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Secondary sourceBook1920

The Boys' Life of Lafayette

Helen Nicolay · 1920

A 1920 biography of Lafayette written for young American readers.

A biography written to introduce young American readers to Lafayette's role in the Revolutionary War.

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The Boys' Life of LafayettePDF · 348 pages
Helen Nicolay, The Boys' Life of Lafayette, 1920. Scanned book, Internet Archive.

About this source

What it is

This book, written by Helen Nicolay (credited here with Rupert Sargent Holland material) and published around 1920-1922, tells the story of Lafayette's life for young readers. It draws on earlier material and adds new chapters about Lafayette's adventures in America, from the arrival of the French fleet under Rochambeau to the surrender of Cornwallis at Yorktown.

Why it matters

Books written specifically for children, like this one, show how Lafayette's story was passed down as an inspiring tale for younger generations in the early twentieth century, decades after France and America had fought together in World War I.

Look closer

  • Why would a children's book choose to focus on Lafayette's adventures rather than dry facts and dates?
  • How might a book written for boys in the 1920s present Lafayette differently than a scholarly biography?
  • What does the popularity of Lafayette biographies for children tell you about his lasting reputation?

This book is part of the curated material that grounds the AI version of Marquis de Lafayette on Humy.ai — when students ask about related events, the AI can quote it and cite it.

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