Marquis de Lafayette, Union Square

• Sculptor: Frederic-Auguste Bartholdi
• Pedestal: H.W. DeStuckle
• Dedicated: 1873
• Medium and size: Bronze (8 feet), granite pedestal (6.5 feet)
• Location: Union Square at East 16th Street
• Subway: 4, 5, 6, N, R, W or L to Union Square

February 17, 1778: The Marquis de Lafayette Does Not Invade Canada

In 1777 the 19-year-old Marquis de Lafayette, an extremely wealthy Frenchman dedicated to the ideal of liberty, joined the ranks of the fledgling United States Army as a major general. After serving with distinction on Washington’s staff he was assigned by General Horatio Gates (without Washington’s knowledge) to lead an invasion of Canada.

Arriving at Albany, NY on February 17, 1778, Lafayette found that the expedition was disastrously lacking in money, food and soldiers. Residents of upstate New York (who ought to know) considered it foolhardy to lead an expedition to Canada in the dead of winter, and the British and Canadians already knew of plans for the expedition and were preparing against it. In March the invasion was postponed, with due thanks to Lafayette for his diligence:

That Congress entertain a high sense of his prudence, activity, and zeal and they they are filly persuaded nothing has or would have been wanting on his part, or on the part of the officers who accompanied him, to give the expedition the utmost possible effect.

The invasion of Canada was still being mooted, this time with the use of French troops, when Washington wrote to Henry Laurens, President of the Continental Congress on November 14, 1778:

Men are very apt to run into extremes; hatred to England may carry some into an excess of Confidence in France; especially when motives of gratitude are thrown into the scale. Men of this description would be unwilling to suppose France capable of acting so ungenerous a part. I am heartily disposed to entertain the most favourable sentiments of our new ally and to cherish them in others to a reasonable degree; but it is a maxim founded on the universal experience of mankind, that no nation is to be trusted farther than it is bound by its interest; and no prudent statesman or politician will venture to depart from it.

Lafayette and America

Henry Clay’s toast to Lafayette on his visit to the United States in 1825 sums up the American atttitude toward Lafayette:

To the great apostle of liberty whom the persecutions of tyranny could not defeat, whom the love of riches could not influence, whom popular applause could never seduce. He was always the same, in the shackles of Olmutz, in his various labors on the summits of power and glory.

When Lafayette died in 1834, at age 77, King Louis-Philippe of France- still fuming after the riots at the 1832 funeral of General Lamarque (the one mentioned in Les Miserables) – refused to officially acknowledge Lafayette’s death. He ordered a low-key military funeral at which crowds were held back at bayonet-point.

In America, on the other hand, the outpouring of grief when Lafayette died was even greater than when George Washington died thirty-five years earlier. Flags flew at half-mast. Former President John Quincy Adams read Lafayette’s eulogy in joint session of Congress, with the president, cabinet, Supreme Court justices and diplomatic corps in attendance. Every navy ship and military post fired a 24-gun salute at daybreak and a single cannon shot every half-hour afterwards until sunset. Army and navy officers wore black armbands for six months, and Americans dressed in mourning for thirty days. 

Why Was This Sculpture Erected 39 Years After Lafayette’s Death?

Bartholdi was commissioned to produce this sculpture of Lafayette as a way for France to publicly and permanently thank New Yorkers for the relief they sent during the German siege of Paris in 1870-1871, during the Franco-Prussian War. For other monuments honoring the friendship between France and the United States, see the Statue of Liberty and Joan of Arc.

The pedestal is one of the most understated but elegant ones in New York. The oak leaves, laurel leaves, and ribbons (symbolizing courage and honor) are glossy patterns on the matte surface of the granite. The inscription is barely visible: “As soon as I heard of American Independence, my heart was enlisted. 1776. To the City of New York. France, in remembrance of sympathy in time of trial, 1870-1871.”

More

• Bartholdi’s Statue of Liberty (Liberty Enlightening the World) was dedicated in New York Harbor in 1886.
• For more on this sculpture, see Outdoor Monuments of Manhattan.
• A copy of Houdon’s bust of Lafayette is in the Hall of Fame at Bronx Community College.
• In Getting More Enjoyment from Sculpture You Love, I demonstrate a method for looking at sculptures in detail, in depth, and on your own. Learn to enjoy your favorite sculptures more, and find new favorites. Available on Amazon in print and Kindle formats. More here.
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