French statesman and military officer (1757–1834) who became an intimate associate of George Washington and who advanced the American cause on both sides of the Atlantic. Though he espoused many of the principles behind the French Revolution while advocating a limited monarchy, extremist elements in the French Assembly declared him a traitor, whereupon he was jailed for five years. In 1824–1825 he revisited America, where he was hailed as a hero and granted a generous stipend and parcel of land. Attractive partly-printed DS, in French, signed “Lafayette,” one page, 11.25 x 10.75, October 23, 1790. A certificate of enrollment for Jean Baptiste Dougoin in the Fifth Company, Third Battalion of the Sixth Division of the French national volunteer infantry. Signed at the bottom in black ink by Lafayette, and countersigned by several other officers. Double matted and framed with a seated portrait of Lafayette and a biographical plaque, to an overall size of 28.5 x 23. Intersecting folds, one through a single letter of signature, and scattered light soiling and wrinkling, otherwise fine condition.
Written shortly after the start of the French Revolution, the National Guard was committed to defending Paris and to the revolution itself. Men like Lafayette and those under his command, like Dougoin, also played a role in turning members of the French army to their cause. French soldiers, swayed by the ideas of equality and liberty, began to resent the monarchy and became less willing to put down public uprisings when the arguments were political in nature. French soldiers, through contact with members of the Lafayette’s militia and French citizens, became committed to the revolution, at times to the point of mutiny. This certificate was granted not only during a period of reorganization within the French armed forces, but within the nation itself. RRAuction COA.
