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Lafayette Lands in South Carolina

When
1776–1777
Where
Paris negotiations; Pauillac, on the Gironde; North Island, near Georgetown, South Carolina; Continental Congress
Episodes
4

On June 13, 1777, the nineteen-year-old French officer Lafayette landed on North Island near Georgetown, South Carolina, after a transatlantic voyage aboard the Victoire to volunteer for the Continental Army, whose forces were led by General George Washington.

Episodes

  1. December 7, 1776 · Paris negotiationsEnlistment by Silas Deane

    After negotiations between American agents and the French court, Silas Deane enlisted Lafayette as a major general on December 7, 1776.

  2. March 25 – April 26, 1777 · Pauillac, on the GirondeVoyage Aboard the Victoire

    Lafayette joined the Victoire, which sailed from Pauillac on the Gironde and departed for America on April 26, 1777.

  3. June 13, 1777 · North Island, near Georgetown, South CarolinaLanding Near Georgetown

    Lafayette landed on North Island near Georgetown, South Carolina, on June 13, 1777, arriving to serve the American cause.

  4. July 31, 1777 · Continental CongressCongressional Commission

    After Lafayette offered to serve without pay, Congress commissioned him a major general on July 31, 1777.

Background and detail

Background. Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier, Marquis de La Fayette, known in the United States as Lafayette, was a French military officer who volunteered to join the Continental Army under General George Washington in the American Revolutionary War. In September 1775 he received a captaincy in the Dragoons, and during late 1775 he became convinced that the American Revolution reflected his own beliefs, saying "My heart was dedicated".

Voyage and Landing. American agents, including Silas Deane, negotiated with Louis XVI's court, and on December 7, 1776, Deane enlisted Lafayette as a major general. Lafayette sailed from Pauillac on the Victoire, which departed for America on April 26, 1777, and he landed on North Island near Georgetown, South Carolina, on June 13, 1777.

Georgetown Setting. Georgetown, the third-oldest city in South Carolina and the county seat of Georgetown County in the Lowcountry, sits on Winyah Bay at the confluence of the Black, Great Pee Dee, Waccamaw, and Sampit rivers. During the Revolution the area's planter Thomas Lynch Jr. signed the Declaration of Independence.

People involved

  • Marquis de Lafayette · French officer landing to volunteer for the Continental Army
  • Silas Deane · American agent who enlisted Lafayette as a major general

Sources

  1. Marquis de Lafayette Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-28
  2. Georgetown, South Carolina Wikipedia, revision of 2026-09-02

Machine-drafted from the cited Wikipedia passages and checked by a reviewing model, not by a human editor. Every passage cites the revision it was written from; dates and places follow those passages.