Lafayette Tour Marker, Boston, Massachusetts (MA-194)

President James Monroe invited the Marquis de Lafayette to visit the United States, his adopted country. Lafayette’s tour of all 24 states in 1824 and 1825 drew large crowds and sparked a renewal of patriotism. During the American Revolution, Lafayette’s intense advocacy of the American cause convinced King Louis XVI of France to send troops and ships, which proved crucial to the American victory at Yorktown. 

Lafayette arrived in Dedham, Massachusetts, late in the evening. It was reported that after spending about an hour there, a cavalcade of 100 mounted horsemen from Roxbury then escorted him to Governor Eustis’ house at 2 o’clock in the morning, and that the Governor greeted the General with a long hug. The Governor reportedly exclaimed, “I am the happiest man that ever lived!” The Shirley-Eustis House is now in Boston, but in 1824, the town of Roxbury was not yet part of the city. The house, however, was the home of the Governor of Massachusetts, William Eustis. The next day, the city of Boston sent out a cavalcade of nearly 700 people to escort the General into the city. 

Learn about Revolutionary War Combat Strategy. Watch the Revolutionary War Animated Map. For a summary, read An Overview of the American Revolution.