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George Washington, commonly known as the “Father of His Country” for his indispensable role in bringing about American independence in the late 1700s, never had any biological children. But the commander of the Continental Army, who led patriot forces to victory in the American Revolutionary War against the better-armed British empire and became the first president of the United States, called Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier de La Fayette, Marquis de La Fayette “my favorite son.”
Theirs was an extraordinary friendship.
Early Americans called the Frenchman who played a vital role in rallying their military service in the American Revolution “Lafayette.” They treated him like a national celebrity.
“Lafayette was a great friend to Washington and America. He loved this country and its values on freedom. The people idolized him because he cared. It is fitting that we never forget him and his contributions,” said Julien P. Icher, the head of one of two major nonprofits in the United States that are taking steps to keep alive the name and contributions of Lafayette. Kentucky is heavily involved with activities planned by both Lafayette-based nonprofits as America heads toward its 250th anniversary on July 4, 2026.
Icher is the founder and president of The Lafayette Trail Inc., a nonprofit organization based in Bethesda, Maryland, with the mission to document, map and mark General Lafayette’s footsteps during his farewell tour of the United States in 1824 and 1825 that included Kentucky.
Since 2019, the nonprofit has placed six historical markers about the tour in six Kentucky communities—one each in Smithland, Shelbyville, Frankfort, Maysville, Versailles and Georgetown. Three are to be installed May 16 in Lexington. A historical marker has not yet been installed in Louisville, but it is in the works.
Chuck Schwan is executive director of American Friends of Lafayette, a historical society that began in 1932 at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania, and is headquartered in Gaithersburg, Maryland. Its goal is to foster and promote the traditional friendship with France that began with the American War for Independence and to examine documents and discoveries that might shed more light on Lafayette’s life.
American Friends has been working on rallies in the states Lafayette visited on his final tour of America. Several will be in Kentucky May 10-18, with two days of activities scheduled in Louisville.
Schwan said the two nonprofits are “quite different, but we both try to keep the name of Lafayette alive. Vive Lafayette!”
Who Was Lafayette?
Lafayette was born Sept. 6, 1757, into a wealthy land-owning family in south-central France. He followed family tradition and was commissioned into the military at age 13. He was fascinated by the “noble cause” of freedom in the New Word and traveled to the colonies to fight for it.
On Aug. 5, 1777, Gen. George Washington, commander in chief of the Continental Army, came to Philadelphia to brief Congress on military affairs. At dinner that night, Washington and Lafayette met. It was said “the two men bonded almost immediately.”
Washington appreciated the young man’s enthusiasm and his position as a Mason. In turn, Lafayette was in awe of the commanding general.
Lafayette became a member of Washington’s staff. He wanted to command a division, but Washington said that was not possible because of his foreign birth. He said he would hold Lafayette in confidence as “friend and father.”
A few weeks later, Lafayette was wounded fighting for the Continental Army at the Battle of Brandywine in Pennsylvania. He later served with distinction in the Battle of Rhode Island. Lafayette returned to France in the middle of the war to seek more financial support for the American Revolution. He came back to America in 1780 and attained senior positions in the Continental Army.
In 1781, Lafayette commanded troops in Virginia that blocked a British Army led by Lord Cornwallis until American and French forces could get into position for the victory at Yorktown that led to the surrender of the British.
In 1787, Lafayette returned to France and became involved in its government. In August 1792, radical factions ordered his arrest, and he fled to the Austrian Netherlands (comprising present-day Belgium and Luxembourg). Austrian troops captured him, and he spent more than five years in prison.
French leader Napoleon Bonaparte had him released in 1797, but Lafayette refused to participate in Napoleon’s government. In 1814, Lafayette became a liberal member of the French Chamber of Deputies. He held the position for 10 years.
In 1824, U.S. President James Monroe invited Lafayette to the United States as the nation’s guest of its upcoming 50th anniversary. Lafayette was the last surviving major general of the American Revolution. He received rapturous receptions wherever he went in the new country and enjoyed reuniting with fellow veterans and the nation’s leaders.
At Monticello in Virginia, Lafayette visited Thomas Jefferson. Jefferson’s successor, James Madison, showed up unexpectedly. Lafayette also dined with 89-year-old John Adams, the other living former president, at his home near Boston.
One of the highlights of his trip, Lafayette said, was his visit to the tomb of his friend George Washington at Mount Vernon in Virginia.
Lafayette went to the tomb alone. He returned to his carriage with tears in his eyes. He later led his son and a secretary into the tomb. They knelt near Washington’s coffin.
In Boston, Lafayette helped lay the cornerstone for the monument at the site of the Battle of Bunker Hill, the first major battle of the American Revolution in 1775. For his return to France, U.S. President John Quincy Adams made available for Lafayette a frigate, the name of which was changed from the Susquehanna to the USS Brandywine.
On May 20, 1834, Lafayette died of pneumonia. He was 76. He was buried in a Paris cemetery. He had his son pour atop his grave dirt he had collected from Bunker Hill. He wanted to be buried under French and American soil.
His son’s name was Georges Washington de la Fayette.
Kentucky Celebrates Lafayette
The Lafayette Trail Inc. said founder Icher has entered into an exclusive agreement with the William G. Pomeroy Foundation to place up to 175 official markers in the 24 states on Lafayette’s final tour of America.
Icher plans to be in Kentucky this spring to speak to various historical societies and organizations. For more information about the nonprofit, visit thelafayettetrail.org.
The American Friends of Lafayette is coordinating a farewell tour bicentennial on the national level.
Its biggest event in Kentucky will be May 10-12 in Louisville. On the first day—from 10 a.m.-3 p.m. at Old Portland Wharf, 3500 Rudd Avenue—a re-enactment will be held of Lafayette’s arrival. It is free and open to the public.
After the unveiling of a historical road marker, food, snacks and drinks will be provided by the Louisville Thruston Chapter, Kentucky Society, Sons of the American Revolution; the Louisville Committee; and Good Shepherd Catholic Church. A tour will visit the location of the original Portland Wharf nearby.
After the ceremony, the activities will move to the Portland Museum following the path of the old Portland-Louisville Plank Turnpike to the museum. There will be a speaker and presentation about Lafayette’s trip to Louisville and the local environment in 1825.
An elegant dinner will be served, followed by a dance from 5:30-10 p.m. at the Pendennis Club at 218 West Muhammad Ali Boulevard.
The next day, two benches marking the Lafayette visit and the 250th anniversary of the American Revolution will be unveiled in downtown Louisville at 3 p.m. at 400 West Market Building Park.
On May 12 at 10 a.m., the public may attend a ceremony at 1101 East River Road, the Big Four Waterfront Park, to welcome Lafayette and escort him over the Big Four Bridge. It is about a 40-minute walk.
That evening, from 7-9 p.m., the Kentucky Masons will present a play and host a reception at the Scottish Rite Temple, 200 East Gray Street.
For more details and information about tickets, visit lafayette200.org.
For further information on the events celebrating the bicentennial of Lafayette’s farewell tour, visit thelafayettetrail.org and lafayette200.org.