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== Views on slavery ==
Washington and Lafayette were both slaveowners who came to view [[slavery]] with repugnance.{{Fact|date=February 2007}} Lafayette urged Washington to free his slaves as an example to others—Washington was held in such high regard after the revolution that there was reason to hope that if he freed his slaves, others would follow his example. Lafayette purchased an estate in [[French Guiana]] and settled his own slaves there, and he offered a place for Washington's slaves, writing "I would never have drawn my sword in the cause of America if I could have conceived thereby that I was founding a land of slavery." Nevertheless, Washington did not free his own slaves in his lifetime. It must be understood, however that most of the slaves on Washington's estate were actually acquired from his wife's estate and he did not have the right to free her slaves. Documentation and letters in his [[Mount Vernon (plantation)|Mount Vernon]] residence do show, however, that his wish after his death was for all slaves he owned be freed, and Washington's last will and testament provided accordingly. Martha Washington, however, freed her slaves late in her own lifetime
== French Revolution ==
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