Amidst following Lafayette’s 1824 Grand Tour of America reenactments from Philadelphia, Delaware, and Washington DC, excitement built as he arrived in Virginia where he left his greatest legacy.
After extensive visits in the Alexandria area, Lafayette boarded a ship for his next stop.
Thus, we packed our bags to load onto our 21st century carriage, to drive down I-95 that closely parallels the famed Washington-Rochambeau Route to Yorktown for the grand festivities in mid-October, set against autumnal hues.
On October 18, 1824, Lafayette arrived at Yorktown, the site of the last effective battle of the American Revolution, which secured American Independence…the result of the French-American Alliance which Lafayette secured.
LAFAYETTE
At the age of 19, Lafayette disobeyed the king’s orders when he sailed to America, determined to participate in the American cause of liberty.
Serving without pay and proclaiming to General Washington that he was there to learn, Lafayette’s exuberant faithfulness and daringness endeared himself to the American colonies while impressing France.
Seeing his men suffering during the winter of the Valley Forge encampment, Lafayette supplied his men with needed clothing and supplies…a habit he continued with his troops during the war.
Lafayette’s friendship with the Native Americans caused them to align with the American cause.
Meanwhile Lafayette’s fame and acceptance grew in France.
Returning to France for a year (from 1779-1780), Lafayette reunited with his family, gained forgiveness from his king, and swayed France to enter the American Revolution as allies with financial aid, arms, and manpower.
After returning to service in the Continental forces in 1780, Lafayette bolstered flagging spirits on the American side, while encouraging France to provide a large naval fleet.
When sent by Washington to Virginia in 1781 to capture the turncoat Benedict Arnold, Lafayette, with his light infantry, ended up trapping Cornwallis in Yorktown.
At this strategic time, Admiral de Grasse led his French navy victoriously defeated the British at the Battle of the Capes, effectively blocking the mouth of the Chesapeake, so that British ships could not reach Cornwallis in Yorktown to aid his army’s escape.
Meanwhile Washington and Rochambeau led their troops from the New York area to Williamsburg to plan the siege of Yorktown, which began in late September.
On October 19, 1781, the British army surrendered the last effective battle of the American Revolution.
OCTOBER 18, 1824
And so, forty-three years later on October 18, 1824, Lafayette arrived by ship with an honor guard to a crowd of 15,000 awaiting him at the Yorktown wharf.
Feted by many celebrations during his three days in Yorktown, Lafayette also toured the battlefield redoubts and surrender field, which each held tall monuments.
Legend says that Lafayette even recognized one of the cannons, that is now on display in the battlefield museum.
OCTOBER 18, 2024
On this grand day, Lafayette (reenacted by Colonial Williamsburg’s Mark Schneider) arrived on the tall ship Luna (a recreated 18th century craft stationed in the Virginia Tidewater).
