The Marquis de Lafayette, who fought for the American independence and revisited the United States fifty years later, wrote "I w
ould never have drawn my sword in the cause of America if I could have conceived that thereby I was founding a land of slavery." 1. What might Lafayette have seen in 1824 America that would impel him to make such a statement?
Lafayette might have seen the extent to which slavery was practiced.
Explanation:
Marquis de Lafayette was a French military officer who commanded American troops during the America Revolutionary War, and returned back to France after the war.
On the invitation of President James Monroe and the United States Congress, Lafayette came back to the United States in 1824 to celebrate its upcoming 50th anniversary. During his visit, he was dissatisfied and disappointed when he found out that slavery existed in the parts of America that he visited; sights of slavery would have impelled him to make the statement.
