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A Noble French Patriot A Noble French Patriot

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Burning with eagerness, the 19-year-old Lafayette<br />

arranged to meet with Silas Deane, an American diplomat<br />

who was in Paris. Lafayette had a bold request. He asked<br />

Deane to make him a general in the American army.<br />

Deane was tentative at first because Lafayette had no<br />

actual battle experience. To persuade the diplomat, Lafayette<br />

emphasized his passion for the American cause, his wealth,<br />

and his powerful connections. Finally, Deane agreed.<br />

When the <strong>French</strong> king, Louis XVI, heard of the marquis’s<br />

plan, he opposed it. He thought that a <strong>French</strong> nobleman serving<br />

as an American general would be a political disaster for the<br />

<strong>French</strong> government.<br />

At this time, Great Britain and France were at peace. The<br />

king feared that the presence of a prominent <strong>French</strong> aristocrat<br />

such as Lafayette fighting on behalf of American colonists<br />

would send an antagonistic message to the British government.<br />

Lafayette’s actions could even lead to war between France and<br />

Great Britain—something that Louis XVI wanted very much<br />

to avoid.<br />

But Lafayette was determined to go to America and fight<br />

for the colonists’ freedom. He bought his own ship and defiantly<br />

planned to go to America, with or without the king’s blessing.<br />

After a dramatic series of events, including a decoy trip to<br />

London, threats of imprisonment by Louis XVI, and a chase<br />

across France on horseback, Lafayette finally got his wish.<br />

He sailed for the American colonies on April 20, 1777.<br />

5

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