A distinguished hero of the American Revolutionary War, one of the drafters of France's Declaration of the Rights of Man Amid the storms that swept across the Atlantic in the 18th and 19th centuries, the Marquis de Lafayette linked two continents and two revolutions, earning the title "Hero of Two Worlds". His life was like lightning across the ocean, joining the fight for American independence with the dawn of French liberty. Born into a noble family in Auvergne, France, Lafayette embraced Enlightenment ideals from a young age. When the American Revolution broke out, he spent his own fortune, defied the king's orders, and sailed west. At Valley Forge, he shared the hardship of the Continental Army; at Yorktown, he fought beside Washington and Rochambeau, helping secure the final victory that gave birth to the United States. When revolution came to France, Lafayette was chosen as Commander-in-Chief of the National Guard. He helped draft the Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, wove the red and blue of Paris with the white of the