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Marie-Joseph-Paul-Yves-Roch-Gilbert du Motier

Marquis de Lafayette

"La liberté est née française…" Georges Washington

"... mais c'est l'Amérique qui lui a appris à marcher."   Marquis de la Fayette

Liberty was born French……but America taught her how to walk.

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On July 4, 1917, Colonel Stanton visits La Fayette’s tomb: he lays an American flag to show the gratitude of the American people for a Frenchman who was the hero of their quest for their independence. The American flag has floated there since 1917, even during World War II, when the Germans occupied France.

In 1917, a large number of Americans land in Picpus, claiming one of Colonel Stanton’s most famous sentences: “La Fayette, Here we Are!”, La Fayette, nous voici!

La Fayette was very famous; why is there an American Flag above his tomb?La Fayette was very famous; why is there an American Flag above his tomb?

La Fayette’s Tomb , Paris, Picpus.

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A young man: La Fayette was only 19 years old when he left for his first expedition. 

A lone man: He paid his sailors with his own fortune and he had no mandate from anyone.

An independent man: He traveled on his own will, without respecting the King’s advice

La Fayette’s Statue, France

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Youth He is the hero of the American War of Independence and of the French Revolution. He was nicknamed “The Hero of Two Worlds”, a nickname that referred to his involvement in French political life as well as in American political life.

Born in a noble family, he became an orphan and therefore inherited a huge fortune at age 13. He then decided to undertake a military career, as his father. The young captain is 19 years old when the English colonies of America declare their independence. At this point, he decides to leave for America in April 1777, in spite of the King’s interdiction.

Date of Birth: September 6, 1757Date of death: May 20, 1834, from a bladder illness. Buried in Picpus.Status: General and Politician Citizenship: French and American

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First Voyage

April 26, 1777. La Fayette, then 19 years old, decides to embark on the first of his three expeditions to America. He leaves from a Basque port, near Saint-Sebastian. During their trip, La Fayette and his equipage face a range of difficulties. First, they have to travel secretly to avoid English spies. Then they meet very harsh weather conditions and have to travel facing the wind. This explains why many members of his equipage fall sick

The Victory finally lands on June 1777, at 2:00 pm, at South Inlet, near Georgetown, South Carolina. La Fayette then walks to Charleston where he is welcome by Governor Rutledge

La Victoire, bateau La Fayette.

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Second VoyageAt age 23, La Fayette lands for a second time in America:

this time, he traveled on the Hermione. He arrives in Boston on April 28, 1780, after a thirty eight-day crossing. The ship greets the American Flag with 13 cannon shots. From the quays, the crowd shows its jubilation in a boisterous way. The crew greets the event shouting enthusiastically three times “Vive le Roy”.

 On September 28, 1781, Washington and Rochambeau join La Fayette to assist him in the siege of Cornwallis, in Yorktown. The town capitulates on October 19, 1781, which leads to the independence of the United States, recognized by England on November 30, 1782. At the end of the battle, he declares: “Humanity has won its battle. Liberty now has a country.”

La Fayette leaves the port for good on May 2nd, 1780; he sails to Morristown, in Jersey, to meet General George Washington. The military operation that will lead to the independence of America is on its way. French military battalions land in Newport on July 11, 1780. The battle of Chesapeake between the British and the French takes place on September 5, 1781: the French win.

Battle of Chesapeake, USA.

Battle of Chesapeake, USA.

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Third VoyageIn 1784, at age 27, La Fayette finally accepts George Washington’s invitation to pay him a visit. He travels on the “Courrier de New York”. Leaving Lorient on June 30, 1784, he reaches New York on August 4, 1784. He is acclaimed by the new nation’s Capital City. For a second time, he goes to “Mount Vernon”; it is the only time he meets with the person who was his adoptive father. The trip is a triumph that will strengthen his popularity in France. He is welcome everywhere to the sounds of church bells and cannons. He moves from a homage ceremony to another, surrounded with fife and drum players.

La Fayette’s third voyage lasts four months. He returns to France on “La Nymphe”, a thirty two-canon French frigate; they leave New York on December 21, 1784 and reach Brest on January 20, 1785.

Statues of La Fayette and Washington, Paris.

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Project Hermione“The Hermione” is the frigate La Fayette used for his second voyage to America, in 1780.

This forty four-meter long vessel, weighing 1166 tons and armed with 12 canons, is manned with a 255 - men crew when it leaves Rochefort - where it was built in 1777 - one of the largest French arsenals of the time.

Unfortunately, the ship was destroyed in 1795 when it ran aground on French coasts, following a wrong maneuver.

The arsenal of Rochefort, a city built during the reign of King Louis XVI was, for three centuries, one of the most important construction and repair sites of the French Navy, an organization that employed up to 8000 people.

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Rochefort and the arsenalCreated almost ex-nihilio in 1666 by Colbert, the splendid classical ship of the arsenal, and its impressive rigging are the result of the King’s will to equip France with a Navy that could rival the British powerhouse. After three centuries of activity, the Arsenal closes (1927), which leads to the decline of the city and the closing of the site.

Abandoned for 30 years, partially burnt by the Nazi occupants, the place is gradually restored starting in 1970, declared a historical monument, and placed under the responsibility of the Conseil Général du Département.

The masterpiece of the unit is the largest rigging in the world: 374-meter long, it now houses a museum, a maritime library and a school that perpetuates the traditional trades associated to the building of sailing vessels.

It is in this prestigious site that, in 1997, the crazy project of rebuilding the Hermione Frigate was born: an association of passionate people initiated the project to rebuild it exactly as it was originally.

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The Construction Site

Everything had to be recreated, from the restoration of the shape of the ship under repair, to the rediscovery of the building techniques for sailing vessels, techniques that had been mostly forgotten. Many trades were solicited to accomplish this pharaonic project: bricklayers, cabinet makers, ship carpenters, blacksmiths, turners, caulkers, painters, sail makers, rope makers and sculptors.

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Le voyage In the spring of 2012, the LAUNCH of the refitted ship takes place.

It will take another year of work to complete the outfitting of the superstructures, the rigging and the sails.

After the competent organizations had delivered the certificates that would allow her to sail, the INAUGURAL VOYAGE to Norfolk Va., began: in the spring of 2013, a crew of about 20 professional sailors and about 200 volunteers randomly selected among the members who supported the building project left.

The rebirth of this proud vessel, loaded with symbols, was complete and real. Later, she will be used as a cruise ship and sailing school.

Pictures published with the friendly courtesy of Association Hermione (Rochefort-sur-mer)