Marquis de Lafayette Marie Joseph Paul Yves Roche Gilbert du Motier, Marquis Lafayette, most commonly known as Layette was born in 1757. At the age of 12 he was left a very young and wealthy orphan. Layette entered the Royal army on April 9, 1771 only at the age of 14! When he was just 16 he married Marie Adrienne Francoise de Noailles, who was related to the king. This made them one of the richest families in France. The Duke of Gloucester first introduced Lafayette to America at a dinner on August 8, 1775. They spoke of America with sympathy of the struggle going on in in the colonies. This was when Lafayette decided to make plans to travel to America. When Lafayette heard the struggle of the Americans to reach their goal to secure their independence he wanted to come to the colonies to aid them in their efforts as a volunteer. He also persuaded a lot of French officers to come with him. Since he represented the highest rank of French nobility and his motives were so patriotic in the American cause, the congress commissioned him a major General on July 31. Later in the summer he met General Washington. They ended up having a friendship that lasted until …show more content…
In the early days of the camp several officers officers were interested in trying to have a sentiment developed against Washington to have Congress release him from the Continental Army. However, the were not able to gain the support they expected. They tried to gain the support of Lafayette, but failed. In order to explain the situation he wrote Washington a letter, in which Lafayette told him about his loyalty towards him. He replied by a letter which was marked by his sincere appreciation. The soldiers and officers at valley Forge were very loyal to Washington. The members of Congress realized that he was a very unusual leader. Which most of the congressmen had not taken into