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Siege of Yorktown

Louis-Marie, Vicomte de Noailles, in 1798. A portrait by Gilbert Stuart of Philadelphia.

How the French won the American Revolution

Global Politics

There might be no Fourth of July holiday without the French. Their help was vital to the winning of the War for Independence, and the survival of the early republic. The tragic story of one French aristocrat illustrates that relationship. And it’s not Lafayette!There might be no Fourth of July holiday without the French. Their help was vital to the winning of the War for Independence, and the survival of the early republic. The tragic story of one French aristocrat illustrates that relationship. And it’s not Lafayette!

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