to help get the word out.
• The Historic Museum of Holly Hill is planning with our Society, represented by Brigitte van den Hove-Smith, Déléguée Générale Adjointe, South East USA a special commemoration in Holly Hill, Daytona Beach, FL at the Florida boxcar on November 11 at 11:00AM, with the French General Consulate in Miami. Stay tuned for more details!
• Another "Save the Date": February 2, 2025 for the re-dedication of the Hawai'i boxcar, currently being restored thanks to Mr. Jeff Livingston, Historian, 40 & 8 Project Manager, Hawaiian Railway Society, and volunteers, as well as the enthusiastic support of the Aloha Chapter, NSDAR, of the Daughters of the American Revolution, Laura Ingenluyff, State Vice-Regent, Hawai'i NSDAR. See the photos below that we just received, showing the incredible efforts that are being deployed to save this historical artifact.
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Restorations in progress!
Hawai'i boxcar
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Above:
The Hawai'i boxcar is a far cry today than what it looked like a few months ago! And the project is on track to be dedicated next February, 2025, thanks to many volunteers of the Daughters of the American Revolution and other patriotic and civic associations.
7 August 24 Toshiko & Rick Wright, Photo courtesy Laura Ingenluyff, D.A.R
Do not miss this article in the Honolulu Civil Beat:
Denby Fawcett: Restoring A Giant Symbol Of Postwar Generosity And Friendship
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Above:
Marker & Merci train boxcar of Pennsylvania
Pennsylvania National Guard Military Museum
Bldg 8-57 - Fort Indiantown Gap, Annville, PA 17003 (near exit 29 of I-81)
GPS: 40.432188, -76.570067
40&8 Voiture locale 1, 14, 155, 269 and Cabane V903 and 2 volunteers help with painting of the Box Car at Fort Indiantown Gap, Pennsylvania. to the right is an original photo of the Pennsylvania boxcar in 1949. PNG Military Museum
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Exhibition of Missouri boxcar and gifts: | |
Exhibition of Arizona boxcar gifts: | |
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Merci Train Boxcar of Arizona and marker“A Gift of Friendship”
McCormick-Stillman Railroad Park Playground 7301 E Indian Bend Rd, Scottsdale, AZ 85250
GPS: 33.538050, -111.923200
Arizona has an excellent display of Merci Train gifts on display in our State Capitol. While many states distributed their gifts, Arizona officials failed to agree on a plan. Frustrated they boxed up the gifts and moved them to storage. As a result, Arizona has an outstanding collection.
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PHOTO ALBUM
Lafayette's Farewell Tour kickoff celebration
New York
August 16-17, 2024
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Above:
Photos Kat Smith courtesy American Friends of Lafayette
Video clip courtesy Consulate General of France
https://fb.watch/u0ML-wmLKv/
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Landing of Lafayette, Brookfield Place, Manhattan
Flag Raising, Evacuation Day Plaza on Broadway
Fund raising for the Hermione, SouthStreet Seaport
Lunch at Seventh Regiment Armory
Exhibition at Fraunces Tavern, Wall Street
Cocktail reception at Frencg General Consulate
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Above:
From top to Bottom, Left to Right:
• Marquis de Lafayette (Mark Schneider) sailing past the Statue of Liberty, with a fly-over "Welcome Lafayette".
• Guests of honor Virginie Pusy de Lafayette with daughters Adélaïde and Héloïse, standard of Le Souvenir Français carried by Yves de Ternay, Treasurer of our Society, and French War Veteran Henri Dubarry.
• Color Guard of the Seventh Regiment, NY National Guard, led by Brig. General Tom Principe, Lafayette addressing the crowd, Receiving Line Thomas Vandenabeele, President of French-Speaking Societies in NY (CAFUSA), Patrick du Tertre, co-Founder of TheFrenchWillNeverForget.org, and the CAFUSA banner.
• Receiving line with Mohamed Bouabdallah, Cultural Attaché of France to the United States, Pascale Richard, elected Conseiller Consulaire, French Living Abroad, Colonel Lanet, French Military Attaché, Embassy of France, Damien Laban, Deputy Consul General of France in New York, Alain Dupuis, president Federation of French War Veterans, Thierry Chaunu, president of our Society.
• AFL Member in historic dress and "our dear Marquis" with Members of Lafayette's masonic lodge Jerusalem Amity Chapter No 8.
• Ladies in French regional costumes, Thierry Chaunu and Domitille Marchal-Lemoine, Executive Director of Friends of Fondation de France.
• Alain Dupuis, Bernard Dupont of the French Philanthropic Society with Henri Dubarry, Daniel Falgerho.
• Carriage with the Cadets Lafayette Marching Band led by Jacques Letalon,
• Flag raising ceremony on Broadway at Evacuation Day Plaza.
• Public lecture on the Hermione and fund-raising on board the Weavertree at SouthStreet Seaport by Thierry Chaunu and Domitille Marchal-Lemoine. The Marquis de Lafayette, Chuck Schwam, COO of the American Friends of Lafayette, Susan Joy Minker, Chairwoman of the NY Bicentenial Committee, and many, many visitors and tourists came to listen to the story of the Hermione and its replica.
• Lunch reception for AFL Congress participants at Seventh Regiment Armory on Park Avenue, and exhibition on Lafayette at historic Fraunces Tavern
• Cocktail reception at French General Consulate for AFL Congress participants. Deputy Consul General Damien Laban and Lafayette posed for a photo with three of his descendants next to a model of L'Hermione.
Photos: Kat Smith, The American Friends of Lafayette, Daniel Falgerho, Federation of French War Veterans, Victoire Caroly, Consulate General of France in NY.
You can watch several videos of the Marquis de Lafayette at:
https://www.facebook.com/AmericanFriendsofLafayette
Do not miss these two wonderful articles in the New York Times:
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/15/arts/lafayatte-marquis-american-revolution.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share&referringSource=articleShare
https://www.nytimes.com/2024/08/16/nyregion/marquis-de-lafayette-tribute.html?searchResultPosition=3
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80th Anniversary Celebrations of Allied Landing in Provence
Operation Dragoon
3rd Infantry Division "Rock of the Marne"
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Above:
Monica and Tim Stoy of the 3rd Infantry Regiment celebrated the 80th anniversary of Operation Dragoon/Liberation in St Tropez with Mayor Sylvie Siri and in Ramatuelle at Boulevard Patch with Mayor Roland Bruno. There were children from two veterans who landed here and fought. It was a historically wonderful day, with the participation of Towpath Volunteers Fife & Drums Corps from Macedon, N.Y.
Photos: courtesy Monika Stoy
An Invitation in Washington D.C., Sept 25-27, 2024:
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UPCOMING EVENTS
Lafayette Farewell Tour Bicentennial
Lafayette in Rhode Island - August 23, 2024
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During his Farewell Tour, Lafayette was in Rhode Island for only one day on August 23rd, 1824, but what an important day it was.
The Lafayette Bicentennial In Rhode Island Committee is commemorating this historic preeminent moment with a day of activities that culminates with an evening dinner and ball at the Masonic Grand Lodge of Rhode Island.
Immerse yourself surrounded by history at the Masonic Lodge where special items will be on display such as Lafayette’s Masonic Apron and the jewel that Gen Nathanael Greene presented to the Marquis for his uniform.
It's a must-attend for anyone who wants to experience history firsthand! Here’s a sample of what to expect:
- The guest of the Nation: General Lafayette as portrayed by Mark Schneider will offer a historic greeting, lively conversation, and photo opportunities. ( He is also been known to dance with the guests!)
- Wine AND Dine: Enjoy a magnifique French meal including Boeuf Bourguignon, Coq Au Vin, Ratatouille and more! Williamsburg Winery’s Limited Edition Lafayette wine will be available to indulge and raise your glasses to Lafayette!
- Party with our guests of honor, two generations of Lafayette descendants! Virginie Bureaux de Pusy-Dumottier de Lafayette and Héloïse and Adélaïde Barbier-Dumottier de Lafayette.
- Meet and mingle with a descendant of Captain Stephen Olney, who served under Lafayette with Alexander Hamilton and stormed Redoubt 10. (They reunited again on August 23, 1824) We are honored to have Stephen Olney Almy at our event.
- Dance like (and with) Lafayette: La Capricieuse will provide French folk and dance music to immerse you in the time period. (instruction for the dance steps will be provided ahead of the dances)
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Period clothing is encouraged (or business or cocktail attire )
Social and cocktail hour: 6pm
French Dinner: 7pm
Music, Dancing, and Entertainment: 8 - 10pm
Where: Masonic Grand Lodge of Rhode Island, 222 Taunton Avenue, East Providence, RI 02914
Celebrate history in style! This unforgettable evening includes food, drinks, and entertainment for just $115 per person.
You can register for this once-in-a-lifetime event by clicking: HERE
The price of your ticket is helping us educate Rhode Islanders about Lafayette by defraying the cost of a FREE event earlier that day...
Free and open to the public:
What: Reenactment of Lafayette’s visit to Providence
When: Friday, August 23, 2024, at 2PM
Where: NEW LOCATION: Masonic Grand Lodge of Rhode Island
222 Taunton Ave. East Providence RI 02914
- Welcoming Lafayette back to Rhode Island after 40+ years.
- Introduction of dignitaries, guests and introduces guests of honor: Lafayette descendants: Virginie Bureaux de Pusy-Dumottier de Lafayette and Héloïse and Adélaïde Barbier-Dumottier de Lafayette
- Period Music will be played by 25-piece band!!!
- Stephen Olney Almy will portray his ancestor, Captain Stephen Olney. Stephen Olney was a captain of a company in the Rhode Island Regiment under the command of the General Lafayette. Stephen Olney’s and Alexander Hamilton’s troops served under Lafayette at Yorktown and captured Redoubt #10. When Lafayette arrived in Providence, he immediately recognized Stephen Olney and embraced him, bringing tears to the eyes of everyone in attendance.
- The Boy Scouts welcome Lafayette and lead the procession with flags.
- Proclamations
Thank you and vive Lafayette !!
Visit Lafayette200.org for more details.
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Lafayette in Boston MA.
at the Shirley-Eustis House
Two Free Events
Friday, August 23, 8-10:00pm &
Saturday, August 24, 2024, 7:30-9:30am
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Two free events (back to back)
in a house that Lafayette visited in Boston Massachusetts.
As an added bonus, you can see the carriage that Lafayette rode in !!!!
Friday, August 23, 2024 from 8-10:00pm
Shirley-Eustis House: Illuminated Reception
Illuminated garden reception at Shirley Place, Friday, August 23, 8-10:00pm. Enjoy
beverages and light hors d’oeuvres at Shirley Place on August 23 as we celebrate the 200th anniversary of the Marquis de Lafayette’s Farewell Tour of the United States. Remarks and an appearance from Lafayette himself will highlight this evening. Guests can tour the home and visit the Lafayette Bedroom, where the General spent the night as the guest of Governor William Eustis and his wife Caroline.
33 Shirley Street, Boston, Massachusetts.
Lafayette is expected to arrive at 9:30pm.
On-street parking available
Parking lots available at Langdon Street and 498 Dudley Street.
By invitation only
Saturday, August 24, 2024, 7:30-9:30am at the Shirley Place Carriage House.
A Soldier’s Breakfast!
Relive the fanfare and emotion of the Marquis de Lafayette’s famous visit to the United States in 1824 as we commemorate a hearty pancake breakfast that was served to attending military units that accompanied General Lafayette’s procession into Boston on that day. Guests will also enjoy a close-up look at the same 1819 curtain quarter coach in which Lafayette traveled from the Rhode Island border to the Shirley-Eustis House.
Guests will enjoy coffee, juice, fresh fruit, and a variety of hearty crêpes prepared onsite by Brookline’s Paris Crêperie. General Lafayette and Massachusetts’ own Ancient and Honorable Military Company will be in attendance in their regalia. Tours of the Shirley-Eustis Mansion available at 8am and 9am.
PLEASE NOTE: admission to the breakfast is limited and that we have been allocated 25 seats. If you wish to attend the breakfast, please email Alan Hoffman with your request for an invite at arhesq@aol.com
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Lafayette Farewell Tour Bicentennial Event,
Charlestown, MA
August 25, 2024
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Lafayette at Bunker Hill Monument
11:15 am
- Arrive at Charlestown Navy Yard, park at Pier 1
- Walk or car escort to the Bunker Hill Monument
11:30 am
- Ceremony at the Monument
- Presentation of the Colors by the Ancient and Honorable Artillery Company of Massachusetts
- Singing of American and French National Anthems
- Welcome by AFL President Alan R. Hoffman
- Introduction of Lafayette descendants
- Remarks by National Park Service
- Setting the Scene, by AFL President Hoffman
- Reenactment of 1824 welcome of Lafayette and his reply, featuring interpreter Mark Schneider
12:15 pm
- Walk or car escort to 16 Harvard Street, home of Edward Everett
12:25 pm
- Luncheon at Everett House (ticketed event; $35 - see below)
1:25 pm
- Walk or car escort to Pier 1
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To register for the luncheon please click: HERE (space is limited).
For free parking, please email President Alan Hoffman by clicking: HERE
Thank you and vive Lafayette !!!
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Lafayette in Portsmouth, NH
September 1st, 2024
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Langdon House
He’s back! Lafayette (interpreter Ben Goldman) returns to Portsmouth to reprise his 1824 triumph in which he wowed the citizenry, young and old. On Sunday, September 1, 2024, two hundred years to the day after his Farewell Tour visit, the pageantry of Lafayette’s arrival ceremony and banquet will be recreated – with you in attendance!
Lafayette will arrive in a horse-drawn carriage at 2:30 pm at the John Langdon House, accompanied by the New Hampshire Sons of the American Revolution Color Guard. After welcoming speeches and Lafayette’s reply, at the pavilion behind the Langdon House, and a three-gun salute, Lafayette will reminisce about his role in the American Revolution and answer questions from the citizenry. Lafayette arrives following a grand welcome that morning in three Seacoast towns who have planned educational and celebratory events in his honor.
Please see details regarding the morning events: HERE
As part of the banquet ticket price (see below), you will be able to tour the John Langdon House, the Warner House, and the John Paul Jones House. Your pass will be valid all day Sunday at the Langdon House; on Friday, Saturday, and Sunday at the Warner House; and both Saturday and Sunday at the John Paul Jones House. More details can be found by clicking on the three links below...
- Langdon House
- Warner House
- John Paul Jones House
The banquet honoring Lafayette in 1824 was held at Jefferson Hall, which no longer stands, so our banquet will be held at the Strawbery Banke Visitors Center at 5:00 pm. There you will enjoy Lafayette’s company at a wonderful buffet supper. Lafayette will be sure to table-hop and greet you all personally.
He may be embarrassed by the speech which Peter Reilly of the American Friends of Lafayette will offer: “Lafayette as Superhero: the Farewell Tour in Context.” We will then offer toasts to Lafayette, in true 1824 style. There will be a contest with a prize for the person who can give the best toast to our superhero.
The cost of the banquet – $100 – includes admission to three historic houses and an experience that will come only once in a generation, if not a century. The banquet hall holds only 75 people, so register soon by clicking: HERE
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Lafayette at the
Historic Publick House
Sturbridge, Massachusetts
September 3rd, 2024
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On September 3rd, 2024 (7:30pm) at the Historic Publick House, in Sturbridge, MA, there will be the final event commemorating Lafayette's visit to Massachusetts and New Hampshire (that started August 23rd).
Almost all of the over 30 events are free to the public. This is one of the few ticketed events.
The public event preceding it, starting at 6pm on the Sturbridge common, promises to be quite exciting:
Lafayette’s final stop in Massachusetts in 1824 was in the Towne of Sturbridge, where he was greeted by a martial band, the Town’s artillery company, and thousands of civilians. The commemorative event will take place at 6:00pm on the Sturbridge common on the exact ground where Lafayette stopped. Lafayette will be greeted by costumed interpreters portraying veterans of the revolution, members of the Sturbridge Artillery, who will stand by with their cannon, and the musicians from the Uxbridge Grenadiers. There will be a triumphal arch, toasts by costumed interpreters from Old Sturbridge Village, fife and drum music, and an opportunity for the public to make their own commemorative Lafayette ribbon. Experience the closest thing to the actual events that took place in 1824 here in Sturbridge.
The Publick House is one of the buildings that Lafayette actually visited in 1824. The dinner is the Publick House's distinctive "Yankee Dinner Buffet." Alan Hoffman, President of American Friends of Lafayette and translator of the account written by Lafayette's secretary, will reflect on the contrast between the original tour and its just completed recreation. There will be additional discussion of Lafayette's human rights record. Members of the Colonel Timothy Bigelow chapter of the DAR will do a presentation on "Lafayette and the Ladies".
Tickets to dine in the same room where it happened 200 years ago can be purchased by clicking: HERE
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You are invited to Lafayette’s Birthday
Party weekend in Connecticut!
September 5th to 7th, 2024
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The Connecticut Bicentennial Committee has coordinated many events in Connecticut (see all of them here: www.lafayettecttrail.org), and we want to call your attention to three of them that you won’t want to miss!
All inquiries about these events should be directed to Lynn Friedman: Lynnfrie123@yahoo.com.
Mystic Seaport
Thursday, September 5, 10:30am or 2pm
During Lafayette’s Farewell Tour, the Whitehall racing boat American Star was presented to him in New York in 1825 after its crew defeated a British Racing team in a celebrated race in New York harbor. While the original vessel is still housed at Lafayette’s home at the Château de la Grange-Bléneau in north-central France, a replica of the famed
boat, General Lafayette, was built by John Gardner in 1976 and remains a part of the Mystic Seaport Museum watercraft collection.
AFL President Alan Hoffman will present the story of the American Star in the context of The Farewell Tour in an illustrated lecture. There will be a viewing of the General Lafayette, and special remarks by the Museum’s Watercraft Curator Quentin Snediker at Mystic Seaport Museum.
Two separate lecture times will be offered at 10:30 am and 2:00 pm in the Masin Room with limited seating. The AFL member ticket price is $40. The AFL is offering Mystic Seaport Museum members a discounted ticket of $15 per person to attend.
Pre-registration must be made directly with the AFL. Register here:
https://friendsoflafayette.wildapricot.org/event-5807169/Registration
If you are a Mystic Seaport Museum member, enter your member ID# to purchase your discounted tickets.
Lafayette’s Birthday Party
Webb Deane Stevens Museum, Wethersfield
Friday, September 6, 5pm
Wethersfield was scheduled as a stop on Lafayette’s 1824 tour, but the General was delayed and opted to bypass the town to scurry back to New York City to attend his 67th birthday celebration given by the
Society of the Cincinnati. Two hundred years later, the National Society of the Colonial Dames of America in Connecticut and the Webb Deane Stevens Museum, in partnership with the American Friends of Lafayette and the Society of the Cincinnati in the State of Connecticut, will have the honor of celebrating Lafayette’s birthday in the historic barn at the Webb Deane Stevens Museum with hors d'oeuvres, cocktails, and birthday cake. Lafayette himself will be there! Musical entertainment will be provided by Rick Spencer & Dawn Indermuehle.
This is a ticketed event with limited seating.
https://www.simpletix.com/e/lafayette-birthday-party-tickets-175968
Note: to get preferred pricing, click through to the page to purchase the tickets, click on “Have a promotional code?” and enter Lafayette.
Symposium at Fairfield University
Saturday, September 7, 10am-4:45pm
Registration: https://quickcenter.fairfield.edu/2024-25-season-calendar/lectures/lafayettesymposium.html
Morning session 10:00 am – 12:30 pm
Lafayette: Historiography and Biography, and Lessons for Today
Moderator:
Dr. Lloyd Kramer, History Professor Emeritus at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Author of Lafayette in Two Worlds: Public Cultures and Personal Identities in an Age of Revolutions.
Panelists:
Dr. Robert Rhodes Crout, Affiliate Professor, School of Humanities and Social Sciences, College of Charleston and former Co-Editor of The Lafayette Papers Project, Cornell University. President Emeritus
of the American Friends of Lafayette.
Dr. Paul S. Spalding, Religion Professor Emeritus at Illinois College. Author of Lafayette: Prisoner of State.
Mike Duncan, podcaster and best-selling author of Hero of Two Worlds: The Marquis de Lafayette in the Age of Revolution.
Lunch 12:30 pm – 1:45 pm (available for purchase for onsite attendees)
Afternoon session 1:45 pm – 4:45 pm
Lafayette and Human Rights
Moderator:
Alan Hoffman, President of the American Friends of Lafayette. Translator of Auguste Levasseur’s Lafayette in America in 1824 and 1825: Journal of a Voyage to the United States
Panelists:
Dr. John Stauffer, Professor of American Studies and African American Studies at Harvard University. Author of Giants: The Parallel Lives of Frederick Douglass and Abraham Lincoln.
Dr. Lloyd Kramer, History Professor Emeritus at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. Author of Lafayette in Two Worlds: Public Cultures and Personal Identities in an Age of Revolutions.
Diane Shaw, Director Emerita of Special Collections & College Archives at Lafayette College, which has extensive holdings on the Marquis de Lafayette. Co-editor and contributing author of “A True
Friend of the Cause”: Lafayette and the Antislavery Movement.
Credit: Presented with the support of the Office of the President and the Dean of the College of Arts and Sciences, Fairfield University.
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MARK YOUR CALENDAR!
Lafayette at Notre-Dame Church, Morningside Heights
405 West 114th Street, New York, NY
September 14, 2024
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Wreath-laying at the Lafayette & Washington statue, Lafayette Square, 114th Street and Morningside Avenue followed by a lecture at Notre-Dame Church, 405 West 114th Street, on the theme "Lafayette, a Human Rights Champion" by Diane Shaw, Diane Shaw, Director Emerita of Special Collections & College Archives at Lafayette College
An organ concert featuring music composed for Lafayette will be performed by Dr. Kalle Toivio's , as well as a choir performance under the direction of Mr. Kouadio. Refreshments with the francophone African and Haïtian community of New York will conclude this very special program!
Our special thanks to Rev. Peter A. Heasley, S.Th.D., Pastor, Parish of Corpus Christi and Notre Dame for welcoming us.
Tickets $25 p/p. Exact time will be announced in a special Edition!
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ANNOUNCEMENT
Gala dinner at Mount Vernon, VA
to honor the Marquis de Lafayette
October 17, 2024
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PAST MONTHLY BULLETINS
OUR AIM: To turn the spotlight on a famous, or less famous, episode or historical figure during the long shared history between France and the United States, with illustrations and anecdotes.
You can have access to our past monthly Bulletins
(in English and French) by clicking these links below or by
visiting our website: www.SouvenirFrancaisUSA.org
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CALENDAR OF EVENTS 2024
List is subject to change. All dates to be confirmed
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• Starting Thursday, August 15 and ongoing in many municipalities in France in the coming weeks: 80th anniversary of Allied landing in Provence
• Thursday, October 17: gala at Mount Vernon, Virginia
• Friday, October 18: stele and boulder with bronze plaque honoring by name the hussars who died at the Battle of Hook, to be installed between our two markers at Abingdon Elementary School park.
• Saturday, October 19: celebration of French-American Victory at Yorktown, dedication of a bronze plaque "Sailors buried at sea” at the French Memorial
• Sunday, November 10: Annual wreath-laying at the 463 "Morts Pour la France", Notre Dame Church in Manhattan
• Monday, November 11: Veterans Day / Armistice Day, 5th Avenue Parade in NYC, Washington DC, Houston, TX
• Monday, November 11: wreath-laying ceremony at the Merci Train boxcar in Holly Hill , Daytona Beach, Florida
Help us make these a reality with your tax-deductible financial support!
You are welcome to specify the project(s) you wish to help.
Un grand "Merci"!
and...
Enjoy a wonderful Labor Day 2024!
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OUR MISSIONS:
• To preserve the memory of the French soldiers, sailors and airmen who gave their lives for freedom, and who are buried in the United States.
• To honor French Citizens who did great deeds in the United States, or with a strong connection with the United States,
• To promote the appreciation for French culture and heritage in the United States, and the ideals that unite our two nations, in order to pass the torch of memory to younger generations.
• To strengthen the long-standing traditional bonds of friendship between the American and French peoples, and to this end: erect or maintain memorials and monuments and encourage historical research, public presentations and publications in the media.
The American Society of Le Souvenir Français, Inc. is an independent American corporation, apolitical, established in 1993 in NY, with 501 (c) 3 non-profit status.
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Board of Directors
American Society of Le Souvenir Français, Inc.
Members (2024):
Françoise Cestac, Honorary President • Thierry Chaunu, President, and General Delegate, Le Souvenir Français in the United States • Yves de Ternay, Treasurer • Patrick du Tertre, 1st Vice President • Henri Dubarry • Francis Dubois • Alain Dupuis, 2nd Vice President & Deputy General Delegate, Le Souvenir Français in the United States • Daniel Falgerho, General Secretary • Clément Mbom, Education Advisor • Jean-Hugues Monier, Auditor • Harriet Saxon • Nicole Yancey
Regional Delegates:
Jacques Besnainou, Great Lakes and Midwest • Bruno Cateni, South
Prof. Norman Desmarais, New England • Alain Leca, Washington D.C. •
Marc Onetto, West Coast • Brigitte Van den Hove – Smith, Southeast • Nicole Yancey, Yorktown & Virginia, former Honorary Consul of France in Virginia
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Help us implement several historic commemorative projects celebrating the 246-year-old Franco-American friendship and alliance! | |
The American Society of Le Souvenir Français, Inc. is a registered NY State non-profit corporation and has full IRS tax exempt 501(c)3 status. All donations are tax deductible.
Copyright © 2024 The American Society of Le Souvenir Français, Inc.
All Rights Reserved
Merci de nous contacter si vous souhaitez recevoir ce bulletin dans sa version traduite en français.
Contact: Thierry Chaunu, President
500 East 77th Street #2017, New York, NY 10162
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