Fete Lafayette: A French Hero's Tour of the American Republic

Lafayette is back! Two hundred years ago, on the eve of the fiftieth anniversary of the American Revolution, the marquis de Lafayette made a triumphant tour of the United States, returning for a final time to the country he helped establish and whose democratic experiment he saw as a model for the rest of the world. In August 1824, Lafayette sailed into New York Harbor, beginning a thirteen-month tour of the United States that took the Frenchman to all twenty-four states of the union and the federal city of Washington, where he spent much of the winter of 1824-1825. He was celebrated in each city and town, and the routes along the way, with processions, banquets and receptions, worship services, and visits to important sites-along with a flood of souvenirs that met the intense demand for a memento of the French hero.
Marking the bicentennial of Lafayette’s farewell tour, the American Revolution Institute’s new exhibition, Fete Lafayette: A French Hero's Tour of the American Republic (March 2-December 31, 2024), will explore how Lafayette was celebrated during the tour and how the tour highlighted the country’s revolutionary ideals and origins for a new generation. Visit the exhibition-a rich display of more than forty artifacts, documents, and artworks-to learn more about Lafayette’s involvement in the American Revolution, relationships with American founders, membership in the Society of the Cincinnati, fight for universal liberty, and legacy.
Learn more about Fete Lafayette: bit.ly/3R4GYt9