Our Patriot - Marquis de Lafayette Chapter, Sons of the American Revolution

Marquis de Lafayette

Major-General Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Montier
(1757-1834)

In 1777, Lafayette purchased a ship, and with a crew of adventurers and other French officer volunteers set sail for America to fight in the revolution against the British.
Due to his distinctive commitment to the cause and offer to serve at no salary, the Continental Congress appointed Lafayette a major general.

Lafayette was then assigned to the staff of George Washington. Lafayette served with distinction, leading America forces to several victories.
Lafayette was wounded during the Battle of Brandywine, as he would recount later in a letter to his wife: "the English honored me with a musket ball, which slightly wounded me in the leg."

In December, 1777, he went with Washington and the army into winter quarters at Valley Forge.

On a return visit to France in 1779 Lafayette persuaded the French government to send aid to the Americans.
As late as 1781, the fate of America's War of Independence still lay in the balance.

In March 1781, General Washington dispatched General Lafayette in command of a light division to defend Virginia. The young Frenchman skirmished with Cornwallis, avoiding a decisive battle while gathering reinforcements. "The boy cannot escape me," Lord Cornwallis is supposed to have said.

However, Cornwallis was unable to trap Lafayette, and so he moved his forces to Yorktown, Virginia in July in order to link up with the British navy. A large French fleet under Admiral DeGrasse countered the British navy, which then withdrew, leaving Cornwallis unsupported.

A combined Franco-American force of 17,000 men under the command of General Washington and Lieutenant General Rochambeau commenced the siege of Yorktown in early October. Because British reinforcements failed to arrive as Cornwallis had planned, his situation was hopeless by October 16; surrender was official three days later.

On October 19,1781, General Washington wrote to Congress that "a general reduction of the British Army under the command of Lord Cornwallis, is most happily effected." The war for independence had been won.
After the British surrender at Yorktown, Lafayette returned home to Paris . He had become a hero to the new nation.”
In 1824, he accepted an invitation to visit the United States and conducted an extensive tour of the country.
Fayette county, located in Central Georgia and our chapter service area, was named for the French patriot.

Additional Resources about Lafayette

Marquis de Lafayette in Georgia

LaFayette: Citizen of Two Worlds Cornell University Library online exhibit

Marquis de Lafayette Expédition Particulière

The Marquis de Lafayette

Celebrating Lafayette on the Web

In 1777, Lafayette purchased a ship, and with a crew of adventurers and other French officer volunteers set sail for America to fight in the revolution against the British. Due to his distinctive commitment to the cause and offer to serve at no salary, the Continental Congress appointed Lafayette a major general.
	Lafayette was then assigned to the staff of George Washington. Lafayette served with distinction, leading America forces to several victories. Lafayette was wounded during the Battle of Brandywine, as he would recount later in a letter to his wife: "the English honored me with a musket ball, which slightly wounded me in the leg." In December, 1777, he went with Washington and the army into winter quarters at Valley Forge. On a return visit to France in 1779 Lafayette persuaded the French government to send aid to the Americans. As late as 1781, the fate of America's War of Independence still lay in the balance.
In March 1781, General Washington dispatched General Lafayette in command of a light division to defend Virginia. The young Frenchman skirmished with Cornwallis, avoiding a decisive battle while gathering reinforcements. "The boy cannot escape me," Lord Cornwallis is supposed to have said.
However, Cornwallis was unable to trap Lafayette, and so he moved his forces to Yorktown, Virginia in July in order to link up with the British navy. A large French fleet under Admiral DeGrasse countered the British navy, which then withdrew, leaving Cornwallis unsupported.
A combined Franco-American force of 17,000 men under the command of General Washington and Lieutenant General Rochambeau commenced the siege of Yorktown in early October. Because British reinforcements failed to arrive as Cornwallis had planned, his situation was hopeless by October 16; surrender was official three days later.

	On October 19,1781, General Washington wrote to Congress that "a general reduction of the British Army under the command of Lord Cornwallis, is most happily effected." The war for independence had been won. After the British surrender at Yorktown, Lafayette returned home to Paris . He had become a hero to the new nation.” In 1824, he accepted an invitation to visit the United States and conducted an extensive tour of the country. Fayette county, located in Central Georgia and our chapter service area, was named for the French patriot.
Additional Resources about Lafayette Marquis de Lafayette in Georgia LaFayette: Citizen of Two Worlds Cornell University Library online exhibit Marquis de Lafayette Expédition Particulière The Marquis de Lafayette Celebrating Lafayette on the Web