Toulouse: correspondence from the Marquis Lafayette at auction
On November 4, the Hôtel des Ventes Suduca found at auction at the Crédit Municipal de Toulouse, an exceptional lot of correspondence from the letters of the Marquis Lafayette to his friend from Toulouse.
“A whole correspondence of the Marquis and General Lafayette, written by his hand during his last trip to the United States aboard the Cadmus, between 1824 and 1825”, details Guillaume Suduca, auctioneer. Named a general at 19 by Georges Washington, Lafayette played a major role in the United States’ war of independence against Great Britain. Nicknamed “Hero of Two Worlds”, he became one of the eight honorary citizens of the United States. In France, he is one of the great personalities of the French Revolution with the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen.
A historical testimony
“It is therefore a major historical testimony which recounts his intimate correspondence with his great friend, Jean-Pierre Pagès, encyclopaedist and politician from Ariège. Lafayette details his good humor, the testimonies of benevolence he receives from the authorities. He also sometimes describes his seasickness and marvels at the Cadmus, “a superb vessel, on which we travel with pleasure between a mixture of discipline and gentleness specific to sailors from a truly free country”. Found at a private home in Toulouse where she had been sleeping for decades, this correspondence is estimated between 20,000 and 25,000 € but could go for much more. “It could be acquired by a collector, American dealers, or even a university”, remarks Guillaume Suduca.