La Rochefoucauld-Liancourt, François:

$2,500 · Offered by William Reese Company · No longer available

VOYAGE DANS LES ÉTATS-UNIS D'AMÉRIQUE, FAIT EN 1795, 1796 ET 1797. An important narrative of travel in the United States and Canada in the last decade of the 18th century. The Duc de La Rochefoucauld-Liancourt was a liberal monarchist in the court of Louis XVI, as well as a philanthropist and agricultural enthusiast. He shortly served as president of the National Assembly before fleeing France during the Revolution, inheriting the Rochefoucauld title from his cousin, who was murdered by insurgents during the September Massacres. Coming to Philadelphia in 1794, he travelled overland to Upper Canada, and spent much of his stay there. During his time in Canada, Liancourt visited Niagara Falls and Toronto, and was hosted by Lieutenant Governor John Simcoe. Though, as relayed in the present work, his found his host generous and his policies liberal and fair, he also cast certain doubts on the Lieutenant Governor's ability to carry them out as planned and felt that Canada should be made independent, leading to a cool relationship between the two men in the future. In the United States, he traveled from New York south to Georgia, staying a week with a somewhat reluctant Thomas Jefferson at Monticello. His travels also took him to Savannah, Charleston, and around Maryland to the site of the future capital of Washington. Liancourt further describes travels in New Jersey and his stay in New York, commenting throughout on American law, culture, and particularly agriculture. After return

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