General Lafayette Returns to America in 1784--Part II
The Marquis de Lafayette had left America shortly after the Battle of Yorktown. Part III of this column will review the 1784 tour in which Lafayette returned to America as a returning hero of the American Revolutionary War.
Lafayette had left America to return to France in 1781 shortly after the British had been defeated in the Battle of Yorktown. Lafayette and George Washington had developed a close relationship during the war, and they corresponded by letter from 1782 to 1784. Lafayette had joined a French group advocating the abolition of the slave trade, and he wrote a letter to Washington in 1783 urging the “emancipation of American slaves.” Although Washington did not free the Mt. Vernon slaves at that time, George Washington requested in his will of 1799 that the slaves he owned be freed after his wife’s death. Martha Washington freed George Washington’s slaves in 1801 a year before her death in 1802. [1], [2]
After George Washington invited Lafayette to visit him at Mt. Vernon, Lafayette departed from France on June 20, 1784, arriving at New York on August 4, 1784. Americans welcomed Lafayette with a large celebration at New York City and the State Assembly. Two days later he traveled to New Jersey, and he traveled to Philadelphia on August 9 where he was met by cheering crowds. His tour reached Baltimore on August 14 for two days of large celebrations before he headed to Mt. Vernon to meet George Washington. [3]
Lafayette visited with the Washingtons at Mt. Vernon two different times in 1784: August 17-29 and November 25-29. George Washington considered Lafayette an adopted son, and Lafayette had named his first son “George Washington Lafayette.” Lafayette and Washington enjoyed pleasant outings at Mt. Vernon, many on horseback. Details of that visit were reported in letters Lafayette wrote to his wife, Adrienne, and their children, back in France. Those letters told of conversations Washington and Lafayette had about agriculture, philosophy, political freedom, and type of government envisioned for a new republic. [1],[3] George Washington had to leave for business in the Western lands between the Potomac and Ohio Rivers, and Lafayette used those days to go visit other communities in the Northeast. While visiting in Baltimore, Lafayette met James Madison, who accompanied Lafayette to New York and New England towns.[3]
New York and Connecticut conferred honorary state citizenship on Lafayette. He traveled on the French ship Nymph to Yorktown, arriving on November 15, and then on to Richmond by November 18. While in Richmond, Lafayette was dismayed to find that James Armistead, an African American who had carried out a spy mission for Lafayette in the Virginia Campaign, was still enslaved. Lafayette wrote a letter to the Virginia Assembly requesting Armistead’s freedom. On January 9, 1786, James Armistead was emancipated for “services rendered and bravery during the siege of Yorktown.” James Armistead then used Armistead as his middle name and chose “Lafayette” as his surname. [3]
After leaving Richmond on November 22, Lafayette and Washington visited for the last time at Mt. Vernon. Washington accompanied Lafayette to Annapolis on November 29, and, Washington and Lafayette said their goodbyes at Marlboro, Maryland on December 1, 1784. [3]
As Lafayette boarded the French ship Nymph at New Yorkn on December 2, 1784 to return to France, the escorting dignitaries handed Lafayette a letter written by George Washington on December 8, a few days after Washington had returned to Mt. Vernon after having said goodbye to Lafayette at Marlboro, Maryland. [3]
In George Washington’s letter, his attachment to Lafayette was evident, which said, in part: “In the moment of our separation upon the road I traveled, and every hour since, I felt all that love, respect and attachment for you, with which length of years, close connection and your merits have inspired me…. It is unnecessary…to repeat to you the sincerity of my regards and friendship, nor have I words were I to attempt it. My fervent prayers are offered for your safe and pleasant passage.” [3]
The visit in 1784 was the last time Washington and Lafayette would meet in person. They corresponded frequently by letter for the next 15 years until Washington’s death on December 17, 1799. Lafayette visited George Washington’s tomb at Mt. Vernon on his next tour of the United States in 1824-1825.[1], [3]
Lafayette’s 1824-1825 tour of the United States will be reviewed as Part IV at a future date.
Sources: [. [1] “Marquis de Lafayette,” Wikipedia.Org. [2] “The Decision to Free Slaves,” MountVernon.Org. [3] “Marquis De Lafayette’s First Visit to the United States after the American Revolution,” LostHistory.Net.
