Stanley J. Idzerda – författare

An indefatigable letter writer, the Marquis de Lafayette carried on a correspondence with an extraordinary range of people involved with the fate of revolutionary America. Volume I provides a fascinating account, from source materials, of his arrival in America and of his first challenging year with the Continental Army. It covers Lafayette's activities from December 7, 1776, to March 30, 1778, including his landing in Charleston, his 900-mile trip to Philadelphia, and his chilly reception by Congress. It also chronicles his service in Washington's army, his participation in the battle of Brandywine and the winter encampment of the troops at Valley Forge, and his abortive expedition to Canada in 1778.Complementing Lafayette's personal memoirs are extensive exchanges of letters with his family and with such prominent figures as George Washington, Robert Morris, John Adams, John Hancock, and Patrick Henry. The documents and letters written in English are published as they appear in the manuscripts; those written in French appear both in the original and in translation.

The second volume in this distinguished series provides a comprehensive picture of the Franco-American alliance and of the day-to-day problems of conducting the War of Independence as reported by Lafayette and his correspondents on both sides of the Atlantic.Volume II begins with Lafayette's reunion with the main army at Valley Forge in the spring of 1778, after an assignment to Albany. It follows him on his return to France in January 1779, on leave from the American army, and ends in the spring of 1780, when he was sent back to America to announce the coming of the French expeditionary force and to help formulate American plans for cooperation with the French forces.Complementing Lafayette 's personal memoirs, which open the two parts of the book, are exchanges of letters with such prominent figures as George Washington1 Henry Laurens, Benjamin Franklin, the Comte d'Estaing, John Paul Jones, and the Comte de Vergennes. The documents and letters written in English are published as they appear in the manuscripts; those written in French appear both in the original and in translation.Much of the basic material for this series, which will comprise six volumes, is drawn from Lafayette's own collection of manuscripts. A brilliant portrait of Lafayette in his own words, the books reveal much more complex elements in his character and outlook than have been apparent before.

The third volume of this widely acclaimed series continues the story of Lafayette's role in the military, diplomatic, and political aspects of the French-American alliance as seen through the letters of Lafayette and his correspondents on both sides of the Atlantic.Among the recipients of Lafayette's letters are George Washington, the Comte de Vergennes, Samuel Adams, the Comte de Rochambeau, the Baron van Steuben, Beajamin Franklin, Alexander Hamilton, Nathanael Greene, and Thomas Jefferson. At times, Lafayette appears to be as proud, ambitious, and headstrong as his detractors have claimed. More often, he emerges as a mature and judicious leader, one who carried great weight as a principal architect of French-American cooperation. The letters also show his ability to understand American attitudes toward military and civil authority, and they indicate his realistic comprehension of strategy, tactics, and logistics.The volume is divided into five parts, each of which is introduced by a headnote summarizing Lafayette's main activities and the broader context of revolutionary events of the period. It makes clear the tensions and disharmonies between the allies that developed during the months of military inaction and fiscal difficulties, and gives us a rare look at the human side of the military effort at its highest levels.

The fourth volume in this distinguished series is a documentary chronicle of the 1781 campaign that culminated in the October surrender of Cornwallis and his army to the joint American and French forces at Yorktown. As leader of the American troops in Virginia from April through September 1781, Lafayette played a major role in planning this campaign; the greatest American victory of the war was also an outstanding personal triumph.In this volume Lafayette's correspondents include American military figures such as Washington, Greene, Steuben, and Wayne; the British commanders Phillips and Cornwallis; and such civil authorities as Jefferson, Thomas Nelson, William Davies, and Thomas Sim Lee. Their exchanges provide a vivid picture, with all the immediacy and authenticity that only documents can give, of the problems and frustrations of the campaign, and they draw attention to the specific decisions that led to the allied containment of the British forces.

This volume, the fifth in a distinguished and admired series, includes correspondence with George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, John Adams, Henry Knox, Alexander Hamilton, John Jay, Patrick Henry, French foreign minister Vergennes, Spanish foreign minister Floridablanca, and Lafayette 's wife, Adrienne. The book opens with Lafayette's return to France after Yorktown to press the benefits of that victory. Displaying his role as Franklin 's "political aide-de-camp" in the diplomatic negotiations that culminated in the treaty of peace, the documents also give evidence of his personal mediation with members of the French government as well as with the King.The documents chronicling his tour of America in 1784 clearly show that Lafayette intended it to be more than a triumphal display. They reveal his desire to promote in the individual states as well as among the American people at large a sense of unity that would produce a stronger government and thus ensure the survival of those liberties for which Lafayette had been struggling. The volume ends with clear evidence that his interest did not wane with the close of the war but found renewed vigor in his determination to secure and extend those "rights of mankind" that he espoused.