Two Statues of Jefferson

"Every man has two countries, his own and France." This was the emphatic declaration of Thomas Jefferson, ambassador to France from 1785 to 1789. As president, he introduced the White House to Bordeaux wines, ice cream, and French fries. This hardly prevented him from criticizing the “dissolute morals” of the French; as ambassador, he had frequented only the court and libertine salons. During the same period, Lafayette consulted with him on the formulation of what would become the French Declaration of the Rights of Man and of the Citizen, which was largely inspired by the American Declaration of Independence. It was fitting that Paris should honor Jefferson, which finally happened in 2006, with a bronze statue in the traditional style, sponsored by the Florence Gould Foundation. Striking a classic pose, Jefferson looks to the horizon, a quill pen in his right hand and a plan of his Virginia residence in the other. One could not blame the casual sightseer for missing this monument tucked away along the Seine. I confess I had walked by it without noticing it, or asking myself whom it represented. Read Full Article »