For this research paper, I will be talking about a less known founding father the name of Marquis de Lafayette. He is a French noble who came and helped the colonies, during the revolutionary war. He made many sacrifices for the colonies and this paper will tell you what he did. He was born on September 6, 1757, in Chavaniac, France to a prestige’s military family. By the age of twelve he was a very rich orphan. Life moved at a very fast pace in the 1700’s and Marquis de Lafayette found himself joining the royal army at the age of fourteen. Then at the age of sixteen he allied himself to one of one of the richest families in France by marring fourteen year old Marie Adrienne Francoise de Noailles. Her family was also closely related to the king. The fact that his father was killed by the British in the Battle of Minden, the influence of his grandmother, and the fact that being in the milatiry was in his DNA may have all set his life on a course towards America. He was nineteen when he decided to go to and join the American Revolution. Many Frenchmen were willing to join in the fighting because of the lingering resentment of the British and their noble pursuit of freedom. Lafayette knew his king would never approve of this going to America so his friend Comte de Broglie introduced him to Baron Johan de Kalb and the two men purchased a ship and gathered men and supplies to help in the war effort. During the fifty-four days that it took them to sail from France to the newly declared United States he started learning English so he would be able to communicate when he arrived. He finally reached Charleston, South Carolina in June 13, 1777 he heads to Philadelphia to speak with the Continental Congress. They were not real su... ... middle of paper ... ...everal appointments in the government after his return to focus his attention to rebuilding his estate. He was invited back to United States in 1824 and toured the country; people came out in mass to see him. Lafayette would continue his work in government holding firm his belief in a represented form of government for his country. His last appointment was to the French National Guard, which he held until till his death of pneumonia on May 20, 1834. Works Cited "The Marquis De Lafayette." Ushistory.org. Independence Hall Association, n.d. Web. 26 Feb. 2014."History.org: The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation's Official History and Citizenship Website." The Marquis De Lafayette : The Colonial Williamsburg Official History & Citizenship Site. N.p., n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2014. "Marquis De Lafayette Biography." Bio.com. A&E Networks Television, n.d. Web. 27 Feb. 2014.
In Woody Holton's Forced Founders, that most revered segment of the revolutionary generation, the elitist gentry class of Virginia, comes across very much as a group of self-serving reactionaries, rather then the idealized revolutionaries of the great patriotic myth of popular history. He sets about disassembling a central portion of the myth created by earlier generations of Consensus historians, by asserting that rather then gallantly leading the charge for independence, Virginia's elitist gentry resorted to independence as their last and only means of saving their elite ruling status, their economic futures, and even their very lives many feared. While this is very much an example of revisionist history, Holton has not so much rewritten history, as he has provided the back story of the complexity and diversity of the Virginia colony on the eve of the American Revolution. For while the book's title may insinuate otherwise, lowly groups like slaves and Indians discussed here are afforded only the status of “founders” by pressing those traditionally thought of in this role to take the plunge for independence. Still the papers and correspondence of the iconic figureheads of the revolutionary generation like Washington, Jefferson, and Madison make up the bulk of primary sources.
Champlain was born in 1574 in Brouage, to a family of marines and sea captains. He was the son of Antonio de Champlain ( a captain in the French marines), and his mother’s maiden name is Marguerite Leroy. His hometown had many big ports and ships, so he was very connected to boats when he was little. He had very little education, but he was able to become very educated by himself. He knew a lot of things because he taught them to himself. While he was still young, he entered the army.
Born in January of 1737, John Hancock grew up to become a prominent founding father and important Patriot in American history. Filling many roles throughout his life, John Hancock shaped the course of the Revolution by standing out against the British rule. Originally a merchant and statesmen, Hancock became the president of the Second Continental Congress and helped convince all thirteen colonies to unite for their independence (History). Hancock stood for freedom in a time in which many leaders still hesitated to declare independence, and his influence convinced many colonists to unite against tyranny and still inspires many people today. To play such a significant role in the history of America, however, Hancock grew from experiences long
Washington's dedication to the cause of the American Revolution inspired and impressed everyone. He was a great general, and astute politician, and a symbol of the cause for independence. He was a master in the art of war. Bibliography:.. Bibliography Handel, Michael I. Masters of War.
After the war he befriended with Ulysses S. Grant and joined the Republican party. He was criticized by former confederates for losing the war and befriending with Grant and the Republican party. He served as Grants minister to Turkey. He also became a political apostate in the south. Later he served as a commissioner of the Pacific Railroads from eighteen ninety seven to nineteen o four. In the summer of nineteen o four he became very ill and was diagnosed with Rheumatism. His ear was also damaged and was forced to use an ear horn when spoken to. He traveled to Chicago for a cancerous right eye, his weight dropped from two hundred pounds to one hundred thirty five pounds.
Charleston, along with the original colonies was growing tired of British taxation. In September 1774, five representatives from Charleston traveled to Philadelphia to participate in the First Continental Congress. On 19 April 1775, the first military engagements of the American Revolutionary War took place during the Battles of Lexington and Concord. Throughout the fall of 1775, Patriots in Charleston drove out the last British ships and prepared defensive positions for the impending war (Stokley, 1886). The weather in June of 1776 was hot and muggy on the South Carolina (SC) coast. The SC coastlines are extremely fertile and green with lots of foliage for cover and concealment. Any large vessel at...
During the War for American Independence, 78 men were commissioned as general officers into the Continental Army by the Continental Congress. Many of these generals commanded troops with differing levels of competence and success. George Washington is typically seen as most important general, however throughout the war a number of his subordinates were able to distinguish themselves amongst their peers. One such general was Nathanael Greene. At the end of the Revolutionary War, Greene would become Washington’s most important subordinate, as demonstrated by Edward Lengel’s assessment of Greene as “the youngest and most capable of Washington’s generals.” Washington and Greene developed a strong, positive and close relationship between themselves. Greene began his life in the military after having been raised a Quaker. With limited access to literature and knowledge in his younger years, Greene became an avid reader which equipped him with the knowledge necessary to excel as a general during the war. Through his devoted study of military operations, firsthand experience and natural abilities as a soldier, Greene became an excellent military commander. He would become known for his successful southern campaign, during which, he loosened British control of the South and helped lead the war to its climax at Yorktown. Throughout the war, he was involved in a number high profile battles where he built a reputation of being an elite strategist who also understood unconventional warfare, logistics, and the importance of military-civil affairs and had a natural political/social acumen. The thesis of this paper is that Greene’s proven reputation of being a soldier, strategist and statesman would cause him to become the second greates...
Monroe wasn’t very interested in college while he was there. He heard people speak against the British and he agreed that the colonies should be free. He started taking part in
Stokesbury, James L. A short History of the American Revolution. New York. William Morrow and Company, Inc. 1991.
America was born and survived, its rough road into a nation, through a series of events, or moments in history. The founding brother’s book is about a few important figures during and after the American Revolution. These important figures consisted of Alexander Hamilton, Aaron Burr, John Adams, George Washington, James Madison, and Thomas Jefferson. Each of these men, contributed to the building of America in one way or another. The book breaks these contributions into a few short stories, to help understand what these important figures did.
Patrick Henry, the author of the “Give Me Liberty or Give Me Death” Speech and the famous American Framer, attorney, and ex-governor of Virginia, was born on May 29, 1736 in Hanover County, VA (Fowler). Henry was a member of the Virginia House of Burgesses and was chosen to be a delegate to the 1st Continental Congress (Fowler). Henry was known for being a fiery orator and speaker, and he proved himself to be a knowledgeable lawyer and politician (Fowler). Patrick Henry was usually reported as being six feet tall, long-limbed, with “sparkly cobalt eyes and auburn hair” (Fowler). But early in life, Henry was common man. Henry was a clerk who worked for a local business run by his father and, for the most part, educated by his father, who attended a Scottish university. He was musically inclined, playing the fiddle and flute, and during most of his adulthood Henry took active roles in the military skirmishes and disputes between the colonies and the Britain (Fowler).
His artistic talent attracted Washington Allston, a famous artist, who invited Morse to travel to England to meet with Benjamin West. He then later attended the Royal Academy where he studied Neo-classical arts of the Renaissance such as the works by Raphael and Michelangelo interested him. Throughout Morse’s painting career he did works for people such as James Monroe, a United States president, and Marquis de Lafayette, one of the biggest supporter of the American Revolution. While painting a portrait of the Marquis De Lafayette, a message was delivered to Samuel Morse about his wife dying. When he arrived to tend to his sick wife, he was too late because his wife had already passed away and buried.
James Monroe was born in 1758 in Westmoreland County, Virginia. He attended school until the age of sixteen. He then entered the College of William and Mary (Sauer, 2000, p. 233). Monroe enlisted in the army during the Revolutionary War and at the age of eighteen he became lieutenant. He served under Washington and he was later made a captain for his efforts in the battle at Trenton, New Jersey, where he was wounded in the shoulder. From then on Monroe was active in a variety of politics.
If you live in the United States, you probably are aware of the American Revolution. Most educated adults in America can name at least on hero of pre-Revolutionary America such as Samuel Adams, John Hancock, Paul Revere and Thomas Jefferson . But to what extent did these few men, credited with our freedom, actually participate in events that lead up to the revolution? How many countless men remained unnamed and unnoticed despite the work they put into the Revolution? These men have often been overlooked in textbooks, despite the fact most of the freedoms we have now are derived from their brave actions. But why did these men get the wheels of a revolution turning? What was the reason they had for their actions, the very ones that led America and Great Britain to begin a fight not only for freedom, but for life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness?
Flexner, James Thomas. George Washington: The Forge of Experience 1732-1775: Boston, Toronto. Little, Brown and Company. 1965.