Posted on 06/07/2015 8:31:45 AM PDT by E. Pluribus Unum
The replica ship called the Hermione and its crew made the trans-Atlantic trip from Rochefort, France; the same place where Lafayette left on his journey to America back in 1780. (Courtesy of York County, Virginia)
WASHINGTON — It was a battle a young America was losing — the battle for independence. That was until the French stepped in, providing the edge America so desperately needed in its revolution against the British.
A young Frenchman played a pivotal role in helping secure independence from Great Britain. His name was Marquis de Lafayette, and he was on board a French warship in 1780 that helped change the course of American history.
Now a full-scale replica of that French frigate called the “Hermione” is on a historic voyage heading up the East Coast, making 12 stops along the way.
Beginning in Rochefort, France — the same place where Lafayette left on his journey to America in 1780 — the tall ship then arrived at its first port in Yorktown, Virginia (June 5-7). It stops at Mount Vernon on June 9, then on Wednesday it will anchor for three days (June 10-12) in Old Town Alexandria along the waterfront. It goes from there to Annapolis and then Baltimore, Md.
Miles Young, president of the American Friends of the Hermione-Lafayette, recounted the historical significance of the ship, which took 17 years to replicate.
“In 1780, if anyone had come to America, at that point, they would think that the American insurgencies would lose their war against Great Britain,” he noted. Lafayette had spent two years lobbying France’s king to come to the aid of the Americans against the Brits. On March 19, 1780, Lafayette left France on board the Hermione bound for Boston. Once there, Lafayette would travel to New Jersey to catch up with Gen. George Washington and deliver the great news that the French were sending a large military force to battle the British.
Young says when Lafayette told Washington the news that a tear ran down the general’s cheek.
The crew of the Hermione, now anchored in Yorktown, Va. (Courtesy of York County)
“Because he knew it was a guarantee of eventual victory,” he says.
Frenchman Lafayette was only 19 when he became an American general serving under Washington in the Continental Army. Lafayette and Washington developed a deep bond. Young says Lafayette became the son Washington never had, and that Washington became a father figure for Lafayette since Lafayette’s own father died fighting against the British.
Lafayette’s military forces played a pivotal role in the surrender of British Gen. Charles Cornwallis and his army at Yorktown, where the the Hermione was part of a blockade in the `York River which forced their surrender.
“That was the beginning of the end, if not the end for the British,” says Young.
The high point of the Tall Ship’s journey will take place in New York, where the Hermione will be escorted by hundreds of sail and motor boats past the Statue of Liberty during a July 4 parade to mark Independence Day.
Click image to view YouTube video.
Gilbert de Motier,the Marquis de Lafayette, named his son George Washington Lafayette.
Cool!!!!
Something I have long wondered: How did the French navy go from dominating the British in the 1780s to being humiliated in 1805?
James Armistead was a slave spy inside the British camp who spied for Lafayette while feeding false info to Benedict Arnold and Cornwallis.
He later took the name James Armistead Lafayette.
Beautiful ship.
Why is the voyage “historic?”
I’ve wondered exactly what these war ships looked like. They took years to build, and the cost, comparatively, was about the same then as today.
Beautiful.
Nice looking ship. A bit gaudy next to a British ship of the line, but a “right smart build.”
>>Why is the voyage “historic?”
Because nothing is news if it isn’t historic, unexpected, or covered in blood.
Thank you.Didn’t know of Armistead. This country will never be able to repay Lafayette for his support and belief in our cause. We were, fortunately, eventually able to have him released from prison.
The Royal Navy ships were very close in appearance at this period. The livery of HMS Victory represents the Napoleonic Period appearance, a bit more less colorful than the period of the Revolution.
I know that the replica team did extensive research on the colorations and the pigments used. I do not know that much about the French Navy, but I was someone surprised to see the saturation on the pigments used. The Royal Navy used natural pigments and purchased paint on competitive bids, so they got lower quality. Those pigments were on the earthier end of the spectrum. The exceptions occurred when Captains used their own funds to buy paints that were brighter and in differents tints not available in Royal Yards.
Cool!!!!
Does it equipped with a bidet?
I don’t know about where the French got their lumber but the British claimed white pines in the colonies as property of the king. (for masts)
This severely restricted colonists ability to grow their farms as well as left them with lower quality lumber. It eventually led to the Pine tree riot in 1772 New Hampshire.
The French entry into the war nailed down independence for the US. When France entered the war, Britain decided to cut off any more resources to the North American theatre, in order to redeploy them to the defense of the Home Islands, India, and the West Indies. Though they did not end the North American war in 1779, they just downgraded its importance to last.
The French relied on domestic sources for the most part. English oak was considered superior but became increasingly scarce throughout the 18th and 19th Century. The English used both North America and the Baltic as sources for masts. North American oak were prone to rot and was not highly prized.
Was this ship the one used to film the Hornblower series a few years ago?
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