An iconic oil painting of the British surrender at Yorktown, now hanging in the U.S. Capitol Rotunda, perfectly captures the partnership. As the grim, resigned British general at the picture’s center prepares to hand over his sword, he is flanked on one side by an array of Americans, underneath a waving Stars and Stripes flag—and on the other by French officers and volunteers, beneath the white and gold banner of France’s Bourbon monarchs.
Explanation:
Artist John Trumbull’s decision to portray the two forces as equal combatants against the British signals how much America’s founding fathers owed to the French in their battle for independence. The decision by Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier (better known as the Marquis de Lafayette) to leave France and enlist with George Washington’s forces is well-known to many. But Lafayette was only a prelude to massive French support, the forerunner of a deep relationship that proved vital to the revolution’s success. Here are five ways the French helped Americans win their freedom.
