ALS in French, signed “Lafayette,” one page, 6 x 7.5, no date [postmarked September 20, 1833]. Lafayette writes to Mlle. Cecelia de la Norinière. In part (translated): “It would have been a great pleasure for me to see you during the Paris Festival in July, but I can absolutely not be there.... My celebration this year is limited to the mournful service of my community in honor of the brave men who gave their lives for a more powerful freedom than that of the golden mean, and a visit to the rural military dance at Rosay. I am a town person only when called by official business…. I am surrounded by part of my family; however, it has become so numerous that it is difficult to reunite them completely. In a few months I am expecting the birth of my twelfth grandchild. The eyes of my grandchild Jules, which he was close to losing completely at Oporto, are slowly healing…. We are assured that he will be neither blind nor one-eyed, and this is a great relief for us.” Lafayette may very well be referring to honoring those who gave their lives in the French Revolution of 1830, which saw the overthrow of King Charles X, and the ascent of his cousin Louis-Philippe. The integral address leaf remains intact. Matted with a color print to an overall size of 17 x 25. A touch of very subtle soiling and wrinkling, and a small hole to address leaf, otherwise fine condition. An attractive, clearly penned example. RRAuction COA. Oversized.
