Commemorating Franco-American friendship

4th July 2025: This year it is particularly well to remember the joint legacy of "Liberty, Equality and Fraternity" which unites France and the US!

Wishing you a Happy Fourth of July!

Last week we were honored to lay a wreath of the American Friends of Lafayette at the tomb of Lafayette.

"The Marquis de Lafayette rests in the Cimetière de Picpus in Paris’s 12th arrondissement—a site where his deep and enduring friendship with the United States is forever honored.

At his own request, Lafayette was buried beneath both French and American soil, the latter gathered from Bunker Hill. His son, Georges Washington de Lafayette, carried the sacred earth during their 1824–1825 tour of the United States and covered his father’s casket with it after Lafayette laid the cornerstone of the Bunker Hill Monument.

During World War I, General John J. Pershing and his troops visited Lafayette’s grave on Independence Day. It was then that Colonel Charles E. Stanton delivered the now-famous tribute: “Lafayette, we are here.” To this day, a ceremony is held annually to replace the flag, preserving the symbol of Franco-American solidarity". (text: American Friends of Lafayette)

God bless America and France !

Thierry Chaunu, SOUVENIR FRANÇAIS - USA [Facebook]