In the spring of 1824, American Citizens were aglow with fireworks and their citizens hoarse with cheering. The occasion was the triumphal tour of the aged Marquis de Lafayette, who had won the affection of Americans everywhere.

This "homecoming" made a strange contrast to Lafayette's first visit to the same shores, 47 years before. Then he had been a shy sensitive youth, sadly disillusioned by the suppression of freedom in his native France.

In the American Declaration of Independence he had recognized a promise of the freedom he loved. Accordingly, he had pledged his honor, his great fortune and his sword to the cause of the American Revolution.

In The Marquis de Lafayette, Bright Sword for Freedom, Hodding Carter tells the dramatic story of the Frenchman who defied his king to fight for man's freedom. It is a glowing picture of the young rebel who fought for liberty on two continents and became a hero of all freedom-loving peoples.

From the dust jacket