Wednesday, June 19th, 7:00 p.m.
In 1824-1825, the Marquis de Lafayette visited the United States on a Farewell Tour celebrating the 50th anniversary of the American Revolution. This talk will discuss Lafayette’s life and legacy, including his critical role in the American Revolution and in cementing the Franco-American Alliance, and his lifelong passion for human rights and abolitionism.
A true hero of the American Revolution and a constant friend of the United States, 1824 marks the bicentennial of the start of his tour. During his travels for this celebratory period, the 67-year-old, the last surviving Major General of the Continental Army, visited all twenty-four states and Washington City, with more than ninety stops along the way, including Dedham in August 2024. Nearly a quarter of the roughly 12,000,000 Americans rushed to get a glimpse of him. Of his tour it was written, “an event . . . unparalleled in the history of man.”
Speaker Peter Reilly, a member of the American Friends of Lafayette Bicentennial Committee, spoke in period attire as a “greeter.”