Posted on 12/19/2005 7:15:21 PM PST by Pharmboy
Franklin was the first American international celebrity. It was said that there was not mantle in Paris that did not have a small portrait of Franklin adorning it during his residence there.
If memory serves, Franklin's son headed some kind of royalist commission to try (in all but name) Bennie baby for some transgression (may have been something about circulating private letters, can't recall). They had been estranged even before that time.
You are confusing separate incidents.
Franklin somehow wound up in possession of private letters of the governor of MA, which he forwarded (or maybe copies) to his political opponents. Not terribly ethical for a man who was the postmaster general of the colonies.
His son was not involved.
Their estrangement was caused almost entirely by his son taking the opposite side in the Revolution, which BF saw as a personal betrayal.
Thanks for posting the info about those two exhibitions. One is coming to a site near me! Woo hoo!
Thanks.
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.