In 1824, the Marquis de Lafayette received a letter from President James Monroe offering to send a frigate to any convenient French port “in case you may be free to visit the United States now.” As it turns out, Lafayette had once again found himself on the wrong side of the political fence in France, so he eagerly accepted the invitation of the American president, setting out from Le Havre in mid-July with his son Georges Washington, his private secretary Auguste Levasseur (who would later publish a journal of the trip), and his valet Bastien. Declining Monroe’s offer of a frigate, Lafayette and his party sailed aboard a merchant vessel, the Cadmus, arriving in New York Harbor to a 13-gun salute on Sunday 15 August and delivered into the welcoming arms of his adopted country. Although Lafayette had planned to visit only the 13 original colonies, his farewell tour would last a little over a year and carry the Marquis to all 24 states.

Lafayette mania

After being fêted in Staten Island and New York City, Lafayette and his entourage set out for Boston, to the disappointment of his New York hosts. A letter republished in the New Hampshire Patriot and State Gazette reported Lafayette’s insistence on travelling to Boston, “for I wish to be in Boston, that I may visit Cambridge on Commencement day, where I shall meet many of my old friends. You no doubt know my attachment to you ALL: I am heartily glad to see you—but must make a visit immediately to Boston, and will return again.” Lafayette had been granted an honorary Doctor of Laws degree by Harvard during his first return to the United States in 1784, no doubt partly explaining his anxiety at returning in time for commencement.

All along the route from New York to Boston, Lafayette’s party was greeted enthusiastically. The Boston Commercial Gazette of 23 August described Lafayette’s progress as “a phrenzy of gratitude … more splendid and honorable than any that was ever given before to a benefactor of mankind.” The Salem Gazette of 24 August opined, “With the exception of the presidential question, the public mind is now occupied with little else than Lafayette, his movements and the arrangements which are making in the places where a visit from him is expected.” Newspapers throughout the country breathlessly published and republished tales of Lafayette’s appearance, speeches, and receptions in towns across the nation, alongside advertisements for Lafayette portraits, handkerchiefs, and other memorabilia.

Arriving at the home of Gov. William Eustis (a surgeon during the Revolutionary War) in Roxbury, Lafayette was heartily embraced by the Governor, who declared himself “the happiest man that ever lived.” The pair shared “an elegant breakfast” before setting off to the State House where Lafayette was officially welcomed to the Commonwealth with a grand military and civic procession, artillery salutes, and thousands of schoolchildren on the Common. By all accounts, Lafayette’s reception in Boston was an unqualified success. According to the Boston Commercial Gazette, 100,000 people “saw the long looked for hero,” with the editors of the paper “unable to do justice to the grandeur and moral sublimity of the whole scene.” The accolades and welcoming ceremonies continued in small towns and large cities, everywhere Lafayette travelled during his sojourn for more than a year.

Lafayette returns

After 10 months traversing the nation, Lafayette returned to Boston to lay the cornerstone of the Bunker Hill Monument on the 50th anniversary of the Battle of Bunker Hill, 17 June 1825. His secretary sets the stage:

At ten-thirty, the procession started its march. It was composed of about 7,000 people. Two hundred Revolutionary officers or soldiers marched at its head; 40 veterans, the glorious remnants of the Battle of Bunker Hill, followed them in eight open carriages …. Behind them marched a long column formed by the numerous subscribers for the construction of the monument … and 2000 Masons ... afterwards came General Lafayette in a superb carriage, pulled by six shining white horses … This column advanced to the sound of music and bells in the midst of 200,000 citizens … while salvoes of artillery and general acclamations saluted it at short intervals.

After the laying of the cornerstone, Lafayette stayed in Boston for several days, visiting John Adams at his home before leaving for Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, and then turning southward for his return to France. President John Quincy Adams arranged for Lafayette to return to France aboard the newly commissioned USS Brandywine (formerly Susquehanna), re-named for the battle in which Lafayette had been wounded fighting alongside American forces. After a stormy three-week voyage, the Marquis arrived back in France where he would continue his involvement in French politics until his death in 1834 at the age of 76. At the news of his death, President Andrew Jackson ordered the same memorial observances that had been given to Washington. Congress was draped in black bunting for 30 days and members wore mourning badges; the public was encouraged to follow suit. In December, former president John Quincy Adams delivered an oration before Congress summarizing Lafayette’s entire career and eulogizing him as one who had devoted “himself, his life, his fortune, his hereditary honors, his towering ambition, his splendid hopes, all to the cause of liberty.”